The repercussions of COVID-19 on marriage in Spain

Abstract

This article analyses the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on marriage rates in Spain, defining three periods: the pre-pandemic “normality” (2016-2019), the most intense phase of the pandemic (2020-2021) and the year 2022, when vaccination was generalised, and social restrictions disappeared. The analysis was carried out using microdata on marriages for the years 2016-2022, the Population Register, the 2021 Census and the 2023 micro-census, with which different demographic indicators have been constructed. The article addresses the effect of the pandemic on different dimensions of nuptiality: temporal and regional variation, age and sex profile of marriage rates and the composition of marriages by marital status, sex, educational level and type of celebration. The results show a differential impact of the pandemic on nuptiality that affects both the composition by marital status, level of education and geographical distribution.