In societies where surnames are inherited from parents, we can use these names to estimate rates of intergenerational mobility. This paper explains how to make such estimates, and illustrates their use in pre-industrial England and modern Chile and India. These surname estimates have the...

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- 1. Introduction: Of Ruling Classes and Underclasses: Th e Laws of Social Mobility -- PART I. Social Mobility by Time and Place -- 2. Sweden: Mobility Achieved? -- 3. The United States: Land of Opportunity -- 4. Medieval England: Mobility in the Feudal Age --...

This paper measures social mobility rates in Hungary 1949-2017, for upper class and underclass families, using surnames to measure social status. In these years there were two very different social regimes. The first was the Hungarian People’s Republic, 1949-1989, a Communist regime with an...

This paper measures social mobility rates in Hungary 1949-2017, for upper class and underclass families, using surnames to measure social status. In these years there were two very different social regimes. The first was the Hungarian People's Republic, 1949-1989, a Communist regime with an...