国際結婚と国際児の出生動向

抄録

This paper focuses on the recent trends of an increasing number of “International marriages” by Japanses and the birth of “international” children (that is, children whose parents have different nationalities). Using vital statistics, migration statistics and foreign resident statistics, we analyzed the basic trends, patterns and backgrounds of both subjects.Important findings are summarized bellow :
1. The basic trend of “international marriages” involving Japanese between 1965 and 1993 shows a certain acceleration in almost all marriage patterns, regardless of the partners'nationality.
2. An interesting synchronization was observed between the number of “international marriages” by Japanese domestically and the number of Japnese who traveled or migrated overseas. It suggests that increasing contact with foreigners abroad are changing the Japanese social norm on intermarriage. On the other hand, the number of foreign residents is also increasing, synchronized with the number of “international marriages” by Japanese domestically. This may well reflect the strict migration controls on foreigners in Japan.
3. The number of “international”births in Japan is disproportionally smaller than the number of “international marriages” involving Japanese. However, thus does not automatically infer low fertility among international couples, for in some foreign residents groups, a very high marriage rate and very high birth rate can be observed simultaneously.