The Influence of the Liturgical Calendar on the Seasonality of Conception in Early Modern Poland and Silesia

Abstract

In the article, I discuss the seasonality of marriages, conceptions and first conceptions in early modern communities from the territory of present-day Poland. I looked for the influence of the Catholic liturgical calendar there. The source basis was the data published so far in the literature. The analysis shows that church restrictions forced the faithful to marry in the months immediately before Lent and Advent. This resulted in an increase in post-marital sexual activity during the period when abstinence was recommended. This conclusion weakens the notion that the Catholic Church controlled the daily lives of early modern Polish inhabitants.

Keywords

• liturgical calendar
• conception seasonality
• marriage seasonality
• parish registers
• church regulations
• sexual abstinence