Sociological and Historical Aspects of Entry into Marriage

In: Journal of family history: studies in family, kinship and demography, Band 19, Heft 4, S. 351-368

Abstract

This study analyses the timing of first entry into marriage of Hungarian men and women born between 1916 and 1967. Marriages take place at a considerably earlier age than the West European average, and at the same time show significant differences between cohorts. In the course of the analysis we consider the social and economic circumstances which affect the timing of entry into marriage, and we connect the variables of men and women's educational attainment with their age at marriage. In each cohort we examine the sociological characteristics of those who marry significantly earlier or later than the average for their generation, i.e. than the "normal" age.