Abstract
The publication deals with a topic that has not been presented in such a detail and scope in the Czech scientific literature so far - data sources and the construction of cohort life tables. Such tables can be regarded as a key but still rather unique tool not only for demographers, but also for actuaries, experts on social, health and pension policies, etc.
Cohort life tables represent an alternative to the traditionally published (period) life tables. While the period life tables are available for the vast majority of countries in the world (based on empirical data or at least expert estimates), for only a few of the demographically developed countries in the world the cohort tables have been constructed.
The necessary condition for construction of the cohort life tables is the existence of reliable time series of the demographic data long enough to cover one or more cohorts (generations) completely (at least 100 years). Because of the World War I and II or other political, social or regional changes in the history of most of the countries such demographic time series are not available and have to be at least partly estimated or reconstructed.
This is also the case of the Czech Republic.