Quote Originally Posted by mark_t View Post
In our case we suffered loses in the last war so my olds wanted a big family as he was the last in the family.
that's why older generations have big families

coz the socio-economic-political environment in the past was hostile

family members were lost to disease or violence

having lots of kids ensures continuity of bloodline

it was common for parents to see some of their offspring not make it to adulthood

as healthcare improved (vaccines, hygiene, nutrition, medicine), less people died prematurely

fewer children are lost to childhood diseases

post-war, less people are lost to violence

so now, there's less need for big families to ensure continuity of bloodline