Marriage is one of the most important aspects of life and to the world. But in the country of El Salvador marriage is more casual. A couple has the ability to get married under law without having a civil or church service. Couples in El Salvador may make a life together without performing a marriage ceremony. Legally just getting a home together, as well as having children can wed El Salvadorians. But with that being said men in El Salvador are required to support any child of their creation whether that be formal and informal marriage or even with someone whom they have no relation with. To formally be married in El Salvador the couple must both be the age of eighteen unless the female is pregnant or already has children . In El Salvador it is considered to be irreversible when formally wed to another. Even though culturally El Salvadorians feel the marriage is irreversible the divorce rate in the country is at sixty-four percent. In order for a divorce to take place in El Salvador the couple, despite common law and religious marriage must separate and give a probable cause for the separation.
Divorce is only one problem to the stability of familial structure in El Salvador. The recent civil war that took place not long ago, had a huge affect on families through not only death but immigration as well. El Salvadoran families used to be male dominant and nuclear, but since the civil war the household has been headed by the females.To the people of El Salvador extended family is culturally a very important aspect of life. Normally you would find extended families that all live together parents, grandparents, children, etc. But with the high divorce rate, immigration, and civil war these cultural normality for family structure are slowly ceasing to exist.
In El Salvador they have something called The Family Code, which is a requirement for the citizens of El Salvador to support their relatives with food, clothes, shelter, education, etc. This requirement is extremely important in the national culture of El Salvador. The Family code although sounds like a rule, law, or other form of mandatory action is really set in place to reunite families after the hardships and separation the civil war brought to the country of El Salvador. Despite all that the people of El Salvador have been through they still stay true to their original cultural ideals and norms. The familial structure of El Salvadorians although has changed overtime hopes to return to the original culture of the people. Culture is what makes the differences between countries, and El Salvador’s culture is strong rooted in history and tradition. Marriage and family is a huge part of the cultural traditions of El Salvador, and the people of El Salvador continually work to sustain that culture and tradition.
sites used for research:
http://novaonline.nvcc.edu/eli/evans/his135/events/elsalvador80/salvador80.html
http://www.everyculture.com/Cr-Ga/El-Salvador.html
http://roseconover.weebly.com/gender-and-family-structures.html