Mesopotamian Marriage Law
Encyclopedia
Marriage Law in Ancient Mesopotamia very much resembled property law
. As discerned from Hammurabi's Code, wives were bought and sold in a manner very much resembling slavery
. The legal institution of marriage
, its rules and ramifications, show that in the Mesopotamian world, marriage and slavery were legal cousins.
and Akkad
and Assyria
, we have an understanding of their material culture in the form of archaeologial
evidence. We have glimpses of their culture, from Gilgamesh
and the Eannatum
, but we can only guess of their demeanor. Were these laws of marriage built out of necessity or whim, a personal desire of Hammurabi’s or to correct a perceived ill of society? The short answer, of course, is that we’ll never know. One can see a basic egalitarian spirit within the code. It treats male and female slaves equally. It affords protection to children borne of a slave if those children are ever treated as part of the family. But the protection afforded to wives, though well-mannered, is like the protection afforded to the honest merchant, the oxen and the ill-gotten slave. A woman is required to kill herself if a charge of adultery
is brought against her, not for her impurity, but because she has brought shame upon the family. This is the case with no guilt. If she has actually committed adultery, then she is to be thrown into the river.
and getting a refund on the bride-price. Finding a new wife, marrying a priestess, they’ve all got their rules. The position of a woman in Mesopotamian society can best be seen with two examples. The one is the responsibility of a father to leave his son with a wife. The wording is to, “enable him to acquire a wife.” The wife is treated thus, as a piece of property, which is not to say poorly, as the Mesopotamians treated their property with respect. The word translated as husband is, literally, “Owner of a wife”.
Property law
Property law is the area of law that governs the various forms of ownership in real property and in personal property, within the common law legal system. In the civil law system, there is a division between movable and immovable property...
. As discerned from Hammurabi's Code, wives were bought and sold in a manner very much resembling slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
. The legal institution of marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
, its rules and ramifications, show that in the Mesopotamian world, marriage and slavery were legal cousins.
Cultural Institutions
The difficulty of understanding social and cultural values based on a legal code must not be ignored. For SumerSumer
Sumer was a civilization and historical region in southern Mesopotamia, modern Iraq during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age....
and Akkad
Akkad
The Akkadian Empire was an empire centered in the city of Akkad and its surrounding region in Mesopotamia....
and Assyria
Assyria
Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
, we have an understanding of their material culture in the form of archaeologial
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
evidence. We have glimpses of their culture, from Gilgamesh
Gilgamesh
Gilgamesh was the fifth king of Uruk, modern day Iraq , placing his reign ca. 2500 BC. According to the Sumerian king list he reigned for 126 years. In the Tummal Inscription, Gilgamesh, and his son Urlugal, rebuilt the sanctuary of the goddess Ninlil, in Tummal, a sacred quarter in her city of...
and the Eannatum
Eannatum
Eannatum was a Sumerian king of Lagash who established one of the first verifiable empires in history. One inscription of his, found on a boulder, states that Eannatum was his Sumerian name, while his "Tidnu" name was Lumma.-Conquest of Sumer:...
, but we can only guess of their demeanor. Were these laws of marriage built out of necessity or whim, a personal desire of Hammurabi’s or to correct a perceived ill of society? The short answer, of course, is that we’ll never know. One can see a basic egalitarian spirit within the code. It treats male and female slaves equally. It affords protection to children borne of a slave if those children are ever treated as part of the family. But the protection afforded to wives, though well-mannered, is like the protection afforded to the honest merchant, the oxen and the ill-gotten slave. A woman is required to kill herself if a charge of adultery
Adultery
Adultery is sexual infidelity to one's spouse, and is a form of extramarital sex. It originally referred only to sex between a woman who was married and a person other than her spouse. Even in cases of separation from one's spouse, an extramarital affair is still considered adultery.Adultery is...
is brought against her, not for her impurity, but because she has brought shame upon the family. This is the case with no guilt. If she has actually committed adultery, then she is to be thrown into the river.
Divorce
Divorce is acceptable, even amiable, if it’s a matter of returning the dowryDowry
A dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
and getting a refund on the bride-price. Finding a new wife, marrying a priestess, they’ve all got their rules. The position of a woman in Mesopotamian society can best be seen with two examples. The one is the responsibility of a father to leave his son with a wife. The wording is to, “enable him to acquire a wife.” The wife is treated thus, as a piece of property, which is not to say poorly, as the Mesopotamians treated their property with respect. The word translated as husband is, literally, “Owner of a wife”.