Social inequalities in nuptiality during marriage bust and boom in Hungary

Due to profound changes in partnership formation and marital behaviour during the past decades, the meaning of marriage and its place in the life course have transformed all over the developed world, including Hungary. While early and almost universal marriage characterized Hungary in the 1970s and very few young couples cohabited, now only a small minority chooses direct marriage, cohabiting couples get married laterand at a lower rate, and many couples live together and raise children without being married. After decades of decreasing marriage propensity, the number of weddings started to boom in the 2010s and continues to do so. Most theoretical approaches seek explanation for the retreat from marriage but only few concentrates on why would marriage rates increase and who any why gets married amidst the popularity of unmarried unions.

After reviewing theoretical arguments for decreasing and increasing marriage rates and the relationship between marital behaviour and social standing, I formulate hypotheses regarding the changing social background of first marriages in Hungary. For the empirical analysis I use data on all marriages contracted between 1980 and 2020 in Hungary (vital statistics by the Hungarian Central Statistical Office) and longitudinal data from five waves of the Hungarian Generations and Gender Survey (2001–2016/17). I compare direct marriages to the marriage of already cohabiting couples and changes during different nuptiality periods, including the recent marriage boom.