韩国统计厅新近发布的数据显示，韩国结婚人数在过去十年间下降了40%之多。韩国年轻人的结婚意愿也大幅降低，想要结婚的韩国女性比例只有28%。

The number of marriages recorded in South Korea saw a drop of 40 percent over the last ten years, giving pause to the government which is already dealing with a declining birthrate.

数据显示，韩国结婚人数在过去十年间下降了40%，让本已为出生率下降而头疼的韩国政府不得不认真考虑这一问题。

The number of marriages recorded in 2023 was 193,673 while it was 322,807 in 2013 – which shows a decrease of 40 percent within a decade.

2023年韩国有193673对情侣登记结婚，而2013年登记结婚的情侣有322807对，十年内减少了40%。

According to data from the December 2023 Population Trends Survey by Statistics Korea, last year South Korea experienced significant demographic shifts which were characterised by declines in marriage and birth rates.

韩国统计厅发布的《2023年12月人口动向》调查数据显示，去年韩国经历了人口巨变，结婚人数和出生率都大幅降低。

Another alarming trend, according to the survey, was the sharp fall in second births, which dropped to 91,700 in 2023 – the first time this number has gone below 100,000. This decline is part of a broader trend of decreasing fertility, with the number of second and subsequent births having plummeted by 40 percent since 2018.

调查揭露了另一个引人担忧的趋势，那就是二胎出生率的急剧下降。2023年韩国出生的二胎宝宝数量降至91700名，首次降到10万以下。这反映出韩国生育率下降的大趋势，自2018年以来韩国二胎和三胎以上出生率直线下降，降幅达40%。

Financial concerns, notably the cost of wedding expenses and housing, are the primary barriers to marriage for many South Koreans in their 20s and 30s, the survey says. These economic challenges surpass other reasons for not marrying, such as a lack of interest in marriage or concerns about the burdens of childbirth and childcare.

调查指出，许多二三十岁的韩国年轻人不结婚，主要是由于经济压力，尤其是结婚花费和住房问题。其他不结婚的理由还包括对结婚没兴趣，或者认为生养孩子负担太重。

The study disclosed that in 2022, around one-third of South Koreans aged 19 to 34 harboured favourable opinions on marriage, which was a departure from the sentiment in 2012 when over half – 56.5 percent – of this demographic viewed marriage positively.

调查发现，2022年约有三分之一19岁至34岁的韩国人认为结婚很好，相比之下，2012年这一年龄段的韩国人有超半数（56.5%）期待结婚。

Breaking it down by gender, 43.8 percent of men were in favour of marriage, in contrast to 28 percent of women – a significant decline from the previous rates of 66.1 percent for men and 46.9 percent for women.

从不同性别来看，2022年有43.8%的韩国男性想要结婚，相比之下，想结婚的韩国女性只有28%，相比2012年的66.1%和46.9%大幅下降。

And age-wise, a significant change has occurred among Koreans in their 20s, with a diminishing inclination towards marriage. The marriage rate for those aged 25 to 29 fell from 59.5 percent in 2012 to 36.1 percent in 2022. In the meantime, people aged 30 to 34 displayed the strongest proclivity towards marriage, at 39.2 percent, although this was a decrease from 54.3 percent seen ten years earlier.

从不同年龄段来看，二十几岁的韩国人结婚意愿显著下降。25岁至29岁的韩国人结婚率从2012年的59.5%降至2022年的36.1%。与此同时，30岁至34岁的韩国人的结婚意愿最强，达到了39.2%，但相比十年前的54.3也显著下降。

In 2021, a striking 97.1 percent of children in South Korea were born within wedlock, a rate significantly higher than the OECD average of 60 percent, as per Hankyoreh Shimbun. This means that there is a direct correlation between marriage rates and birth rates in the country, highlighting how changes in the former directly impact the latter.

据《韩民族日报》报道，2021年，韩国多达97.1%的儿童是婚生子女，远远高于经济合作与发展组织60%的平均水平。这意味着韩国的结婚率和出生率之间有着直接关系，凸显出结婚率的改变对出生率的直接影响。

The decrease in marriages and births is further compounded by the increasing average age of marriage and childbirth, with the average age of women giving birth in 2023 reaching a historic high of 33.6 years.

韩国女性平均婚育年龄逐年上升，使得结婚率和出生率下降的问题进一步恶化。2023年韩国女性平均生育年龄达到33.6岁，创下历史新高。

This demographic shift has contributed to South Korea’s total fertility rate falling to a record low of 0.72 in 2023, indicating that only 72 children were born for every 100 couples.

在人口巨变的影响下，2023年韩国的总生育率降到0.72的历史新低水平，这意味着每100对夫妇只生育出72名小孩。

This rate varies regionally, with Seoul recording the lowest fertility rate at 0.55.

韩国各个地区中，首尔的生育率最低，仅为0.55.

英文来源：独立报

翻译&编辑：丹妮