Awife (pl.:wives) is awoman in amarital relationship. A woman who has separated from her partner continues to be a wife until their marriage is legallydissolved with adivorce judgment; or until death, depending on the kind of marriage. On the death of her partner, a wife is referred to as awidow. The rights andobligations of a wife to her partner and her status in the community and law vary between cultures and have varied over time.
Awhite goldwedding ring and a single-diamond,gold-banded engagement ring. In many cultures, wives show their marital status through various symbols.
The word is of Germanic origin from theProto-Germanic wordwībam, which translates into "woman". InMiddle English, it had the formwif, and inOld Englishwīf, "woman or wife". It is related to ModernGermanWeib (woman, female),[1]Danishviv (wife, usually poetic), andDutchwijf (woman, generallypejorative, cf.bitch).[2][3] The original meaning of the phrase "wife" as simply "woman", unconnected with marriage or a husband/wife, is preserved in words such as "midwife", "goodwife", "fishwife" and "spaewife".
After marriage, it is generally expected in many cultures that a woman will take her husband'ssurname, though this is not universal. A married woman may indicate hermarital status in a number of ways: inWestern culture, a married woman would commonly wear awedding ring, but in other cultures, othermarkers of marital status may be used. A married woman is commonly given the title "Mrs", but some married women prefer to be referred to as "Ms", a title which is also used by preference or when the marital status of a woman is unknown.
A woman on her wedding day is usually described as abride. Occasionally, this naming is considered appropriate after thewedding ceremony or thehoneymoon, though she is typically called a wife within the marriage. If she is marrying a man, her partner is known as thebridegroom during the wedding and within the marriage is called herhusband. If she is marrying a woman, each partner is referred to as a wife.
In the older customs, which are still followed by theRoman Catholic ritual, the wordbride actually meansfiancée, and applies up to the exchange of matrimonial consent (the actual marriage act). From that point, even while the rest of the very ceremony is ongoing, the woman is a wife and no longer considered as a bride. Hence, the bridal couple is no longer referred to as such, but instead as the newlywed couple or "newlyweds".
Unlikemother, a term that puts a woman into the context of her children, "Wife" refers to the institutionalized relation to the other spouse. In some societies, especially historically, aconcubine was a woman who was in an ongoing, usually matrimonially oriented relationship with a man who could not be married to her, often due to a difference in social status.
The termwife is most commonly applied to a woman in a union sanctioned by law (includingreligious law), but not to a woman in an informalcohabitation relationship, which may be known as a girlfriend, partner, cohabitant, significant other,concubine,mistress, etc. However, a woman in a so-calledcommon law marriage may describe herself as a common law wife, de facto wife, or simply a wife. Those seeking to advancegender neutrality may refer to both marriage partners as "spouses". In response to this naming change, many countries and societies are rewording their statute law by replacing "wife" and "husband" with "spouse". A former wife whose spouse is deceased is awidow.
The status of a wife may be terminated bydivorce,annulment, or thedeath of a spouse. In the case of divorce, terminology such as a former wife,former-wife orex-wife is often used. In regard to annulment, such terms are not strictly accurate. This is because annulment, unlike divorce, is usuallyretroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning as though it had never taken place. In the case of the death of the other spouse, the term used iswidow. The social status of such women varies by culture. In some places, they may be subject to potentially harmful practices, such aswidow inheritance orlevirate marriage, orsocial stigmatization.[4] In some cultures, the termination of the status of wife makes life itself meaningless. In the case of those cultures that practicesati, afuneral ritual within someAsian communities, a recently widowed woman intentionallycommits suicide by fire, typically upon the husband'sfuneral pyre.
The legal rights of a wife have been subject to debate since the 19th century in many jurisdictions. The subject was in particular addressed byJohn Stuart Mill inThe Subjection of Women (1869). Historically, many societies have given sets of rights and obligations to husbands that differ vastly from the sets of rights and obligations given to wives. In particular, the control of marital property, inheritance rights, and the right to dictate the activities of children of the marriage, have typically been given to male marital partners. However, this practice was curtailed to a great deal in many countries in the twentieth century, and more modern statutes tend to define the rights and duties of a spouse without reference to gender. Among the last European countries to establish fullgender equality in marriage were Switzerland,[5] Greece,[6] Spain,[7] and France[8] in the 1980s. In variousmarriage laws around the world, however, the husband continues to have authority. For instance, the Civil Code ofIran states in Article 1105:"In relations between husband and wife; the position of the head of the family is the exclusive right of the husband".[9]
The purpose of the dowry varies by culture and has varied historically. In some cultures, it was paid not only to support the establishment of a new family, but also served as a condition that if the husband committed grave offenses upon his wife, the dowry had to be returned to the wife or her family. Due to this condition, the dowry was often madeinalienable by the husband during the marriage.[10] Today, dowries continue to be expected in parts ofSouth Asia such as India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, and conflicts related to their payment sometimes result in violence, such asdowry deaths andbride burning.
In some cultures, particularly in theAnglophoneWest, wives often change their surnames to that of the husband upon getting married. For some, this is a controversial practice, due to its tie to the historical doctrine ofcoverture and to the historically subordinated roles of wives. Others argue that today this is merely a harmless tradition that should be accepted as a free choice.[11] Some jurisdictions consider this practice as discriminatory and contrary to women's rights, and have restricted or banned it; for example, since 1983, whenGreece adopted a newmarriage law which guaranteedgender equality between the spouses,[12] women in Greece are required tokeep their birth names for their whole life.[13]
Percentage of births to unmarried women, selected countries, 1980 and 2007.[14]
Traditionally, and still in many cultures, the role of a wife was closely tied to that of amother, by a strong expectation that a wife ought to bear children, while conversely, an unmarried woman should not have achild out of wedlock. These views have changed in many parts of the world. Children born outside marriage have become more common in many countries.[15][16]
Although some wives in particular in Western countrieschoose not to have children, such a choice is not accepted in some parts of the world. Innorthern Ghana, for example, the payment of bride price signifies a woman's requirement to bear children, and women using birth control are at risk of threats and coercion.[17] In addition, some religions are interpreted as requiring children in marriage; for instance,Pope Francis said in 2015 that choosing not to have children was selfish.[18]
The various divisions of the following chapters share the previous terminology inEnglish language, notwithstanding religious and cultural, but also customary differences.
Many traditions like a dower, dowry and bride price have long traditions in antiquity. The exchange of any item or value goes back to the oldest sources, and the wedding ring likewise was always used as a symbol for keeping faith to a person.
In ancient Rome, The EmperorAugustus introduced marriage legislation, theLex Papia Poppaea, which rewarded marriage and childbearing. The legislation also imposed penalties on young persons who failed to marry and on those who committed adultery. Therefore, marriage and childbearing was made law between the ages of twenty-five and sixty for men, and twenty and fifty for women.[19] Women who were Vestal Virgins, were selected between the ages of 6 and 10 to serve as priestesses in the temple of goddess Vesta in the Roman Forum for 30 years after which time they could marry.[20] Noble women were known to marry as young as 12 years of age,[21] whereas women in the lower classes were more likely to marry slightly further into their teenage years.[22][23] Ancient Roman law required brides to be at least 12 years old, a standard adopted by Roman Catholiccanon law. In ancient Roman law, first marriages to brides aged 12–25 required the consent of the bride and her father, but by the late antique period Roman law permitted women over 25 to marry without parental consent.[24] The father had the right and duty to seek a good and useful match for his children, and might arrange a child'sbetrothal long before he or she came of age.[25] To further the interests of their birth families, daughters of the elite would marry into respectable families.[26] If a daughter could prove the proposed husband to be of bad character, she could legitimately refuse the match.[26] The age of lawful consent to a marriage was 12 for maidens and 14 for youths.[21] In late antiquity, Most Roman women seem to have married in their late teens to early twenties, butnoble women married younger than those of the lower classes, and an aristocratic maiden was expected to be virgin until her first marriage.[27] In late antiquity, under Roman law, daughters inherited equally from their parents if no will was produced.[28] In addition, Roman law recognized wives' property as legally separate from husbands's property,[29] as did some legal systems in parts of Europe and colonial Latin America.
Christian cultures claim to be guided by theNew Testament in regard to their view on the position of a wife in society as well as her marriage. The New Testament condemns divorce for both men and women (1 Cor 7:10–11) and assumesmonogamy on the part of the husband: the wife is to have her "own" husband, and the husband is to have his "own" wife (1 Cor 7:2). In the medieval period, this was understood to mean that a wife should not share a husband with other wives. As a result, divorce was relatively uncommon in the pre-modern West, particularly in the medieval andearly modern period, and husbands in the Roman, later medieval and early modern period did not publicly take more than one wife.
In pre-modern times, it was unusual to marry for love alone,[30] although it became an ideal in literature by the early modern period.[31] In the 12th century, the Roman Catholic Church drastically changed legal standards for marital consent by allowing daughters over 12 and sons over 14 to marry without their parents' approval, even if their marriage was made clandestinely.[32] Parish studies have confirmed that late medieval women did sometimes marry against their parents' approval.[33] The Roman Catholic Church's policy of considering clandestine marriages and marriages made without parental consent to be valid was controversial, and in the 16th century both the French monarchy and the Lutheran church sought to end these practices, with limited success.[34]
The New Testament made no pronouncements about wives' property rights, which in practice were influenced more by secular laws than religion. Most influential in the pre-modern West was thecivil law, except in English-speaking countries where Englishcommon law emerged in the High Middle Ages. In addition, local customary law influenced wives' property rights; as a result, wives' property rights in the pre-modern West varied widely from region to region. Because wives' property rights and daughters' inheritance rights varied widely from region to region due to differing legal systems, the amount of property a wife might own varied greatly. Under the English common law system, which dates to the later medieval period, daughters and younger sons were usually excluded from landed property if no will was produced. Under English common law, there was a system where a wife with a living husband ("feme couvert") could own little property in her own name.[35] Unable to easily support herself, marriage was very important to most women's economic status. This problem has been dealt with extensively in literature, where the most important reason for women's limited power was the denial of equal education and equal property rights for females.[36] The situation was assessed by the English conservative moralist SirWilliam Blackstone: "The husband and wife are one, and the husband is the one."[37] Married women's property rights in the English-speaking world improved with theMarried Women's Property Act 1882 and similar legal changes, which allowed wives with living husbands to own property in their own names. Until late in the 20th century, women could in some regions or times sue a man forwreath money when he took hervirginity without taking her as his wife.[38]
If a woman did not want to marry, another option was entering aconvent as anun.[39] to become a "bride of Christ",[40] a state in which her chastity and economic survival would be protected.[40][41] Both a wife and a nun woreChristian headcovering, which proclaimed their state of protection by the rights of marriage.[42] Much more significant than the option of becoming a nun, was the option of non-religious spinsterhood in the West. An unmarried woman, afeme sole, had the right to own property and make contracts in her own name. As first demonstrated quantitatively by John Hajnal, in the 19th and early 20th centuries the percentage of non-clerical Western women who never married was typically as high as 10–15%, a prevalence of female celibacy never yet documented for any other major traditional civilization.[43] In addition, early modern Western women married at quite high ages (typically mid to late 20s) relative to other major traditional cultures. The high age at first marriage for Western women has been shown by many parish reconstruction studies to be a traditional Western marriage pattern that dates back at least as early as the mid-16th century.[44]
In the 20th century, the role of the wife in Western marriage changed in two major ways; the first was the breakthrough from an "institution to companionate marriage";[45] for the first time since the Middle Ages, wives became distinctlegal entities, and were allowed their own property and allowed to sue. Until then, partners were a single legal entity, but only a husband was allowed to exercise this right, calledcoverture. The second change was the drastic alteration of middle and upper-class family life, when in the 1960s these wives began to work outside their home, and with the social acceptance ofdivorces the single-parent family, andstepfamily or "blended family" as a more "individualized marriage".[46]
Today, some women may wear awedding ring in order to show her status as a wife.[47]
In Western countries today, married women usually have aneducation, aprofession and they (or their husbands) can take time off from their work in a legally procured system ofante-natal care, statutorymaternity leave, and they may getmaternity pay or a maternityallowance.[48] The status of marriage, as opposed to unmarried pregnant women, allows thespouse to be responsible for the child, and to speak on behalf of their wife; a partner is also responsible for the wife's child in states where they are automatically assumed to be the biological legal parent.[49] Vice versa, a wife has more legal authority in some cases when she speaks on behalf of a spouse than she would have if they were not married, e.g. when her spouse is in a coma after an accident, a wife may have the right of advocacy.[50] If theydivorce, she also might receive—or pay—alimony (seeLaw and divorce around the world).
Women's income affects the dynamics of heterosexual love relationships
The effect of women's income on heterosexual relationships’ dynamics depends on several factors. If the couple has strong traditional values, the income of women will affect men's gender identity and affect their well-being.[51] If they have strong liberal values, the income of a woman will make the woman the provider of the house and put the man in a more domestic role. However, in most cases a couple will develop a mutually dependent relationship where the woman's income is needed, but at the same time the woman will do the majority of the housework.
At the beginning of the 1970s the traditional dynamic was that women performed domestic labor and that men worked for income due to the economic pressures in place.[52] Eventually,second wave feminism challenged this dynamic. Starting in the 1980s, correlations between higher income of women and higher rates of divorce began decreasing.[53]
The economic independence theory[53] establishes that if one side of the couple provides more than 60% of the total income of the couple, there is a dependence effect. Therefore, in recent decades women have had a major increase in their economic independence. At the same time, women have had to wrestle with other economic decisions, such as the postponement ofmotherhood.[54]
InIndo-Aryan languages, a wife is known asPatni, which means a woman who shares everything in this world with her husband and he does the same, including their identity. Decisions are ideally made in mutual consent. A wife usually takes care of anything inside her household, including the family's health, the children's education, a parent's needs.
The majority of Hindu marriages in rural and traditional India are arranged marriages. Once they find a suitable family (family of same caste, culture and financial status), the boy and the girl see and talk to each other to decide the outcome. In recent times however the western culture has had significant influence and the new generations are more open to the idea of marrying for love.
Indian law has recognized rape, sexual, emotional or verbal abuse of a woman by her husband as crimes. InHinduism, a wife is known as aPatni orArdhangini (similar to "the better half") meaning a part of the husband or his family. In Hinduism, a woman or man can get married, but only have one husband or wife respectively.
In India, women may wear vermilion powder on their foreheads, an ornament called Mangalsutra (Hindi:मंगलसूत्र) which is a form of necklace, or rings on their toes (which are not worn by single women) to show their status as married women.
China's family laws were changed by theCommunist revolution; and in 1950, thePeople's Republic of China enacted a comprehensive marriage law including provisions giving the spouses equal rights with regard to ownership and management of marital property.[55]
InJapan, before enactment of theMeiji Civil Code of 1898, all of the woman's property such as land or money passed to her husband except for personal clothing and a mirror stand.[56] SeeWomen in Japan,Law of Japan
Christian marriage as based on biblical teachings and conditions, is to be between one woman and one man, that God Himself joined them and that no human is to separate them, according to Christ's words (Matthew 19:4-6). The New Testament states that an unmarried Christian woman is to be celibate or is to become the Christian wife of one husband to avoid sexual immorality and for his sexual passion (1 Cor 7:1-2 & 8–9). The New Testament permits divorce of a Christian wife by a Christian husband only if she has committed adultery (Matthew 5:32). The New Testament allows a Christian widow to (re)marry a man she chooses (1 Cor 7:39) but forbids a divorced Christian woman to remarry because she would be committing adultery if she did (Matthew 5:32). As such she is to remain unmarried and celibate or be reconciled with her husband (1 Cor 7:1-2 & 8-9 and 1 Cor 7:10-11). A Christian wife can divorce a non-Christian husband if he wants a divorce (1 Cor 7:12-16). Christian husbands are to love their Christian wives as Christ loved the Church (Ephesians 5:25) and as he loves himself (Ephesians 5:33). The Christian wife is to respect her husband (Ephesians 5:33). Christian husbands are to not be harsh with their Christian wives (Colossians 3:19) and to treat them as a delicate vessel and with honor (1 Peter 3:7).
Women in general are supposed to wear specific clothes, as stated by thehadith, like thehijab, which may take different styles depending on the culture of the country, where traditions may seep in.[57][58] The husband must pay amahr to the bride.[59]
Traditionally, the wife in Islam is seen as a protected, chaste person that manages the household and the family. She has the ever-important role of raising the children and bringing up the next generation of Muslims. In Islam, it is highly recommended that the wife remains at home although they are fully able to own property or work. The husband is obligated to spend on the wife for all of her needs while she is not obligated to spend even if she is wealthy.Muhammad is said to have commanded all Muslim men to treat their wives well. There is a hadith byAl-Tirmidhi, in which Muhammad is said to have stated "The believers who show the most perfect faith are those who have the best character and the best of you are those who are best to their wives."[60]
Traditionally, Muslim married women are not distinguished from unmarried women by an outward symbol (such as a wedding ring). However, women's wedding rings have recently been adopted in the past thirty years from Western culture.[61]
King Solomon with 3 of his many wives. Illustrated in 1668 by Giovanni Venanzi di Pesaro. According to Biblical account, Solomon had an obsession with women and fell in love with many.
Women in Judaism have a range of rights and obligations ( see main articleJewish views on marriage). Marriage takes place on the basis of a Jewish marriage contract, called aKetubah. There is a blur of arranged marriages and love marriages in traditional families.
Married women, in traditional families, wear specific clothes, like thetichel.
Once, a man called Shechem, a Hivite, offered a dowry to get an Israelite wife, but was rejected, since he was not an Israelite himself.Genesis 34
In ancient times there were Israelite women who were Judge,Queen regnant,Queen regent,Queen mother,Queen consort, and Prophetess: Deborah was the wife of an Israelite man whose name was Lapidoth, which means "torches." Deborah was a Judge and a Prophetess.[62] Esther was the Jewish wife of a Persian King named Ahasuerus. Esther was Queen consort to the King of Persia and at the same time she was Queen regnant of the Jewish people in Persia and their Prophetess.[63][64]Bathsheba was the Queen consort of King-Prophet David and then the Queen mother of King-Prophet Solomon. He rose from his throne when she entered and bowed to her and ordered that a throne be brought and he had her sit at his right hand, which is in stark contrast to when she was Queen consort and bowed to King-Prophet David when she entered.[65] Prophet Jeremiah portrays a Queen mother as sharing in her son's rule over the kingdom inJeremiah 13:18-20. The wife of Prophet Isaiah was a Prophetess.Isaiah 8:3
Expectation of fidelity and violence related to adultery
There is a widely held expectation, which has existed for most of recorded history and in most cultures, that a wife is not to havesexual relations with anyone other than her legal husband. A breach of this expectation offidelity is commonly referred to asadultery orextramarital sex. Historically, adultery has been considered to be a seriousoffense, sometimes a crime, and asin. Even if that is not so, it may still have legal consequences, particularly as a ground for adivorce. Adultery may be a factor to consider in aproperty settlement, it may affect the status of children, thecustody of children; moreover, adultery can result in socialostracism in some parts of the world. In addition,affinity rules of Catholicism, of Judaism and of Islam prohibit an ex-wife or widow from engaging in sexual relations with and from marrying a number of relatives of the former husband.
In parts of the world, adultery may result in violent acts, such ashonor killings orstoning. Some jurisdictions, especially those that applySharia law, allow for such acts to take place legally.[citation needed]
^In 1985, a referendum guaranteed women legal equality with men within marriage.[1][2] The new reforms came into force in January 1988.Women's movements of the world: an international directory and reference guide, edited by Sally Shreir, p. 254
^In 1983, legislation was passed guaranteeing equality between spouses, abolishingdowry, and ending legal discrimination against illegitimate children[3]Demos, Vasilikie. (2007) “The Intersection of Gender, Class and Nationality and the Agency of Kytherian Greek Women.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association. August 11.
^In 1981, Spain abolished the requirement that married women must have their husbands’ permission to initiate judicial proceedings"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2014-08-24. Retrieved2014-08-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^Although married women in France obtained the right to work without their husbands' permission in 1965,"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved2016-04-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) and the paternal authority of a man over his family was ended in 1970 (before that parental responsibilities belonged to the father who made all legal decisions concerning the children), it was only in 1985 that a legal reform abolished the stipulation that the husband had the sole power to administer the children's property.[4]
^Mary T. Boatwright, Daniel J. Gargola, Noel Lenski, Richard J. A. Talbert, "A Brief History of The Romans" (Oxford University Press; 2 edition, 2013), p. 176.
^Silvia Evangelisti, Wives, Widows, And Brides Of Christ: Marriage And The Convent In The Historiography Of Early Modern Italy,Cambridge 2000
^John Hajnal, "European marriage patterns in perspective" in D.E. Glass and D.E.C. Eversley eds.Population in History London, 1965.
^Michael Flynn,The European Demographic System, 1500-1820 Johns Hopkins, 1981, pp. 124–127.
^"Companionship marriage" and "companionate marriage" are synonyms (the latter being the older one), although the term usually refers to a relationship based on equality, it might instead refer to a marriage with mutual interest in their children,"The Future of Children - Sub-Sections". Archived fromthe original on 2007-07-12. Retrieved2007-03-05.
^Abdel Azeem, Sherif Muhammad."Divorce".Women In Islam Versus Women In The Judaeo-Christian Tradition: The Myth & The Reality. RetrievedAugust 6, 2018.
