25.02.2026 18:39
According to the 2025 Marriage and Divorce Statistics of TÜİK, Bülent Yılmaz, who lives in Tunceli, which has the lowest marriage rate, said, "As a single person, I think: Can I buy myself a pair of pants, if I buy shoes can I buy socks, can I pay my rent? In such a situation, if I go and say to someone, 'Come, let's get married'; what will I feed that person, what will I give them to drink? If I had a child, my child would die of hunger."
According to the 2025 Marriage and Divorce Statistics of the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), while the number of marriages in Turkey has decreased, an increase in divorce rates has been observed. Tunceli has become the province with the lowest marriage rate.
Citizens from Tunceli, speaking to ANKA News Agency, stated that factors such as economic conditions, the migration tendency of the young population, and unemployment have an impact on the low marriage rates.
"GETTING MARRIED IS REALLY VERY EXPENSIVE NOW"
Nergis Yetkiner expressed that it is difficult to get married without an improvement in the economy: "There is a serious economic problem in Turkey. Getting married is really very expensive now. Wedding venues are expensive, rents are expensive, new furniture is expensive, white goods are expensive. Even hairdresser costs are quite high. In short, getting married has really become difficult nowadays. This situation is not only in Tunceli but is the same all over Turkey. Right now, there are millions of people who are engaged and waiting for the economy to improve. Therefore, it seems quite difficult for many people to get married without an improvement in economic conditions."
"IF I WERE YOUNG TODAY, I WOULD NEVER THINK OF GETTING MARRIED"
Hıdır Mercan said, "I was born in 1956. I got married in 1974. We were happy under the living conditions of that day. However, if I were born again and were a young person today, I would never think of getting married due to the economic conditions in Turkey. This is not the fault of our youth. It is a matter under the responsibility of those who govern the country. If these economic conditions are not improved, no one will easily think of getting married," he said.
"HOW CAN PEOPLE GET MARRIED IN THIS HIGH COST OF LIVING?"
Bülent Yılmaz expressed: "As a single person, I think: Can I buy myself a pair of pants, if I buy shoes can I buy socks, can I pay my rent? In such a situation, if I go and say to someone, come, let’s get married; what will I feed that person, what will I give them to drink? If I had a child, my child would die of hunger. How can people get married in this poverty, in this high cost of living? When I leave the house, I put 200 TL in my pocket, and by the time I get to the market and have a tea, the money is gone. Unemployment is rampant, people have no money. Even the lowest rent has almost become 20,000 TL."
Nurcan Şanlı, who stated that the young population is migrating abroad, said, "A large part of our youth does not live here; they are migrating abroad or to other cities. Since the young population is decreasing here, marriage rates are naturally falling as well. As I said, the biggest reason for this is economic problems. There are almost no job opportunities here. The areas where young people can work are limited. There are mostly small tradesmen, shops, and markets. Other than that, there are no large enterprises like factories or different employment areas."