Distribution of large families in Russia and in the Vologda oblast

This article analyzes the distribution of large families in Russia and in the Northwestern Federal District. The authors focus in more detail on the analysis of this phenomenon in the Vologda Oblast. They use the example of the Oblast municipal districts to show what changes occurred since 2002 in the amount of households that are officially recognized as having many children. The analysis is performed on the basis of the data of population censuses of 2002 and 2010. It is revealed that there are not many large families in the region: the proportion of households consisting of five, six or more people is just over 5%. The average number of household members is 2.4 people as well as in the rest of the regions in the NWFD, but it is less than the national average. The article points out that the decrease in the proportion of poor families with many children in the Vologda Oblast municipalities is a positive result of recent years.