How often do couples know one another before marriage in Pakistan?
Last reviewed:
Direct answer
Pakistan has no current nationally representative statistic for how long spouses knew one another before marriage or what contact they had. Research among married youth has examined prior acquaintance and marriage decision-making, but its sampled populations and age limits prevent a national estimate. “Knowing” can also mean being relatives, family acquaintances, classmates, colleagues or communicating after a proposal, which surveys classify differently. Any precise national percentage should therefore be rejected unless the question, sample, year and type of prior contact are clearly reported.
Sources used
Marriage decision-making and married youth in Pakistan
Population Council research archived by PubMed Central
Research on marriage timing, prior acquaintance and decision-making among young married Pakistanis.View sourcePakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2017–18
National Institute of Population Studies and The DHS Program
National survey evidence for marriage timing, women, households and health indicators.View source