Marriages in South Korea Rise Slightly after Years of Decrease
2024-03-21
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1The number of marriages in South Korea rose in 2023 for the first time in more than ten years.
2The increase came after the pandemic which forced some couples to delay marriage plans.
3But the data did not point to a continued increase in the aging country.
4The small rise in marriages last year comes as its fertility rate continued to decrease.
5South Korea's fertility rate, or the average number of children born per woman, is already the world's lowest.
6It is falling because women are concerned about their careers, the cost of raising children, or are deciding not to have babies.
7Government data showed a total of 193,657 couples got married last year.
8That is up 1.0 percent from 191,690 a year earlier.
9It is the first increase since 2011.
10That compares with a 0.4 percent drop in 2022.
11That was when South Korea started to ease restrictions on social gatherings put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic.
12The restrictions saw the number of marriages decrease 9.8 percent in 2021 and 10.7 percent in 2020.
13The 2023 number of marriages, however, remains well below the 239,159 marriages seen in 2019.
14And that compares to a yearly number of more than 320,000 recorded 10 years earlier.
15A government official said that couples delaying marriage was a reason for more marriages in the second half of 2022 and the first half of 2023.
16"In the second half of 2023, however, marriages fell year-on-year, indicating that people who had been delaying marriage due to COVID-19 have now mostly got married," the official told reporters.
17The 2023 increase was also well below the increases seen in nearby China.
18Marriages in China rose 12.4 percent last year.
19That happened as more couples got married after delays caused by the pandemic.
20Most South Koreans say high housing costs are the biggest reason for getting married.
21Many also see marriage as the first step before having a baby in the Asian country.
22The Yonhap news agency reported a recent study of 500 South Koreans aged between 19 and 23.
23It showed that 50.4 percent of those asked did not plan on getting married or having children.
24The government says it will take "extraordinary measure" to deal the low birth rate.
25Political parties are promising public housing and easier loans for young South Koreans ahead of the April legislative election.
26Marriages with a foreign national greatly increased for a second year, increasing 18.3 percent to 19,717.
27I'm Gregory Stachel.
1The number of marriages in South Korea rose in 2023 for the first time in more than ten years. 2The increase came after the pandemic which forced some couples to delay marriage plans. But the data did not point to a continued increase in the aging country. 3The small rise in marriages last year comes as its fertility rate continued to decrease. South Korea's fertility rate, or the average number of children born per woman, is already the world's lowest. It is falling because women are concerned about their careers, the cost of raising children, or are deciding not to have babies. 4Government data showed a total of 193,657 couples got married last year. That is up 1.0 percent from 191,690 a year earlier. It is the first increase since 2011. 5That compares with a 0.4 percent drop in 2022. That was when South Korea started to ease restrictions on social gatherings put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. The restrictions saw the number of marriages decrease 9.8 percent in 2021 and 10.7 percent in 2020. 6The 2023 number of marriages, however, remains well below the 239,159 marriages seen in 2019. And that compares to a yearly number of more than 320,000 recorded 10 years earlier. 7A government official said that couples delaying marriage was a reason for more marriages in the second half of 2022 and the first half of 2023. 8"In the second half of 2023, however, marriages fell year-on-year, indicating that people who had been delaying marriage due to COVID-19 have now mostly got married," the official told reporters. 9The 2023 increase was also well below the increases seen in nearby China. Marriages in China rose 12.4 percent last year. That happened as more couples got married after delays caused by the pandemic. 10Most South Koreans say high housing costs are the biggest reason for getting married. Many also see marriage as the first step before having a baby in the Asian country. 11The Yonhap news agency reported a recent study of 500 South Koreans aged between 19 and 23. It showed that 50.4 percent of those asked did not plan on getting married or having children. 12The government says it will take "extraordinary measure" to deal the low birth rate. Political parties are promising public housing and easier loans for young South Koreans ahead of the April legislative election. 13Marriages with a foreign national greatly increased for a second year, increasing 18.3 percent to 19,717. 14I'm Gregory Stachel. 15Jihoon Lee reported this story for Reuters. Gregory Stachel adapted it for VOA Learning English. 16________________________________________________ 17Words in This Story 18couple - n. two people who are married or who have a romantic or sexual relationship 19fertility - n. the ability to produce young 20indicate - v. to show (something) 21extraordinary - adj. very different from what is normal or ordinary