NOVOSIBIRSK, September 10 (RIA Novosti) – An 88-year-old resident of western Siberia has gotten married for the first time in his life, a local official said Tuesday, adding that the phenomenon of “aged marriages” is more frequent in this part of Russia than one might expect.
Mikhail Kazakov, 88, tied the knot last week with Yelena Borovykh, 57, after the two met through a newspaper ad, according to regional civil registry official Lyudmila Dyadchenko.
“We’ve registered 17,000 [marriages] in eight months… Of that number, aged marriages, [with a spouse] over 80 years old, make up around 9-10 percent,” Dyadchenko told RIA Novosti.
She added that such marriages usually take place between people who have long been living together without officially registering their relationship, often to provide a loved one with legal protections.
Newlywed Borovykh told RIA Novosti she had known Kazakov for nearly three years before they got married, and though she hadn’t wanted to change her last name, Kazakov “sort of” insisted.
“He’s never been married after all,” she said. “I asked him, ‘Why are you getting married?’ And he says, ‘It’s about time.’”
