Highest Divorce Rates In The World

According to the United Nations Demographic Yearbook, a collection of global statistics published annually, these 10 countries have the highest number of divorces in the world. Rates, which were only determined for countries that submitted complete data to the United Nations Statistics Division, represent the number of divorces per 1000 people.

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Russia

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The largest country in the world also has the highest divorce rate—5 divorces per 1000 people.

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The largest country in the world also has the highest divorce rate—5 divorces per 1000 people.

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Comments

[InABox]

01:39 PM on 12/22/2010

Aw, man, we can't top the list of ANYTHING these days

[KIVPossum]

01:33 PM on 12/22/2010

Interestingly, I got married on the same property as the picture of the church in Moldova. Different building.

[LisaBell]

12:32 PM on 12/22/2010

I believe the divorce rate in America would be way higher if the legal fees (often inflated by the lawyers pitting their clients against each other and charging them later) and the adversarial (BRUTAL!) divorce system didn't stop a lot of people... plus the fact that many men stand out to loose a lot (if they have anything) because women like the idea of "taking him to the cleaners"....

[jdl51]

12:22 PM on 12/22/2010

"To put things into better perpesctiv­­e, in the U.S. there are 7.3 marriages per 1000 people every year and 3.6 divorces per 1000 people every year. In other words, close to 50% (49.3) of all marriages end in divorce. I hope that helps clear up some of the confusion with the 'per 1000' people stat.
http://www­­.census.g­o­v/compen­di­a/stata­b/c­ats/bi­rths­_deat­hs_ma­rria­ges_di­vor­ces.htm­l"


And to put things in an even better perspective, Christian fundamentalists have the highest divorce rate in the U.S.


"Atheists had the lowest average divorce rates (defined as the percentage of people who had been divorced at least once in their lives), at 21%. Christian divorce rates averaged about 24% (higher for "born-again" Christians, ie- fundamentalists, at 27%)."

[Arthur L]

11:51 AM on 12/22/2010

Hmm..?

The 3.4 per 1000 doesn't seem to jibe with the maxim that "50% of all marriages end in divorce"*. What gives?

*http://www.divorcerate.org/

[wandering girl]

12:05 PM on 12/22/2010

apples and oranges. it's 1000 people, not 1000 marriages.

[Anish Jain]

12:11 PM on 12/22/2010

Not everyone gets married, and the rate is annualized.

[For Fathers]

11:13 AM on 12/22/2010

The big difference between divorce in Russia vs divorce in corporate America is
Russia does not used the children as pawns to extort money from the parents.

[LisaBell]

12:34 PM on 12/22/2010

I think that and the cost of divorce (the legal fees)...

[KIVPossum]

01:31 PM on 12/22/2010

Pity too. In Russia, and most east European nations, it is easy for a dad to get out of child support payments. They divorce and walk away

[Fremon]

09:52 AM on 12/22/2010

This proves American Exceptionalism! Right up there with the ex nations of the soviet union as well as russia and some third world countries. Thank God we are a Christian nation able to exercise our "freedom" to divorce as well as these other God fearing countries.

[Buakaw Por Pramuk]

10:45 AM on 12/22/2010

Your post made me weep patriotic tears of pride. I am now going to put on a rerun of the Mike Huckabee show and listen to Toby Keith sing about how much greater, free-er and wonderfuller we are than the other nations.

[DonJM]

09:26 AM on 12/22/2010

Why are Larry King and Elizabeth Taylor not on this list?

[larrykat]

11:55 AM on 12/22/2010

Yeah, I can't even find them on any maps!

[pcpc]

09:23 AM on 12/22/2010

Darn it, we're behind Russia! Let's speed up this divorce race!

[Buakaw Por Pramuk]

10:46 AM on 12/22/2010

If only congress would appropriate more funds so that we could win the divorce race! Those shortsighted fools!

[LisaBell]

12:37 PM on 12/22/2010

Oh the Russian lawyers learn to play the game from their American peers... then we'll quickly beat them because divorcing in Russia is way too easy and cheap...

[FreedomFighter2012]

09:02 AM on 12/22/2010

Understand that this stat represents Per Capita and not per Marriage. In other words, the 'per 1000' includes everysingl­e person in that country. Yes, it even includes babies, teenagers, and single people.

To put things into better perpesctiv­e, in the U.S. there are 7.3 marriages per 1000 people every year and 3.6 divorces per 1000 people every year. In other words, close to 50% (49.3) of all marriages end in divorce. I hope that helps clear up some of the confusion with the 'per 1000' people stat.
http://www­.census.go­v/compendi­a/statab/c­ats/births­_deaths_ma­rriages_di­vorces.htm­l

[Butterfly M]

09:40 AM on 12/22/2010

Thanks for that explanation.

I was going...7 divorces per 1000 people.. That ain't bad.

LOL :)

[Caz Glancy]

10:08 AM on 12/22/2010

Yep thanks, me too

[degenerate1991]

11:30 AM on 12/22/2010

50% is inaccurate. In any given year, 3.6 out of a thousand divorce, out of a much larger pool than 7.3 per 1000 (this is only the new marriages).

[fldemgirls]

08:53 AM on 12/22/2010

Tell me again please. How does gay marriage destroy the sanctity of marriage????

[runtexas]

09:41 AM on 12/22/2010

It doesn't at all. The act of Holy Matrimony is two people standing before God to commit their lives together. Gays and straights do that all the time.

However, we've allowed government into the regulation business again and now we have to apply for marraige licenses. Now we have the state government involved, and so marraige is now a government issue instead of a religious issue.

When you allow government in, it's going to be VERY SCREWED UP!

[Fremon]

09:55 AM on 12/22/2010

Being a "Christian religious" nation doesn't help in "unscrewing" things. Does it?

[Buakaw Por Pramuk]

10:47 AM on 12/22/2010

great point!

[jasev01]

08:29 AM on 12/22/2010

a bunch of old russian places and the US... that's about right

[GrantS]

07:57 AM on 12/22/2010

This is a per capita statistic. If Americans had wayy more children the rate would lower but the % of marriage failures would still stay the same.

[jthinker]

07:21 AM on 12/22/2010

And they tend not to emphasize male superiority, but allow for more egalitarianism between males and females.

[Todays Illusion]

09:39 AM on 12/22/2010

What information do you base that statement on?
 
I could say men in the U.S. expect their wives to work and help with the income, but the men still do not do a reasonable share of housework and childcare. 
 
Men are making themselves into drones, sort of, but are very expensive for women financially. Take a look at working class & middle class marriage in the U.S., wives are earning as much and more than men, when the men work.
 

[EuroRant1]

07:02 AM on 12/22/2010

I'm a bit confused. Why is the United States on this list??? - This must be huge mistake. Sorry but somebody must be asleep at their Huffington desk on this one.

At least 30 times Americans have gone to the polls or supported State and City legislators voting on protecting the "sanctity of marriage". So if the institute of marriage between a man and woman is supposed to be so sacred and protected - then how is it that the United States is on that list?

Surely, this must be some overlooked mistake!!!

(sorry folks, but you can't have it both ways - that's called "hypocrisy in its most purest form".)

[mcnote5150]

07:47 AM on 12/22/2010

Hypocrisy is the American Way! Look at the GOP and the Christian Right. One word : Ted Haggard!

[Fremon]

09:58 AM on 12/22/2010

Interesting that per cent wise most of these divorces are in bible belt country as well as the highest rate amongst teenage unmarried pregnancies.

[EuroRant1]

01:12 PM on 12/22/2010

I wasn't aware of that ... but you are correct. Is that common knowledge in the US or is that something you learned? Something is frighteningly amiss here.

That's very interesting. Jesus had plenty to say on the subject about "divorce" and commands his followers not to divorce ... and if homosexuality is so wrong then why was Jesus so silent on the subject?

Has the term "religious" become synonymous with the term "hypocrite"? It's true - the world has gone mad.