One third of all marriages in New Zealand dissolve before the couple reach their silver wedding anniversary.
The number of marriages recorded during 2008 rose by 400, to 21,900.
But the Family Court granted 9,700 divorces last year - just under the annual average of 10,000 for the past decade.
Statistics New Zealand says a study of divorce statistics shows that about a third of those who married in 1983 were divorced before the time of their 25th anniversary.
Half of all marriages dissolved in 2008 lasted 13.4 years or more. The median age of divorce was 44.5 for men and about 42 for women.
