Why are Marriage & Fertility Plummeting in MENA?

Alice Evans · 20 Feb 2025 · ggd.world ↗

4 korrents from this piece

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Every claim below was made in this piece, quoted word for word and numbered in the order the piece makes them, so you can read it there rather than take our word for it. The sentence above each quote is our reading of the claim, not their wording. Each quote was checked against a stored copy of the page at build time; where the two differ, the quote is the fact.

Our reading
Marriage and birth rates are collapsing across the Middle East and North Africa even though religiosity there has not weakened.

Their wordsThe Middle East, North Africa and Anatolia are witnessing a rapid decline in coupling and fertility. This should rock your priors.

Interesting
Our reading
Where men and women are kept apart, couples form late because it is hard to find somebody you actually like.

Their wordsWith few opportunities to mix and mingle, charm and bond, it’s difficult to find someone one actually likes.

Interesting
Our reading
Marriage survives in South Asia because families arrange it and divorce is taboo, not because men and women mix more freely there.

Their wordsThus, even if cross-gender friendships are few and far between, South Asian families still consolidate and preserve nuptials.

Interesting
Our reading
Falling birth rates ended cousin marriage in the Arab world by leaving too few cousins, pushing marriage onto individual choice.

Their wordsBut over the past 50 years, there has been a massive decline in fertility. This entails fewer cousins of a suitable age.

Interesting