The graph shows the number of marriages and divorces in the USA between 1970 and 2000.

The bar graph illustrates data on

rates

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of marriages and divorces in the United States from 1970 to 2000 and the general marital status of the

population

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in the same time frame.

Overall

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, the marriage

rates

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have come down over the years

while

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the divorce

rates

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seem to have increased. The rate of weddings in 1970 was 2.5 million, which fell slowly over the decades and reached a rate of 2 million by the year 2000. The trend with divorce

rates

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was a little different, though significantly lower than weddings. They

initially

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increased, reaching a peak in the 80s, from which point they continued to decrease by 2000. A major chunk of the grown-up

population

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seems to be married, with 70% of the

population

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contributing to the statistic in 1970, which is 10 percentage points higher than in 2000.

However

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, the separation

rates

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seem to be on the higher side in 2000 as compared to 1970, with the numbers being 10% and 1% respectively. About 1 in 5 people were never married in 2000, a statistic higher than in 1970 when 1 in 10 people were unmarried. Widowed

rates

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stayed approximately the same. In conclusion, over the 30-year period, marriages seemed to have prevailed and even though the divorcees have increased over the years, they still didn’t make up most of the

population

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.