ABSTRACT
The history of migration in France is emerging from two decades of focused and dedicated scholarship. French scholars have published overviews of internal migration in France (Courgeau 1970, 1982b, Pitié 1971), fine analyses of the ‘rural exodus’ (Merlin 1971), and a masterful account of the evolution of temporary migration (Châtelain 1976). The timing and mechanisms of departures from rural areas and, in a general way, the links between population concentration and the shift from proto-industrialization to factory industry are familiar (see, for example, Béteille 1974, Pinchemel 1957, Poitrineau 1983). The rise and decline of temporary and seasonal migration are better understood than they were ten years ago. We know the outcome of these migrations, a rather faceless population concentration and urbanization. Understanding of the logic and process of migration, however, lags far behind the relatively clear view of net migration flows and population redistribution.
