Report: North Koreans becoming more selective in dating, marriage

SEOUL, April 15 (UPI) -- Marriage and dating customs in North Korea are changing, and women from well-to-do families are postponing marriage.

Young North Koreans are setting higher than usual standards for prospective marriage partners in rapidly developing Pyongyang, reported South Korean news agency Yonhap, quoting a Chinese correspondent based in Pyongyang on Wednesday.

Whereas in years past, North Korean women said they preferred soldiers, communist party members and government officials as future husbands, they say they would now choose graduates of elite universities who work as diplomats and are standing members of North Korea's communist party.

Women interviewed by a Chinese journalist affiliated with People's Daily said also their partners should be from good families and be "vibrant and energetic" in personality.

Male university students said they preferred partners who are attractive and from good families.

Women also are postponing marriage in a society that, according to Yonhap, customarily labeled women over age 25 as "old maids." Those from well-off families are most likely to postpone marriage than others.

As young North Koreans become more selective about whom they marry, weddings for Pyongyang's elite are becoming more elaborate.

While the state still requires newlyweds to offer flowers at the foot of the statues of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at Pyongyang's Mansu Hill Grand Monument on wedding day, the use of digital cameras and camcorders to memorialize the day is becoming increasingly popular.

In Pyongyang, wedding planners are increasingly offering video and photography services to clients, and wealthier families celebrate weddings at relatively opulent venues in Pyongyang, such as the Okryugwan restaurant and the Koryo Hotel.

Other developments accompanying the shift in dating and marriage customs signify North Korea is discarding customs of its socialist past.

Quoting a North Korean magazine on culture and linguistics, South Korean newspaper Kyunghyang Sinmun reported young North Koreans are dropping the word "comrade" from daily use.

The word now strictly refers to those who fought together in the revolutionary struggles in North Korean history.

Kyunghyang Sinmun reported a second word for comrade that is more honorific in term is reserved for high-ranking North Koreans, such as North Korea leader Kim Jong Un.