Fewer Americans walking down the aisle

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WASHINGTON, Nov. 20 (UPI) -- Fewer American are getting married, U.S. Census data suggests.

An analysis of data from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey shows 4.2 million adults were newly married in 2011, about the same number as in 2010 and sharply lower than the 4.5 million newlyweds estimated in 2008, Pew Research Center said Tuesday.

Pew said the decline in marriages from 2008 to 2011 is in keeping with a general trend away from marriage in the United States. Just 51 percent of adults were married in 2011, compared with 72 percent in 1960.

Pew said marriage is being replaced by cohabitation, single-person households and other adult living arrangements.

The decrease in the number of newly married adults was apparent among nearly all education levels and ages, with the exception of adults age 65 and older,. The number of newlyweds in that age group has stayed relatively stable with 89,000 in 2011, compared to 91,000 in 2008.

Less-educated Americans were less likely to be newlyweds, the data suggests. Among adults who had not completed high school, an estimated 23.1 entered into marriage per thousand eligible in 2011, a 14 percent decline from the rate of 26.8 in 2008.