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© KYODO1 in 4 Japanese men remain unmarried at age 50
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rainyday
It isn't actually measuring people who are married at 50, but people who are or have been married by that age (including those who divorced, etc).
Likely (if my logic is correct, not sure it is) this indicates that men who are divorced are more likely to re-marry than women who divorce are, thus removing a higher proportion of females from the "never married" category than males.
Tony Alderman
What's a good reason to get married? I still haven't found one.
thepersoniamnow
Well marriage is kinda Stone Age here sometimes. You MUST give me all your money! And I will give you an allowance. You must sleep away from me after we have kidz, and accept it. For my money I'll marry someone else thank you.
dcog9065
Well, I do think more stable employment opportunities as well as better work-life balance needs to be improved, but there is only so much you can do to encourage people to marry. In this day and age, marriage even seems unattractive to many if it's going to drain your finances and time, which is arguably far more important
MsDelicious
Another Abenomic Arrow?
40% is absolutely ridiculous.
Strangerland
People don't necessarily marry others the same age as them. And women are generally more likely to marry someone older, and the population of older people in this country is quite large.
Cricky
This has been a problem for 30 + years that I know of. The LDP have done nothing to reverse this trend.
theeastisred
Employers should be forced to offer a full-time position to anyone who has been working as a temp for 12 months, or even 6 months. And all workers should automatically get the same minimum level of benefits, including health, pension etc. Including foreign workers. And that's before we get to childcare. Also how about penalizing adults living at home with their parents, deeming it a taxable benefit?
Kobe White Bar Owner
@ rainy, my logic cam to the same conclusion.
goldorak
Not sure 'hope' should be taken too literally tbh. Many of us (when in ours 20s) think/thought rather than hope/hoped we would get married by the time we reach our mid 30s simply cause it's what ppl do I guess. Then as we advance in life many of us realise singlehood or de facto relationship work just fine after all so why bother getting married? Isn't living with and loving someone out of wedlock as romantic (if not more) than getting married? I think it is.
As an aside, never understood the "I/we need more money before I/we get married" mantra. Does money dictate love for ppl who aspire to marriage? Plus, if anything, if you're 'that' stingy marrying or living with someone is a good way to spend LESS, split the rent, bills etc.
Fred Wallace
Nailed it. I can't begin to fathom how anyone non Japanese can become accustomed to this lifestyle. Respect to the married folk!!
Dman112
I understand there is some connection between being married and having kids. But what this article is clearly lacking is that it doesn't actually take a marriage to produce kids. Another argument could be made that people are just living together and not getting married (and may have kids.)
inkochi
Another survey released by the governmental institute last year showed most unmarried people wanted to get married, but many cited a lack of finances as an obstacle.
No surprises here.
One thing that surprised me is no mention of nuclear or extended family structures in the analysis. In Kochi there is a huge figure for women working and a huge figure for single mothers working. There are child care centers like other places but also there are still lots of grandparents and relatives close by to mind, cook for or look out for kids. Certainly when compared with a place like Meguro-ku.
Proportions of single men are only going to increase I think.
Immigration anyone?
Disillusioned
The men's statistic is not so surprising, but one in three women remaining single is quite alarming in a country with an ageing and declining population. Come on Japanese men! Get your crap together! Stop waisting your time on AKB idols and porn manga and get out there and do something with your life. Losers!
Peter Usojanai
That's because Japanese males are shy and lack the confidence to approach women and break the ice as well as cute ABK48 types plastered all over the TV set their goals to unrealistical high expectation on what a girlfriend should look like doesn't help because it make normal girls at their office and work look ugly. They guys aren't interested in girl here.
Gaijin Desi
3 in 4 Japanese Men are married but they are doing nothing ..
Pat Telzrow
Japanese men= caspermilk toast
Tamarama
Maybe they are just really smart.
Jimizo
"1 in 4 Japanese men remain unmarried at age 50"
Well done boys. I only made it to my early thirties. Make sure there is no breeding outside of marriage either. Too many people on this planet.
mukashiyokatta
When there is no job security, one cannot get married. Simple as that.
Robert Dykes
"Roughly 40% of Japan’s labor force consists of temporary workers today, making unstable employment conditions more common than decades ago."
Yet story after story about labor shortages in Japan.
notagain
Marriage has to evolve to stay relevant, it's pretty much still stuck in the 1950's here. Marriage rates are dropping in many industrialised countries, along with the birth rates. The world is changing, Japan needs to accept that.
coskuri
Money (like free social security for Mrs) or visas. Many persons are not concerned. If you're poor and both live in the country where you are citizen, no need for a contract.
NZ2011
There are many legal benefits in countries that don't recognise defacto couples.
Given the divorce rate in many places it might be easier not to.
nedinjapan
I got married to a Japanese woman in 2005. She had been so nice and kind to me. Everything changed after marriage. Some changes happened overnight, some happened more slowly. One of my conditions was that I pay her a monthly living cost (100 K) and kep my salary. In 2012, after 7 years, she could not accept it anymore. One night, she woke me up and attacked me, broke the door of my room and assaulted me with a hammer. To cut the storu short, I could finally get a divorce after 4 years but the unfair court took all I had and gave it to her. The morale of the story: 1- Never marry a Japanese woman. 2- You can find the smartest men in Japan among the one fourth who stay single.
FizzBit
I got married to a Japanese woman in 2007. She had been so nice and kind to me. Nothing changed after marriage.
The morale of the story: You have to know yourself before you can truly know another person.
Patrick Og
Well I dated a Japanese girl for about 4 years and at first we were seeing things theasier same way, but as long as the relationship was going on we decided to get engaged then make it short her behavior changed and she started to say that after we get married she would stop working and once we would have kids she sounds be home stay mom and then after having good kids she would spend her time meeting with friends who has kids too and will spend time traveling, I asked her how she would pay for her trips with her mom or her friends she said "I will" and I wanted to be part of the decisionsituation about the children she said no as a mother she will make the proper decisions so I said I will kill myself at work while you're enjoying time with friends and traveling? She said "yes" then I said "I Don't think so" she stopped talking to me for 1 week so I said "you're nuts" and"sayonara". A couple of years later I met Japanese man who was my friend's brother in law and said that I should forget marrying a Japanese girl because she will ruins me. It is sad because I have Japanese friends that are women and they are so not like that with their husband. I don't care to marry or not just hope to find a good girl.
Aly Rustom
1 out of every 4?? And that's JUST the unmarried ones. We still haven't gotten to the ones in sexless marriages..or the one child fathers... the population decline is not going away anytime soon
Patrick Og
ThepersonIamnow : mostly right and from past experiences so I do agree but I do have a couple of Japanese women friends and they're not like that skin we can't put them all in the same bag