Today, only half of American adults are married, compared to 72% in 1960.

 The marriage decline has happened slowly but steadily, with marriage rates dropping 8 points between 1990 and 2019. Those who do get married are tying the knot later — the average age for first marriages is 28 for women and 30 for men, compared to 20 for women and 23 for men in 1960. And while same-sex weddings are on the rise, an increasing number of Americans are opting out of marriage altogether. Cue the predictable headlines: millennials are killing marriage. But in 2019, what does marriage mean, anyway?

“Marriage was once considered the most legitimate way to be in a relationship, to have sex, and to have a family,” Kristin Celello, PhD, Associate Professor of History and Director of the American Studies Program at Queens College CUNY and author of Making Marriage Work: A History Of Marriage And Divorce In The Twentieth-Century United States. 

And though there are communities where that still applies, in 2019, it’s increasingly no longer the case- (i) it’s become more common to live with a partner and have children without marriage; (ii) women have become increasingly financially independent; (iii) divorce has become easier and less stigmatized; and (iv) the price of weddings has skyrocketed while income inequality has increased. 

In 2019, for many, marriage is not a priority — or even something they want at all. “There’s been a social change and a cultural change,” Dr. Celello says. “Marriage is still important, it hasn’t gone away, but there are now other legitimate ways to make families and be in relationships.”

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