The number of marriages in the A.C. of the Basque Country came to 1,216 for the first quarter of 2004, just over half the 2,117 held during the fourth quarter of 2003 and practically the same number as the same quarter last year, according to Eustat data. The number of weddings held during the first quarter of the year is traditionally low, especially in January and February.

As in other years, this quarter is when there is a higher proportion of civil weddings (65.1%), outnumbering the number of church ceremonies and surpassing the percentage of civil weddings during the same period last year by over five points. Alava, with 67.4%, was the only province where the percentage of civil weddings fell in relation to the same quarter of 2003 (72.5%). Conversely, in Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa they increased by 5 and 9 per cent, reaching 63.4% and 68.1% respectively.

Of the 1,216 weddings held in the first quarter of 2004, 1,171 of the men and 1,196 of the women were resident in the A.C. of the Basque Country. For 1,076 grooms (92%) this was their first marriage, while 15 widowers and 80 divorcés remarried. The percentage of women for whom this was their first marriage was similar to that of men: there were 1,081 first-time brides, 7 widows and 108 divorcées.

As for the distribution of weddings according to the age of the couples, in the case of grooms 75% were over 30, while for brides, this figure came to 61%. These proportions were greater than those of the same quarter last year (73% and 57% respectively) and also higher than those registered throughout 2003, once more maintaining the upward trend in the matrimonial age of the population.