A slight increase.
No less than 242,000 marriages were celebrated in France in 2022 as in 2023, according to a report published by the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee) this Tuesday March 12.
Since the beginning of the 2000s, however, the marriage curve has continued to fall, culminating in the year 2020, strongly marked by the health crisis.
During these 12 months, only 155,000 civil unions were celebrated.
By 2021, however, the French had found their way back to town hall.
In the last two, the number of unions celebrated was even higher than the pre-pandemic period.
According to the institute, this slight increase is partly explained by the postponement of weddings canceled during the health crisis in 2020.
“The deficit in celebrations during the health crisis is, however, not completely compensated
,” tempers the INSEE.
The number of Civil Solidarity Pacts has experienced the same evolution since 2020. After a spectacular fall, the Pacs has reached a level which exceeds that before Covid-19.
It thus regains its upward trend which has prevailed since its creation.
Same-sex unions also concern 3% of marriages and 5% of civil partnerships in 2022. Since 2016, the proportion of same-sex marriages has remained fairly stable, the study also notes.
It was in fact higher in 2014 and 2015 (at 4.3%),
“due to a “catch-up effect” linked to the opening of marriage to same-sex couples in May 2013”
, analyzes the 'Insee.
4 out of 5 people are getting married for the first time
Among all the people who got married in 2022, nearly 82% of them were doing so for the first time, the study also points out.
17% were divorced and 1% were widowed.
And if these proportions are almost identical between men and women, they vary greatly depending on the age of the spouses.
In fact, nearly 97% of married people under 35, or almost all, got married for the first time in 2022. And this figure only decreases as age increases.
It reaches 83% among people aged 35 to 44, 58% among 45-54 year olds and 44% among 55-69 year olds.
Ultimately, only one in four grooms over 70 had never married before.
Also read: “The caterer imposed a 30% increase on us”: when inflation reserves unpleasant surprises for the bride and groom
Older and older brides and grooms
The age at marriage also continues to increase, insists INSEE.
In 2022, among marriages between spouses of different sexes - which represent 97% of marriages - women were on average 37.3 years old and men 39.8 years old.
If these figures are particularly high, it is because they include remarriages, the study cautions.
For first-time marrieds, in 2022, the average age at marriage was 34.7 years for women and 36.6 years for men.
Nearly ten years earlier, women married for the first time at 31.3 years old and men at 33.3 years old.
The age gap between the two spouses is also tending to narrow, underlines the study.
Because if in 2022, the man was older than his wife in 65% of cases, this figure reached 67% in 2012.