When did it become socially acceptable to have a baby without being married?

[Lambsandchicks]

1990s? Or before that? Any history/sociology experts around?

I had Ds out of marriage in 93.

No one cares then

Mid to late 80s I reckon.

cared

Sil had dn in 81. No one really cared then either

Well it wasn't in 1960 when my mother married in an empire line gown and her parents rented her and my father a house in Brighton for a year to put distance between the family and the shame.

I'm guessing early 80s. Before that it was covered up.

I had dd outside of marriage in 2004

I think 1980s.

I suppose it depends, do you mean as a choice in a stable relationship? Or as a single mother where it wasn't the end of the world anymore?

I think it started in early 80s. I had a baby out of wedlock in the 70s. It was somewhat looked down on, but in my smallish office of 20 or so staff, there were three of us. So not that rare

I think around 1990. I had my first DC in 1988 and the scan lady asked if I was having my baby adopted.

80s.

Both, I suppose. People were so incredibly cruel about illegitimate children once, and I wondered if WW2 was the turning point but it seems women were forced to give babies up for adoption if they were unmarried right up to the 70s/80s. And I suppose you wouldn’t go from that to no one caring if you were married or not. I’ve been reading a book where the main character is quizzed about whether she is married or not when she goes to claim benefits - I think it’s set early 80s.

I was born in 1980 and a few of my friends had divorced parents.

I was born in 1988 to unmarried parents. It was certainly unusually still - in school I was the only one in my class who's parents were unmarried and school would always call my mum "Mrs" by default - but I didn't feel any stigma. Just that it was a bit different.

I had my first 1990 ...no one batted an eyelid

Sorry - was answering @Sweetmotherofallthatisholyabov

1980s.

I'd also say late 80s+

I had this conversation with my dc a few years ago. I was born in the late 60s and there were 2 girls in my class of 25 who had been adopted at birth, after their teenage birth mothers became pregnant. By the time I was in 6th form, 17 years later, it was frowned on to have your baby adopted if you became pregnant. You either terminated or kept it. In 1986 one of my (unmarried) friends gave her baby up for adoption and everyone I knew was appalled.

Early 80s.

I’d love to see a graph on the incidence of this crossed with average cost of a wedding and/or cost of living!

Also regional differences would be interesting too.

I was an unmarried mother in 1980 and was asked in the delivery ward if I was keeping the baby. It was slightly looked down on but becoming less unusual. That was in London, it might have been worse in smaller towns.

I do remember a pair of brothers starting at my primary school whose parents - gasp - weren't married (though very much together) and it was definitely a talking point for the mums, which we obviously all heard about. That was about 1987

Probably 1990's;when my then 16 year aunt got pregnant in 1981 with a married mans baby her family practically arranged a marriage for her to someone connected to the family who probably wouldn't have ever have gotten married otherwise.

I imagine it varied quite a bit by part of the country. I can see it becoming more socially acceptable in London some years before a tiny village in the Highlands, for example. I left school in the mid 80s (town in central Scotland - big comprehensive school) and knew literally not one person whose parents were even divorced, never mind someone having a child outside of marriage. It seems ludicrous now.

I had dc at 18 out of marriage in 92 and it was most definitely frowned upon by a lot of people still then :(

Even the mw at the hospital refused to call me anything but Mrs.X with a disdainful frown upon her face