Over the months of April, May and June 2004 there were 3,002 marriages in the A.C. of the Basque Country, which represents a 3.1% reduction with regard to the same quarter last year, according to Eustat data. By provinces, in Bizkaia 1,476 weddings were held, followed by Gipuzkoa with 993 and Álava with 397. In the case of residents outside the A.C. of the Basque Country, the number of weddings came to 136.

Increase in civil marriages

The highest number of weddings this quarter in relation to the previous quarter is due to the higher number of ceremonies held in May and June. In addition, during this period 41.4% of weddings were civil. This percentage is almost 7 percent higher than the same quarter in 2003. This proportion is in turn considerably lower than the figure for the first three months of 2004, in which 64.5% of weddings were civil.

2,891 men and 2,951 women resident in the A.C. of the Basque Country married in the 3,002 weddings held in the second quarter of 2004. For 2,696 husbands (93.3%) this was their first marriage, while 16 widowers and 179 divorcees remarried. The percentage of first marriages among women was slightly higher than for men: 2,780 (94,2%), single women married together with 7 widows and 164 divorcées.

Average age of spouses continues to rise

With regard to the distribution of marriages according to the age of the spouses, 68.9% of husbands were aged over 30, while among brides the percentage came to 51.5%. Both proportions are higher than those obtained the same quarter of 2003, which were 65.9% and 45.1%, respectively.