Age Differences Between Spouses in a Brazilian Marriage Sample

Abstract Age differences between spouses were investigated in a Brazilian marriage sample. A study was made of 3,000 announcements of forthcoming marriages sampled from the newspaper Diario de Noticias de Sao Paulo , in September and October 1996. These announcements published in newspapers are a legal requirement for marriage. Men married women younger than themselves, and this tendency became more pronounced over the lifespan. There was only one exception: young men