[News Terms] One Reason for Decreased Marriages in China: 'Chaili'

'Chaili (彩禮)' is a marriage gift given by the groom to the bride's family to foster a favorable relationship between the two families united by marriage. It is a long-standing custom in China, but recently the demanded amounts have become excessive, sparking controversy.

Translated into English as 'bride prices,' Chinese scholars diagnose this as a result of excessive materialism and severe wealth disparity. Especially with the addition of son preference and the one-child policy, China's overall population sex ratio is imbalanced at 105.07 males per 100 females. It is currently estimated that there are about 40 million more men than women in China.

Chinese chai tea.
[Photo by Baidu]

Last month, a post on social media showed cash and luxury watches worth 9.98 million yuan (about 1.8 billion KRW) being sent in Zhejiang Province, causing controversy. In February, in Sichuan Province, parents accepted 260,000 yuan (about 46.8 million KRW) as chaili and married their daughter to a man they barely knew, but when the daughter escaped, public opinion called for punishment for human trafficking. In 2019, a man who borrowed 400,000 yuan (about 72 million KRW) for chaili and became angry when the marriage did not take place ended up murdering the prospective bride.

According to a 2020 survey by a Chinese media outlet of 1,846 adults, 73.8% answered that they give or receive bride prices, and 40% reported conflicts due to bride prices.

Accordingly, the Chinese State Council launched a special campaign in February as part of the 2023 'No. 1 Document,' the top priority of the Chinese leadership this year, to rectify excessive chaili, but problems caused by chaili still persist.

According to an announcement by the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs on the 12th, the number of marriages last year was 6.83 million, down 800,000 from the previous year (7.63 million). This is the lowest number since marriage registration statistics began in 1986.

Chinese authorities cited reasons for the decline in marriages including a decrease in birth population since the 1990s, population imbalance with more men than women among marriageable age groups, and an increase in the average age at first marriage. Other causes included the excessive chaili problem and the rise of so-called 'non-marriage groups' who choose not to marry.