高額彩禮舊習俗 攀比風氣整治迫在眉睫大綱

Bride prices, a Traditional prerequisite for marriage, are increasingly becoming a miserable burden for families in rural areas across China as it has sPiked sharply in recent years. Young men go to cities to work hoping they could improve their family's life, but they often come back to find that what they have earned is insufficient for them to get a wife.

作爲婚姻的傳統條件，近年來一路走高的彩禮，正日益成爲中國農村家庭沉重的負擔。年輕人懷揣着能改善家庭生活水平的美好願望去城市打工，但回到老家才發現，他們掙的錢連個媳婦也娶不到。

Most parents in China would be happy to find out that their son has found a girl to marry. But Huang, a mother in her 40s from Central China's Henan Province is unable to relax, despite the good news. When her eldest son came back from Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province for Spring Festival and was introduced to a girl by a relative, she knew that this was just the first step.

兒子找到結婚對象了，大多數的中國父母都是很開心的。然而，來自中國中部河南省的40多歲的黃媽媽卻對這個好消息開心不起來。她的大兒子從中國南部廣東省回來過年了，親戚給介紹了一個對象，她知道，這僅僅是開始。

Though Huang's family has already offered the girl around 20,000 yuan in gifts, she is still free to go on more blind dates. Traditionally, the only way for Huang to guarantee she'll marry her son is to offer her family a substantial sum of money as a bride price to seal the engagement. But Huang doesn't have that kind of cash to hand.

儘管黃家已經給了這個姑娘2萬元作爲見面禮，但她仍可以自由相親。傳統上來說，保證她和黃家大兒子結婚的唯一方法是，給她家一筆相當可觀的彩禮錢來定下這門親事。但是黃家拿不出這麼多錢。

"The girl looks nice, so I guess the price will not be low," Huang said. "Though it will be hard, we will try every means to get the money, as long as she agrees to marry."

“這個女孩長的不錯，我猜價格也不會低。”黃媽媽說，“儘管非常難，但我們會千方百計去籌這筆錢，只要她同意嫁過來。”

"Every means" will entail borrowing money, yet again. A mother of two sons, Huang and her husband make a living by collecting recyclable materials in Guangzhou. To help her eldest son find a wife, they spent all their savings and borrowed money from relatives to buy an apartment in town two years ago.

“千方百計”也就意味着再一次去借錢。黃家有兩個兒子，黃媽媽夫妻二人靠在廣州收廢品爲生。爲了給大兒子娶媳婦，兩年前，他們花光了積蓄，還從親戚家借錢，纔在鎮上買了一套房子。

Many rural parents across China share Huang's anxiety. Finding a wife for their son could cost them all their savings and drive them into debt.

中國很多農村家庭都有着和黃媽媽一樣的憂愁。爲兒子娶媳婦花光了全家的積蓄，使他們債務纏身。

A prerequisite for marriage, the bride price, a tradition that can be traced back to the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046-711BC), remains a common custom in most rural areas across China.

彩禮作爲婚姻的前提條件，可以追溯至中國古代周朝時期（公元前1046-711年），這個習俗至今仍存在於中國大部分農村地區。

"You cannot get a wife without spending more than 500,000 yuan," Xu told the Global Times.

老許在接受環球時報採訪時說，“不花個5萬元以上，根本娶不到媳婦。”

As Xu explains, a family with a son must have a house, built in the countryside or bought in the town. After that, there is the matter of the bride price and the "three gold objects" - gold rings, a gold necklace and gold earrings - and a multitude of other pricey necessities.

正如老許所說的，有兒子的家庭必須有一套房子，不管是在農村蓋的還是在城裏買的。接下來，就是彩禮和“三金”——金戒指、金項鍊和金耳環——以及其它一些昂貴的必須品。

"Most need to borrow to get a wife," Xu said, "if an ordinary family has two or more sons, without even asking you know that they must be heavily in debt."

他說，“大多數家庭都需要借錢娶媳婦。如果一戶普通人家有兩個或更多的兒子，無需多問你便知道他們家一定是負債累累。”

Comparisons between women is one cause of spiraling bride prices. When one family demands an above-average price and succeeds, word spreads and other families see it as a new standard to follow. Thus the average price is raised.

女人間的攀比，是彩禮價位不斷上升的原因之一。當一個家庭要求高於平均水平的價格，且成功了，流傳出去後，其它家庭就把它當成一個新的標準來追隨。這樣，彩禮就在不斷上漲。

In some regions, professional match-makers play a role in growing prices. As Pingliang Weekly reported, in Pingliang, Gansu, some match-makers demand 5 to 10 percent of the bride price as commission. To get more money, some match-makers deliberately inflate prices.

還有一些地方，專業的紅娘也在彩禮上漲中也起了一定作用。如平涼週報所報道的那樣，在甘肅省平涼市，一些紅娘收取彩禮錢的5%到10%作爲佣金。爲了多賺錢，紅娘故意擡高價格。

But these standards are flexible depending on the suitor.

不過，標準也根據男方條件的不同而有差異。

"An ugly man from a poor family might be asked for 150,000 yuan. But a man who is good-looking will only need to give 66,000 yuan. The girl's family will take all factors into consideration," Xu said.

老許說，“家庭貧困且長相不好的，一般被要求15萬的彩禮。而長相不錯的只用給6萬6就夠了。女孩的家庭會綜合性考慮。”

As rural young people head to the cities to work, women have found it easier to find husbands and stay in urban areas compared with men looking for brides. As a result the already-skewed gender balance in rural areas is becoming increasingly pronounced and girls are scarce. According to a report by Pingliang Weekly, in a village in Gansu the proportion of men to women has reached 4:1.

由於農村年輕人前往城市打工，與男孩相比，女孩們更容易找到對象，且能留在城市裏。其結果是農村地區原有的性別失衡正變得越來越顯著，女孩數量也更少了。據平涼週報的一份報告，在甘肅省某村莊，男女比例已經達到4：1。

But Li Hongxiang argues that it is changing mindsets, rather than shifting demographics, that are driving up bride prices.

婚姻法專家李鴻翔卻稱，並非人口學的變化，而是人們心態的改變，擡高了彩禮價。

"An important reason probably is, in the social context of rapid economic development, people have changed their mindset and expect to get rich quick," Li analyzes.

他分析稱：“一個最重要的原因可能是，在經濟快速發展的社會背景下，人們的心態發生了改變，期待快速致富。”