Seasonality of births in the Volhynian governorate at the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th century (based on the example of the Parish of the Dmitry church in the village of Biloshytsi, Ovruch county, Volhyniangovernorate)

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to study the patterns of influence exerted by church rituals, religious fasts, and agricultural cycles on the reproductive behavior of Ukrainian peasants in the late 19th – early 20th century (based on the example of the parish of the Dmitry church in the village of Biloshytsi, Ovruch County, Volhynian Governorate). The research methodology is grounded in an interdisciplinary approach that combines methods of social history, particularly microhistorical analysis, historical demography, and historical-anthropological analysis. The primary source is parish metric books, which allow the tracing of birth dynamics and seasonality. The scientific novelty lies in the attempt to interpret the demographic behavior of the Ukrainian peasantry based on parish metric records from the end of the 19th to the beginning of the 20th century, using the case of a specific parish (the Dmitry church in Biloshytsi village, Volhynian Governorate). This provides new insights into how religious factors influenced reproductive decisions among the population. Conclusions. The analysis of seasonal fluctuations in births in the village of Biloshytsi, Ovruch County, Volhynian Governorate revealed that the reproductive behavior of Ukrainian peasants at the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th century was largely determined by the agrarian calendar, whereas religious factors did not have a dominant influence on the sexual life of the peasantry. Although the Church remained an important social institution and retained authority in matters of marriage, its influence on the intimate life of peasants was limited. Thus, religious prohibitions on sexual relations during fasting periods did not determine the overall dynamics of birth rates. This suggests the existence of separate sociocultural dimensions – religious and corporeal – which often did not align. This mismatch led to various social consequences, including the formation of a double morality, where outward displays of religiosity and participation in rituals coexisted with private lives governed by other (often pragmatic) rules.