论宋以来北方人口素质的下降

On the Decline of Northern Population Quality since the Song Dynasty

宋代以来经济重心南移之后,北方地区既失去了劳动人口的数量优势,在人口质量方面也呈现下降趋势,至明清两代更为明显。通过与南方的比较看出,主要表现在文化水平的落后,思想观念的陈旧,精神的萎靡与懒惰。以绝望的心态面对穷困的经济状况,以消极的态度对待生产,丧失了信心和再开发能力。片面重农却是粗放耕作,造成产业结构性的贫困,既无开展副业、手工业的技术,更不善于或不屑于从事商业,改造客观世界的能力低下。人口素质的下降是宋以来北方社会经济落后与衰退的一个重要原因。

The north region lost its quantity predominance of labor population since the economic center had shifted to the south in the Song Dynasty, meanwhile, its quality of population, which embodies in laggard culture, obsolete idea ,spiritual listlessness and indolence comparing with the south , also tends to decline. The case is more evident by the period of the Ming and Qing Dynasties,. The northerners face the poor economic conditions desperately and treat the production with passive attitude lacking confidence and the ability of re-exploitation. They attach one-sided importance to agriculture and adopt the method of extensive cultivation, which resulted in poor industry structure. The decline of population quality is one of the most important reason that caused the slow development in social economics in the North since the Song Dynasty.