XN000022-1979-01-14 — Page 3

2

SUNDAY, JANUARY 14, 1979

THE UNIT IS OPEN TO TEACHERS EVERY WEDNESDAY FROM 9 A.M. TO 1 P.M. AND FROM 2 P.M. TO 4.30 P.M.- AND EVERY SATURDAY FROM 9 A.M. TO 11.30 A.M. EXCLUDING PUBLIC HOLIDAYS.

NOTE TO EDITORS: YOU ARE INVITED TO SEND YOUR REPORTERS/PHOTOGRAPHERS

TO COVER THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF THE MEDIA PRODUCTION SERVICES UNIT'S NEW OFFICE BY MR. ARTHUR BROWN, SENIOR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION (PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT) AT 10 A.M. ON FRIDAY (JANUARY 19) ON THE FIRST FLOOR OF 182 CANTON ROAD, TSIM SHA TSUI.

RECORD NUMBER OF MARRIAGES IN 1978

*****

THE NUMBER OF MARRIAGES REGISTERED LAST YEAR REACHED A RECORD TOTAL OF 40,400 17 MORE THAN THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 40,383 N 1977, THE RÉGISTRAR GENERAL, MR. P. JACOBS, ANNOUNCED TODAY (SUNDAY).

+THE TOTAL INCLUDED 4,304 MARRIAGES BETWEEN PARTIES PREVIOUSLY MARRIED TO EACH OTHER, GENERALLY BY CHINESE CUSTOMARY CEREMONIES, AS COMPARED WITH 4,541 MARRIAGES OF THIS CATEGORY IN 1977. EXCLUDING THESE REMARRIAGES' THE NUMBER OF REGISTERED MARRIAGES INCREASED BY 254 FROM 35,842 to 36,096,+ MR. JACOBS SAID.

THE RECORD IS ONLY ABOUT 0.04 PER CENT HIGHER THAN THE

1977 FIGURE.

HOWEVER, THE FACT THAT THERE WAS A SLIGHT INCREASE IS SIGNIFICANT BECAUSE 1978 WAS A BLIND YEAR+ J.E. IT DID NOT HAVE A FIRST DAY OF SPRING (LAP CHUN) ACCORDING TO THE CHINESE LUNAR CALENDAR, AND WAS THEREFORE REGARDED BY TRADITIONALIST CHINESE AS NOT BEING AN AUSPICIOUS YEAR FOR MARRIAGES.

IN THE PAST THIS HAS RESULTED IN AN AVERAGE DECREASE OF FIVE PER CENT IN THE NUMBER OF MARRIAGES IN EVERY +BLIND YEAR+ AS COMPARED WITH THE PRECEDING YEAR.

IT IS THOUGHT THAT THE FACT THAT THERE WAS A SLIGHT INCREASE IN MARRIAGES IN 1978 MAY BE EVIDENCE THAT THE TRADITIONAL BELIEF IN +BL IND YEARS+ IS NOT RIGIDLY OBSERVED BY THE YOUNGER CHINESE GENERATION,

ANOTHER FACTOR CONTRIBUTING TO THE CHANGE OF PATTERN IS BELIEVED TO BE THE STRUCTURE OF THE POPULATION WHICH NOW HAS A LARGE NUMBER OF PERSONS WITHIN THE MOST POPULAR AGE GROUP FOR MARRIAGES, I.E. 21 TO 24 FOR WOMEN AND 25 TO 29 FOR MEN.

THE NUMBER OF CHURCH MARRAIGES IN 1978 ROSE BY 210 TO 2,712 AS COMPARED WITH 2,502 IN 1977. MOST OF THE REGISTERED MARRIAGES WERE, AS USUAL, CELEBRATED AT THE MARRIAGE REGISTRIES. THE TOTAL OF SUCH MARRIAGES WAS 37,668, BEING 193 LESS THAN THE 1977 FIGURE.

/3.

•