Singapore saw a decline in marriage rates in 2019, with 25,434 registered marriages, marking it as the lowest recorded rate since a decade ago in 2010.
Image source: Screengrab from Website/Singapore Department of Statistics
According to The Singapore Department of Statistics (DOS), the number of marriages registered in 2019 was 5.8 per cent lower than the 27,007 marriages that were registered in 2018.
Despite the decline in 2019, the annual average number of marriages registered in the last five years at 27,389 was higher than the annual average registered between 2010 and 2014 at 26,844.
Image source: Adapted from Website/Singapore Department of Statistics
In addition, data presented by DOS on “Statistics on Marriages and Divorces, 2019” in a press release (28 Jul) showed that more couples divorced in 2019, with a total of 7,623 marriages having ended in divorce or annulment.
More Couples Divorced in 2019
It is an increase of 3.8 per cent from the 7,344 marital dissolutions in 2018.
The annual average number for marital dissolutions between 2015 and 2019 stands at 7,536, which is slightly higher as compared to 7,402 in the preceding five-year period (from 2010-2014).
Still, despite more couples divorcing in 2019, the past decade from 2009 to 2019 has seen a decline in general divorce rate for both male and female.
6.9 male divorcees were reported per every thousand married males aged 20 and above in 2019. It decreased from 7.5 in 2009.
On the other hand for females, the rate was 6.5 female divorcees per every thousand married females aged 20 years and above in 2019. It decreased from 7.1 in 2009.
Image source: iStock
Couples Divorcing Later, Sees Longer Median Marriage Duration
The median age at divorce has increased over the last decade for both male and female divorcees.
For male divorcees, the median age rose from 40.5 years in 2009 to 43.4 years in 2019.
Female divorcees on the other hand, saw a median age that rose from 36.9 years to 39.3 years within the decade.
The median duration of marriages that ended in divorce in 2019 was 10.4 years, slightly longer than the 10.1 years in 2009.
Image source: Screengrab from Singapore Department of Statistics
Of all divorces in 2019, couples who were married for 5 to 9 years made up the largest share of divorces at 29.0 per cent.
Increasing Proportion of Brides Older Than Grooms
According to statistics from DOS on couples marrying for the first time, 82.9% were reportedly first-time grooms and 84.5% were first-time brides. 22.9% of marriages were Inter-Ethnic.
Couples in their first marriage were also found to have a higher median age.
The median age for grooms at first marriage rose from 29.8 years to 30.4 years between 2009 and 2019.
On the other hand, the media age for brides rose from 27.5 years to 28.8 years within the decade.
There is also an increasing proportion of brides said to be older than grooms which rose from 16.0 per cent in 2009 to 18.3 per cent in 2019. Even so, majority of grooms remain older than their brides.
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