New statistics from the Central Statistics Office have revealed Ireland’s habits when it comes to marriage.
The CSO noted differences in age when it comes to men and women, and differences between same-sex couples and different-sex couples.
Although the average age of grooms in an opposite-sex marriage was at its highest to date at 36.4 years, the average age of men in a same-sex marriage was higher at 40.1 years. The average age of brides in an opposite-sex marriage was 34.4 in 2018, while the comparable age for women in a same-sex marriage was 38.7 years.
Fewer than half of all ceremonies are Roman-Catholic ceremonies now. 49.2% of Irish marriages were Roman Catholic marriages in 2018, the lowest level ever.
Commenting on the report, Carol Anne Hennessy, Statistician said: “There were 21,053 marriages in Ireland in 2018 including 664 same-sex marriages.”
Ireland voted to legalise same-sex marriages by referendum in 2015.
Friday and Saturday remain the most popular days for couples to get married, with Sunday and Monday proving the least popular.
A group called Education Equality has called for more diversity in education on the back of these statistics, claiming that they reflect an increasingly multi-cultural Ireland.
Policy officer Paddy Monahan said: “Non-religious marriages will eclipse Catholic marriages in popularity by 2020. These figures raise important questions as to where the children born to these couples will go to school, and how schools devoting at least half an hour a day to religious indoctrination can respect the children from families who do not consent to their children receiving this instruction.”
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