Berdel

Berdel marriage is a type of marriage wherein a bride or bridegroom is exchanged with a bride or bridegroom of another family. It is common in a few Kurdish communities as well as some subsaharan African cultures. The relatives giving their bridegroom or bride away are typically well-acquainted or friends with the other family. The popularity of berdel marriage is sometimes attributed to the fact that it costs less as there is no dowry, bridewealth or similar exchange of monetary transaction. Another cause for its popularity is that it cements the friendship that already existed between the exchanging families.[1]

Since there are four people getting married, such a marriage is often referred to as a parallel marriage or four-way marriage. In the event where a family officiant offers a woman to the other family, it is sometimes referred to as sister swapping, daughter swapping or niece swapping. The male counterparts to the same situation is referred to as brother swapping, son swapping, or nephew swapping. [2]

In Turkey, 5% of marriage are berdel marriages.[3] In Turkey, such marriages are called degis tokus, while in Arab countries such marriages are called sigar.[4][5]

References
  1. Ertem, Meliksah, and Tahire Kocturk. "Opinions on early-age marriage and marriage customs among Kurdish-speaking women in southeast Turkey." BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health 34.3 (2008): 147-152.
  2. Anatolia, Acta Medica. "Being An Adolescent Mother." Acta Med Anatol 2.1 (2014): 14-18.
  3. Lloyd-Jones, Amelia. "Turkey: A Newly Industrialized Country."
  4. Ozkan, Ali Rafet. "Marriage among the Gypsies of Turkey." The Social Science Journal 43.3 (2006): 461-470.
  5. Pope, Nicole. "Harmful Practices." Honor Killings in the Twenty-First Century. Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2012. 59-70.
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