Marriages - Few Thuringians dare - lowest number since 1980
Fewer and fewer couples in Thüringen have given the "yes" word since 1980. According to the Landesamt für Statistik, there were 7637 married couples in the past year. This was 897 fewer than the previous year.
Population decline is the main reason for development
However, the general population decline in the usual marriageable age range is the main reason for the decreasing absolute numbers. When looking at the relationship between inhabitants and marriages, a slightly different picture emerges: The lowest point was reached in 1992 with 3.0 marriages per 1000 inhabitants. In the previous year, the value was 3.6. For comparison: The value was particularly high at around 4.7 in about 2016.
Bridegrooms are getting older
The highest values were also recorded in the previous year for the average age of the married couples. Men were on average 42 years old and women were around 39 years old when they said "yes". The average age of newlyweds has therefore been increasing continuously since 1994 by roughly ten years each time.
155 same-sex couples gave their consent: 85 female and 70 male couples. This corresponded to a share of two percent of all newly concluded marriages.
In contrast to the declining number of traditional marriages in Thuringia, the average age of married individuals continues to rise, with men averaging 42 years and women at approximately 39 years in 2021. Interestingly, society in Erfurt saw 155 same-sex couples opt for marriage, accounting for 2% of all new unions in the region.
