Marriage is a social institution that is characterized mainly by establishing a conjugal bond between its members, which will be two individuals, one corresponding to the male gender and the other to the female one.
This union not only enjoys social recognition but it is also found legally recognized through the relevant legal provision.
Although there may be some small variations according to the legislation of each country, generally, marriage, once contracted by a couple, will involve a series of obligations and rights between these and in some cases they will also reach their families of origin.
From the point of view of law as well as from that of society and religion, marriage has as main purpose of forming a familyThat is to say, that couple that is united in marriage is laying the foundations for the fruits of it, that is, children are born, grow and develop under the protection, care and support of a family.
While when we talk about marriage, inevitably the first idea is two people of different sexes coming together, In recent decades and as a consequence of the space and rights that some minorities such as homosexuals have won through their struggle and efforts, some laws allow marriage between two individuals of the same sex, even granting them the same rights and obligations that in a traditional male-female union, such as forming a family through the adoption process.
In the West, marriage, in addition to being civil, can be religious and according to the type of religion and social legal system, the rights and obligations may also vary. Generally, civil marriage is completed with a religious union in the eyes and endorsement of God.
Just as it has evolved accepting marriage between two people belonging to the same sex, marriage, in recent times, has lost a little that reproductive function that it enjoyed through the centuries and centuries. The new family models such as unmarried couples who have children or mothers who become such while being single have contributed to taking that exclusively reproductive purpose out of marriage.
From all this that we comment, it follows that the basic characteristics of marriage are unity, indissolubility and openness to life or procreation.
