Internal migration is the driving force behind population re‐distribution within countries. Although internal migration has been extensively studied among adults, little is known about patterns in childhood migration, and even less so in a comparative manner. This study, therefore, adopts a child‐centred approach and contributes to the literature by exploring cross‐national changes in childhood migration across birth cohorts. Moreover, it examines how patterns of childhood migration relate to the postponement of childbearing. Drawing on retrospective residential histories from the SHARE survey, we analyzed childhood migration trajectories of 178,476 individuals born between 1935 and 1994 in 28 European countries. Cohort analyses confirm a country gradient in childhood migration, with the highest migration rates in Northern Europe and the lowest in Southeastern Europe. Nonetheless, across nearly all countries, childhood migration has consistently declined since the 1970s. Furthermore, when children relocate, it happens at increasingly younger ages. Finally, we find that these patterns are related to the increasing childbearing age across Europe. Our results thereby highlight the interplay between childhood migration and adult family life's changing dynamics, offering a novel perspective on the link between these two demographic components.

中文翻译：

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欧洲的童年内部移民：跨群体和国家的发展


国内移民是国家内部人口重新分配的驱动力。尽管对成年人的内部移徙进行了广泛的研究，但人们对儿童移徙的模式知之甚少，更不用说以比较的方式了解了。因此，本研究采用以儿童为中心的方法，并通过探索出生队列中儿童移民的跨国变化为文献做出贡献。此外，它还研究了儿童移民模式与推迟生育的关系。根据 SHARE 调查的回顾性居住历史，我们分析了 28 个欧洲国家 1935 年至 1994 年间出生的 178,476 人的童年移民轨迹。队列分析证实了儿童移民的国家梯度，北欧的移民率最高，东南欧最低。尽管如此，自 20 世纪 70 年代以来，几乎所有国家的儿童移民数量都持续下降。此外，当儿童搬迁时，其年龄越来越小。最后，我们发现这些模式与整个欧洲生育年龄的增加有关。因此，我们的研究结果强调了儿童移民与成年家庭生活动态变化之间的相互作用，为研究这两个人口组成部分之间的联系提供了新颖的视角。