Surpassed for the First Time in 31 Years Since 1990 Statistics
Average Age at First Marriage: 33.4 Years, Women 31.1 Years
Increased by About 5-6 Years Compared to 30 Years Ago
For the first time since statistics began in 1990, the number of first marriages among women in their 30s in South Korea has surpassed that of women in their 20s. In the past, women in their 20s were considered the prime age for marriage, but now the 30s have become the prime marriage age.
According to the National Statistical Office's National Statistical Portal (KOSIS) on the 10th, the number of marriages in 2021 was recorded at 193,000. Among these, 157,000 were cases where the woman was marrying for the first time. Analyzing first marriages by age group, marriages among women in their 30s accounted for 76,900 cases (49.1%), nearly half.
Next were women in their 20s with 71,263 cases (45.5%), women in their 40s with 6,564 cases (4.2%), teenagers with 798 cases (0.5%), and women in their 50s with 724 cases (0.5%), in that order.
According to the National Statistical Portal (KOSIS) of Statistics Korea on the 10th, the number of marriages in 2021 was recorded at 193,000. Among these, cases where the woman was marrying for the first time accounted for 157,000. Analyzing first marriages by age group for women, those who married in their 30s numbered 76,900 (49.1%), nearly half. Photo by Pixabay
The most notable change is that the number of first marriages among women in their 30s has surpassed that of women in their 20s. In 1990, the number of first marriages among women in their 20s was 333,000, overwhelmingly higher than the 19,000 cases among women in their 30s, an 18-fold difference.
In 2000, the number of first marriages among women in their 20s (241,000) was about eight times that of women in their 30s (31,000). In 2010, the number of first marriages among women in their 20s was 173,000, about twice that of women in their 30s (85,000). As marriages among women in their 20s decreased and those among women in their 30s increased, the gap narrowed, and two years ago, the ranking reversed.
For men, the number of first marriages among those in their 30s (121,000) surpassed those in their 20s (119,000) as early as 2005. Similarly, in 1990, first marriages among men in their 20s (289,000) were much higher than those in their 30s (72,000), but the marriage age gradually increased. In 2021, the number of first marriages among men in their 30s was 99,000 (61.7%), more than twice that of men in their 20s (44,000; 27.6%). The number of first marriages among men in their 40s was 15,000 (9.0%).
The average age at first marriage in 2021 was 31.1 years for women and 33.4 years for men. In 1991, it was 24.8 years for women and 27.9 years for men, increasing by 6.3 years and 5.5 years respectively over 30 years.
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