La diffusione del colera in Umbria nel secolo XIX e l’impatto sull’assetto demografico

The spread of cholera in Umbria in the nineteenth century and its impact on the demographic structure Contrarily to other Italian regions, in Umbria it is difficult to find appropriate sources of demographic information. Through careful archival research, it was possible to trace the documentation required to obtain a clear view on the characteristics of the cholera epidemic of 1855. To summarize, the population of the provinces of Perugia, Spoleto and Orvieto counted less than 400.000 inhabitants. Therefore, about half of the population which resided in the infected towns was potentially hit by the 1855 cholera epidemic, which struck between 3.600 and 4.000 people and caused approximately 1.700-1.800 deaths, with morbidity and mortality rates much lower than those of other Italian regions. The low involvement of the Umbrian population in the nineteenth century cholera epidemics can be partly imputed to its local geomorphology, the weather conditions, the type of settlements and the poor mobility. The mortality crises caused by such biological discontinuity did not produce significant effects on the growth and the structure of the population. Regarding the age structure of the population involved, it seems apparent (also from other national sources) that cholera had the tendency of leading to death when affecting old people and had less impact on children and young.