TheCity

Tag: marriage

  • Waiting and dating: Why the average age for Irish newlyweds continues to rise

    Waiting and dating: Why the average age for Irish newlyweds continues to rise

    By Aoife Kearns, Sian Abraham Long, Aidan Coyle, and Luke Toomey

    Ireland has changed a lot in the last 30 years. There is no doubt the country is a much different place than it was back then. We have become more diverse and multicultural, we are more aware of the issues facing the environment and we are getting married later.

    The average age people are getting married in Ireland has risen continuously since the 1980s. In 2019, the Central Statistics Office revealed the average age for men is 36 and the average age for women is 34. For same sex couples it is even higher with the average age being over 40 for men and just under 39 for women.

    In the 1980s, both men and women were tying the knot in their mid-twenties. The considerable increase in age shows how the role of marriage has changed in Ireland.

    Are people surprised by this statistic? What are the main factors driving this trend? How has the significance of marriage changed over the years? Well, TheCity.ie took to the streets of Dublin to find out what people think about marriage in Ireland in 2019.

  • Average age of Irish brides and grooms up almost ten years over last three decades

    Average age of Irish brides and grooms up almost ten years over last three decades

    The average age of Irish brides and grooms in opposite sex marriages is the highest recorded to date, continuing a trend of people deciding to marry later in life.  The average age of the groom has increased by 8.1 years since 1987 and the average age of the bride has increased by 9.3 years, according to figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

    Average age of bridegroom 1987-2017
    Source // CSO

    In the last five years, the average age of the groom has risen by 1.4 years and the average age of the bride has risen by 1.5 years, according to the CSO.

    Average age of bridegroom 2012-2017
    Source // CSO

    The CSO figures show the average age for same sex marriages decreased from 2016 to 2017.  In 2016, the average age of males in same sex marriages was 40.5 compared to 40.3 in 2017. The average age of females in same sex marriages in 2016 was 41.0 and dropped to 40.5 in 2017.

    The marriage rate in Ireland is down 0.2 per 1,000 population since 2016.  There were 605 less marriages in 2017 than in 2016. There were 759 same sex marriages in 2017 and 21,262 opposite sex marriages.  In 2017, Just over a half of all opposite sex marriages were Roman Catholic ceremonies (52.8 percent) and July and August were the most popular months to wed.

    Over the last 30 years, the average age for first time mothers has increased by 4.8 years, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).  In 1987, the average age of first time mothers was 26.2, compared with 31.0 in 2017.

    Average age of first time mothers from 1987-2017
    Source // CSO

    The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) looked at reproductive trends in 200 countries for a report published last month.  It found that Ireland has the fourth highest average age of childbearing in Europe, after Spain, Switzerland, Italy, and Luxembourg. Outside Europe, Ireland’s average age for childbearing is beaten only by Libya, Korea, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, and Hong Kong.