From one generation to the next

711610 infants were born in France in 1993. 52.2% of the mothers were 25-31 years old. In 1966 by contrast 860242 infants were born and 55.3% of the mothers were 20-28 years old. Fertility declined between 1966 and 1993 while maternal age increased and women had shorter periods of childbearing. The total fertility rate declined from 2.79 in 1966 to 1.65 in 1993. The age-specific fertility rate exceeded 100 for women 25-31 years old in 1993 while it did so for women 20-32 years old in 1966. The number of deaths of children under 1 year old declined from 15490 in 1966 and 14400 in 1967 to 4604 in 1993. The corresponding infant mortality rates were 21.7 and 20.7/1000 live births in 1966 and 1967 and 6.5 in 1993. 1.9% of births in 1966 and 2.6% in 1993 were multiple. The proportion of births to foreign mothers increased from 7 to 11% between 1966 and 1993. The biggest change between 1966 and 1993 was in the marital status of mothers. 51182 of the 860242 infants born in 1966 (5.9%) were considered illegitimate while in 1993 248331 of the 711610 infants (34.9%) were classified as "natural". The number of legitimate births declined by 42.7% while the proportion of prenuptial conceptions declined from 22.6% to 11.2%. In 1966 the 339746 marriages exceeded the total of 36732 divorces 66194 deaths of wives and 164380 deaths of husbands. In 1993 the 255190 marriages fell short of the total of 110759 divorces 58802 deaths of wives and 162735 deaths of husbands. The proportion of persons 15 and older who were married declined from 61.8% in 1967 to 54.1% in January 1994. The number of illegitimate infants not recognized by the father was 17000 (among 51000) in 1965 and 20000 (among 242000) in 1991.