Independent Perspective News

Five years ago they represented 15%. Now they are already 20%. They postpone their "I do" to take care of their studies and jobs.

The times when women married right after turning 20 is doubtlessly ancient history, at least in Buenos Aires. According to data provided by the Registration Office of the City, girls put off the I do moment longer and longer; they don't mind at all something that used to horrify our grandmothers: extending single state beyond the age of 30. Official statistics are blunt.

In the last 10 years, the number of civil marriages celebrated in Buenos Aires has been relatively stable: it oscillates between 16 and 17 thousand a year. The only factor that has been gradually changing is the age of the marrying women.

In 1997, 25% of marriages were contracted by women between 20 and 24 years old. Five years later, this strip reduced to 18%.

Meanwhile, the number of marriages of older women grew, especially those between 30 and 34: it used to be 15% of the whole; today it surpasses 20%.

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It's clear that this phenomenon is not a trend or a whim. It's deeply related to the new role played by women in society. "Today, they are active protagonists of work, science and culture. They see marriage as just one more possible choice instead of as the only way to have a life beyond their parental home", explains sociologist and demographer Susana Torrado, a CONICET researcher.

(...) Informal cohabitation has another key part: "Nowadays, couples prefer to move together and see how it goes for a while before marrying". And, what happens with men? Statistics reveal a similar behavior, although less marked: 30 to 34 year old males who married in 2002 represent 23% of the whole, when five years ago they used to be 21%.