Transnational marriage

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A transnational marriage or international marriage is a marriage between two people from different countries or nationalities. It can either be a marriage between two people of the same ethnicity from two countries living in the same country, or marriage between two people from two countries of different ethnicities.

Contents

History

Transnational marriage has been attested since ancient times, often in instances where royal families sought to form alliances with one another. For example, Hermodike I (c. 800 BC) [1] and Hermodike II (c. 600BC), [2] Greek princesses from the house of Agamemnon, married kings from what is now central Turkey. These unions resulted in the introduction of ground-breaking technology to the Ancient Greeks. Hermodike the First's marriage introduced Greece to the Phoenecian written script while Hermodike the Second's marriage introduced Greece to the use of coinage (to use a token currency, where the value is guaranteed by the state). [3] Both inventions were rapidly adopted by surrounding nations through trade and cooperation and have been of fundamental benefit to the progress of civilization.

More recently, transnational marriages have resulted from increasing globalization. Globalization has resulted in increased labour migration, increased communication, and more situations where foreigners come into contact with one another. Transnational marriage is increasingly common in areas where class and tribal separations are becoming less strict.

There are many barriers and restrictions to cross-cultural, inter-tribal, or interracial marriages, however, particularly transnational marriages. People tend to marry those similar to them, with cultures accepting and some laws permitting marriage between first cousins. Surprisingly, international arranged marriages between cousins (and other relatives) occur more often in countries with migration and family reunification policies. This form of transnational marriage is between nations but within cultures, allowing ethnic communities to remain viable even when far from their homelands.

In the United States, data on intermarriage rates of immigrants has been collected since the early 20th century. Sociologist Julius Drachsler collected data on 100,00 marriages in New York City between 1908 and 1912.[ citation needed ] He found that less than one in ten foreign-born grooms married a bride born in America to American-born parents. In 2007, about one in four married immigrants had a spouse born in the United States. There are higher intermarriage rates for immigrants from more developed nations, suggesting greater capacity for cultural assimilation. [4]

Historical and religious attitudes

According to the biblical account, Abraham's God instructed the Israelites to avoid marrying individuals from the seven nations inhabiting the land of Canaan. [5] This was due to the fear that such unions would lead them to worship the gods of those nations.

Intermarriage with other nations was permissible. There are several instances of transnational marriages in the Bible, such as Joseph being given an Egyptian wife by Pharaoh, [6] Rahab, the prostitute from Jericho, marrying Salmon - becoming an ancestor of Christ, [7] Ruth the Moabite married Boaz - also becoming an ancestor of Christ, [8] and King Solomon marrying Pharaoh's daughter. [9] King Solomon was punished by God for facilitating his wives' worship of their gods in Israel and then worshipping alongside them. [10] Samson married a Philistine. [11] The book of Ezra tells the Jewish exiles to separate from the foreign wives they had married in Babylon. [12] Moses' sister, Miriam, criticizes him for marrying a Cushite but is then cursed by God because of her criticism. [13]

The Laws of Manu, [14] a religious document for the Indo-Aryan Brahmins invading India, speaks of how to keep oneself clean but also intermarry with the indigenous peoples in order to create a caste system. A Nepali anthropologist writes on how a Brahmin man might marry four wives of different castes, and keep all the eating and living quarters of his different caste wives and children separate. His children and grandchildren, born to women of lower castes, will have even lower status and not be taught the laws. The only social mobility is downward. [15]

A distinct aspect of intermarriage or cross-cultural unions pertains to those who choose to marry their cousins. They engage in such marriages to maintain social and economic cohesion within their family. Recently, this practice has become technically transnational due to differences in citizenship. An example of transnational marriage that kept the family together was among European royalty. Queen Victoria had grandchildren in many European states, connecting royal dynasties, and she was referred to as the "grandmother of Europe." [16] More recent examples derive from mass migration from the less developed regions of the world to the more developed regions, helped by the policies of family reunification. A fairly common practice among South Asian immigrants to the UK or USA is to have arranged marriages to someone back "home" in order to keep the culture and traditions within their family. [17] [18]

Modern attitudes

Transnational marriage has become a controversial topic in some areas due to the increase in its prevalence. [19] Host countries have implemented family reunification policies, which have led to concerns regarding cultural assimilation. [20] Marrying someone from their home country enables immigrants to preserve their cultural heritage and identity, which some believe is a hindrance to assimilation. [21] Moreover, there are concerns about the authenticity of some transnational marriages. Some are suspicious that non-citizen spouses may use the marriage as a means to obtain legal status in the host country. Another significant issue is the separation of families due to legal issues such as deportation or detention of one spouse. There are various legal challenges associated with transnational marriages, including the right to remain in the same country.

International marriages and Internet

The Internet has contributed over the last decades to the increase of transnational marriages and registered partnerships of international couples.

Internet based services, be they marriage agencies or mail-order bride sites specialized in international weddings and marriages can be regrouped in two main categories:

a) Country-specific sites and applications, where persons from other countries are looking for partners from a particular country covered by the service. For instance, there are several sites which allows people to order brides from Eastern Europe (Countries like Ukraine, Moldova), Russia, South East Asia and Latin America. These sites are popular among grooms having a profound affinity with a particular country, with its culture and its language or happened to like how people, especially women, from these countries look.

b) Non-country-specific sites where people have a chance to meet persons from various countries.

Third culture kids

Gold croeseid of Croesus c.550 BC, depicting the Lydian lion and Greek bull - partly in recognition of transnational parentage. Kroisos BMC 31.jpg
Gold croeseid of Croesus c.550 BC, depicting the Lydian lion and Greek bull - partly in recognition of transnational parentage.

Immigrants may also take their families with them, meaning that their children grow up in different lands, learning a different culture and language often feeling more at home in the host country than their "home" country. These children, called third culture kids, often tend to feel affinity to those who have also lived in more than one country and culture, and tend to marry people of diverse backgrounds, regardless of nationality and citizenship. [22]

Others decide on a transnational marriage without having lived long in their new country. Traveling has resulted in transnational relationships, marriages, and even families, although it is not known how common such results are.

Debate

There is some debate about whether national laws should discourage or encourage transnational marriage. Currently, it can be legally difficult to have a transnational marriage. There are many barriers, for example in Indonesia it can be very difficult for the married couple if the husband is not Indonesian. [23] [24] As a result of increasing transnational marriage, policymakers in various countries are starting to consider whether they should discourage or encourage transnational marriage.

The grounds given for discouraging transnational marriage are that:

The grounds given for encouraging transnational marriage are that:

By country

Pakistan, Afghanistan

Frequent among Pashtun and Baloch tribes near the Durand Line where marriage between transborder corresponding cultures is frequent. The straddling of people between the border has been a contentious ongoing issue between the two countries.

Japan

Approximately 2.25% of Japan's residents are foreigners, [27] many of whom have married with Japanese nationals as a result of spending time living and working in Japan.

According to the Ministry justice in 2010 alone, the number of foreign spouses married to Japanese men were 2,096 Russians, 404 Ukrainians, 56 Belarusians, and 22 Uzbeks. An estimated 3,000 to 5,000 Russian speaking spouses are married to Japanese men. [28]

China

In China, a number of Ukrainian and Russian women are also trafficked as mail order brides. [29]

Switzerland

When it comes to marriage, foreigners in the country do not face too many legal restrictions. Both residents and non-residents in Switzerland can get married with relative ease. [30]

United States

In the United States federal law, International Marriage Broker Regulation Act regulates international marriage, primarily to restrict misuse of the institution of marriage to immigrate to the country.

Singapore

It's common to see Chinese marrying Indians, resulting in a new ethnic culture called Chindians. however, the children of said union reported to face bullying and depression as they don't know to which culture they should lean into.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marriage</span> Culturally recognised union between people

Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between them and their in-laws. It is nearly a cultural universal, but the definition of marriage varies between cultures and religions, and over time. Typically, it is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually sexual, are acknowledged or sanctioned. In some cultures, marriage is recommended or considered to be compulsory before pursuing sexual activity. A marriage ceremony is called a wedding, while a private marriage is sometimes called an elopement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wife</span> Female spouse; woman who is married

A wife is a woman in a marital relationship. A woman who has separated from her partner continues to be a wife until their marriage is legally dissolved with a divorce judgment. On the death of her partner, a wife is referred to as a widow. The rights and obligations of a wife to her partner and her status in the community and law vary between cultures and have varied over time.

A mail-order bride is a woman who lists herself in catalogs and is selected by a man for marriage. In the twentieth century, the trend primarily involved women living in developing countries seeking men from more developed nations. Men who list themselves in such publications are referred to as "mail-order husbands", although this is much less common. As of 2002, there were an estimated 100,000–150,000 mail order brides worldwide.

Interfaith marriage, sometimes called interreligious marriage or "mixed marriage", is marriage between spouses professing different religions. Although interfaith marriages are often established as civil marriages, in some instances they may be established as a religious marriage. This depends on religious doctrine of each of the two parties' religions; some prohibit interfaith marriage, and among others there are varying degrees of permissibility.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sham marriage</span> False marriage of convenience for gain

A sham marriage or fake marriage is a marriage of convenience entered into without intending to create a real marital relationship. This is usually for the purpose of gaining an advantage from the marriage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">War bride</span> Women who marry foreign military personnel during a war or occupation

War brides are women who married military personnel from other countries in times of war or during military occupations, a practice that occurred in great frequency during World War I and World War II. Allied servicemen married many women in other countries where they were stationed at the end of the war, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan, France, Italy, Greece, Germany, Poland, Luxembourg, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Korea, and the Soviet Union. Similar marriages also occurred in Korea and Vietnam with the later wars in those countries involving U.S. troops and other anti-communist soldiers.

Conflict of marriage laws is the conflict of laws with respect to marriage in different jurisdictions. When marriage-related issues arise between couples with diverse backgrounds, questions as to which legal systems and norms should be applied to the relationship naturally follow with various potentially applicable systems frequently conflicting with one another.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interracial marriage</span> Marriage between individuals of different racial/ethnic backgrounds

Interracial marriage is a marriage involving spouses who belong to different "races" or racialized ethnicities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Husband</span> Male spouse; man who is married

A husband is a man involved in a marital relationship, commonly referred to as a spouse. The specific rights, responsibilities, and societal status attributed to a husband can vary significantly across different cultures and historical periods, reflecting a global perspective on this role.

Social integration is the process during which newcomers or minorities are incorporated into the social structure of the host society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marriage in Korea</span>

Marriage in Korea mirrors many of the practices and expectations of marriages in other societies. Modern practices are a combination of millennia-old traditions and global influences.

The War Brides Act was enacted on December 28, 1945, to allow alien spouses, natural children and adopted children of members of the United States Armed Forces, "if admissible", to enter the U.S. as non-quota immigrants after World War II. More than 100,000 entered the United States under this Act and its extensions and amendments until it expired in December 1948. The War Brides Act was a part of new approach to immigration law that focused on family reunification over racial exclusion. There were still racial limits that existed particularly against Asian populations, and Chinese spouses were the only Asian nationality that qualified to be brought to the United States under the act. The act was well supported and easily passed because family members of servicemen were the recipients, but concerns over marital fraud caused some tension.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newar caste system</span> Social structure in Nepal and North India

Newar caste system is the system by which Newārs, the historical inhabitants of Kathmandu Valley, are divided into groups on the basis of Vedic varna model and divided according to their hereditary occupations. First introduced at the time of the Licchavis, the Newar caste system assumed its present shape during the medieval Malla period. The Newar caste structure resembles more closely to North India and Madheshis than that of the Khas 'Parbatiyas' in that all four Varna and untouchables are represented. The social structure of Newars is unique as it is the last remaining example of a pre-Islamic North Indic civilisation in which Buddhist elements enjoy equal status with the Brahmanic elements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interfaith marriage in Judaism</span> Jewish religious views on interfaith marriages

Interfaith marriage in Judaism was historically looked upon with very strong disfavor by Jewish leaders, and it remains a controversial issue among them today. Many Jews followed the Talmud and the resulting Jewish law, Halakha until the advent of new Jewish movements following the Jewish Enlightenment resulted in the Haskala; in Halakha, marriage between a Jew and a gentile is both prohibited and also void under Jewish law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interracial marriage in the United States</span>

Interracial marriage has been legal throughout the United States since at least the 1967 U.S. Supreme Court decision Loving v. Virginia (1967) that held that anti-miscegenation laws were unconstitutional via the 14th Amendment adopted in 1868. Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote in the court opinion that "the freedom to marry, or not marry, a person of another race resides with the individual, and cannot be infringed by the State." Interracial marriages have been formally protected by federal statute through the Respect for Marriage Act since 2022.

Vietnamese migrant brides in Taiwan represent marriages between Taiwanese men and Vietnamese brides who are mostly from poor, rural areas of South Vietnam, such as those along the Mekong Delta. As of 2006, out of Taiwan’s immigrant population of approximately 428,240 people, 18% were females who had relocated to the country through marriage. Out of this population, about 85% originated from the Southeast Asian countries of Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and Philippines, with the majority hailing from Vietnam. It is estimated that between the years of 1995 and 2003, the number of Vietnamese women married to Taiwanese men increased from 1,476 to more than 60,000 individuals, making the Vietnamese the largest non-Chinese immigrant group living in the island. This event has been seen locally and abroad as something that can potentially evolve into a concerning societal and humanitarian issue. This issue is not just localised in Taiwan but also in Southern China provinces as well as Hong Kong and Macau. In every case, these practices are illegal and are classified under human trafficking.

Arranged marriage is a type of marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures, a professional matchmaker may be used to find a spouse for a young person.

The Pahadi people are an Indo-Aryan group living in the hilly region (Pahad) of Nepal. Most Paharis, however, identify as members of constituent subgroups and castes within the larger Pahari community such as Brahmin, Kshatriya and Dalits.

<i>Tagadhari</i> Hindu castes wearing sacred thread

Tagadhari are members of a Nepalese Hindu group that is perceived as historically having a high socio-religious status in society. Tagadhari are identified by a sacred thread (Janai) around the torso, which is used for ritualistic purposes in Hinduism. In Sanskrit the sacred thread is called yajñopavītam and in Nepali Janai. The cord is received after the Upanayana ceremony. Tagadharis were historically favoured by the government of Nepal and various religious and caste-based legal provisions were enacted on their behalf. The legal code of 1854, Muluki Ain, which was introduced by Chhetri Maharaja and Prime Minister of Nepal Narsingh Jang Bahadur Kunwar Ranaji, made it impossible to legally enslave Tagadharis and decreed fewer punishments for them in comparison to Matawali and Dalits.

Transnational marriages in the Sino-Vietnamese border areas of China have rapidly increased since the re-opening of the border in the 1990s. In the Sino-Vietnamese border areas, the building of intimation relationship is usually between a Chinese man and a Vietnamese woman. Historically, transnational marriages were common due to unclear state and ethnic boundaries in border areas. In the modern era, the formation of transnational marriages here is multifold. Thereinto, imbalanced economic development in border areas of China and Vietnam is one of the most significant incentives.

References

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  5. (Exodus 34:16, Deuteronomy 7:3-4)
  6. Genesis 41:45
  7. Matthew 1:5
  8. Ruth 4:13; Matthew 1:5
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  10. 1 Kings 11:7-10
  11. Judges 14:7-20
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  13. Numbers 12:1-10
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19. By Choi Soung-ah, The Korea Herald(2004-04-12) http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=101&oid=044&aid=0000043188 20. The Korea Herald(2006-08-04) http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=108&oid=044&aid=0000059749

Further reading