Korea saw the highest number of international marriages between Korean men and Chinese women over the last 10 years, while more Korean women married Japanese men.

According to Statistics Korea, the number of marriages between Korean men and Chinese women reached 130,230 between 2002 and 2011. Observers speculate that the high rate is related to the increase in the number of ethnic Koreans in China who visit or stay in Korea.

This figure is followed by Korean marriages with Vietnamese women at 59,687, and 13,785 with Filipinos.

Brides from Cambodia, Mongolia and Thailand came next as the most commonly married by Korean men.

Recently, the annual number of Korean men marrying Vietnamese women surpassed that of Korean-Chinese marriages, the statistical bureau noted.

After hitting a peak at 20,582 Korean-Chinese marriages in 2005, the number declined to 7,549 in 2011. The number of Korean men marrying Vietnamese reached 7,636 in 2011.

Meanwhile, marriages between Korean women and Japanese men topped at 26,751, followed by those with Chinese, American, Canadian and British men.

The statistical bureau said that the overall trend in multicultural marriages is waning due to stricter immigration policy and regulation.

The number of international marriages fell to 29,762 in 2011, after hitting a record high of 42,356 in 2005.

International tie-ups accounted for 9 percent of the total marriages in 2011.

By Park Hyong-ki (hkp@heraldcorp.com)