Marriage

===China===
{{Main|Chinese marriage}}

The mythological origin of Chinese marriage is a story about [[Nüwa]] and [[Fu Xi]] who invented proper marriage procedures after becoming married. In ancient Chinese society, people of the same surname are supposed to consult with their [[family tree]]s prior to marriage to reduce the potential risk of unintentional incest. Marrying one's maternal relatives was generally not thought of as incest. Families sometimes intermarried from one generation to another. Over time, Chinese people became more geographically mobile. Individuals remained members of their biological families. When a couple died, the husband and the wife were buried separately in the respective clan's graveyard. In a maternal marriage, a male would become a son-in-law who lived in the wife's home.

The [[New Marriage Law]] of 1950 radically changed Chinese marriage traditions, enforcing [[monogamy]], equality of men and women, and choice in marriage; [[arranged marriage]]s were the most common type of marriage in China until then. Starting October 2003, it became legal to marry or divorce without authorization from the couple's work units.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cntoc.html|title=Danwei|access-date=7 October 2014}}</ref>{{clarify|reason=new marriage law or what?|date=October 2013}} Although people with infectious diseases such as AIDS may now marry, marriage is still illegal for the mentally ill.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/1439403/China-relaxes-laws-on-love-and-marriage.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/1439403/China-relaxes-laws-on-love-and-marriage.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live | location=London | work=The Daily Telegraph | first=Richard | last=Spencer | title=China relaxes laws on love and marriage | date=21 August 2003}}{{cbignore}}</ref>