Page 24 - IJPS-11-3

International Journal of
Population Studies Nuptiality patterns among Ethiopian women

categories. For the first and second birth cohorts, medium The overall estimates of CIF showed that the hazard of
literacy rates were 31.83% and 46.39%, respectively, and getting married for both birth cohorts is almost similar
high-level community literacy rates were 14.97% and before age 15. The results indicated that the incidence of first
31.45%, respectively (Table 2). marriage is highly concentrated at early ages. The incidence
of entering marital unions was comparable across the two
Table 2. Percentages of women by selected socioeconomic cohorts before age 15. However, the cumulative incidence
characteristics showed a difference after the age of 15 for the two birth
cohorts. The cumulative incidence of first marriage for
Variables and categories Birth cohort both birth cohorts showed a progressively widening inter-
1965 – 1969 1980 – 1984 cohort gap starting at age 15. For nearly four in five girls
(n=1804) (n=2069) in the second birth cohort (78%) and nine in 10 girls in
Educational level the first birth cohort (88%), the cumulative incidence of
No education 79.93 71.79 first marriage occurred by age 20. The gap in cumulative
Primary 13.68 19.57 incidence of first marriage narrows after age 30, but there
Secondary+ 6.39 8.64 remains a small difference between the two birth cohorts
Place of residence (Figure 1).
Urban 14.88 21.34 Regarding marital instability, Figure 2 shows a significant
Rural 85.12 78.66 decrease in the number of women who have been married
Region more than once between the two birth cohorts. About
61.28% of women in the former cohort were married once,
Tigray 6.48 6.85 compared to 78.96% in the latter cohort. The likelihood
Affar 1.35 0.69 of remarriage was much lower for women in later birth
Amhara 24.51 23.16 cohorts compared to those in earlier cohorts. In the former
Oromiya 38.49 38.33 birth cohort, 38.72% of women remarried, whereas in the
Somali 1.51 2.36 latter birth cohort, the proportion decreased to 21.04%.
Benishangul 1.10 1.10 That means that the remarriage rate was approximately
SNNPR 21.98 20.47 two in five women in the earlier cohort and one in five
women in the latest cohort (Figure 2).
Gambela 0.31 0.25
Harari 0.22 0.24 For both cohorts, the distribution of first marriage entry
Addis Ababa 3.50 5.98 at ages 15, 20, and 25 was compared and divided into its
component parts. The overall cumulative incidence of first
Dire Dawa 0.54 0.57 marriage was 55%, 88.5%, and 96% at ages 15, 20, and 25,
Occupation respectively, for the first birth cohorts. The corresponding
Not working 34.67 43.61 figures for the second birth cohort were 37.6%, 78.3%, and
Agricultural employee 40.17 23.89 90.9% at ages 15, 20, and 25, respectively (Tables 3-5). The
Industry employee 25.17 32.49 decomposition analysis of the incidence of first marriage
Religious affiliation revealed a 17.4% reduction in the cumulative incidence
of marriage at age 15. Nearly one-third of this reduction
Christians 66.68 68.09 (−0.054/−0.174=31.0%) was attributed to differences in
Muslim 30.49 30.89 characteristics between the two birth cohorts of women.
Others 2.83 1.02
Community affluence
Low 28.41 26.78
Medium 50.92 47.85
High 20.67 25.36
Community education
Low 53.20 22.16
Medium 31.83 46.39
High 14.97 31.45
Abbreviation: SNNPR: Southern nations, nationalities, and peoples’
region. Figure 2. Marital instability rate by birth cohort

Volume 11 Issue 3 (2025) 18 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.3531