Marriage, Its Past and Present

By: Kelly CaoDiv. 1

Marriage In Ancient Egypt In ancient Egypt, all people could

only have one partner or mate. People only had marriage with the

same class people as they were. E.g. A slave could only marry a slave, and a middle class man could only marry a girl from a middle class family.

Marriages between cousins and nieces were very common, because Egyptian Gods did the same.

The Marriage In Ancient Egypt A marriage was also a scarce bond

between the man and the woman. Brides were really young that time, aging

from 15-16 or even younger. Husbands were usually 17-20 years old.

Some were even older. Ancient Egyptians liked to marry young

girls because people died very early(no offence! ).

Marriage In Ancient Egypt Since people all had short lives, girls

would get married after getting their periods.

Divorce in ancient Egypt occurred usually because the couple didn’t get along well.

When divorced, the woman would move to her parent’s house and get remarried and have more children.

Getting divorced didn’t change one’s life too much.

Marriage in Mesopotamia When a woman god married,

she would become a part of the husband’s family.

When the woman was married, the man’s family was in charge of the ceremony.

They would also have a huge feast at the couples’ new home and everything would be paid by the husband’s side of the family.

Marriage in Mesopotamia Also, according to Hammurabi’s law code,

wives could be bought and sold, just like slaves at that time.

Divorce in Mesopotamia was acceptable. When the two people wanted to get divorced, the man just needed to return the money (price of the woman) and their bond would be broken.

The word husband, if translated, would mean “the owner of a wife”.

Marriage in Ancient Rome Ancient Romans could only marry

once in their whole life time. In Ancient Rome, the bride had to be 12 years or older and the groom had to be 14 years or older. No couple in Rome could ever

divorce, so when they were choosing their life long partners, they would do it carefully.

Marriage in Ancient Rome When getting married in ancient Rome, the couple

must show consent, and one way to do it was for them is to hold hands in the public.

There was always an engagement between the couple, which was usually a ring (wedding ring in modern times).

The bride’s family would prepare some of her basic needs. The groom’s family had to provide clothing, slaves, furniture, and jewels for the bride, but these remained the property of the groom’s family.

Marriage in Ancient Rome On the day of the marriage, the bride

would be dressed by her mother and also, tying the “Knot of Hercules”(Hercules was the god who was in charge of life after the wedding)

After the wedding ceremony, the bride would be carried over to the new home by the groom and lit the fire-place with a “marriage” torch.

When the fire is lighted, the bride would blow out the torch and toss in to the guests, it’s just like the flower bouquet that we toss in modern days.

Marriage in Ancient China When Chinese people wanted to get married,

then the groom’s side of the family, they had to give gifts to the bride’s side of the family.

The gifts is usually money of treasures (something that’s really expensive).

Before the marriage, the bride and groom’s birthdays had to be taken to a fortune teller to see what their future would be like.

Marriage in Ancient China The reasons for ancient Chinese to get

divorced was: The women could not get pregnant or have a

son. The women might have spoken too much or

something that is forbidden in the family. The women is a thief.

Marriage in Modern Canada Marriage in Canada is just like all other

modern countries. First, you plan the date to get married, then,

you present your personal information, your ID (passport, driver’s license or birth certificate).

Marriage in Modern Canada Canadians and people from other countries have the

same culture as other countries. When the woman is married to the man, then the woman’s last name will change into the same last name as her husband’s.

All men and women have the same status, no men is higher than women, all divorces are peaceful.

Reasons for divorce is the marriage has been totally broken down and not able to retrieve, the wife and husband have been living apart for more than one year.

Also, one of the person is continuously using mental or physical cruelty to the other, and is unbearable, they can divorce.

AJDMBA. "An Ancient Roman Wedding Ceremony 1930s Card." An Ancient Roman Wedding Ceremony 1930s Card. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2013. <http://www.ebay.com/itm/An-Ancient-Roman-Wedding-Ceremony-1930s-Card-/350482261422>. A picture from E- Bay.

Andrews, Evan. "11 Things You May Not Know about Ancient Egypt." 11 Things You May Not Know about Ancient Egypt. Evan Andrews, n.d. Web. 9 Apr. 2013. <http://www.history.com/news/history-lists/11-things-you-may-not-know-about-ancient-egypt>. The second picture about ancient Egyptian marriage.

"Chinese Wedding Culture." Radom Person's Blog. Fu Tian Wen, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://futian.wen.blog.163.com/blog/static/13014222120119163390615/>. From a Chinese Website.

"Chinese Weddings." Chinese Weddings. Baidu, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://baike.baidu.com/view/724573.htm>. From a Chinese Website. (Like Wikipedia)

Dunn, Jimmy. "Egypt: Marriage in Ancient Egypt." Egypt: Marriage in Ancient Egypt. Jimmy Dunn, n.d. Web. 9 Apr. 2013. <http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/marriage.htm>. The Info about marriage in ancient Egypt.

Government of Canada. "Getting Married." Getting Married. Government of Canada, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/lifeevents/marriage.shtml>. The needs to get married.

Kutay, Hollace. "The Art behind Weddings." The Art behind Weddings. Hollace Kutay, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://sites.psu.edu/hollacerclblog/2013/02/07/the-art-behind-weddings/>. Pictures of wedding scenes.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

BIBLIOGRAPHY "Marriage Ceremony in Ancient Rome." Marriage Ceremony in Ancient Rome. All Posters., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2013. <http://www.allposters.co.uk/-sp/Marriage-Ceremony-in-Ancient-Rome-Posters_i4230406_.htm>. A picture for All Posters, there is no artist and the picture is for sale.

Marriages of Convenience Still Exist in Canada. Marriages of Convenience Still Exist in Canada. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://immig-canada.blogspot.ca/2010/11/marriages-of-convenience-still-exist-in.html>. A picture that was taken as part of the writing's explanation.

Martin, Phillip, ed. "Ancient Roman Weddings- Ancient Rome for Kids." Ancient Roman Weddings- Ancient Rome for Kids. Phillip Martin, n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. <http://rome.mrdonn.org/weddings.html>. The website for ancient Roman weddings.

"Mesopotamian Marriage Law." Mesopotamian Marriage Law. Wikipedia, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopotamian_Marriage_Law>. Info about Mesopotamian Marriage Laws.

Sacred Prostitution. Sacred Prostitution. Wkipedia, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_prostitution>. A picture from Wikipedia.

Wikipedia. "Chinese Marriage." Chinese Marriage. Wikipedia, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_marriage>. The page where I search for Chinese marriage/ Divorce.

- - -. "Marriage in Ancient Rome." Marriage in Ancient Rome. Wikipedia, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage_in_ancient_Rome>. A picture from Wikipedia.

- - -, ed. "Marriage in Canada." Marriage in Canada. Wikipedia, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage_in_Canada>. About divorce/ marriage in Canada.

Thank YOU For Listening!

The End!!!