# Who invented the idea of marriage? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 21, 2003, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-the-idea-of-marriage/163056 "2003-03-21T08:16:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![mallocks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f4b2a3/32.png) [@mallocks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mallocks)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-the-idea-of-marriage/163056/22 "2003-03-21T15:21:46Z")
sorry, ‘know’ was the wrong word, I meant that you’d need the original Hebrew text, and you’d also need to be able to read it. Sorry for the misunderstanding, my bad. Thanks for the answer on the year ---
**Author:** ![Arturas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/45deac/32.png) [@Arturas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arturas)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-the-idea-of-marriage/163056/23 "2003-03-21T16:23:24Z")
You realise the eskimo (yes, I know generic term) believe in sharing wives. And then there is a tribe somewhere, where they beleive that sperm not only fertilise the egg but also help feed the growing foetus, thus the mother-to-be is shared with one or more men and all the men are considered the child’s father. Obviously a bonus when one hunter brings home food and the others do not. Who is to say this was not an earlier form of marriage when lives were harder? And then we have primates that have sex with strange males in return for food, meaning monogamy is not necessarily the original practice. (Yes, I know this latter is a weak argument - just couldn’t resist.) ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-the-idea-of-marriage/163056/24 "2003-03-21T18:09:35Z")
cite? ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-the-idea-of-marriage/163056/25 "2003-03-21T18:42:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Arturas \* > \*\*You realise the eskimo (yes, I know generic term) believe in sharing wives. And then there is a tribe somewhere, where they beleive that sperm not only fertilise the egg but also help feed the growing foetus, thus the mother-to-be is shared with one or more men and all the men are considered the child’s father. Obviously a bonus when one hunter brings home food and the others do not. Who is to say this was not an earlier form of marriage when lives were harder? > And then we have primates that have sex with strange males in return for food, meaning monogamy is not necessarily the original practice. (Yes, I know this latter is a weak argument - just couldn’t resist.) \*\* This was [just covered](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/meskimowifeswap.html) by **bibliophage** in a Staff Report. You’ve oversimplified things quite a bit. And it’s not really relevant regarding marriage, which was the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-the-idea-of-marriage/163056/26 "2003-03-21T22:35:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fat Bald Guy \* > \*\*If you are asking about the first recorded marriage, it was between two people named Adam and Eve. \*\* Nah, they were just stuck with each other for a lack of other options. As I understand from reading the Old Testament, “marriage” occured when the couple moved in together, had sex, and agreed to be husband and wife. There seems to be somewhat of a lack of ceremony in certain cases. One scripture that comes to mind is “And he went in unto her, and she was his wife,” but not having a Bible handy, I can’t say where it’s located. In Christian times, marriages were not even preformed by the Church, IIRC, until the late Middle Ages. (Many paintings show the couple being wed at home, or at most, at the door of the church, but not inside.) The Church looked upon marriage as a secular institution for a good portion of its early history. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-the-idea-of-marriage/163056/27 "2003-03-21T22:55:09Z")
Well, according to Jewish law, if a man has sex with a virgin, they are considered married, and he is obligated to be her husband if she wants that. See Deuteronomy, I don’t have a copy of the Bible to quote chapter and verse. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-invented-the-idea-of-marriage/163056.md?page=1)