Marriageable age

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Marriageable age (or marriage age) is the age at which a person is allowed to marry, either as of right or subject to parental or other forms of consent. The age and other requirements vary between countries, but generally it is set at 18, although most jurisdictions allow marriage at slightly younger ages with parental and/or judicial approval, or in case of pregnancy. The marriage age should not be confused with the age of majority or the age of consent, or the actual age at first marriage in a particular society.

55 countries are parties to the Convention on Consent to Marriage, Minimum Age for Marriage, and Registration of Marriages, which requires them to specify a minimum marriage age by statute law, thus overriding customary, religious and tribal laws.

When the marriageable age under a law of a religious community is lower than that of the state ("country"), the state law prevails. However, some religious communities do not accept the supremacy of State law in this respect.

Contents

[edit] History and social attitudes

Traditionally, across the world, the age of consent for a sexual union was a matter for the family to decide, or a tribal custom. In most cases, this coincided with signs of puberty, menstruation for a woman and pubic hair for a man.[1]

In Ancient Rome, it was very common for girls to marry and have children shortly after the onset of puberty.

The first recorded age-of-consent law dates back 800 years: In 1275, in England, as part of the rape law, a statute, Westminster 1, made it a misdemeanor to "ravish" a "maiden within age," whether with or without her consent. The phrase "within age" was interpreted by jurist Sir Edward Coke as meaning the age of marriage, which at the time was 12 years of age.[2]

In the 12th century Gratian, the influential founder of Canon law in medieval Europe, accepted age of puberty for marriage to be between 12 and 14 but acknowledged consent to be meaningful if the children were older than 7. There were authorities that said that consent could take place earlier. Marriage would then be valid as long as neither of the two parties annulled the marital agreement before reaching puberty, or if they had already consummated the marriage. It should be noted that Judges honored marriages based on mutual consent at ages younger than 7, in spite of what Gratian had said; there are recorded marriages of 2 and 3 year olds.[1]

The American colonies followed the English tradition, and the law was more of a guide. For example, Mary Hathaway (Virginia, 1689) was only 9 when she was married to William Williams. Sir Edward Coke (England, 17th century) made it clear that "the marriage of girls under 12 was normal, and the age at which a girl who was a wife was eligible for a dower from her husband's estate was 9 even though her husband be only four years old."[1]

Reliable data for when people would actually marry is very difficult to find. In England for example, the only reliable data on age at marriage in the early modern period comes from records which involved only those who left property after their death. Not only were the records relatively rare, but not all bothered to record the participants' ages, and it seemed that the more complete the records are, the more likely they are to reveal young marriages. Additionally, 20th and 21st centuries' historians have sometimes shown reluctance to accept data regarding young ages of marriage, and would instead explain the data away as a misreading by a later copier of the records.[1]

[edit] By country

The following is an incomplete list of marriageable ages in various countries. The list is current, and does not treat the topic in history.

[edit] Africa

  • Algeria: 21 for males and 18 for females, lower with judicial permission if necessity or benefit is established.[3]
  • Egypt: 18 for males and 18 for females, the age was raised in 2008 from 16 to 18 for females.[4]
  • Ethiopia: 18 for females, 18 for males.[5]
  • Kenya: 16 under the Marriage Act.[6]
  • Libya: 20, lower with judicial permission on grounds of benefit or necessity and with wali's agreement.[7]
  • Madagascar: 18 for males, 17 for females.[8]
  • Mali: 18 or 15. (proposed by the Malian Family Code)
  • Morocco: 18.[9] (This is not always followed in rural areas and many judges do not uphold this law and let women younger than 18 marry.)
  • Niger: 15[10]
  • Nigeria: 18[5]
  • Senegal: 20 for males, 16 for females[11]
  • Somalia: 18; 16 for females with guardian's consent. Court may grant exemption from minimum age requirements in case of necessity.[12]
  • South Africa:
  • Sudan: Puberty, with requirement for willing consent of both parties.[17]
  • South Sudan: 18 with the consent of both parties, under the South Sudan Child Act 2008. [18]
  • Tanzania: 18 for males and 15 for females, 14 with court permission if specific circumstances make marriage appear desirable. Penal Code provides that persons of "African or Asiatic descent" may marry or permit marriage of a girl under 12 in accordance with their custom or religion if marriage is not intended to be consummated before she is 12.[19]
  • Tunisia: 20 for males and 17 for females, lower with judicial special permission for pressing reasons and on the basis of a clear interest for both spouses.[20]
  • Zimbabwe:The Marriages Act [Chapter 5:11]Under this legislation, a man may marry at the minimum age of 18 while a woman may marry at the minimum age of 16.[21]

[edit] Asia

The sign painted on a building in a village in Hubei, China, informs of the marriageable age in the country (22 for men, 20 for women)
  • Afghanistan: 18 for males and 16 for females, more than half of marriages involve females under 16.[22]
  • Armenia: 18 for males, 17 for females.[23]
  • Azerbaijan: 18 for males, 17 for females. 17 or 16 correspondingly in special cases.[24]
  • Bangladesh: 21 for males and 18 for females, lunar calendar; penal sanctions for contracting under-age marriages, though such unions are not considered invalid.[25]
  • Brunei: No minimum marriage age specified.[26]
  • Cyprus: 18, under 18 with parental consent.[27]
  • People's Republic of China: 22 for males, 20 for females.[28]
  • Georgia: 18 but 16 with parental consent.[29]
  • Hong Kong: 21, 16 with parental consent.[30]
  • India: 21 for males and 18 for females.[31] If any partner(s) engages in marriage at a younger age, (s)he can ask for the marriage to be declared void / annulled. A recent recommendation by the Law Commission aims to equalize the marriage age for males and females to 18,[32] automatically declares marriages under 16 as "null and void", while marriages at the age of 16 or 17 are "voidable".[32]
  • Indonesia: 19 for males and 16 for females, younger ages with parental consent.[33]
  • Iran: 18 for male, 16 for female.[34]
  • Iraq: 18, 15 with judicial permission if fitness, physical capacity and guardian's consent (or unreasonable objection on part of guardian) are established. (May or may not have been revised after Saddam Hussein's fall.)[35]
  • Israel: 18 for males and 17 for females.[36]
  • Japan: 20, 18 for males and 16 for females with parental consent.[37]
  • Jordan: 16 for males and 15 for females, lunar calendar; court permission required for females under 18 to marry men older by 20 years or more.[38]
  • Kazakhstan: 18, in special cases 16 years with parental consent.[39]
  • Korea: 18 with parental consent.
  • Kuwait: No minimum marriage age identified; capacity to marry requires parties to be of age (puberty) and of sound mind, however, no notarisation or registration of marriage permitted where female has not reached 15 years or male 17 years.[40]
  • Kyrgyzstan: 18.[41]
  • Lebanon: 18 for males and 17 for females; scope for judicial discretion on basis of physical maturity and wali's permission from 17 for males and 9 for females; real puberty or 15/9 with judicial permission for Shi'a; 18/17 or 16/15 with judicial permission for Druze.[42]
  • Malaysia: 21, 18 with parental consent. Muslim girls under 16 can marry with the permission of sharia authorities, and some girls as young as 14 have been permitted to marry.[43]
  • Maldives: According to custom, the minimum age for marriage is 15; the Law on the Protection of the Rights of the Child discourages marriage before the age of 16.[44]
  • Nepal: 21 for males and 18 for females without parental permission, and 18 for males and 16 for females with parental permission.[45]
  • Pakistan: 18 for males, 16 for females.[46]
  • Palestinian territories: 16 for males and 15 for females, lunar calendar.
  • Mongolia : 18.[47]
  • Philippines: 18. If any spouse is 18–20 years and the consent of "parental" authority is not met, marriage may be prevented or annulled by any party that demands it.[48] On the other hand, Muslim marriages in the Philippines is based on the Shari'a: 15 yrs for males and as for females, the onset of puberty to age 15, whichever comes first.[49]
  • Russia: 18, 16 in special circumstances; may vary in different regions.
  • Saudi Arabia: None currently, legislation for age 18 is being considered.[50]
  • Singapore: 21, 18 with parental consent, below 18 with special marriage license.
  • Sri Lanka: 18. However, Muslims can be excluded from this regulation because the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act of 1951 states that a girl must be 12 years of age or have a Quazi's permission to marry before contracting into marriage. This is applicable only for Muslims in Sri Lanka.[51]
  • Syria: 18 for males and 17 for females; judicial discretion for males of 15 and females of 13; judge may withhold permission for marriage if court finds incompatibility in age between betrothed parties.[52]
  • Republic of China (Taiwan): 20 as the age of majority,[53] generally. 18 for males, 16 for females with parental consent.[54]
  • Thailand: 17.[55]
  • Turkey: 17, 16 in special circumstances with court approval.[56]
  • Uzbekistan 18 for males, 17 for females. 17 and 16 correspondingly in special conditions.[57]
  • Vietnam: 20 for males, 18 for females.
  • Yemen: In practice, "Yemeni law allows girls of any age to wed, but it forbids sex with them until the indefinite time they’re 'suitable for sexual intercourse'."[58] Following the widely publicised divorce of a 10 year-old girl in 2008, there have been public and parliamentary efforts to raise the age to 17 or 18.[59][60][61]

[edit] Europe

  • Albania: 18 for men, 16 for women.[62]
  • Armenia: 18 for males, 17 for females.[63]
  • Austria: 18, 16 with parental consent but the other partner must be 18 or older.[64]
  • Azerbaijan: 18 for males, 17 for females. 17 or 16 correspondingly in special cases.[24]
  • Belarus: 18.[65]
  • Belgium: 18, 16 with parental and judicial consent, but permission is only granted in "extreme" situations such as pregnancy.[66][67]
  • Bulgaria: 18, 16 with parental consent.
  • Croatia: 18, 16 with parental consent.
  • Cyprus: 18.[68]
  • Czech Republic: 18, 16 with court consent.
  • Denmark: 18, 15 requires an exemption named "Kongebrev" (historical: "letter [from the] king [by a a exemption]"). Today, local authorities may give approval if the couple has their own home. 24 between a Dane and a foreigner.[69]
  • Estonia: 18, 15 with parental or court consent.[70]
  • Finland: 18, under 18 with the consent of the ministry of justice in extraordinary circumstances, in which case parents or other guardian must be heard, but actual parental consent is not required.
  • France: 18.[71]
  • Georgia: 18 but 14 with parental consent.
  • Germany: 18.[72]
  • Greece: 18, 16 with consent from both parents and court permission.
  • Hungary: 18, 16 with parental consent.
  • Iceland: 18, the Ministry of the Interior may permit the marriage of younger persons but parental consent is also required.
  • Ireland: 18, people below 18 can marry with the court's permission.[73]
  • Italy: 18, 16 with court consent.
  • Latvia: 18, 16 with court and/or parental permission.
  • Lithuania: 18, 15 with court permission, minors can only marry below 15 if they are pregnant females with court permission.[74]
  • Netherlands: 18, 16 with parental consent, under 16 with personal permission from the queen.
  • Norway: 18, 16 with consent from parents (guardian) and permission from the County Governor. The County Governor may only give permission when there are 'special reasons for contracting a marriage'.[75][76]
  • Poland: 21 for men, 18 for women, 18 for men and 16 for women with parental approval or judicial approval.[77]
  • Portugal: 18, 16 with parental consent (if not possible, the court can provide the consent).
  • Romania: 18, 16 with permission from the district's administrative board.[78]
  • Russia: 18, 16 in special circumstances; may vary in different regions.[79]
  • Serbia: 18, 16 with court consent.
  • Slovakia: 18, 16 with court consent but there has to be a serious reason such as pregnancy.[80]
  • Slovenia: 18, 16 with parental consent.
  • Spain: 18, 16 with parental consent.
  • Sweden: 18, younger with permission from the county administrative board (LST). The county administrative board may only give permission when there are 'special reasons' but although the custodians of the underage should be heard if possible, the consent of the custodians is not required. Although the law specifies no lower age limit to enter into marriage, the policy of the LST is to not grant any permission to a person under 15 years of age (source: LST, Stockholm).
  • Switzerland: 18 for men, 17 for women.[81]
  • Turkey: 18, 17 with parental consent, 16 in special circumstances with court approval.
  • Ukraine: 18 for males, 17 for females, 16 with parental consent.
  • United Kingdom
  • Vatican City: 18 as the age of majority,[85] in the case of minors, 16 for males and 14 for females with parental or judicial consent per code of canon law.[86]

[edit] North America

  • Canada: * Varies by province, but generally 18 years old, 16 years with parental consent, 14 years with judicial consent.
  • Mexico: 20, 18,[clarification needed] 14 for pregnant females with legal consent.
  • Puerto Rico: 21 (younger parties may obtain license in case of pregnancy or birth of child), 18 with parental consent.[87]
  • United States: 18 (two exceptions: 19 in Nebraska and 21 in Mississippi). Most states, however, allow minors below 18 to marry (generally they have to be at least 16 but sometimes lower) with parental and/or judicial consent, and some states allow female minors below 18 to marry without parental or judicial consent if she is pregnant.

[edit] Oceania

  • Australia: 18, 16 with permission from a court and both parents (only granted in exceptional circumstances).[88]
  • New Zealand: 18, 16 with parental consent.[89]

[edit] South America

  • Argentina: 18, lower with judicial consent only in exceptional cases.[90]
  • Brazil: 18, 16 with parental or guardian consent. The marriage of someone who is under 16 years can also be authorized, but only in cases of pregnancy, or to avoid the imposition of a criminal penalty(statutory rape).
  • Chile: 18, 16 with parental consent.
  • Colombia: 18, 14 with parental consent.
  • Paraguay: 16 for men, 14 for women. Article 39, clause "b", of the Paraguayan Civil Code reads: “The legal incapacity of minors will cease: ...(b) for gentlemen of 16 and for women of 14 years completed, through marriage, with the limitations established in this Code”.
  • Peru: 18
  • Venezuela: 18, 14 for females and 16 for males with parental consent.
  • Ecuador: 18

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Stephen Robertson, University of Sydney, Australia. "Children and Youth in History | Age of Consent Laws". Chnm.gmu.edu. http://chnm.gmu.edu/cyh/teaching-modules/230. Retrieved 2010-06-30. 
  2. ^ Legal Profiles: Algeria
  3. ^ Profiles:Egypt
  4. ^ a b Do African Children Have Rights? (by Stephen Nmeregini Achilihu)
  5. ^ Legal Profiles: Kenya
  6. ^ Legal Profiles: Libya
  7. ^ MG: Droit francophone
  8. ^ Morocco Pushes Women's Rights (originally published in The Washington Times)
  9. ^ Prévention du mariage précoce au Niger et au Bénin
  10. ^ Legal Profiles:Senegal
  11. ^ Legal Profiles: Somalia
  12. ^ Marriage Act, No. 25 of 1961, section 24.
  13. ^ Marriage Act, No. 25 of 1961, section 26.
  14. ^ Civil Union Act, No. 17 of 2006, section 1.
  15. ^ Recognition of Customary Marriages Act, No. 120 of 1998, section 3.
  16. ^ Legal Profiles: Sudan
  17. ^ Campaign against gender-based violence launched
  18. ^ Legal Profiles: Tanzania
  19. ^ Legal Profiles: Tunisia
  20. ^ Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum
  21. ^ IRIN Asia | Asia | Afghanistan | AFGHANISTAN: Child marriage still widespread | Other | Breaking News
  22. ^ "UN Committee on the Rights of the Child: Second Periodic Reports of States Parties Due in 2000, Armenia". UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC). http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,CRC,,ARM,,45377e75b,0.html.  See section 48
  23. ^ a b http://www.demaz.org/cgi-bin/e-cms/vis/vis.pl?s=001&p=0068&n=000024&g= Family Law of Azerbaijan, Asset 10.1, 10.2
  24. ^ Legal Profiles: Bangladesh
  25. ^ Legal Profiles: Brunei
  26. ^ "Celebration of Civil Marriages". Union of Cyprus Municipalities. http://www.ucm.org.cy/Webcontent.aspx?Code=EN.PROMO_MARRIAGES&Language=English. See section 3
  27. ^ www.interpol.com
  28. ^ "Rights of the Child in Georgia". http://www.humanrights.ge/files/crcreport.pdf. See section 2
  29. ^ http://www.legislation.gov.hk/eng/home.htm
  30. ^ http://india.gov.in/howdo/howdoi.php?service=3
  31. ^ a b [1] see Chapter VI, Conclusions and Recommendations
  32. ^ http://www.law.emory.edu/ifl/legal/indonesia.htm
  33. ^ Payvand Iran News, Mehdi Baghernejad, April 18, 2010
  34. ^ law.emory.edu
  35. ^ Ottoman Law of Family Rights 1917 for males and Age of Marriage Law 1950 for females.
  36. ^ http://tokyo.usembassy.gov/e/acs/tacs-7114a.html
  37. ^ Legal Profiles: Jordan last accessed 25 March 2007.
  38. ^ http://www.pavlodar.com/zakon/?dok=00149&uro=08010 Kazakh Family Law, asset 10
  39. ^ http://www.law.emory.edu/ifl/legal/kuwait.htm
  40. ^ Kyrgyzstan Independence Information-[family.jrank.org/pages/1030/Kyrgyzstan-Independence.html]
  41. ^ Profiles: Lebanon last accessed 25 March 2007.
  42. ^ Malaysia Family Law.
  43. ^ Legal Profiles: Maldives last accessed 25 March 2007.
  44. ^ [2]
  45. ^ Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929
  46. ^ http://genderindex.org/country/mongolia
  47. ^ "Family Code of the Philippines". Gov.ph. http://www.chanrobles.com/executiveorderno209.htm. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  48. ^ Code of Muslim Personal Laws of the Philippines.
  49. ^ http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout&cid=1239888191276
  50. ^ Legal Profiles: Sri Lanka last accessed 25 March 2007
  51. ^ Legal Profiles: Syria last accessed 25 March 2007
  52. ^ Civil Code Part I General Principles Article 12.
  53. ^ Civil Code Part IV Family Articles 980 and 981.
  54. ^ http://www.siam-legal.com/Thailand_Service/thailand-marriage-laws.php
  55. ^ Introduction to Turkish Law By Tugrul Ansay, Don Wallace, Jr.
  56. ^ [3] Uzbekistan Family Law, asset 15.
  57. ^ Power, Carla (12 August 2009), Nujood Ali & Shada Nasser win "Women of the Year Fund 2008 Glamour Award", Yemen Times, http://www.yementimes.com/DefaultDET.aspx?i=1207&p=report&a=1, retrieved 16 February 2010 .
  58. ^ Mahmoud Assamiee and Nadia Al-Sakkaf (25 March 2010), Relative breakthrough in Yemen’s early marriage dilemma, Yemen Times, http://www.yementimes.com/defaultdet.aspx?SUB_ID=33771, retrieved 8 April 2010 .
  59. ^ Sadeq Al-Wesabi (25 February 2010), Yemen’s children say no to early marriage, Yemen Times, http://www.yementimes.com/defaultdet.aspx?SUB_ID=33673, retrieved 9 April 2010 .
  60. ^ Mo’ath Monassar (22 March 2010), Awareness campaign stops early marriages in Amran, Yemen Times, http://www.yementimes.com/defaultdet.aspx?SUB_ID=33756, retrieved 9 April 2010 .
  61. ^ http://genderindex.org/country/albania
  62. ^ http://www.right-to-education.org/country-node/294/country-minimum
  63. ^ http://www.bmeia.gv.at/en/embassy/canberra/practical-advice/travelling-to-austria/marriage-in-austria.html
  64. ^ http://www.ageofconsent.com/belarus.htm
  65. ^ http://brussels.angloinfo.com/countries/belgium/marriage.asp
  66. ^ http://www.belgium.be/fr/famille/couple/mariage/conditions/ (French)
  67. ^ http://www.cyprus-wedding.com/Cyprus_marriage_rules.htm
  68. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12366676
  69. ^ http://www.ageofconsent.com/estonia.htm
  70. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/4838090.stm
  71. ^ http://www.ageofconsent.com/germany.htm
  72. ^ http://dublin.usembassy.gov/service/other-citizen-services/other-citizen-services/marriage-in-ireland.html
  73. ^ http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:yvIqWHiISFgJ:www.interpol.int/Public/Children/SexualAbuse/NationalLaws/CsaLithuania.pdf+lithuania+age+of+consent+interpol&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESi0C0o0KxrchPH7-cgnwLw8l9STSGqek6FgmlZbX1FW219q-nhlrRA4pHiMnbOZlQD4Ci-z8_TPuz3JGI5j3QeqE73RMNsoRtKjdtK-qJ9OxiQh8kGTRKil4Aoc80DOVrh4BX0X&sig=AHIEtbRwMRy1vEGSvVjsc2QmIUNUFc_l2A
  74. ^ "LOV 1991-07-04 nr 47: Lov om ekteskap". Lovdata.no. http://www.lovdata.no/all/hl-19910704-047.html#1. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  75. ^ "The Marriage Act" (PDF). http://www.ub.uio.no/ujur/ulovdata/lov-19910704-047-eng.pdf. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  76. ^ http://www.ageofconsent.com/poland.htm
  77. ^ "Codul familiei - Incheierea casatoriei". E-juridic.ro. http://www.e-juridic.ro/index.php?pag=a&id=130&s=Codul%20familiei&aid=1047. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  78. ^ http://www.helplinelaw.com/article/russia/120
  79. ^ http://family.jrank.org/pages/1587/Slovakia-Marriage.html
  80. ^ http://bern.usembassy.gov/marriage_in_switzerland.html
  81. ^ http://www.weddings.co.uk/info/legeng.htm
  82. ^ http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/regscot/getting-married-in-scotland/what-was-and-is-the-minimum-age-for-marriage-in-scotland.html
  83. ^ http://www.weddings.co.uk/info/nirelang.htm.
  84. ^ CIC 83, Can. 97
  85. ^ http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P3Y.HTM
  86. ^ "Marriage Laws of the Fifty States, District of Columbia and Puerto Rico". * Cornell University Law School. http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/Table_Marriage.htm. Retrieved 2009-11-10. 
  87. ^ Commonwealth Marriage Act 1961 s.10-21
  88. ^ The Department of Internal Affairs: Births Deaths and Marriages - How to Get a Marriage Licence
  89. ^ See Articles 166, 167 and 168 - Marriage Section of the Argentine Civil Code

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