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890 Donegal couples say 'I do'
24.05.07
Marriage is still a
popular option for Donegal people with 890 couples
tying the knot here in 2005, latest figures show.
The numbers from the Central Statistics Office (CSO)
show that, on average, more than half of brides were
aged over thirty on their wedding day while the
average age of grooms was just over 33 years. |
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Donegal marriages were
among a total of 21,355 nationally that year
compared with a total of 20,556 in 2002.
The figures also show that 134 men living in Donegal
and 177 women living in Donegal also got married in
2005 but outside the county.
Of the 890 marriages registered in Donegal in 2005,
713 were performed in Catholic cermonies; 49 in the
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of Ireland; 42 in
Presbyterian Churches; four in other religious
denominations and 82 in civil services.
The CSO figures show that five years ago, almost 18%
of marriages in Ireland were civil marriages while
in 1996, the figure was just under 6%. A
contributing factor was the legalisation of divorce
in 1997 and the consequential increase in the
incidence of re-marriage.
The statistics also show that nationally there were
19,759 grooms and 20,055 brides marrying for the
first time in 2005.
Divorced men accounted for 1,399 of grooms while
divorced women accounted for 1,133 of brides.
There were 2,112 marriages involving at least one
divorced person in 2005, including 420 marriages
where both parties were divorced. Civil ceremonies
accounted for 1,728 of these marriages, 270 were
Roman Catholic ceremonies, and 114 were other
religious ceremonies.
Meanwhile, the average age of grooms marrying for
the first time was 32 years. The average age among
widowers was 56.9 years and the average age among
divorced men was 46.2 years. For brides, women
marrying for the first time had an average age of
30.2 years, widows 50.3 years, and divorced women
42.6 years.
And as Inishowen's wedding season gears up for the
Summer, local hotels take note: The most popular
month for marriage in 2005 was September, when 14%
of marriages occurred while January was the least
popular month with just 3% of marriages. Saturday is
the most popular day of the week to get married with
35% of marriages occurring on that day. The least
popular day was Sunday when just over 1% of
marriages were recorded. |
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