Levirate marriage is a type of marriage in which a woman marries one of her husband's brothers after her husband's death, if there were no children, in order to continue the line of the dead husband. The term is a derivative of the Latin word levir, meaning "husband's brother". In the Jewish tradition, a Levite (לֵוִי Attached, Standard Hebrew , Tiberian Hebrew ) is a member of the Hebrew tribe of Levi. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with marriage. ... For other uses, see Latins and Latin (disambiguation). ...

Levirate marriage has been practiced by societies with a strong clan structure in which exogamous marriage, i.e. that outside the clan, was forbidden. It is or was known in societies including the Punjabis, Jats, Israelites, Huns (Chinese "Xiongnu", "Hsiong-nu", etc.), Mongols, and Tibetans. For other uses, see Clan (disambiguation). ... Exogamy is the custom of marrying outside a specified group of people to which one belongs. ... The Punjabi people (Punjabi: ਪੰਜਾਬੀ, پنجابی, also Panjabi people) are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group from South Asia. ... About 8 million Jats live in the Indian state of Haryana. ... “The Twelve Tribes” redirects here. ... For other uses, see Hun (disambiguation). ... A Xiongnu belt buckle. ... A Xiongnu belt buckle. ... Honorary guard of Mongolia. ... The Tibetan people are a people indigenous to Tibet and surrounding areas stretching from Central Asia in the West to Myanmar and China in the East. ...

In the Hebrew Bible and Judaism

Main article: Yibbum

In Judaism, levirate marriage, known as yibbum, is a marital union mandated by the Torah in Deuteronomy 25:5-10, obliging a brother to marry the widow of his childless deceased brother. There is a provision known as chalitza by which one or both of the parties may choose to become free of this duty. According to some opinions in Jewish law, yibbum is strongly discouraged, and chalitza is preferred, although Scripture itself prescribes a curse on anyone who disobeys the practice Deuteronomy 25:9-10. Examples of Levirate marriage include the marriages of Tamar and Onan the son of Judah Genesis 38:6-10, (who was also cursed to death for attempting to avoid conception during the process). Yibbum (pronounced yee-boom) or Levirate marriage, in Judaism, is commonly translated as levirate marriage, one of the most complex types of marital unions mandated by Torah law, and which is not presently practiced in its full application. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Template:Jews and Jewdaism Template:The Holy Book Named TorRah The Torah () is the most valuable Holy Doctrine within Judaism,(and for muslims) revered as the first relenting Word of Ulllah, traditionally thought to have been revealed to Blessed Moosah, An Apostle of Ulllah. ... Halizah or Chalitzah (Hebrew: חליצה) - Under the system of levirate marriage known as Yibbum described in the Hebrew Bible, was the ceremony by which a widow and her husbands brother could avoid the duty to marry after the husbands death. ... Halakha (הלכה in Hebrew or Halakhah, Halacha, Halachah) is the collective corpus of Jewish law, custom and tradition regulating all aspects of behavior. ...

Central Asia and Huns

Levirate marriages were widespread among Central Asian nomads. Chinese historian Sima Qian (145-87 BCE) described the practices of the Huns in his magnum opus, Records of the Grand Historian. He attested that after a man's death, one of his relatives, usually a brother, marries his widow. Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia is a vast landlocked region of Asia. ... Communities of nomadic people move from place to place, rather than settling down in one location. ... Sima Qian Si Ma Qian (司馬遷) (c. ... BCE is a TLA that may stand for: Before the Common Era, date notation equivalent to BC (e. ... A Xiongnu belt buckle. ... Magnum opus (sometimes Opus magnum, plural magna opera), from the Latin meaning great work,[1] refers to the best, most popular, or most renowned achievement of an author, artist, or composer, and most commonly one who has contributed a very large amount of material. ... The Records of the Grand Historian or the Records of the Grand Historian of China (Chinese: 史記; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Shih-chi; literally Historical Records), written from 109 BCE to 91 BCE, was the magnum opus of Sima Qian, in which he recounted Chinese history from the time of the mythical...

The levirate custom survived in the society of Northeastern Caucasus Huns until the 7th century CE. Armenian historian Movses Kalankatuatsi states that the Savirs, one of Hunnish tribes in the area, were usually monogamous, but sometimes a married man would take his brother's widow as a polygynous wife. Ludmila Gmyrya, a Dagestani historian, asserts that the levirate survived there into "ethnographic modernity" (from the context, probably 1950s). BCE redirects here. ... sabir is one of the most high flying wrestler he has won all the titles sabir favourite matches are ladders tables and chairs and cages. ... In monogamy (Greek: monos = single/only and gamos = marriage) a person has only one spouse at a time (as opposed to polygamy). ... The term polygyny (Greek: poly many, gynaika woman) is used in related ways in social anthropology and sociobiology. ... The Republic of Dagestan IPA: (Russian: ; Avar: , ), older spelling Daghestan, is a federal subject of the Russian Federation (a republic). ... Ethnography (from the Greek ethnos = nation and graphe = writing) refers to the qualitative description of human social phenomena, based on months or years of fieldwork. ... The 1950s decade refers to the years 1950 to 1959 inclusive. ...

Kalankatuatsi describes the form of levirate marriage practised by the Huns. As women had a high social status, the widow had a choice whether to remarry or not. Her new husband might be a brother or a son (by another woman) of her first husband, so she could end up marrying her brother-in-law or stepson; the difference in age did not matter. ^[1] Social status is the honor or prestige attached to ones position in society (ones social position). ...

Scythia

Soviet historian Khazanov gives economic reasons for the longevity of the levirate over two millennia of nomadic history: inheritance of a wife as a part of the deceased’s property and the necessity to support and educate children to continue the line of the deceased.

The levirate custom was revived under shaky economic conditions in the deceased’s family. Khazanov, citing [Abramzon, 1968, p. 289 - 290], mentions that during World War II the levirate was resurrected in Central Asia. In these circumstances, adult sons and brothers of the deceased man held themselves responsible to provide for his dependents. One of them would marry the widow and adopt her children, if there were any. ^[2] Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

Africa

Main article: widow inheritance

This type of marriage has also been practiced by many central and southern African peoples and is, to a certain degree, still in practice. In countries such as South Africa, the obligation for a woman to enter into a levirate marriage is on the decline due to increasing awareness of women's rights. Widow inheritance, also known as bride inheritance, is a type of marriage in which a widow marries a kinsman of her late husband, often his brother. ... The term women’s rights typically refers to freedoms inherently possessed by women and girls of all ages, which may be institutionalized or ignored and/or illegitimately suppressed by law or custom in a particular society. ...

In literature

The marriage of Queen Gertrude to her late husband's brother is the major plot point in Shakespeare's play Hamlet. Shakespeare redirects here. ... For other uses, see Hamlet (disambiguation). ...

References

See also

• Sororate marriage, the practice of marrying one's wife's sister
• Fraternal polyandry, a marriage of two or more brothers and one woman
• Widow inheritance, a modern form of levirate marriage
• Genealogy of Jesus, in which Levirate marriage is offered to explain discrepancies