INTERCULTURAL MARRIAGES: CURRENT TRENDS IN THE REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA

Abstract

Families and married couples in modern societies are constantly facing changes and adjustments to the influence of the processes of urbanization, globalization, individualization, and continuous technological development. Additionally, as a result of the increased geographical mobility of the population in the last century, contemporary societies are mostly ethnically or racially heterogeneous. In the 21st century, intercultural marriages, i.e. partnerships between individuals of different ethnic or racial backgrounds, are becoming more common in the world and are attracting the attention of sociological and psychological research.

The Republic of North Macedonia is a multiethnic and multi-confessional country, however, it does not have a high rate of intercultural marriages, since they are not entirely socially accepted. In this paper, we will analyze intercultural marriages - known colloquially also as mixed marriages - in the world and in the Macedonian multicultural society. We will analyze the complexity of intermarriage from a theoretical point of view and examine relevant research on this topic. Additionally, we will present the data from qualitative research on intercultural marriages in North Macedonia, which was conducted during 2020 and refers to the experiences of married couples from intermarriage.