ABSTRACT
The !Kung recognize that pregnancy is the result of sexual intercourse. This chapter focuses on the levels of fertility achieved by the !Kung women who have completed their childbearing period. Fertility is generally easier to measure than mortality. It considers only the women's fertility and their behavior during the age range 15–49. It is unavoidable that age estimates are more insecure when the births occurred in the distant past. The duration of the childbearing period is clearly an important factor in understanding differences between women in reproductive success. Since first birth is a unique event, the chapter analyzes the experience for the cohort by computing a life table. secondary sterility refers to women who have had a child in the past but who have stopped reproduction before age 50. While we cannot afford to be uncritical of any of the evidence available, the histories provided by the usually cooperative 62 women past childbearing age provide our clearest window into the fertility of the !Kung.
