Małżeństwa Żydów w Piotrkowie Trybunalskim w latach 1808–1870

The article is the first part of statistical analysis of marriage records of Jewish people from Piotrków Trybunalski for the period of 1808–1870. The author rises issues related to the age of entering into a marriage taking into consideration: social and economic factors, permanent celibacy, prospective spouses’ origins, seasonality, and remarriage patterns. One of the most significant conclusions is the age of concluding a marriage which is the first one for both parties, it is assigned about 20 for women and 22 for men – distinctly lower than in non-Jewish urban communities in the 19th century, like in Piotrków Trybunalski. The author points out diversity in matrimonial customs among Jewish communities of Poland of that time. The statistical evidence from Piotrków Trybunalski does not provide full explanation of the observed differences. Both frequent marriages of widowers with single women, and the duration of widowhood among the group being studied fit into a model investigated in other (non-Jewish) communities, and are contrary to traditional Judaism recommendations.