Marriages in Korea rise for the first time in 12 years

The number of marriages in Korea last year increased by about 2,000 from a year ago, a rise for the first time in 12 years. The increase is estimated to come from weddings that had been postponed during the pandemic. Interracial marriages increased by 3,000, driving the growth in marriages. On the other hand, the number of marriages, a leading indicator of the number of births, has remained in the 190,000 range for three consecutive years.

According to the ‘2023 Marriage and Divorce Statistics’ released by Statistics Korea on Mar 19, marriages in Korea last year reached 193,657, a 1.0% (1,967 cases) increase compared to 2022, the first time increase year-on-year since 2011.

The number of marriages in Korea began to decline for the first time in 2012 when it dropped 0.6% compared to the previous year and continued to decline till 2022. In 2020, when COVID-19 started, the number of marriages dropped 10.7% from the previous year and by 9.8% in 2021, falling below the 200,000 mark for the first time. Growth reversed last year, but since 2021 (192,507 cases), the number has remained in the 190,000 range for three consecutive years and has not recovered to pre-COVID-19 levels.

It is unclear, however, whether the rebound can continue. The number of marriages in November and December last year decreased by 4.4% and 11.6%, respectively, compared to a year ago. Generally, the number of marriages tends to increase at the end of the year, as many couples wish to register their marriage before the year passes. Last year, though, the number of marriages in the first half of the year was 9,700 more than in the second half of the year. “The increase in the number of marriages this year reflects the demand for marriages that were postponed during COVID-19, so we will have to watch this year’s trend to determine whether marriages will continue to increase,” said Lim Young-il, head of the Population Trends Division at Statistics Korea.

The growth of international marriages largely drove the increase in marriage. Last year, there were 19,717 international marriages, an increase of 18.3% (3,051) from the previous year. The proportion of international marriages against total number of marriages is 10.2%, exceeding 10% for the first time in 13 years since 2010 (10.5%). Although the number of international marriages increased by 3,051 from the previous year, growth was merely 1,967 because the number of marriages between Koreans decreased by 1,084.

The average age of first-time couples has grown higher. Last year, the average age of first marriage was 34.0 years for men and 31.5 years for women, up 0.3 years and 0.2 years, respectively, from a year ago. These figures are 1.8 and 1.9 years older than 10 years ago, respectively, and the highest since statistical compiling in 1990.


세종=조응형 기자 yesbro@donga.com