!!!Volkszählung

Census: The first population census ("description of souls" 
as it was called then) in the Habsburg Lands was conducted in 1754 by 
the clerical and secular authorities. After 1769 no full censuses were 
conducted due to growing resistance from the aristocracy and the 
church, but only conscriptions mainly designed to record males fit for 
military service. Under the Census Law of 1857 only one census was 
conducted in the same year. The law of 1869 marks the beginning of 
modern censuses in Austria; it governed the censuses of the years 
1869, 1880, 1890, 1900 and 1910. From 1890 onward the censuses were 
analysed by the Central Statistical Commission by means of census 
papers and electrical counting machines. An "extraordinary" census was 
taken in 1920, while "regular" censuses were taken in 1923 (not fully 
evaluated) and in 1934. Since1951 censuses have been taken every ten 
years. A census determines the number and structure of the inhabitants 
of a specific area, and provides the basis for the distribution of 
mandates in the Nationalrat (National Council) to the electoral 
districts and for distribution of tax income to the Federal Provinces 
and the municipalities in the context of  Revenue Sharing 
(Finanzausgleich). The present legal basis is the Census Law, Federal 
Law Gazette (Bundesgesetzblatt, BGBl.) Nr. 199/1980. The 
municipalities are responsible for conducting censuses and are obliged 
to inform the federal authorities of the results. The results of a 
census are also published by the Austrian Central Statistical Office.

!Literature
H. Helczmanovszky (ed.), Beitraege zur Bevoelkerungs- und 
Sozialgeschichte Oesterreichs, 1973.


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