Marriage patterns in South Africa:Methodological and substantive issues
Debbie Budlender, Ntebaleng Chobokoane and Sandile Simelane1
Abstract
The relative dearth of analytical work on marital status to date arises, in part, from the
difficulties associated with collecting and interpreting data. The problems are
particularly acute in South Africa as a result of the wide diversity in marriage forms,
cultures, religions and languages. Inadequacies in coverage of large segments of the
population during the apartheid years add to the difficulties. The paper describes some
of the historical, legal and social reasons for the data difficulties. It then describes and
examines data from various household surveys, the 1996 population census and
administrative sources on type, prevalence and timing of marriage to assess the extent of
the problems. Because census and survey data reflect perceptions of marriage, while
administrative data generally record the legal system, the paper can consider differences
between the two views of marriage, as well as differences between sources which
purport to measure the same view. The paper concludes that despite the many problems
in the data, careful analysis can reveal important trends in marriage patterns in the
country.
Keywords
Marriage, South Africa, Household Survey data, legal reform
Introduction
Marital status is of interest to a wide range of disciplines. Economists,
sociologists, anthropologists and demographers, among others, will often
include marital status in their investigations.
SAJDem 9(1):1–26
1
1 Debbie Budlender, Centre for Actuarial Research, University of Cape Town, Private Bag, 7700 Rondebosch.
Email: [email protected]
Ntabaleng Chobokoane and Sandile Simelane are from Statistics South Africa.
Unfortunately, there has been relatively little work to date on this topic in
relation to South Africa. One of the reasons for this dearth arises from the
difficulties associated with collecting and interpreting appropriate data. This is
particularly serious given the variety of marriage forms, and the range of
cultures and religions which affect marriage and marital status. This paper
attempts to describe and assess the seriousness of the data difficulties.
The paper begins with a critical analysis of different data sources as well as
legal and social issues with a bearing on the measurement of marriage patterns.
We then use these sources to ascertain type, prevalence and timing of marriage.
Analysis of types and prevalence of unions and marriages is presented using
simple contingency tables and percentages. The prevalence of marriage is
estimated by obtaining the proportion ever married at age 50. This approach is
based on the assumption that the majority of people who want to marry will do
so before reaching 50 years of age. Timing of first marriage is determined
through direct and indirect methods. The direct method involves the
calculation of the mean age of the distribution of responses to the question on
age at marriage. The indirect method uses the singulate mean age at marriage
(SMAM), an estimate of the average number of years lived in the single state by
those who marry before age 50 (Hajnal 1953).
Three main sources of data are used in the paper, namely the 1996
population census, the October Household Surveys (OHSs) and the 1998
South African Demographic and Health Survey (DHS). Each of these data sets
was designed to cover the total (relevant) population of the country, whether
as a sample survey or as a full census. Some census calculations in this paper are
based on the complete data set, using a Supercross version supplied by
Statistics South Africa. Others are based on the 10 per cent sample, again using
a Supercross version. The full census data were adjusted for the undercount,
and weights were applied to the 10 per cent census sample and the survey data
to ensure that the results are nationally representative.
The fourth source of data is Statistics South Africa’s reports on
administrative records of marriage. These are intended to cover the country as
a whole, but have a range of weaknesses in coverage which are discussed
below. For this source, the printed reports rather than the raw data were used.
At the outset, we note that the administrative data measure a different
phenomenon from the survey and census data. When working with the
administrative data, we are looking at the state’s view of who is married in
terms of the prevailing laws of the country. When working with survey and
2 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
census data, we are dealing with the perceptions of the individuals’ concerned,
or those of respondents, as to what constitutes marriage. The legal and
sociological views match in some cases, but not in all.
The Recognition of Customary Marriages Act
In 1998, the legal situation in the country in respect of marriage changed
significantly – especially for African people – with the passing of the
Recognition of Customary Marriages Act, Act 12 of 1998.
Prior to 1998, the Marriage Act of 1961 was the only law which provided
for recognition of marriage as defined by the South African legal system. The
Act was racially and culturally biased in that it did not recognise relationships
formalised according to indigenous African rites (“customary” marriages) as
well as relationships formalised in accordance with Hindu or Muslim law.
Relationships formalised according to indigenous African rites were legally
recognised, but were not recognised as “marriages” and did not have the legal
consequences of a marriage. Muslim relationships were not recognised at all
because of their potentially polygynous nature. Couples entering into these
types of relationships would only get legal recognition of their union as a legal
“marriage” if they subsequently formalised the union in one of the recognised
ways. The Recognition of Customary Marriages Act changed this situation by
according legal recognition to customary marriages. However, the Act still
does not recognise all religious marriages. More specifically, Islamic and
Hindu marriages are not recognised. “Customary law” is defined in the Act as
the “customs and usages traditionally observed among the indigenous African
peoples of South Africa and which form part of the culture of those peoples”
and a “customary marriage” is a marriage “concluded in accordance with
customary law” (s1). The Act was important symbolically and in many other
ways but may, nonetheless, have less statistical effect than could be expected.
In addition to improving the situation of African people – and African
women in particular – in respect of inheritance, pensions, medical aids, child
maintenance, and divorce settlements, we can expect that the Act will change
the registration statistics collected by the vital statistics section of Statistics
South Africa. The impact is difficult to predict, as the Act came into effect only
on 15 November 2000, due to a delay in issuing of regulations. Statistics South
Africa observed some reporting of customary marriages in the data covering
2001, but has not yet published its analysis of these statistics. Islamic and
Hindu marriages will continue to be unrecorded for the foreseeable future.
Marriage patterns in South Africa 3
The registration fee for customary marriages is R10, and is thus unlikely to
provide an obstacle for any but the poorest of the poor. This should assist in
improving the quality of the data. Also on the positive side, the Act provides
benefits that might prompt women, in particular, to register. Most
importantly, marriages concluded after the Act came into effect are in
community of property. This is a system which usually provides more
protection for women. The impact of this attractive aspect on registration will
be limited first by the extent to which men resist registration so as to resist
sharing and, second, by the fact that it is a limited benefit if earnings and
property are limited. The latter situation is true for many couples in the rural
areas in which customary marriages are most prevalent. Further, marriages
entered into before the date the Act came into effect “continue to be governed
by customary law” (s7(1)) unless the couple apply to change the property
system. Customary law generally favours men in terms of property.
The fact that the Act attempts to legalise as many marriages as possible
could also discourage registration. Nhlapo (1999:4) notes that the inclusive
approach was adopted because “traditionally people don’t consider
registration of their marriages to be a high priority.” To promote inclusivity,
failure to register will not render a marriage illegal (s4(9)). Non-registration
will also not nullify many of the benefits of the Act, such as the repeal of laws
which made women married by customary laws minors and gave their
husbands marital power, and a provision that gives mothers equal rights to
custody of their children (Mbatha 1997:6).
Another potential problem for the collection of statistics is that the
regulations make registration of a customary marriage a relatively
cumbersome procedure. The couple must have identity books – a requirement
which is not always easily fulfilled. They must also complete many forms. This
is an obstacle that will deter the illiterate and semi-literate, in particular. The
Act further requires that the marriage must be registered within a given period
– 12 months for a marriage entered into before the Act came into effect, and
three months for marriages entered into after this date. Mbatha notes that this
could result in non-registration if, as the women she interviewed claim, “men
play delaying tactics by either failing to create time to register the marriage,
blaming it on work, or by a general refusal to create time” (Mbatha 1998a:5).
A further negative element is the fact that the Act states that the parties to a
customary marriage must generally be at least 18 years of age. This presents
problems because customary marriages are more likely than others to involve
4 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
young people. While there is provision in the Act for exceptions, this age limit
will probably result in non-registration of a significant number of customary
marriages that have occurred in the past, and will almost certainly continue,
between people who are younger than 18.
A final complication in terms of predicting future increases in registered
marriages is that, in the past, some couples who married under customary law
subsequently also married in terms of the Marriage Act of 1961. Some did so in
order to obtain the property and other benefits of a civil marriage. This was
more likely to happen with urban and less poor couples. Others did so because
of a “mind-set … [that] believes that customary marriages are inferior to civil
marriages” (Mbatha 1998b:7).
The new Act continues to provide for couples married by customary law
also to contract a civil marriage under the Marriage Act of 1961. This will
presumably result in double counting in the registration statistics. It will also
retain the current situation in surveys where the response of the spouses to a
question as to their type of marriage could differ.
Respondents’ reporting of marital status
Most surveys find that more women than men are reported to be married.
Budlender (1999b:17) hypothesises that this could, at least partly, reflect
different perceptions about what constitutes marriage, as well as the perceived
desirability of being seen as married. For example, if a couple is physically
separated, with the man in town and interested in other relationships, while
the woman is in the rural areas and hoping for regular remittances, he may
report that he is separated or even divorced, while the woman reports that she
is married.
Cohabitation is also likely to be differently reported by different people. This
is a relatively common marital status in South Africa. Goldblatt (1999:7) notes
that, while in many developed countries, “cohabitation is a middle class choice,
in South Africa it is a real problem outside of the control of most poor women.”
Statistics on cohabitation almost certainly exhibit even more weaknesses
than statistics on marriage. First some cohabitees will not be willing to
acknowledge this status to an outside interviewer, and will instead report
themselves as either married or single. Second, the term is often
misunderstood, especially when translated into different languages.
Table 1 is derived from the series of October household surveys conducted
over the five years 1995–1999. The table suggests a gradual increase in the
Marriage patterns in South Africa 5
percentage of people reporting themselves to be living together over the
period. However, the period is too short and the increase too small to make
any definitive statements. What can be noted is that the number of people
reported to be living together is significantly larger than the number of people
reported as widowed, divorced or separated.
Table 1 Per cent distribution of women aged 15–49 by marital status, 1995–1999
Year MarriedNever
married
Living
togetherWidowed
Divorced/
separatedTotal
1995 35 58 4 1 2 100
1996 34 58 4 2 2 100
1997 32 59 5 1 2 100
1998 31 58 7 2 2 100
1999 30 60 6 1 3 100
Source: October household surveys, 1995–1999
In terms of married people, the bridewealth custom introduces another
‘perception’ complication into the statistics. Bridewealth is common in South
Africa among African people. The payments of bridewealth are often spread
over an extended period. This can result in differing perceptions as to when
the couple are married – when the first payment is made, or only when the final
payment is made. The two parties to a marriage may report the same event
differently. Parties to different marriages are even more likely to differ in their
manner of reporting.
Statistics from registration of marriages
Bah argues that censuses and the vital statistics registration system are “by far
the most important sources” of data on marriage when compared with, for
example, surveys and other administrative data (Bah 1999:6). In South Africa
both these “most important sources” have significant weaknesses. This section
discusses the vital registration system. Bah (1999) acknowledges that the extent
to which the number of reported marriages and divorces is accurate depends on
whether these events are registered. This, in turn, depends on “the individuals’
perception of marriage and divorce” and the marriage and divorce legislation. In
the past, registration did not cover large segments of the population. In addition,
perceptions as to what constitutes marriage may change over time and differ
6 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
between individuals and groups. The change in legislation will make
comparisons of trends in marriage over time difficult, if not impossible.
Changes in legislation are not the only cause of problems in respect of
comparability over time. Difficulties also exist for non-customary, non-Hindu
and non-Muslim marriages. As in so many areas, apartheid politics is
responsible for some of these difficulties.
Non-customary African marriages were included in the registration
statistics for the first time in 1991. A problem for comparative analysis even
from that date is that the official geographical boundaries of South Africa have
changed. The 2 391 marriages recorded in respect of ‘African areas’ in 1991
thus only reflect marriages in the six ‘self-governing territories’, i.e. homelands
other than the Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda and Ciskei. These marriages
account for 2.2 per cent of the total 108 929 marriages registered in that year
(Central Statistical Service 1991). Further, within official ‘white’ South Africa,
the geographical division in the statistics was into the then four provinces
rather than the nine provinces of today. The first year for which data can more
meaningfully be compared with the most recent statistics is 1994.
A further geographical disjuncture reflects a shift in responsibilities
between government authorities. Until mid-1996 civil marriages were defined
as those solemnised in courts. From 1 June 1996, the responsibility for
solemnising marriages was transferred to the Department of Home Affairs and
the meaning of civil marriages changed accordingly. The shift in responsibility
affects the statistics if one goes beneath the provincial level as the distribution
of magistrates courts and Home Affairs offices differ. The shift in
responsibility also resulted in loss of data. First, when transferring the
marriage data from one bureau to another in 1998, the Department of Home
Affairs destroyed all data on birth and marriage registration that were more
than a year old. This affected coverage by Statistics South Africa of some late
registrations for 1997. Second, in 1999 the Department of Home Affairs
stopped specifying the population group of individuals registering their
marriage in data forwarded to Statistics South Africa (Bah 1999:5).
The most recent publication (Statistics South Africa 2002) reports on
marriages registered in 1999. Because the Customary Marriage Act only came
into effect in November 2000, these data therefore continue to exclude
customary marriages. For the purposes of this paper, we refer also to data from
the previous release (Statistics South Africa 2000) which covers 1997 and 1998,
so as to assess the extent to which the patterns are consistent over the years.
Marriage patterns in South Africa 7
A total of 155 807 marriages were registered in 1999, of which 52 603
were religious (Christian or Jewish), 70 544 civil and 32 633 unspecified. The
Western Cape and Gauteng recorded the highest crude marriage rates i.e.
marriages per 100 000 of the population. These two provinces are the most
urbanised and the wealthiest of the nine provinces in the country. The Western
Cape also has an unusually low presence of Africans in the population, and
thus less likelihood of customary marriages. Gauteng has the third lowest
proportion of Africans. The wealthier provinces also have relatively higher
proportions of adults in their population. The statistics thus make intuitive
sense.
In 1998, 44.6 per cent of registered marriages were solemnised under civil
law, down from 48.4 per cent in 1997, despite the fact that the total number of
marriages remained almost constant between the two years, at 146 729 in
1997 and 146 741 in 1998. The relevant release (Statistics South Africa 2000)
does not suggest any reason for the nearly four percentage points difference
from one year to the next. In 1999, the percentage increased again, although
only to 45.3 per cent.
The most recent publication (Statistics South Africa 2002:12) reports that,
for registered marriages, the median age at marriage for men was 33.7 and for
women 29.5 years in 1999. (Unfortunately, as noted above, separate figures
are not available for the different population groups.) The number of
marriages peaks for both women and men in the age group 25 to 29 years.
The above statistics seem credible if we accept the limited coverage in terms
of forms of marriage. But disaggregation reveals some weaknesses. For over a
fifth (21 per cent) of all marriages registered in 1999, the records do not
distinguish between religious and civil. The percentage for which the type of
marriage is unspecified is as high as 52 per cent in Mpumalanga. The problem
is not confined to rural or ex-homeland areas. The percentage of unknowns
stands at 30 per cent in urban Gauteng.
One way of assessing the reliability of the statistics is to examine patterns
over time. Due to the changes in provincial delimitations, the earliest year for
which we can make a meaningful comparison with the most recent registration
statistics is 1994. Statistics for 1994 (Central Statistical Service 1994) show a
relatively similar overall total – 133 309 marriages in 1994 compared to the
155 807 recorded for 1999. The percentage distribution across the provinces
is also very similar. As can be seen from Table 2, the proportion of marriages in
the Western Cape has declined, while that in Limpopo has increased,
8 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
Marriage patterns in South Africa 9
Table 2 Marriages registered by method of solemnisation and province,
1994, 1998 and 1999
Number Per cent
1994 Religious Civil Unknown Total Religious Civil Unknown Total
Western Cape 14 583 8 986 211 23 780 24 14 4 18
Eastern Cape 6 161 4 111 169 10 441 10 6 3 8
Northern Cape 2 125 1 817 29 3 971 3 3 0 3
Free State 5 433 4 733 443 10 609 9 7 7 8
KwaZulu-Natal 9 755 6 451 1 719 17 925 16 10 29 13
North West 2 745 4 538 348 7 631 4 7 6 6
Gauteng 16 791 21 891 1 701 40 383 27 33 29 30
Mpumalanga 2 242 5 844 826 8 912 4 9 14 7
Limpopo 1 146 7 786 426 9 358 2 12 7 7
Unspecified 74 64 42 180 0 0 1 0
Outside SA 21 53 45 119 0 0 1 0
Total 61 076 66 274 5 959 133 309 100 100 100 100
1998
Western Cape 13 912 9 354 820 24 086 27 14 3 16
Eastern Cape 5 249 6 053 4 513 15 815 10 9 16 11
Northern Cape 1 879 1 697 110 3 686 4 3 0 3
Free State 3 168 5 998 2 967 12 133 6 9 10 8
KwaZulu-Natal 12 078 5 761 2 428 20 267 23 9 8 14
North West 2 473 6 724 1 451 10 648 5 10 5 7
Gauteng 11 814 17 833 8 129 37 776 23 27 28 26
Mpumalanga 933 2 542 3 674 7 149 2 4 13 5
Limpopo 629 9 296 3 106 13 031 1 14 11 9
Unspecified 85 192 1 756 2 033 0 0 6 1
Outside SA 74 21 22 117 0 0 0 0
Total 52 294 65 471 28 976 146 741 100 100 100 100
1999
Western Cape 14 195 9 630 754 24 579 27 14 2 16
Eastern Cape 9 319 7 057 4 411 20 787 18 10 14 13
Northern Cape 1 948 1 919 175 4 042 4 3 1 3
Free State 3 418 7 025 2 765 13 208 6 10 8 8
KwaZulu-Natal 7 899 4 452 2 261 14 612 15 6 7 9
North West 2 811 7 329 1 779 11 919 5 10 5 8
Gauteng 10 803 17 329 12 300 40 432 21 25 38 26
Mpumalanga 1 228 2 891 4 455 8 574 2 4 14 6
Limpopo 587 9 666 3 538 13 791 1 14 11 9
Unspecified 410 3 195 158 3 763 1 5 0 2
Outside SA 12 51 37 100 0 0 0 0
Total 52 630 70 544 32 633 155 807 100 100 100 100
suggesting an increase in African marriages. This could reflect either a real
increase or, alternatively, better recording of marriages in African-dominated
areas. Unfortunately, there is no breakdown by population group to
substantiate this suggested reason for the pattern.
More detailed comparison of the statistics for the two years according to
method of solemnisation is more difficult. In 1994, the category
corresponding to the “religious” of 1999 is referred to as “solemnised in
churches” and the “civil” of 1999 is referred to as “solemnised in magistrate’s
courts”. We can assume that, for example, Jewish synagogues were included in
the category of “church”. A more intractable problem is the significant
increase in marriages for which the method of solemnisation is recorded as
unknown. These marriages accounted for only 4 per cent of all registered
marriages in 1994, but for a much higher 21 per cent in 1999. The
performance of all provinces deteriorated over the period. By 1999, in only
two provinces – Western Cape (at 3.1 per cent) and Northern Cape (at 4.3 per
cent) was the percentage unrecorded less than 14 per cent. This deterioration
in record-keeping is worrying.
If we focus only on those marriages for which the method of solemnisation
is known, Western Cape and Northern Cape show a stable pattern, with
approximately 60 per cent marriages solemnised by religious rites in Western
Cape and approximately 50 per cent in Northern Cape. North West and Free
State show marked declines in the proportion of religious marriages between
1994 and 1999, from 38 per cent to 28 per cent and 53 per cent to 33 per cent
respectively. Both these provinces have (relatively) low percentages of
unknown, and the figures could reflect a real shift between the two methods of
solemnisation. Variations for other provinces produce little useful
information given the large percentages unknown and the fluctuations from
year to year.
Data on marriage from the 1996 census
In this section we examine data from the 1996 census. First we look at the
extent to which the patterns they reveal compare with those reflected in the
vital registration statistics. Second, we look at what further information the
census reveals. In particular, we are interested in the extent to which census
data can tell us about type of marriage, and thus provide indications as to the
number of additional marriages that will be registered under the Customary
Marriages Act.
10 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
The census and vital registration data measure different things: the
registration figures reflect marriages taking place in a particular year, while the
census records the number of people who are married, and not divorced or
separated, at a particular point in time. Further, the registration figures reflect
the location where the marriage took place, which will often be the home area of
the parents of the bride or groom, while the census figures reflect where the
partners to a marriage were living at the time of the census. Finally, the
registration figures count couples, while the census figures count individuals.
On one hand, this should not make a difference in that each marriage should
involve two people. Thus, we might assume that the census figures merely
double-count. However, complications arise for two reasons. First, where there
is polygamy, there will be less than double the number of individuals as some
individuals will be involved in more than one marriage. While polygamy is not
as important a phenomenon in South Africa as in some other countries, it could
produce a slight mismatch in the overall number of male and female married
people. Second, where we look at geographical patterns, the two partners may
be living apart. This second consideration is particularly pertinent in South
Africa, where migrant labour and poor job prospects in rural areas mean that
many men, in particular, leave to look for work in urban areas.
Our first comparison looks at distribution by province. Despite the fact that
the Census records currently married people while the vital registration figures
record new marriages, the comparison reveals smaller differences than might
have been expected. Table 3 shows that it is only in respect of Western Cape,
Eastern Cape and Gauteng that there are more than three percentage points
difference in the distribution across the provinces. As expected, the more urban
provinces where traditional marriages are less common account for a lower
proportion of all married people than their proportion of total registered
non-customary marriages. The statistics thus make sense, although the implied
effect of customary marriages is less than might have been expected.
We can also compare the distribution across provinces of people recorded
in the census as married by civil and religious rites with the distribution of
registered marriages in Table 4. Here, we again find a close match except in the
case of KwaZulu-Natal, which accounts for 18 per cent of individuals married
by civil or religious rites in the census, but only 14 per cent of marriages
registered in 1999.
These close matches could mean that the census statistics on traditional
marriages present a fairly accurate reflection of marriage in South Africa. One
Marriage patterns in South Africa 11
12 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
Table 3 Marriages registered and currently married people by province, 1996
Province Registered Per cent Currently married Per cent
Western Cape 25 165 17 1 195 932 12
Eastern Cape 13 919 9 1 371 713 14
Northern Cape 3 691 3 200 142 2
Free State 11 463 8 772 431 8
KwaZulu-Natal 20 963 14 1 728 006 17
North West 10 787 7 782 027 8
Gauteng 39 866 27 2 253 253 22
Mpumalanga 7 705 5 648 412 6
Limpopo 12 383 8 1 083 112 11
Unspecified 567 0 – –
Outside SA 223 0 – –
Total 146 732 100 1 0035 028 100
Source: Statistics South Africa 1999:7; Census 1996
Table 4 Marriages registered and people currently married by civil or religious rites
by province, 1996
Province Registered Per cent Currently married Per cent
Western Cape 25 165 17 1 100 525 16
Eastern Cape 13 919 9 774 648 11
Northern Cape 3 691 3 192 370 3
Free State 11 463 8 529 163 8
KwaZulu-Natal 20 963 14 1 270 916 18
North West 10 787 7 574 099 8
Gauteng 39 866 27 1 740 674 25
Mpumalanga 7 705 5 347 589 5
Limpopo 12 383 8 411 099 6
Unspecified 567 0 – –
Outside SA 223 0 – –
Total 146 732 100 6 941 083 100
Source: Statistics South Africa 1999:7; Census 1996
of the unknown factors is the extent to which individuals are married by both
traditional and civil rites and, if so, which of these states they are more likely to
report in a census questionnaire. Another unknown in assessing future
statistics is the extent to which formalisation of customary marriages could
change marriage trends by making customary marriages more attractive. As
they stand, the data suggest that registration of customary marriages might
generate a relatively small increase in vital registration statistics. A third
unknown is how the word “traditional” is understood by respondents. It seems
likely that at least some respondents will see this term as referring to a
“traditional” wedding in church with the bride in a white dress and veil!
We turn now to what the census data can add to our understanding of
marriage. Table 5 shows the pattern of civil and religious, as opposed to
traditional, marriages by age group. The table reveals higher percentages of
people married by traditional rites among both the youngest and oldest age
groups. Thus the highest incidence of traditional marriage is among 16–19 year
olds, where 60 per cent of married individuals are married by traditional rites.
The next highest rate is among those aged 80 years or more, followed by those in
the 20–29 years and 70–79 years age groups. This pattern can be explained by
the combined operation of two forces. On the one hand, it is likely those who
marry traditionally tend to marry earlier than those who marry under civil or
religious rites. There is some weak support for this assumption in the OHS 1998
data which show a one year difference in mean and median age at first marriage,
but only for women, between those married traditionally and those married by
civil rites. This could explain the high incidence among the teenagers. On the
other hand, in previous decades African people were more likely than now to
marry by traditional rites. This explains the higher prevalence of traditional
marriage among the older age groups. What we do not know at this stage is how
the 18-year age provision in the Registration of Customary Marriages Act will
affect both marriage practices and registration.
A further possible route for estimates of different forms of marriage from
census data is religion. Unfortunately, the question on religion is the only one
that is not compulsory in the census. Close on one in ten (9 per cent, or over
2 million) of the population aged 16 years and above either refused to answer
this question or had no religion specified. A further 12 per cent (3 million) said
they had no religion.
One might hypothesise that customary marriages would be most likely
among people with traditional beliefs. In fact, under 0.1 per cent of the
Marriage patterns in South Africa 13
population aged 16 years and above were recorded as having African
traditional belief as their religion. As expected, the overwhelming majority
(96 per cent) of those claiming African traditional belief as their religion were
African. A larger, but still very small percentage (1.5 per cent) of the
population aged 16 years and above, claimed Islam as their religion. Of these,
44 per cent were Indian, 43 per cent coloured.
Table 5 Population aged 16 years and above by type of marriage and age, 1996
Age groupMarried:
Civil/ religiousPer cent
Married:
TraditionalPer cent Total Per cent
16–19 21 302 40 31 556 60 52 858 100
20–29 885 739 62 540 590 38 1 426 329 100
30–39 2 101 476 70 889 191 30 2 990 667 100
40–49 1 787 900 73 661 718 27 2 449 618 100
50–59 1 127 776 73 419 114 27 1 546 890 100
60–69 669 223 67 332 401 33 1 001 624 100
70–79 280 389 63 167 081 37 447 470 100
80+ 67 279 56 52 294 44 119 573 100
Total 6 941 083 69 3 093 945 31 10 035 028 100
Source: Census 1996
Table 6 provides a cross-tabulation of religion with marital status as
recorded in the 1996 census. Civil and religious marriages were combined in
one category. Of those claiming to be married by civil or religious rites, over
three quarters (79 per cent) were Christian, 9 per cent were of unspecified
religion and 6 per cent had no religion. More interesting is that, of those
claiming to be married by traditional rites, a full 69 per cent were Christian,
while 20 per cent claimed no religion and 9 per cent were of unspecified
religion. The table reveals that over a quarter (28 per cent) of married
Christians were married by traditional rites. These statistics could support our
earlier suggestion that “traditional” marriage is being understood in a way
different from that intended by the census designers.
Disappointingly, the discussion above suggests that the census questions on
religion and type of marriage provide very little to help us in estimating
changes in registration statistics that can be expected from implementation of
the Customary Marriages Act.
14 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
Table 6 Population aged 16 years and above by religion and marital status, 1996
Never
married
Married:
Civil/
religious
Married:
Traditional
Living
togetherWidowed
Divorced/
separatedUnknown Total
Number
African
traditional4 443 1 365 3 054 411 828 372 100 10 574
Muslim 115 874 181 886 26 396 4 458 18 007 14 267 2 540 363 429
Christian 8 504 458 5 464 609 2 144 487 890 676 988 522 538 900 170 784 18 702 436
Hinduism 112 490 205 049 22 499 3 810 27 628 10 103 2 296 383 874
No religion 1 486 891 409 511 612 926 245 445 138 714 86 592 27 408 3 007 485
Refused/
unknown1 038 247 647 368 281 968 122 401 103 094 68 463 59 603 2 321 144
Other 19 146 31 296 2 614 1 764 5 132 3 468 375 63 796
Total 11 281 550 6 941 083 3 093 945 1 268 965 1 281 924 722 165 263 106 24 852 738
Per cent
African
traditional0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Muslim 1 3 1 0 1 2 1 1
Christian 75 79 69 70 77 75 65 75
Hinduism 1 3 1 0 2 1 1 2
No religion 13 6 20 19 11 12 10 12
Refused/
unknown9 9 9 10 8 9 23 9
Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100
Source: Census 1996
Patterns of marriage in South Africa
The data from the 1996 census and the October Household Surveys permit
investigation into the types and timing, as well as the prevalence, of marriages
entered into in South Africa. The analysis of these three aspects is undertaken
at three levels – national, population group, and rural/ urban residence. The
disaggregation is used to ascertain differences, if any, in marital practices
between different groups. In addition, the comparison of results from
Marriage patterns in South Africa 15
different sources provides indications as to the consistency and reliability of
the data.
Type of marriage
Figure 1 shows the distribution of the married population by type of marriage.
A large proportion (70 per cent on average) of the people who were married at
the time of the surveys were reported to be married by civil rites. The
consistency of the proportions between the OHSs and the census is interesting
in that, whereas Census 1996 was clear on how to treat religious marriages, in
OHSs none of the options included religious marriage, and this type of
marriage may therefore have been reported as either civil or traditional
depending on the respondent’s and fieldworker’s perception.
The consistency of the proportions of people married by civil and
traditional rites is maintained for all four population groups when the data are
disaggregated by population group. In fact, the differences between the OHSs
are generally as great as those between the OHSs and the census. The coloured
population group is the only one where the split between civil and traditional
16 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
OHS 1995 OHS 1996 OHS 1997 OHS 1998 OHS 1999 Census '96
Source of data
Per
cent
Civil marriage Customary marriage
Figure 1 Per cent distribution of the married population by type of marriage,
RSA, 1995–1999
in the census is outside the range covered by the set of OHSs. Yet even in this
group, the percentage point difference between the census values and the
nearest OHS values (for 1997) are smaller than the difference between the
nearest OHS value and the next nearest value (1996 and 1998).
The patterns for African and Indian population groups are the least stable.
For the latter, the instability can be explained by the relatively small sample
sizes, especially when using OHS data. For the former, the instability could
reflect variability in how the different terms are interpreted. However, there is
no clear pattern in terms of instrument effects.
Looking at differentials in marriage form between urban and rural areas, it
is apparent that traditional marriages are a rare phenomenon in urban areas,
accounting for less than 20 per cent of all marriages. Both the census and the
OHS data show that traditional marriages are generally more common among
non-urban dwellers than civil marriages. This finding is not surprising given
that African people predominate in non-urban areas to an ever greater extent
than in urban and, as shown above, traditional marriages are more common
among Africans. The African predominance in non-urban areas does not,
however, explain all of the difference between the urban and non-urban
marriage patterns. If we confine our attention to Africans, the 1996 census
reveals that 30.7 per cent of married people in urban areas were married by
traditional rites, compared to 58.4 per cent in non-urban areas.
Types of union
Polyandry is so rare in South Africa that polygamy is treated as synonymous to
polygyny. As a result, the focus of this sub-section is on estimates of the extent
of polygyny. However, it is generally accepted that polygyny is no longer
widespread in the country (South African Law Commission 1999:3). The only
source of data on polygyny in South Africa is the 1998 Demographic and
Health Survey. These data show 4 per cent of married women reporting that
their husbands have other wives beside themselves. When disaggregated by
population group, the percentage is 7 per cent among married African women,
3 per cent among coloured, 2 per cent Indian and 1 per cent white. These
percentages may be overestimates as some women may have interpreted
“other wife” broadly to include women with whom the husband cohabits but
to whom he is not necessarily formally married. The possibility of this
happening is increased by the fact that the word for “wife” is the same as the
word for “woman” in some South African languages.
Marriage patterns in South Africa 17
The timing of marriage
Our direct estimates of mean age at first marriage are based on responses to a
question in the OHSs of 1997 and 1998 which asked how old the person was
when they first married or lived with a partner. (This question was not asked in
all the OHSs.) The responses could be biased downwards to the extent that
people report first age at which they started living together with someone
rather than first age at marriage.
This bias is likely, on the one hand, because living together is more
commonly reported for younger people than older people. (Of course, living
together might also be more common today than it was in the past, so that we
cannot assume that those who are now in their forties behaved like those
currently in their twenties when they were that age.) For example, there are
only 1.7 married people aged 16–19 years for every person of this age who is
reported as living together with a partner. Among 20–29 year olds, there are
3.2 married people for every person reported as living together. The ratio
increases for each age group, to 27.7:1 for 69–69 year olds and 38.3:1 for
those aged 70 and above. The age group 20–29 accounts for 35 per cent of all
people living together, with another 35 per cent in the age group 30–39 years.
On the other hand, the bias might be limited as the OHS 1998 data show
virtually no differences in the mean and median age of first marriage or
co-habitation between those who are currently married and those currently
living together. Further, living together is recorded as the current situation for
a relatively small percentage of people (see Table 1). We suspect that living
together is under-reported, and that similar under-reporting of living together
will occur in respect of the age at first marriage or cohabitation question. If this
is true, the bias in the calculation of first age at marriage will not be large.
The 1997 and 1998 OHSs suggest that the mean age at marriage for South
Africans is around 25 years. The breakdown by sex provides a mean of
28 years for males and 24 years for females, yielding an average difference of
four years between married couples (Table 7). These figures are higher than
those reported by the United Nations for most other African countries (United
Nations 1988:66–71). Table 7 also suggests that Africans (males in particular)
tend to marry much later than the other groups. Indians, on the other hand,
have the lowest mean age at marriage (24 years). Calculation of variances for
male and female of the different population groups reveals that these are
significantly larger for African and coloured men and women than for Indians
and whites. Further, while Africans marry later and Indians earlier, both
18 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
groups have an average difference in the ages of husbands and wives of four
years, a difference which is larger than those for coloured and white couples.
Table 7 Mean age at marriage (direct method) by population group, sex and source
Population groupOHS 1997 OHS 1998
Male Female Total Male Female Total
African 28.4 23.7 25.7 28.1 23.5 25.5
Coloured 26.3 24.0 25.0 26.1 23.8 24.9
Indian 25.6 21.7 21.8 25.6 21.8 23.5
White 25.8 23.0 24.3 26.4 23.5 24.9
RSA 27.5 23.5 25.3 27.4 23.5 25.2
Source: OHS 1997 & 1998
The data do not show marked differences in the timing of marriages
between urban and non-urban areas. However, the average difference in the
ages of the spouses differs markedly between the two areas. Whereas urban
husbands have an average of three years of seniority over their wives, the
difference in non-urban areas is five years. This pattern is again at least partly
explained by the predominance of African people in non-urban areas.
The administrative data provide information about median age at marriage
rather than mean age. The medians from the administrative data and the OHSs
are not strictly comparable, in that the former refers to the age at which the
most recent marriage was entered into, while the OHS refers to the age of first
marriage. As South Africa has relatively high rates of divorce and remarriage,
this distinction could be important.
According to the OHS of 1998, the median age at first marriage is 22 years
for females and 26 years for males (Table 8). These values are significantly lower
than the 30 years for females and 34 years for males recorded in the
administrative data for 1998 (Statistics South Africa 2000). The difference in
respect of current and first marriage would explain at least some of the disparity.
The average age at marriage can be estimated indirectly by calculating a
measure called the singulate mean at marriage (SMAM). There are four points
that must be kept in mind about SMAM. First, the measure relies heavily on
the proportions of people who are reported as single in surveys or censuses. In
the case of South Africa this creates problems because of ambiguity as to how
to treat those who report themselves as “living together”. To circumvent this
Marriage patterns in South Africa 19
problem, the estimates below were calculated treating those living together as
“single”.
Table 8 Median age at marriage by population group and sex, 1998
Population group Male Female Total
African 27 22 24
Coloured 25 23 24
Indian 24 20 22
White 25 22 23
RSA 26 22 24
Source: OHS 1998
Second, while the SMAM is sensitive to age reporting errors, this is not a
matter of particular concern in South Africa, as the data collected in censuses
and surveys typically shows only a small extent of exaggeration in the age
range used in the calculation of a SMAM. Third, the computation of SMAM
from current status data in a single census or survey assumes that age at first
marriage has been constant over time and that differences in mortality or
migration rates by marital status are negligible. Fourth, SMAM results are
biased towards the more recent past. If age at marriage is increasing, then the
proportion single at younger ages will be higher now than a few years before,
and the SMAM should lie between the two.
Table 9 presents SMAM estimates from the 1996 census and the 1995 and
1999 OHSs, as the endpoints of the period covered by the more reliable OHSs.
As expected, the SMAM figures are higher than the estimates derived from the
direct method of estimating the average ages at which people get married.
Table 9 nevertheless confirms the late marriage for Africans shown by the
direct method. Indirect estimates for urban and non-urban are not shown as
they show no differences in the timing of marriage by place of residence.
The SMAM figures suggest a slight increase in the mean age at marriage for
all population groups and both sexes over the period 1995 to 1999. The
period is a short one and the increase is small. The pattern is nevertheless
worth monitoring in the coming years as it occurs alongside the slight increase
in the proportion of living together over the same period reported above.
20 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
Table 9 Singulate mean age at marriage (SMAM) by population group and source
Source OHS 1995 Census ’96 OHS 1999
RSA
Male 31.9 31.4
Female 29.6 29.3
Total 30.8 30.3
African
Male 33.1 32.4 32.4
Female 30.4 30.2 30.6
Total 31.8 31.2 32.7
Coloured
Male 30.3 29.2 31.0
Female 30.5 28.6 28.7
Total 30.1 28.8 30.2
Indian
Male 28.2 26.9 28.9
Female 24.4 23 26.6
Total 26.6 25.3 27.7
White
Male 26.2 27.4 28.4
Female 24.1 25.5 26.6
Total 25 26.3 27.2
Source: OHS 1995 & 1999; Census ’96
The prevalence of marriage
The ambiguity regarding the classification of the “living together” category
also affects estimations of the prevalence of marriage. This is so because this
index is dependent on the percentages of people single between the ages 45
and 54. As before, we treat those living together as single.
Table 10 shows the average percentages of people ever married by age 50 by
population group and sex over the period 1995 to 1999. All the data sets
provide comparable estimates. The prevalence of marriage among South
Africans during the period 1995–1999 averaged 83.4 per cent.
Marriage patterns in South Africa 21
Two distinct patterns emerge regarding the prevalence of marriage by
population group. During the period 1995–1999 marriage was almost
universal among whites (94.8 per cent) and Indians (92.2 per cent), treating
those “living together” as single. By contrast, the estimates for Africans and
coloureds suggest that marriage was far from universal among the two groups.
When those “living together” are considered as single, the proportions ever
married were 80.1 per cent and 83.1 per cent for Africans and coloureds,
respectively. Cohabitation is more prevalent – or is reported more often –
among Africans and coloureds than among Indians and whites.
Table 10 Average per cent aged 50 and above ever married by population group
and sex, 1995–1999
Population group Male Female Total
African 79.8 80.4 80.1
Coloured 83.3 82.8 83.1
Indian 92.0 91.8 92.2
White 94.3 95.3 94.8
RSA 83.2 83.5 83.4
Source: OHS 1995–1999
The analysis of the prevalence of marriage by place of residence does not
indicate a large difference between urban and non-urban locations. The
proportion of the population ever married by age 50 averages 84 per cent in
urban areas, and 82 per cent in non-urban areas.
Conclusions
The main aim of this paper is to describe and assess the available data on
marriage in South Africa. Despite the wide range of data sources available,
several weaknesses in these data have been identified which present problems
for the analyst trying to describe and understand marital patterns in the country.
One of the primary problems is the wide range of marriage practices in the
country, and differing cultural understandings as to what constitutes marriage.
This problem is aggravated by linguistic issues, in that the terms used in the
data collection instruments will be understood differently by different
informants and fieldworkers. Further, the instruments are not consistent in
the way they use terms and divide marriages into groups.
22 Southern African Journal of Demography 9(1)
A second important source of data disparities is the difference between the
legal definition of marriage – which is what is recorded in the administrative
data – and the sociological perception of the people involved and other
members of their household as to what constitutes marriage. Examination of
the administrative data reveals missing information in respect of type of
marriage, as well as fluctuations in provincial statistics from one year to the
next. These deficiencies suggest that registration of marriage, like that of births
and deaths, might not be recording even the legal situation as well as it should.
This clearly complicates comparison of the legal and sociological ‘pictures’ of
marriage in the country.
The recent change in the law, in the form of the Recognition of Customary
Marriages Act, will in the future further complicate the statistics as the
coverage of administrative data will increase, but by an unknown amount. One
of the aims of this paper was to get some idea of how great this increase might
be. The analysis above, however, shows smaller differences than expected
between data that exclude customary marriages and those that include them.
Further, the fact that registration is not compulsory, and the past and ongoing
possibility of marriage by both customary and civil law simultaneously will
obscure the meaning of observed changes in the statistics.
When looking at type of marriage, survey and census data provide very
similar pictures despite different grouping of categories in the two
instruments. Calculations of mean age at marriage produce higher values than
in most other African countries. These cannot necessarily be explained by a
higher proportion of people living together as the question about age at first
marriage includes age of first co-habitation. Further, the figures for median
age of marriage in the administrative data are even higher than those in survey
and census data. This latter difference is at least partly explained by the fact
that the administrative data refer to the current marriage, while the census and
survey data refer to first marriage. However, it is not clear that this would
account for most of the observed difference.
Data on the prevalence of marriage seem generally consistent. Data on both
marriage and living together reveal significant differences between population
groups, as well as some differences between urban and non-urban areas. In
terms of polygyny, only one source of data is available. Unfortunately, the way
this question was phrased in the DHS might well have been misinterpreted and
the derived estimate is thus open to question.
Marriage, entry into marriage, and their measurement are clearly not
Marriage patterns in South Africa 23
simple concepts, particularly in multicultural, multilingual societies such as
South Africa. Nevertheless, despite the inevitable inconsistencies that are
inherent to data on marriage from different sources, careful analysis of these
data allows researchers to investigate nuptiality and to identify trends in
marriage patterns in the country.
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