
For example, in countries which permit polygamy it may be desirable to include a question on number of current wives. The extent to which various types of unions are socially acceptable will determine the modifications which will be required to meet national needs. It should be mentioned, however, that in all cultures marital statuses ranging from legal to consensual unions are found in varying degrees and within that range unions may be monogamous or polygamous. Modifications of this classification which may need to be made to meet the special situations existing in some cultures must be based on first-hand knowledge of the local environment and customs.
(c) religious married, consensual union and customary union. It is recommended that the following categories of marital status be identified: Data on marriage and divorce are also made available to Member States, for international comparisons, as well as to scholars and academia, Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and the public-at-large.Īccording to the Principles and Recommendations for Vital Statistics Systems, marital status is the status of individuals with respect to the marriage laws or customs of the country. In accordance with its mandate, the United Nations Statistics Division provides official statistics on marriage, divorce and population by marital status to other international agencies and organizations. The United Nations Statistics Division calculates selected indicators and rates such as the crude marriage and divorce rates or singulate mean age at marriage and disseminates these indicators along with official country data on marriage, divorce, annulment, etc. The Regional Commissions also collect official statistics on marriage and divorce from Member States and share these data with the United Nations Statistics Division thereby minimizing the response burden to countries. These data are collected from the national statistical offices of over 200 countries and areas on an annual basis through the Demographic Yearbook data collection system (check last tab). The United Nations Statistics Division is the primary agency responsible, at an international level, for collecting official statistics on marriage and divorce from vital statistics system and population and housing censuses.
Principles Governing International Statistical Activities.
Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics. National and international data sources and links. ARRANGED MARRIAGES DIVORCE RATES REGISTRATION
Civil registration and vital statistics.