Co-ethnic marriage versus intermarriage among immigrants and their descendants: A comparison across seven European countries using event-history analysis

Abstract

BACKGROUNDImmigrants and their descendants often marry a co-ethnic partner despite the abundance of native-born marriage candidates. The prevalence of co-ethnic marriages and intermarriage among migrants is influenced by their integration level and cultural background as much as individual preferences and structural factors. OBJECTIVEThis paper expands existing literature on intermarriage by analysing first marriages across European countries, distinguishing marriage type (endogamous versus exogamous) and migrant generations (immigrants versus their descendants). Hannemann et al.: Co-ethnic marriage versus intermarriage among immigrants and their descendants 488 http://www.demographic-research.org METHODSData from seven countries was aggregated using the count-data method and was subsequently pooled and analysed together; first, to estimate unadjusted first marriage rates; second, to calculate marriage risks separately by marriage type; and, finally, to directly compare the risk of exogamous and endogamous marriage. RESULTSThere are substantial differences in the prevalence of co-ethnic marriage and intermarriage across the migrant groups. Migrants from non-EU countries often show a high prevalence of co-ethnic marriages and a low risk of intermarriage, whereas migrants from neighbouring countries show a relatively high risk of intermarriage. CONCLUSIONSEthnic background and early socialisation have strong impacts on the partner choice of migrants and their descendants. The results suggest a strong influence of minority subcultures for some migrant groups, but also intergenerational adaptation processes for others. CONTRIBUTIONThis paper provides an up-to-date comparison of intermarriage rates across seven European countries and two migrant generations, presenting evidence of both similarities and differences across countries.

Life Expectancy of the Ethnically Mixed: Register-Based Evidence from Native Finns

“…An individual’s own affiliation largely reflects whether a person has been raised within the Swedish-speaking or Finnish-speaking local community. The differences observed may therefore potentially reflect group-specific cultural practices [ 15 , 31 ] and the fact that marital stability and social integration are higher in the Swedish-speaking than in the Finnish-speaking community [ 32 ], and patterns of unhealthy alcohol consumption are less visible [ 13 , 33 ]. However, we can only speculate about the relevance of such factors.…”

The Role of Neighbourhood and Workplace Ethnic Contexts in the Formation of Inter-ethnic Partnerships: A Native Majority Perspective

“…In cases in which the cultural background of the immigrants is similar to that of the natives, partners from the latter groups might be considered more attractive, whereas immigrants with more distant origins are less likely to form partnerships with natives. Empirical support for this assertion is provided by a number of studies (Kalmijn and van Tubergen 2010;Dribe and Lundh 2011;Hannemann et al 2018). Another useful approach to explain inter-ethnic partnerships is the status exchange theory introduced by Merton (1941) and Davis (1941).…”

Intergenerational transmission of ethnic identity in mixed native couples in Finland

“…The nature of intermarriage is gendered. In some contexts, a man from the majority group with a woman from the minority group is more common than the other gender–ethnicity combination (Hannemann et al, 2018). In the case that we are studying, it is the other way around – the combination of a Swedish-speaking man with a Finnish-speaking woman has consistently been more common over time than the reverse gender–ethnicity combination (Saarela and Finnäs, 2014).…”