The Spanish labor market at the end of the nineteenth century: new evidence from the census of 1887

Abstract This article offers new data on women and men’s occupations in Spain at the end of the nineteenth century. Our main source is the Censo de la Población de España 1887, which we combine with other sources to correct for women’s under-recording (different statistics and social reports). The main occupations of men and women based on the 1887 census are identified. By combining demographic data with other sources, we correct the under-recording of women’s work and show women’s high labor participation rates—more than 50 percent—in different judicial districts specialized in food processing, textiles, tobacco, and footwear industries. Furthermore, we provide a spatial analysis of the distribution of women’s employment.