Marriage is a social union or legal contract between individuals that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged by a variety of ways, depending on the culture or demographic. This union may also be called matrimony, while the ceremony that marks its beginning is usually called a wedding and the married status created is sometimes called wedlock. People marry for many reasons, but usually one or more of the following: legal, social, emotional, and economical; the legal establishment of a nuclear family unit; the legal protection of children; public declaration of love.[1][2] Marriage practices are very diverse across cultures and may take many forms, and are often formalized by a ceremony called a wedding.[3] The act of marriage usually creates normative or legal obligations between the individuals involved. In some societies these obligations also extend to certain family members of the married persons. Almost all cultures that recognize marriage also recognize adultery as a violation of the terms of marriage.[4] External recognition can manifest in a variety of ways. Some examples include the state, a religious authority, or both. It is often viewed as a contract. Civil marriage is the legal concept of marriage as a governmental institution irrespective of religious affiliation, in accordance with marriage laws of the jurisdiction. If recognized by the state, by the religion(s) to which the parties belong or by society in general, the act of marriage changes the personal and social status of the individuals who enter into it. History The way in which a marriage is conducted has changed over time, as has the institution itself. Although the institution of marriage pre-dates reliable recorded history, many cultures have legends or religious beliefs concerning the origins of marriage.[14] One of the oldest known and recorded marriage laws is discerned from Hammurabi's Code, enacted during the Mesopotamian world (widely considered as the cradle of civilization). The legal institution of marriage and its rules and ramifications have changed over time depending on the culture or demographic of the time.[15] Various cultures have had their own theories on the origin of marriage. One example may lie in a man's need for assurance as to paternity of his children. He might therefore be willing to pay a bride price or provide for a woman in exchange for exclusive sexual access.[16] Legitimacy is the consequence of this transaction rather than its motivation. In Comanche society, married women work harder, lose sexual freedom, and do not seem to obtain any benefit from marriage.[17] But nubile women are a source of jealousy and strife in the tribe, so they are given little choice other than to get married. "In almost all societies, access to women is institutionalized in some way so as to moderate the intensity of this competition."[18] Marriage restrictions Main article: Marriage law#Marriage restrictions Marriage is an institution that is historically filled with restrictions. From age, to gender, to social status, restrictions are placed on marriage by society for reasons of benefiting the children, passing on healthy genes, to keep property concentrated, or because of prejudice and fear. Some legal, social, or religious restrictions apply in some countries on the genders of the couple. In response to changing social and political attitudes, some jurisdictions and religious denominations now recognize marriages between people of the same sex. In some jurisdictions these are sometimes called civil unions or domestic partnerships, while some others explicitly prohibit same-sex marriages. Societies have often placed restrictions on marriage to relatives, though the degree of prohibited relationship varies widely. In most societies, marriage between brothers and sisters has been forbidden. All mainstream religions prohibit some marriages on the basis of the consanguinity (lineal descent) and affinity (kinship by marriage) of the prospective marriage partners, though the standards vary. *Age at first marriage *Age disparity in sexual relationships *Convention on Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage, and Registration of Marriages (UN treaty) *Feminism *List of people with longest marriages *Marriage privatization *Men's rights *Misandry *Radical feminism *Same-sex marriage *Sexual conflict *Types of marriages *Marriage tree Related concepts *Adultery - Sexual intercourse between a married person and a partner other than the lawful spouse. *Alimony - obligation of support. *Annulment - legal procedure for declaring a marriage null and void. *Aufruf - A ceremony in which Jews pelt the couple to be married with candy on the shabbat before the wedding. *Betrothal - formal state of engagement to be married. *Bride Price - The amount of money or property or wealth paid by the groom or his family to the parents of a woman upon the marriage of their daughter to the groom *Bride Service *Child marriage *Christian views of marriage - views of Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, and others *Civil marriage - marriages which are constituted by a government official and not a religious congregation. *Divorce - ending of a marriage. *Dowry - the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings to her husband in marriage *Engagement *Family therapy/Relationship counseling *Free love - a social movement opposed to marriage *Head and Master laws *Husband/Wife *Hypergamy *Inheritance *Islamic marital jurisprudence *Living apart together *Mail-order bride *Marriage (conflict) *Marriage gap *Marriage law *Marriageable age *Monogamy/Polygamy *Nikah urfi *Separation - a step in the ending of a marriage. *Social unit *Wedding