Abstract
This paper describes and criticizes myths about the scale and causes of fertility differentials between Hindus and Muslims in India. These ideas, associated with Hindu nationalist organizations, also have a more general common-sense quality. The paper challenges these views by examining how demographers have addressed Hindu-Muslim fertility differences, considering the impact of regional differences, variations in socioeconomic position, and occupation. We further suggest that these elaborate statistical analyses on large-scale data sets are not readily sensitive to local-level variations. Our micro-level research findings are used to illuminate both Hindu Right political rhetoric and the limitations of macro-level demographic analyses. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1805-1822 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | World Development |
Volume | 30 |
Issue number | 10 |
Publication status | Published - Oct 2002 |
Keywords
- Asia
- India
- demography
- religion
- fertility
- politics
- BIJNOR
- HINDUS
- RIOTS
- DIFFERENTIALS
- VIOLENCE
- RELIGION
- STATE
- WOMEN