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AEGIS European Conference on African Studies
11 - 14 July 2007
African Studies Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands
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The Marriage Gap: Stratification and the Transformation of the Family in Namibia
| Panel |
2. Representation of the African Family of the 21st Century
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| Paper ID | 649 |
| Author(s) |
Pauli, Julia
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| Paper |
No paper submitted
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| Abstract | In Namibia, marriage has developed into two seemingly contradictory directions: on the one hand, already low marriage rates are further declining, the number of children born out-of-wedlock is increasing and the number of female headed households is rising. On the other hand, this does not mean an end of marriage and weddings. Quite the opposite, weddings are extremely vital, expensive and expressive events in contemporary Namibia.
The aim of my paper is to explain this marriage gap and indicate some of the consequences this transformation has for the structure and functioning of the family. My results are based on 20 months of joint field research together with Michael Schnegg in the Fransfontein area of Northwest Namibia. The demographic and economic information I will present stem from an ethnographic census we have conducted in 330 households and with 750 individuals in the region in 2004. Additionally, qualitative data from life histories, focus group interviews, and participant observation of weddings provide further insights on the interplay between economic/social stratification and demographic change.
Social and economic stratification is the prime mover that has lead to the marriage gap. Elite formation processes were already underway before independence in 1990 and then accelerated in the 1990ties. During this time period, marriage expenditures have transformed into one of the central ways of wealth and status expression. Marriage costs are extremely high today. Consequently, only about 30% of the population is married and 85% of all recorded births (N=1379) are out-of-wedlock births. This situation has produced new vulnerabilities, especially for children born out-of-wedlock. Their rights, e.g. to their fathers’ property, are much more limited than the rights of their legitimate siblings.
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