Same-sex union

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Same-sex civil unions
Recognized nationwide in:
Denmark (1989) | Norway (1993)
Israel1 (1994) | Sweden (1995)
Greenland (1996) | Hungary1 (1996)
Iceland (1996) | France (1999)
Germany (2001) | Portugal (2001)
Finland (2002) | Croatia1 (2003)
Austria1 (2003) | Luxembourg (2004)
New Zealand (2005) | United Kingdom (2005)
Andorra (2005) | Czech Republic (2006)
Slovenia (2006) | Switzerland (2007)
Colombia (2007)
Was recognized before legalization of same-sex marriage in:
Netherlands (nationwide) (1998)
Spain (12 of 17 communities) (1998)
South Africa2 (1999)
Belgium (nationwide) (2000)
Canada (QC, NS and MB)3 (2001)
Recognized in some regions in:
United States (6 states+DC) (1997) :

CA, CT, HA, ME, NJ, VE

Argentina (Buenos Aires, Rio Negro) (2003)
Australia (Tasmania) (2004)
Italy (Some municipallies) (2004)
Brazil (Rio Grande do Sul) (2004)
Mexico (Mexico City and Coahuila) (2007)
Recognition debated in:
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Brazil
Chile
Costa Rica
Greece
Ireland
Italy
Liechtenstein
Mexico
Poland
Taiwan
United States
Uruguay
Notes:
1 - In form of unregistered cohabitation.
2 - Explicitly referred to as the "civil unions Act" in South Africa.
3 - Explicitly referred to as "civil unions" in Quebec (2002), and called "domestic partnership" in Nova Scotia (2001). In Manitoba (2002) and marriage extended to same-sex partners nationwide (2005).
See also
Same-sex marriage
Registered partnership
Domestic partnership
Common-law marriage
Marriage, unions and partnerships by country
Homosexuality laws of the world
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Same-sex union means an enduring, marriage-like relationship between two people of the same gender.

Literary, historical, and archaeological evidence of such unions has been found for a number of diverse cultures as early as 2400 B.C. in ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, ancient China, ancient Japan, and among the traditions of North American native cultures.

Currently, same-sex union refers to a legally recognized union, regulated by national law or by the laws of a sub-national jurisdiction, such as a state, province, county, or city. Denmark was the first country to offer legal recognition nationwide, beginning in 1989. The Netherlands was the first to offer full same-sex marriage, in 2001. Some religious bodies also recognize same-sex unions.

The terms used to designate legally recognized same-sex unions are not standardized, and vary widely from country to country. The exact level of rights and benefits also varies, depending on the laws of a particular country.

See the following articles for further discussion of these terms:

Some jurisdictions may recognize equivalent same-sex unions created in other jurisdictions, but again, laws vary widely from one country or state to another. In the United States, the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act bars the federal government from recognizing any same-sex unions, and does not require any state to recognize such unions created by another states.