Ljudi, kuća i baština: promjene u strukturi jedne konavoske obitelji
People, House, and Farmland: Changes in Structure of a Konavle Family

Summary/Abstract: The Čeović family from the Konavle region was first mentioned in the parochial register of the Pridvorje parish in the 18th century. The family has remained small and retained a simple structure from the late 18th until the 20th century. It usually consisted of two married couples, grandparents, parents and middle generation children. In the beginning of the 20th century the family extended horizontally with a structure similar to the French multiple family frérèches. By the mid-20th century the family split into three simple families, each with a single nucleus consisting of parent(s) and child(ren). On the basis of parochial registers and oral testimonies of the two living Čeović descendants a partial family tree is constructed. Six marriages took place among the male descendants in the period of a hundred years. The age of marriage, the number of children and the circumstances of marriage are discussed. All marriages have been virilocal and fertile. The family structure has been presented schematically for the chosen years in order to show its changes over time. The family house has been described as well as the adaptations of the use of space due to the changing family needs. The Čeović were the serfs of the well known Klaić family also from Konavle. On the basis of a sales contract the (re)purchase of the "baština", family farmland, is described. The capital needed for the purchase of the land has been provided by one of the brothers who lived and worked in America for several years. The circumstances of the final division of the farmland are discussed. The possible interconnection between biological growth, economic potential and changes of the family structure are pointed out.

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