Lee Yeon-woo is a financial journalist at The Korea Times. Her wide range of reporting includes policies, macroeconomics, stock market, companies and even crypto. She is passionate about connecting the dots in Korean finance and making it easier for foreign nationals to understand. Based on her previous experience as a national reporter, she also has a keen interest in social issues within the sector, including gender equality and ESG. Your tips and insights are always appreciated. You can send them to yanu@koreatimes.co.kr.
Getting married in 30s becomes new normal for Korean women
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By Lee Yeon-woo
By Lee Yeon-woo
The average age for marriage is now in the 30s, according to Statistics Korea. According to the state-run agency, nearly half of women married in 2021 were in their 30s.
It is the first time that the ratio of women who married in their 30s outpaced those who are in their 20s, showing that the average age of marriage for women has gone up since the agency began compiling statistics in 1990.
In 2021, 193,000 couples got married.
In the 1990s, the average age for women to marry was in their 20s. Women who married in their 20s stood at 330,000, compared to 19,000 who married in their 30s back then.
The gap has gradually closed. In the 2000s, the number of women who married in their 20s (241,000) was eight times more than those in their 30s (31,000). In 2010, it was twice as much. In 2021, the number reversed.
This change is attributable to women's shifting perception of the idea of marriage. Many believe marrying is no longer a must, influenced by multiple reasons such as a lack of financial and employment stability and the difficulties of raising children.
According to matchmaking firm Duo, who carried out a survey in December, more than half of the women aged from 25 to 39 responded that there is no appropriate age for marriage anymore.
“Nowadays single men and women devote themselves to choosing their marriage partners, and their prime considerations focus on nonmaterial things such as personality and values,” an official from Duo said.
“Now is not the time when people are rushing to get married under pressure. People are looking for someone who meets their needs and making a choice about who is the right partner,” he added.