Between Tradition and Modernity

Marriage Dynamics in Kyrgyzstan

Dados Bibliográficos

ID10969552
AutoresLesia Nedoluzhko (Stockholm University, autor correspondente), Victor Agadjanian (0000-0002-9639-1485, Arizona State University)
Ano2015
Volume52
Fascículo3
Páginas861-882
Data de publicação2015-06-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoDemography (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0070-3370 • E-ISSN: 1533-7790
EditoraDuke University Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1007/s13524-015-0393-2
PMID25940113
OpenAlexW239061218
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas26
Referências citadas56

The demographic literature on union formation in post-communist Europe typically documents retreat from marriage and increase in cohabitation. However, sociological and anthropological studies of post-Soviet Central Asia often point to a resurgence of various traditional norms and practices, including those surrounding marriage, that were suppressed under Soviet rule. We engage these two perspectives on union formation by analyzing transition to first marriage in Kyrgyzstan both before and after the collapse of the USSR. We use uniquely detailed marriage histories from a nationally representative survey conducted in the period 2011–2012 to examine the dynamics of traditional marital practices among that country’s two main ethnic groups—Kyrgyz and Uzbeks—focusing on trends in arranged marriages and in marriages involving bride kidnapping. The analysis reveals instructive ethnic and period differences but also indicates an overall decline in the risks of both types of traditional marriage practices in the post-Soviet era. In fact, although the decline has characterized all marriage types, it was more substantial for traditional marriages. We interpret these trends as evidence of continuing modernization of nuptiality behavior in the region

Central asia · Cohabitation · Communism · Communist state · Demographic economics · Development economics · Economics · Ethnic group · Geography · Modernity · Modernization theory · Period (music · Political science · Politics · Population · Remarriage · Sociology · Soviet union · Demographic Trends and Gender Preferences · Demography · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Gender Studies · Law · Soviet and Russian History