Vol. 16 No. 2 (2025): (Regular Issue in Progress)
Research Article

Geographical Dimensions of Nuptiality in Greece During the Inter-War Period

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Vasilis Gavalas
University of the Aegean, Department of Geography, University Hill, 81100 Mytilene, Greece
Μale Singulate Mean Age at Marriage (SMAM). Geographical Departments of Greece, 1928
DOI: https://doi.org/10.48088/ejg.v.gav.16.2.026.037
Categories

Published 2025-03-08

Keywords

  • Marriage Patterns,
  • Singulate Mean Age at Marriage (SMAM),
  • Permanent Celibacy,
  • Regional Deviations,
  • Sex Ratio at Marriageable Ages

How to Cite

Gavalas , Vasilis. 2025. “Geographical Dimensions of Nuptiality in Greece During the Inter-War Period”. European Journal of Geography 16 (2):26-37. https://doi.org/10.48088/ejg.v.gav.16.2.026.037.

Copyright (c) 2025 Gavalas Vasilis

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Received 2024-11-04
Accepted 2025-03-02
Published 2025-03-08

Abstract

This paper examines marriage patterns in Greece during the 1920s, focusing on regional variations. These variations reflect Greece's diverse historical, cultural, and economic character, particularly considering that some regions, primarily in the north, had only recently been incorporated into the nation after the Balkan Wars and World War I. Analysing data from these administrative regions (formerly known as Geographical Departments), reveals a north-south gradient in marriage patterns, with further distinctions between mainland and insular Greece. In the northern regions, marriage customs, especially for women, resembled those of neighbouring Balkan countries like Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, characterized by early and near-universal marriage. Further south, age at marriage was generally later, and permanent celibacy was more common, particularly for men, and in the Ionian islands, for women as well. The influx of approximately 1.2 million refugees from Asia Minor following the Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922) significantly impacted Greek demographics, including marriage patterns, due to the gender imbalance created by the war, specifically a shortage of marriageable-age men. This study argues that regional variations in marriage patterns within Greece during the inter-war period were so pronounced as to suggest disparate cultural contexts rather than mere intra-national differences. The primary findings highlight the enduring influence of pre-existing cultural norms among the populations that came to shape the modern Greek State.

Highlights:

  • Striking diversity in marriage patterns across Greece in the 1920s.
  • A clear north-south gradient, with the North exhibiting characteristics similar to Balkan countries (early, universal marriage) and the South showing later marriage ages and more frequent celibacy.
  • Refugees largely adopted the prevailing marriage patterns of the specific regions where they settled, suggesting that either refugees’ region of origin shared similar economic and cultural characteristics with their new homes or/and a rapid adaptation to local customs.
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