The issue of marriage has been a fascinating and yet controversial topic with many sides to it. It opens you to a world of experiences: both good and bad and can determine the course of your life. While marriage can be fulfilling and rewarding, it can also be challenging and draining which is just one of the many facts about Marriage.
Despite all the negative reports from failed marriages, it’s importance cannot be overemphasized. It’s the foundation of every society as it helps to foster companionship and mutual support for Individuals from different families. How about its impact on children? Yes, you guessed right. Children raised in healthy marriages tend to be more stable.
With so much said about marriage already, let’s quickly read through this simple definition: marriage is a legal or formal union between two individuals (man and woman) traditionally, in which they become partners for life. This article is not about what marriage is but will address some intriguing facts –both negative and positive– about marriage.
50 Fascinating Facts About Marriage
I’m guessing you’re eager to know these facts, so let’s jump right in. Here they are:
- It takes more than love to build a successful and long-lasting marriage, hence the saying: “Love is Never enough”. This is where commitment, communication, trust and shared responsibility come into play.
- As weird as this might sound, married couples begin to look alike after spending more time together. Though there is no scientific evidence to prove this, many folks will agree to it.
- The longest marriage lasted for 90 years and 291 days between Karam Chand and Kaitari Chand. Both married in India but later moved to the UK where they lived most of their lives. The marriage came to an end in 2016, when Karam died at 110 yrs.
- The average married couple make love up to 54 times in a year which is at least once or a little over once in a week. It is also believed that couples who have sex regularly tend to build longer marriages.
- The kiss that seals the deal at the end of a wedding ceremony can be traced back to ancient Rome. It was used as a legal bond to seal contracts and marriage was seen as a contract.
- Married couples who have kids, businesses or work to attend to, spend an average of 5 mins alone together on a daily basis.
- Married couples with healthy marriages tend to experience more marital satisfaction once their children leave home.
- Happy and healthy marriages bring a sense of fulfillment because both partners work towards the actualization of their dreams.
- It’s a known fact that those who are highly educated tend to marry late. Hence, the reason you find more singles, especially highly educated women, in developed countries or cities.
- As far back in history, marriage was not necessarily about love, it was more about fostering family relations and acquiring contracts and properties.
- Couples who are in an unhealthy marriage tend to be less productive at work or their businesses. A whopping $6 Billion in revenue is lost by American businesses due to decreased worker productivity related to marital stress.
- Did you know that there is a day set aside to celebrate marriage every year? Well, there is and it’s on the second Sunday of February which usually falls between the 8th and 14th. It is usually tagged “world marriage day”.
- Married couples eventually start having fatter waistlines which can lead to a decrease in sexual attraction. This mostly affects women, and could be as a result of childbearing. But with the support of their spouse, it can be worked on.
- There are some key positions in the society an unmarried individual will not be given the opportunity to hold, because he or she is seen as not completely responsible. Reason why a man is more honored as a married man.
- Most couples experience a decrease in marital satisfaction after the birth of their first child. This only confirms that raising a family comes with a whole lot of baggage that must be handled maturely.
- One major overlooked cause of stress that breaks down the body’s immune system and its ability to fight off disease is an unhealthy marriage. It might also surprise you to know that an unhappy marriage can lead to increased risk of heart disease.
- The most named element apart from faithfulness, sex, mutual support, crucial for a happy marriage is “trust”. No individual wants to be hurt by the ones they love and care about.
- Marriage does not guarantee happiness. The level of happiness you’ll experience in marriage is determined by the level of happiness you have as a single.
- The tradition of exchanging wedding rings can be dated back to ancient Egypt. The rings back then were referred to as “rings of love” often made from woven reed or leather. They were a symbol of eternal life and love.
- Engaging in sexual activities is a pointer to whether couples will remain satisfied with their marriage life over time. It creates a kind of bond between partners and tends to boost marital relationship.
- Did you know that body language is responsible for up to 55% of the messages spouses receive from each other? This, of course, does not rule out other means of communication between partners.
- The “seven-year itch” is a term originally coined from a movie, used to describe couples experiencing decline in happiness seven years into their marriages, which usually lead to divorce or extramarital affairs.
- Married men tend to feel better about themselves when their wives are happy and satisfied with the marriage but the same cannot be said for the female folk.
- One of the most important ingredients for a successful marriage is sharing household chores and also carrying out the chores faithfully.
- It has been found out that the highest divorce rates occur between an only child of parents. This happens as a result of third party interference in the marriage.
- More negative impact is felt from a “No sex” marriage than when compared to the positive impact felt from a “good sex” marriage.
- Cuddling and hugging between married couples eases off stress due to the release of dopamine also known as the “feel good hormone”. So next time you’re feeling stressed and down, just ask your partner to hug you.
- Surveys show that the happiest marriages are those where the wife is able to regain calmness quickly after arguments.
- It might interest you to know that most people believe that the wife’s happiness is more important than her husband’s happiness when it comes to keeping a lasting marriage.
- The rate of divorce between partners who end up marrying each other from an affair is as high as 75%. Partners of such circumstances tend to have trust issues as they nurture the feeling of fear that the other person might go back to their previous relationship.
- A research gathered that couples who engage in premarital cohabitation have a higher rate of divorce if they eventually get married compared to those who wait. Though this was later opposed by another study in 2018.
- An average of 2.4 million weddings are performed in the U.S on a yearly
- basis, with the average amount spent on a traditional American wedding to be around $22000.An interesting fact shows that couples who spend less on their wedding ceremony tend to have longer-lasting marriages. This can be attributed to the point that they understand each other well enough to communicate, and reach an agreement without third party interference.
- This one is likely to be the most surprising fact: the shortest marriage ever lasted for just 3 mins when the bride demanded for a divorce, because her just wedded husband called her “stupid” instead of helping her when she tripped on their way out. Other short marriages were also recorded, you can check out the list here.
- Even with the number of people getting married yearly, there are individuals who fear the idea of marriage or being in a relationship. This fear is known as Gamophobia.
- Couples who get married between the age of 28 and 32 tend to stay together for a longer period. People believe that at this age, one is more matured and committed to building a healthy relationship and family.
- There is a high percentage that having an emotional affair with someone other than your spouse will lead to having sexual affairs.
- Females are more emotionally attached to their spouses. Hence, the reason they tend to grow unhappy and less productive when their partners are sick.
- Remarrying after a divorce does not solve the problems of a previous marriage. As a matter of fact, the rate of divorce increases from the second marriage.
- There’s a saying that goes thus: “the closer the merrier ”. This can be related to people with most successful marriages who spend an average of 5 hours a week being together.
- Most couples do not consummate their marriage on their wedding nights mostly because the groom is too drunk.
- Marriages tend to crash as a result of high expectations and wrong ideologies about marriage. A marriage where both parties have different definitions of what a perfect marriage should be is definitely heading for the rocks.
- Interracial marriage was made legal in the US in 1967. The Supreme Court bypassed Virginia’s state law and ruled in favor of Mildred Loving, a woman of color and her white husband, Richard Loving.
- There are over 2.4 million divorce annually in the United States.
- Couples that actively celebrate their partner’s good news rather than act cold towards such news have a higher rate of marital well-being and satisfaction.
- Marriage has no secret formula for success. Managing and building yours becomes your sole responsibility as there is no accepted standard concerning marriage.
- Some married couples don’t sleep on the same bed or in the same bedroom as a result of their partner’s sleep problems.
- The white wedding gown was not originally the dresscode for brides on their wedding day, not until Queen Victoria married Prince Albert in 1840 wearing a simple white dress. It became popular and has since been used by brides all over the world with few exceptions.
- The Netherlands was the first country to legalize gay marriage in 2000 which took effect on April 1 2001. Ever since, many other countries have also legalized same-sex marriage.
- The happiest marriages occur between couples who are best friends before or after getting married.
Is Marriage Necessary?
With all these facts and so many others not mentioned in this article, the feeling of getting married can become overwhelming and you might be wondering if it’s even necessary to commit yourself to one individual for the rest of your life.
The truth remains that not everyone one of us will eventually get married, and some might take longer time in terms of age to tie the knot. Whatever your decision, it is important to be sure of what you want as an individual, and that you owe it to yourself to be happy with your choices. Your decision to be married should impact positively on you and your society.
That being said, Yes! Marriage is necessary to foster family relations and mutual connections between individuals but It’s not compulsory. There is no written law that states individuals must be married at some point in their lives.
Marriage is an institution that has evolved over time, across traditions, cultures and the society. Personal choice, political and economic considerations, have also influenced and shaped marriage as a whole. So it is safe to say that marriage plays a significant role in forming the society we live in.
It will also interest you to know that what works for A might not work for B, what this means is that individuals have different approaches to marriage and can only redefine it to suit their relationship. Truly, every marriage is unique and requires a high level of commitment and trust to make it work.
There are so many interesting facts about marriage, from historic, to cultural, and to religious facts. As the years go by, a whole lot of changes will still emerge, birthing new and intriguing facts. For now, let’s make the most of our time to work towards building fulfilling and happy marriages across the globe.
