Why Do Unregistered Marital Couples “Marry”?:

The Narratives of Differentiation and Identification

Abstract

In many developed societies, there is an increase in the number of couples who are cohabiting in unregistered marriages. This trend is often used as an example to indicate changes in consciousness that are part of the transformation of a modern society. Those who have adopted the Japanese term “jijitsukon (unregistered marriage)” to refer to their cohabitation often regard themselves as “married,” yet the question of “why couples in an unregistered marriage choose that option” has received little attention to date. We conclude that the practice of “unregistered marriages” is neither a simple secession from the idea of a conventional “marriage” nor is it restricted to a “traditional” vocabulary. Instead, it should be viewed in terms of a “reinterpretation” of marriage.