Visual markers of marital status

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Humans use clothing, hairstyle, accessories, jewelry, tattoos, and other bodily adornments as indicators of social status. One status that is usually of extreme interest is marital status. In many places and times, someone who is married is supposed to be off-limits for flirtation, casual sex, or courtship. If married people merit special privileges, forms of address, or expressions of politeness, it is useful to know this immediately.

Because marital status markers are usually gender-specific, male and female status markers will be discussed separately.

1 Male
2 Female

[edit] Male

These are typically less elaborate than female marital status markers, and in many cultures may be absent.

[edit] Jewelry

In many Western countries, married women and some but not all married men wear a gold wedding ring on the left ring finger. This is not universally true, though, because in parts of Europe, especially in the German-speaking regions (except Switzerland) and in Russia, Norway, and Bulgaria, the wedding ring is worn on the ring finger of the right hand while the left ring finger is traditionally the place for the engagement ring if one is worn (in fact, a ring may be switched from the left hand to the right as part of the wedding ceremony).

In modern times, the material for wedding rings has become less strictly defined, and includes gold, white gold, red gold, platinum, and titanium. Rings made of such inexpensive materials as stainless steel or an ink tattoo are often temporarily substituted for the "official" wedding ring by laborers who work with their hands, since wearing rings made of soft, expensive metals could result in injury to the worker or damage to the ring.

[edit] Beards

Among the Amish and Hutterite communities of Canada and the United States, only married men are entitled to wear beards. Unmarried men must shave.

[edit] Prayer Shawl

In most Ashkenazi Jewish communities, men wear a Tallis only after marriage. Back in Talmudic Times when all males wore a Tallis and in communities where a Tallis is worn by all males even today, unmarried men wear their Tallis off of their head and married men cover their head with their tallis.

[edit] Female

[edit] Jewelry

Engagement ring In many Western cultures, a proposal of marriage is traditionally accompanied by the gift of a ring. Often, the male proposes and offers the ring; if the female accepts his proposal of marriage, she will take and wear the ring. The ring shows that she is no longer available for flirtation. In the British-American tradition of the last hundred years or so, diamond rings are the most common kind used as engagement rings.

Wedding ring Many Western wedding ceremonies also include the exchange of a wedding ring or rings. In many Christian ceremonies, the groom places a ring on the bride's hand and says, "With this ring I wed thee." In other ceremonies, both bride and groom place rings and speak the words. After the ceremony, the bride and the groom wear their rings as long as the marriage lasts. If it ends in divorce, they usually remove the rings. Widows may or may not choose to remove the wedding ring.

Mangalsutra In many Hindu wedding ceremonies, the groom gives the bride a gold pendant or necklace incorporating black beads or black string. This is called a mangal-sutra. It not only proclaims a woman's married state, it is believed by many to exercise a protective influence over the husband. That is, a wife's love and concern, as shown by her donning of the mangal-sutra, is magically helpful to the husband. This resembles the karwa-chauth celebration, in which a wife fasts and prays for her husband's welfare.

Bangles Married Hindu women also wear bangles on both hands, and never remove them until they are divorced or widowed. Often made of glass, they are broken when the marriage has ended. Bollywood uses this to great dramatic effect in Hindi films, with a woman being informed of the demise of her husband by the messenger (often her son) smashing her glass bangles and wiping the sindoor off her forehead. Bangles made of gold and silver, as well as other materials are also worn by the middle class.