According to recent data, the number of couples to wed in the Czech Republic declined significantly in March, April and May due to the coronavirus measures. In one out of every ten marriages that did take place, at least one spouse has foreign citizenship. Most often the partner is from Slovakia, but Germany, Britain, Ukraine and Russia were also common nationalities. Photo credit: Freepik / For illustrative purposes.
Czech Rep., Dec 15 (BD) – Measures against the spread of coronavirus have hindered wedding plans this year. The rate of marriages in the Czech Republic has been growing since 2014, but this trend reversed this Spring. A significant decline in weddings was seen from March to May.
Figures from the Czech Statistical Office (CZSO) reveal that only 38,000 marriages took place in the first three quarters of this year. This is 20% lower than the same period of last year. In 2019, a total of 54,900 couples got married.
”The slowdown in the spring could not be offset even during the summer and early autumn, although according to preliminary data, August and October saw more marriages this year than last year,” said Terezie Štyglerová, head of the demographic statistics department for the CZSO.
October 10th, 2020, was a particularly popular day for weddings, with over 1,800 conducted that day.
In one tenth of weddings, at least one spouse had foreign citizenship. Half of these couples were a Czech and a foreign partner. Most often, Czechs marry Slovak partners, followed by German, British, Ukrainian and Russian nationals. Around a quarter of couples with one foreign partner got married outside of the Czech Republic.
The number of couples getting married before the age of 25 has declined significantly in the last two decades. However, the number of couples getting engaged over 40 has increased. Three-quarters of couples are getting married for the first time.
So far this century, the peak year for marriage was 2007, with 57,200 weddings taking place. The most popular day of the 21st century for weddings was Saturday, July 7, 2007, according to Marek Rojíček, Chairman of the Czech Statistical Office.
Weddings reached a historical low in 2013 with only 43,500 recorded.
