Child marriage in Turkey

Although illegal, child marriage in Turkey remains prevalent, especially among less educated families. It is a controversial political issue, and a topic of contention between liberal and conservative segments of society.

One third of all marriages in Turkey are child marriages and one third of women get married under the age of 18. Between 2002 and 2014, 504,957 children officially got married at the ages of 16 and 17. Between 2010 and 2013, this official figure was 134,629. Child marriages affect girls very disproportionately, about 20 times as much as boys; around 129,000 of those involved in child marriages were girls, whilst only 6,000 were boys. Child marriages involving girls often involve girls that are much younger than boys in child marriages. In 2012, around 20,000 families filed requests for permission to marry their daughters who were younger than 16. Between 2010 and 2013, there was a 94% increase in the number of families applying for permission to get their underage daughters (younger than 15) married. According to a 2013 Hacettepe University report supported by the Turkish government, 7.1% of all girls aged 15-19 were married. 26% of women between the ages of 15 and 49 reported that they were married as a child. The actual numbers of child marriages are estimated to be far higher than the official figures as many child marriages take place as unofficial religious marriages, without state authorization. This figure had decreased from 15.2% in 1998.

Child marriages take place in every region of Turkey. However, the provinces where the proportions are the greatest are concentrated in Eastern and Central Anatolia. According to the Gaziantep University research, the proportion of child marriages in the city of Şanlıurfa is around 60%, whereas that in İzmir, known for its cosmopolitanism, is around 16-17%. According to the Turkish Statistical Institute, the following provinces had the highest proportions of child marriage in 2013 (all between 35% and 42%): Yozgat, Nevşehir, Niğde, Kahramanmaraş, Kilis, Muş, Siirt, Bitlis, Van, Ağrı, Kars and Ardahan.

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