Terms Used in the Topic of Marriage

Have you heard of the following terms? Do the terms carry cultural baggage or are they terms that show wider impacts of globalization?

Annulment – marriage dissolved after declaring it void.

Arranged marriage – matrimony in which neither the bride or groom have any say in the selection of their partner, but both parties give consent to the marriage.

Common law marriage – a relationship created by assurance and promise to cohabitate rather than by a religious or civil wedding ceremony.

Companionate marriage – mutual interest is what drives this form of marriage and the strong belief that spousal roles are interchangeable in marriage.

Dowry – transfer of goods or money from the family of the bride to the groom.

Left-handed marriage – a mistress was often referred to a left-handed wife in old England.

Levirate – a man is obliged to marry his brother’s widow.

Marriage of convenience – marriage between two people for practical or financial reasons and not for love or intimacy. Often used for immigration purposes.

May-December marriage – is one in which one spouse is significantly older by 11 or more years than the other spouse. "May" refers to the younger spouse in the spring of life, while "December" refers to the older spouse who is in what is described as the winter of life

Misyar marriage – a marriage contract where couples can live separately but get together regularly, often for sexual relations. Although allowed in Saudi Arabia and under Sunni Islam, misyar is not popular with many who see it as legal prostitution.

Morganatic marriage – A morganatic marriage is an approved, legally valid marriage between people of differing social rank that prevents titles, privileges, and estates of the royal or noble spouse from being shared by or passed on to the partner of lesser status or rank. Although any children born of the marriage union are considered legitimate, they have no claim on the property, titles, etc. of their royal parent.

Nosegay – a small bouquet of flowers given to the mothers of the bride and groom before the wedding ceremony.

Open marriage – a marriage relationship where the husband and wife have no inhibitions about one another being sexually involved with other people. The term ‘swingers’ is also often used.

Polygamy – having more than one spouse at a time.

Polyandry – having several husbands at the same time.

Spousal support – payment by one spouse to another on a monthly basis for expenses incurred in a matrimonial home but paid on account of divorce. Also known as alimony.


Consider this:
How far do you agree that the idea of having one partner for life is still a realistic one?

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