The Nordic countries have some of the world’s richest historical population records spanning centuries. These records provide unique insights into how societies have changed over time, including patterns of migration, family life, health, and inequality. Across the Nordic region, leading research institutions in historical and modern demography have developed cross-sectional and longitudinal databases in the field of demography that serve as the foundation for international research in population dynamics, social change and epidemiology.
Despite the existence of leading research institutions in the Nordic countries that work with data that include information on entire populations over a period of decades or even centuries, there are few examples of infrastructures that link people across national borders. This will be the main challenge of this project. It brings together experts from leading universities, research centers, and national archives from all five Nordic countries along strategic international partners from Canada and the USA, to build a cooperative platform for data sharing, training, and methodological development. Our partners in Canada and the USA have a long standing experience in creating and disseminating population data and will contribute with knowledge and tools for record linkage harmonization and dissemination of population data.
The central aim of the hub is to share knowledge on the creation of databases, automated transcription of data, classification systems, dissemination of data and – above all – record linkage. Particular emphasis will thus be placed on developing tools for linking individuals both within and across national borders, thereby enabling new insights into demographic trends, family and household formation, migration, and social mobility over time. NordHistPop will provide infrastructure and research opportunities for researchers, students, archivists, data scientists and programmers through workshops, hackathon meetings and summer-courses. By connecting Nordic resources and expertise, NordHistPop will support research and make valuable data available for scholars, institutions, and the public across the Nordic region and beyond.
