Illegitimacy

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Glossary Term

Illegitimacy was the status given to children born as a result of an out of wedlock, or ex-nuptial, pregnancy. The term illegitimate replaced the even more pejorative term 'bastard' to describe these children. The social stigma surrounding illegitimacy was a factor behind many children being relinquished by unmarried mothers, or being placed in out-of-Home 'care'. Attitudes to children born from ex-nuptial pregnancies started to shift from around the 1960s in Australia. This shift was later accompanied in more social security and childcare options for single mothers.