List of long marriages
This is a list of long marriages. It includes people who have been married for at least 80 years. The length of marriage is based on the reported death of either member, or reported divorce, or the most recent report that both members of the couple were still living.
Background
A study by Robert and Jeanette Lauer, reported in the Journal of Family Issues, conducted on 40 sets of spouses married for at least 50 years, concluded that the long-term married couples received high scores on the Lock-Wallace marital satisfaction test and were closely aligned on how their marriages were doing. In a 1979 study on about 55 couples in marriages with an average length of 55.5 years, couples said their marriages lasted so long because of mutual devotion and special regard for each other. Couples who have been married for a long time have a lower likelihood of divorcing because "common economic interests and friendship networks increase over time" and during stress can assist in sustaining the relationship.Another study found that people in long marriages are wedded to the idea of "marital permanency" in which "They don't see divorce as an option". Sociologist Pepper Schwartz, AARP's relationships authority, said that it was helpful to have a spouse who is quick to recover when there are surprises in life.
A study of 1,152 couples who had been married for over 50 years found that they attributed their long marriages to faith in each other, love, ability to make concessions, admiration for each other, reliance on each other, children, and strong communication. Bowling Green State University's National Center for Family and Marriage Research found that 7% of American marriages last at least 50 years.
Recording longest marriages
The longest marriage recorded is an emerald wedding anniversary between Karam and Kartari Chand, in the United Kingdom. Karam and Kartari Chand married in 1925 and died in 2016 and 2019 respectively.Guinness World Records published its first edition in 1955. In the 1984 to 1998 editions, the longest recorded marriages were between Temulji Bhicaji Nariman and Lady Nariman, spanning 86 years; and Lazarus and Mary Rowe at 86 years according to the New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Guinness has since recognized couples with longer marriage spans, with the current world record holders being Herbert and Zelmyra Fisher. Guinness also keeps record of the oldest married couple by aggregate age.
Other organizations have created events where they honor couples with long marriages. In 2011, World Marriage Encounter, an American organization that was responsible for making a World Marriage Day, created a Longest Married Couple Project, where they pick a couple with a long marriage and honor them on Valentine's Day. They have since expanded the awards to representatives in each of the 50 states, although the candidates selected are not necessarily the ones with record-setting marriages. Starting in 2004, Louisiana Family Forum has honored its own annual list of long-time married couples in that state.
List of marriages reported to be more than 80 years
| Names | Marriage date | Length of marriage | End date | Residence | Notes | Refs |
| Karam Chand Kartari Chand | 30 September 2016 | Bradford, United Kingdom | Not recognized by Guinness World Records | |||
| K. Philipose Thomas Sosamma Thomas | 19 February 2006 | Kerala, India | Not recognized by Guinness World Records | |||
| Herbert Fisher, Sr. Zelmyra Fisher | 27 February 2011 | North Carolina, United States | Current Guinness World Record for longest marriage, recognized in 2008 | |||
| Temulji Bhicaji Nariman Lady Nariman | years | 1 August 1940 | Maharashtra, India | Temulji and Lady Nariman married as cousins when they were 5 years old. This was noted as longest marriage recorded through 1940. Shared Guinness World Record with Lazarus and Mary Rowe for editions up to 1998. | ||
| Lazarus Rowe Mary Rowe | years | 27 June 1829 | New Hampshire, United States | Shared Guinness World Record with the Narimans for editions up to 1998 | ||
| Liu Yung-Yang Liu Yang Yang-Wan | years | 21 July 2003 | Taoyuan, Taiwan | Was recognized by Guinness World Records 2004 as world's longest marriage | ||
| John George Betar Ann Betar | 25 11 1932 | 12 September 2018 | Connecticut, United States | Winner of the Worldwide Marriage Encounter's Longest Married Couple Project in 2013 | ||
| Duranord Veillard Jeanne Hermina Veillard | 29 11 1932 | 1 June 2018 | New York, United States | |||
| Maurice Kaye Helen Kaye | 27 08 1934 | 22 July 2018 | Bournemouth, United Kingdom | |||
| Henry Andrew Johnson Lena Johnson | 27 September 2003 | Iowa, United States | ||||
| William B. Ritchie Claudia Lillian Ritchie | 12 4 1919 | 22 November 2002 | Kentucky, United States | Recognized by Guinness World Records as world's oldest living married couple in 2002 | ||
| Norman James Burmah Norma "Mickey" Burmah | 6 September 2014 | Louisiana, United States | ||||
| Marshall N. Kuykendall Winifred Louisiana "Winnie Louise" Kuykendall | 22 September 2012 | New Mexico, United States | Winner of the Worldwide Marriage Encounter's inaugural Longest Married Couple Project in 2011 | |||
| Steven "Steve" Wrubel Victoria Virginia "Vicky" Wrubel | 8 April 2013 | Florida, United States | Were recognized by Guinness World Records in 2011, but did not clinch the record | |||
| George L. Briant Germaine Briant | 25 January 2005 28 January 2005 | Louisiana, United States | Honored by Governor David Vitter in the Louisiana Family Forum's inaugural Louisiana's longest married couple contest in 2004 | |||
| Masao Matsumoto Miyako Sonoda | 17 May 2019 | Kagawa, Japan | Guinness World Record for "Oldest living married couple, aggregate age", recognized in August 2018 Guinness World Record for "Oldest married couple, aggregate age" | |||
| Michael Nikolaus Katharina Nikolaus | 19 December 2005 | Siegen, Germany | ||||
| Loyd Monroe Collins Evelyn Eunice Collins | 11 August 1934 | 80 years, 334 days | 10 July 2015 | Louisiana, United States | Recognized by the Louisiana Family Forum in 2012 | |
| Ronald Gilbert Collings Esther Elizabeth Collings | 24 April 2019 | Adelaide, Australia | Australia's oldest couple mark 80 years together | |||
| Arend Noordhuis Aaltje Noordhuis | Drenthe, Netherlands | |||||
| John Henderson Charlotte Henderson | Texas, United States | Recognized by Guinness Word Records as the oldest living married couple. | - |
Rita Magnusson