Iran breaks up

 The Islamic Republic worries about fewer marriages and more divorces to.

In recent years the number of marriages celebrated in Iran has been slowly dropping, something that has caused alarm among the Islamic Republic authorities. The reasons are mostly connected to the country’s complicated economic situation that has been whittling away at the wealth of middle class families, who nevertheless are not prepared to downsize the ostentation that is so typical of Iranian weddings.

Despite evolving over time, the marriage ritual in Iran descends more from the ancient Zoroastrian tradition than the Muslim one and in Persian culture it is the most important celebration in the life of every adult.

The stages that lead to the couple’s union begin with the Khastegari, in which the future groom, accompanied by his family, asks for the bride’s hand. If her family accepts, after an official engagement, the spouses celebrate their union by signing a matrimonial contract in a ritual that involves a sumptuous wedding feast, the Sofreh-ye-Aghd, that is supposed to be very auspicious for the marriage.

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