AGE-SPECIFIC MARRIAGE RATES
Age-specific marriage rates provide a more detailed picture of the age at which people marry. These rates give an indication of the proportion of all males or females in a particular age group who marry in a given year. Further information on calculating age-specific marriage rates is provided in the Glossary and Explanatory Notes 33-35 and 44.
For both males and females in 2011, the highest age-specific marriage rates were for people between 25-29 years of age, with 43.2 marriages per 1,000 males and 50.5 marriages per 1,000 females.
The age-specific marriage rate for males between 25-29 years of age has declined from 53.0 marriages per 1,000 estimated resident population in 1991 to 43.2 per 1,000 estimated resident population in 2011. Age-specific marriage rates also declined for males between 20-24 years of age over this period, from 40.6 marriages per 1,000 estimated resident population in 1991 to 15.9 per 1,000 estimated resident population in 2011.
While the age-specific marriage rate for males between 20-29 years of age has decreased since 1991, it has increased for males between 30-39 years of age. The age-specific marriage rate for males between 30-34 years of age has increased from 27.6 per 1,000 estimated resident population in 1991 to 35.8 per 1,000 estimated resident population in 2011. Further, the age-specific marriage rate for males between 35-39 years of age have increased from 14.9 per 1,000 estimated resident population to 19.3 per 1,000 estimated resident population over the same period.
A similar change has occurred in age-specific marriage rates for females. Age-specific marriage rates for females between 20-24 years of age have decreased from 62.0 marriages per 1,000 estimated resident population in 1991 to 27.6 marriages per 1,000 estimated resident population in 2011. In contrast to males, the age-specific marriage rate for females between 25-29 years of age has increased from 45.0 marriages per 1,000 estimated resident population in 1991 to 50.5 marriages per 1,000 estimated resident population in 2011. For females between 30-34 years of age the age-specific marriage rates have increased from 20.4 marriages per 1,000 estimated resident population in 1991 to 31.0 per 1,000 estimated resident population in 2011.
1.5 Age-specific marriage rates(a), Selected years - 1991-2011 |
|
Age Group (Years) | 1991 | 2001 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
Males |
|
16-19 | 1.8 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.8 |
20-24 | 40.6 | 21.8 | 17.8 | 17.3 | 17.0 | 16.1 | 15.9 |
25-29 | 53.0 | 47.2 | 46.0 | 45.0 | 44.0 | 43.7 | 43.2 |
30-34 | 27.6 | 30.6 | 36.5 | 36.6 | 35.8 | 35.7 | 35.8 |
35-39 | 14.9 | 16.2 | 19.7 | 20.1 | 19.9 | 19.9 | 19.3 |
40-44 | 9.5 | 9.7 | 11.3 | 11.4 | 11.5 | 11.4 | 11.4 |
45-49 | 7.4 | 6.9 | 8.1 | 8.1 | 7.9 | 8.1 | 8.1 |
50 and over | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 3.5 |
Females |
|
16-19 | 9.2 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 3.5 |
20-24 | 62.0 | 37.1 | 31.6 | 30.5 | 29.8 | 28.4 | 27.6 |
25-29 | 45.0 | 48.0 | 51.6 | 52.1 | 50.8 | 50.4 | 50.5 |
30-34 | 20.4 | 25.3 | 31.1 | 30.9 | 30.9 | 31.4 | 31.0 |
35-39 | 11.1 | 12.0 | 15.4 | 15.3 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 14.8 |
40-44 | 7.2 | 7.3 | 8.5 | 8.6 | 8.6 | 8.5 | 8.7 |
45-49 | 5.8 | 5.6 | 6.5 | 6.6 | 6.4 | 6.3 | 6.3 |
50 and over | 1.8 | 1.8 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
|
(a) Marriages per 1,000 estimated resident population of males or females, and reference year at 30 June respectively. See Explanatory Notes 33-34 and 44-45 for more information. |