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One of three 17-year-olds live with one parent
statistikk
2006-09-21T10:00:00.000Z
Population
en
barn, Children, children at home, parents' cohabitation arrangements, single parents, step parents, siblings (for example brother/sister), half brother/sister and step brother/sister, only childChildren, families and households, Population
false

Children, 1 January 2005

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One of three 17-year-olds live with one parent

Amongst children less than one year old, only one of ten does not live with both parents. The percentage of children living with only one parent increases with the age of the children. Amongst the seventeen-year-olds, one of three live only with their mother or their father.

Yet all these 17-year-olds do not live with only one adult in the family. 40 per cent of those who are living with only one parent also live with a step-parent. Thus, amongst the children 17 years old, only slightly over 20 per cent live in a family with one adult.

Children by age and family conditions. 1 January 2005

Few 17-year-olds with cohabitating parents

40 per cent of the children less than one year old live with cohabitating parents. This percentage decreases gradually as the children grow older. Amongst children seventeen years old, only 4 percent live with cohabitating parents. There are several reasons for this. Seventeen years ago it was more common for parents to get married instead of living together in a consensual union. Furthermore, some parents decide to get married after some years in a consensual union. Finally, some children experience parents moving apart.

Fewer children with married parents

Since the statistics on children was published for the first time in 1989, the percentage of children aged 0-17 years old living with both parents has decreased from 82 to 75 per cent. The decrease for children living with both parents married is even greater, from 78 to 59 per cent. This is related to the fact that more children live with cohabitating parents today than in 1989.

The percentage living with parents that are married is lowest amongst children less than one year old. Only half in this age group live with married parents. The percentage increases gradually to 60 per cent for the 4-year-olds. As from then the percentage stabilises on 60 per cent for the age groups 5 years and above.

887 800 children live with siblings

In total, 82 per cent of all children in Norway were living with siblings at 1 January 2005. 44 per cent had one sibling, 28 per cent had two siblings, and 10 per cent had three or more siblings. 18 per cent, or 190 000 children aged 0-17 years were living alone with their parents.

Children are in the child statistics defined as persons 0-17 years old registered as living with at least one of the parents at their legal address. Persons aged 0-17 who are married, who have their own children, or who have moved away from the family home are excluded.

Siblings comprises biological, half, and step siblings. Only siblings living at the same address and in the same household as the child itself are included.

The figures are based on Statistics Norway’s newly developed family- and household statistics. The statistics for 2005 is, as for previous years, based on legal resident address on 1 January. The present statistics on families and households are based on more comprehensive data and new methods of data processing. Because of this the figures hereby presented are not directly comparable with previously published statistics on children. Because the new family statistics also includes cohabitants without common children, the new child statistics will show more children that live with two adults in the family, and not only a single mother or a single father. From this follows that the new child statistics also will show more children living with step siblings and fewer children without siblings.

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