A
females. In Iceland this difference is due solely to a higher death-rate
among males than females. The struggle with nature has often proved
comparatively as destructive to human life as war, when whole crews
have been drowned in a single day. Formerly the surplus of women
was still greater, as e. g. in 1801, when to every 1000 males there
were 1192 females. This number in 1880 had fallen to 1123, and since
‘hen there has been a steady decline.
If the population is classed according to age, the census of 1920
gives the following figures:
Under 20 years . . . . . . . . . . 42,6 p.c.
Between 20 and 60 years (productive age) 46.9 —
Over 60 years. . . . « ® 3 10.3
If persons 15—20 years old and those aged 60—70 are included in
the productive-age class, the figure of 62.6 per cent. of an able-bodied
age is arrived at.
Married and unmarried persons over 20 years of age were as fol-
ows (census 1920): Males Females
Unmarried . . . . . 38.4 p.c. 38.3 p.c.
Married . 54.1 — 37.3 —
Widowed 5.6 — 13.5 —
Divorced 09 0.9 --
100.0 p.c. 100.0 p.-.
Since 1880 there has been a comparative increase in the number
of marriages. Married males and females over 20 years old were then
48.2 p. c. and 39.9 p. c. respectively. In 1920 the number of married
males had risen to 54.1 p. c., that of females to 47.3 p. ¢. The number
of married persons in Iceland as compared with the number of the
population is, however, still lower than in other European countries
(except Ireland), and marriages are not so frequent, if we leave out of
account a little increase during the Great War and the years im-
mediately following. The average annual number of marriages per
1000 of population is as follows:
1876—1885
1886—1895
1896—1905
1906 —1915
19161920
1921 ~ 1925
1926 . .
1927
1928