Recording births
Before the 19th century, dates of birth were not officially noted, although baptisms occasionally were. England began keeping parish records of births, deaths and marriages in 1538 but this wasn't implemented for the entire population until the Registration Act of 1836.
The first British census in 1801 didn't record age, and age wasn't introduced as a question until the 1831 census - even then it wasn't mandatory to actually answer this question. It wasn't until the 1851 census that people had to record their precise age.
In the 1841 Census a policy of rounding down ages was in place. As such, people aged:
15-19 were recorded as 15
20-24 were recorded as 20
25-29 were recorded as 25
30-34 were recorded as 30
35-39 were recorded as 35...and so on
1841 was the first time that the head of each household was given a form to fill in on behalf of everyone in the dwelling on a set day. This system still forms the basis of the method used today.
The 1841 census was taken on the night of 6 June 1841 and gave the total population as 18,553,124.
It's a pity that until 1841 copies of censuses were not kept as no use could be thought of for them - and even some of the 1841 census was destroyed.
1851 censuses onwards had far more information included, such as the correct age of people and also where they were born. In the 1841 census it was 'here' or 'not here'.
Interesting: http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/year9links/industrial/population.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Census_in_the_United_Kingdom
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_Kingdom_censuses gives dates when census actually took place, which is interesting for at least two reasons:
- The age of an ancestor can be determined more easily from this information but it's still important to take any ages given with a pinch of salt (especially for 'ladies of a certain age').
- Realising on what date the census occurred could give indication as to why some people may not be at their place of residence for the census - for instance it might be Easter, when they could be visiting family for the festival.
What is the purpose of having a census?
The main purpose of the census is to gain information on population development, population structure, households and living conditions.
It is typical for the census to gain information on the national perspective as well as information right down to parish level, on a specific date.
To a significant degree, this type of information is impossible to collect in any other way (information on population structure according to education, economic activity and nationality as well as on families and households', structure and quality of dwelling and housing stock, on commuting to work and school etc.).
The purpose of the census is to provide data on ourselves. It is not an activity for statisticians but for society. It shows us where we are as a nation and enables future planning.
Having said all this, so much information is gathered about us now electronically, via such items as driving licences, tax, electoral register that perhaps in the future it will no longer be relevant to hold a ten-yearly census.
Diagram: one of the purposes of the census was to help with future planning:
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