Skip to main content
Log in

Marital status behaviour of women in the former Soviet Republics

Comportement matrimonial des femmes dans les ex-Républiques soviétiques

  • Published:
European Journal of Population / Revue européenne de Démographie Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper uses the most recent data and life table analysis to describe the marital behaviour of women in the republics of the former USSR. For the first time a multistate life table analysis was used to describe the marital careers of women from all the 15 republics. In the near future, such a comparative analysis will no longer be possible due to the unavailability of statistical data, especially in some of the Asian states.

The analysis shows that despite 70 years of influence by Soviet ideology and lifestyle, the institution of marriage was little subject to rapid change, and retained its traditions for each culture and its ethnic features.

Marriage was a universal institution in the former USSR. The majority of the women in all of the former republics entered marriage at least once. The mean age at first marriage varies from 20.5 in Moldavia to 22.8 in Azerbaijan. The proportion of marriages that end in divorce differs from 16% in Georgia to 41% in Latvia. On average more than 30% of divorced women remarry in Latvia and Ukraine and less than 5% in Georgia.

Résumé

Cet article décrit le comportement matrimonial des femmes dans les ex-Républiques soviétiques en utilisant les données les plus récentes. C'est la première fois qu'une analyse à l'aide de tables à extinction multiple est utilisée pour décrire les carrières matrimoniales des femmes de ces 15 républiques. A l'avenir il ne sera plus possible de réaliser une telle analyse comparative du fait que les données statistiques ne seront plus disponibles ou seront incompatibles entre elles, particulièrement dans certains Etats asiatiques.

L'analyse montre qu'en dépit de 70 années influencées par l'idéologie et le mode de vie soviétique, l'institution, du marriage n'a pas connu de changement rapide et a gardé les traditions de chaque culture et ses particularités ethniques.

Le mariage était une institution universelle dans les ex-Républiques soviétiques. La majorité des femmes de toutes ces républiques connaissaient au moins un mariage. L'âge moyen au premier mariage varie de 20,5 ans en Moldavie à 22,8 ans en Azerbaïdjan. La proportion de mariages qui se terminent par un divorce va de 10% en Georgie à 41% en Lettonie. En moyenne plus de 30% des femmes divorcées se remarient en Lettonie et en Ukraine et moins de 5% en Georgie.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Andreev, E., L. Darsky, and T. Kharkova, 1990. Istoriya naseleniya SSSR 1920–1959gg (The History of the USSR Population, 1920–1959). Ekspress-informatsia, Seria “Istoriya statistiki: (Express-Information, History of Statistics Series). Issue 3–5 (Part 1). Goskomstat SSSR, Moscow (in Russian).

    Google Scholar 

  • Bondarskaya, G. and L. Darsky, 1990. ‘Brachnoe sostojanie zhenshchin i rozhdaemost’ (Marital status of women and fertility), in A.G. Volkov (ed), Demograficheskie protessy v SSSR (Demographic Processes in the USSR). Moscow, Nauka: 28–57 (in Russian with summary in English).

    Google Scholar 

  • Coale, A.J. and T.J. Trussel, 1974. ‘Model fertility schedules: Variation in the age structure of child-bearing in human populations’. Population Index 40(2): 185–288.

    Google Scholar 

  • Darsky, L.E. and J.P. Ilyina, 1990. ‘Normaizatsiya brachnosti v SSSR’ (Normalization of nuptiality in the USSR). In A.G. Volkov (ed.), Demogrficheskie protessy v SSSR (Demographic Processes in the USSR). Moscow, Nauka: 6–28 (in Russian with summary in English).

    Google Scholar 

  • Darsky, L. and S. Scherbov, 1993. Marital Status Behaviour of Women in the Former USSR: Regional Aspects. WP-93-43, Laxenburg, Austria: International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hajnal, J., 1965. ‘European marriage patterns in perspective’, in D.V. Glass and D.E.C. Eversley (eds.), Population in history: Essays in historical demography. London, E. Arnold: 101–143.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ilyina, I.P., 1991. Age at First Marriage in the USSR. Dynamics and Differentiation. Paper presented at the European Population Conference, Paris, 21–25 October 1991.

  • Keyfitz, N., 1988. ‘A Markov Chain for Calculating the Durability of Marriage’. Mathematical Population Studies 1(1): 101–121.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krishnamoorthy, S., 1979. ‘Classical Approach to Increment-decrement Life Tables: an Application to the Study of Marital Status of United State Females, 1970’. Mathematical Biosciences 44: 139–154.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maison, D., 1974. ‘Ruptures d'union par décés ou divorce’. Population 29: 2.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, A., 1966. ‘The Multiregional Matrix Growth Operator and the Stable Interregional Age Structure’. Demography 3: 537–534.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, A., 1973. ‘The Multiregional Life Table’. The Journal of Mathematical Sociology 3: 127–137.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, A., 1975. Introduction to Multiregional Mathematical Demography. J. Wiley, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, A., 1986. ‘Parametrized Multistate Population Dynamics and Projections’, Journal of American Statistical Association 81(393): 48–61.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, A. and F. Planck, 1983. Model: A General Program for Estimating Parametrized Model Schedules of Fertility, Mortality, Migration, and Marital and Labor Force Status Transition. WP-83-102. Laxenburg, Austria: International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, A. and F. Willekens, 1986. Migration and Settlement. A Multiregional Comparative Study. Reidel Press, Dortrecht, The Netherlands.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schoen, R., 1975. ‘Constructing Increment-decrement Life Tables’. Demography 12: 313–324.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schoen, R. and V. Nelson, 1974. ‘Marriage, Divorce and Mortality: a Life Table Analysis’, Demography 11: 267–290.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schoen, R. and W. Urton, 1979. ‘Marital Status Life Tables for Sweden: Years 1911–1973 and Cohorts born 1885–1889 to 1940–1944’. National Bureau of Statistics, Stockholm, Urval No. 10.

  • Schoen, R. and K. Woodrow, 1984. ‘Marriage and Divorce in Twentieth-century Belgian Cohort’. Joural of Family History 9: 88–103.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sifman, R.J., 1966. ‘Rozhdaemost' v selakh Zakavkaz'ya c nachala XX veka do Velikoy Otechestvennoy Voyny’ (Fertility in transcaucasian villages from the beginning of the 20th century until the Great Patriotic War, in A.G. Volkov (ed.), Problemy demograficheskoy statistiki (Problems of Demographic Statistics). Moscow, Nauka (in Russian).

    Google Scholar 

  • Tolts, M., 1979. ‘Some aggregate indexes of nuptiality, marriage disruption and duration of marriage’, in A.G. Volkov (ed.), Demographic Development of the Family. Moscow, Statistika (in Russia).

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations, 1988. ‘First marriage: patterns and determinants. Department of International Economic and Social Affairs’. New York: United Nations, St/ESA/SER.R/76. vi, 110 p..

  • Volkov, A.G., 1986. Sem'ia-object demografii (The Family as an Object of Demography). Moscow, Mysl (in Russian).

    Google Scholar 

  • Willekens, F., 1987. ‘The marital status life table’, in J. Bongaarts, T.K. Burch, and K.W. Wachter (eds.), Family Demography and their Applications. Oxford, U.K., Clarendon Press: 125–149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Willekens, F. and A. Rogers, 1978. Spatial Population Analysis, Methods and Computer Programs. Research Report RR-78-18, IIASA, Austria.

    Google Scholar 

  • Willekens, F., I. Shah, and P. Ramachandran, 1982. ‘Multistate Analysis of Marital Status Life Tables: Theory and Application’. Population Studies 36: 129–144.

    Google Scholar 

  • Willekens, F. and S. Scherbov, 1994. ‘Marital experience of the Soviet women. A life table analysis’, in W. Lutz, S. Scherbov, and A. Volkov (eds.), Demographic Trends and Patterns in the USSR Before 1991. London, Routledge: 185–210.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Barsky, L., Scherbov, S. Marital status behaviour of women in the former Soviet Republics. Eur J Population 11, 31–62 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01264104

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01264104

Keywords

Navigation