Why is a family union called marriage? Why is the union of people called marriage? Why is marriage called marriage? Origin of the word "marriage"

⁰

Words that denote events, the most long-awaited for some, appeared in our speech so long ago that we cannot even imagine how they arose and what meaning was originally contained in them.

But if you parse the words into syllables, find out the history of each part of the word, then it becomes clear why a wedding is called a wedding, a marriage is a marriage, etc.

We have already written about what words the word was formed from "bride": unknown, unknown, who knows who, who knows where... A young man brings into his family a girl whom no one knows - unknown. Leads from nowhere.

With the word "groom" also understandable. Brings a woman, that means the GROOM.

And finally, “god knows who” and “bringing wives” perform a ritual, meaning that they will be together - they get married, become spouses from “god knows who” and “Groom” - they have a wedding.

There are several versions of the origin of the word "wedding". According to the first version, “wedding” comes from the name of the ancient Roman goddess Svada. The Roman goddess Sada was the patroness of fun and celebrations. Swada - fun - vyaselle - wedding.

According to another version, the word “wedding” comes from the verb “to bring together,” “to connect.”

If you believe the third version, then “wedding” comes from the word “saint”. After all, the Slavs considered marriage a sacred union, that is, holy.

Another version says that the word “wedding” is based on the word “matchmaker”. A matchmaker is a witness to a conspiracy between the families of the bride and groom.

A wedding is a ritual that results in marriage.

Word "marriage", which denotes the union of two people, has nothing to do with the word “marriage” - a flaw, a flaw. The origins of these words are different.

The word “marriage,” as a family union, comes from the verb “to take.” And the suffix -k turns the verb “to take” into a noun. Take + -k = marriage. Get married. And getting married, therefore, means getting married. In Ukrainian, for example, the word “got married” would be “gotcha.”

And the word “take” from our ancestors meant “kidnap”, “steal.” But in the old days this is exactly what they did with brides: by the braid, in a sack and on a horse. This is how they took brides, that is, they entered into marriage.

Once upon a time, the word “marriage” meant both a wedding and a feast. But today we call marriage a conjugal union - matrimony.

Dahl's dictionary explains that the word "matrimony" comes from the word “to mate.” And a spouse is a conjugate, coupled by marriage. The dictionary also explains that the word “marriage” comes from “harness”, “pair”, “yoke”.

Yoke... Not the best definition for marriage. However, the respected Mr. Dahl put precisely this word next to the word “marriage.”

By the way, another “ancestor” of the word “marriage” is the word “spouse”. A partner is a couple harnessed together.

And this is what happens: they brought them together, wooed them (wedding) - they got together (marriage) - and went in one team (marriage).

The second version is much less scientific and difficult to verify, but much more interesting than the first.

According to the tribal traditions of the Slavs, Vesta is a girl trained in all the wisdom of marriage, i.e. knowledgeable/knowledgeable, in the future a caring mother, a good housewife, a faithful, wise and loving wife. Only after the girl acquired such knowledge did she have a chance to become a wife. Brides were not taken in marriage, and if they were taken, then such a thing was called marriage. It is no secret that integrity, atmosphere and happiness in the family almost entirely depend on the woman. Vesta cannot have bad husband because she is wise. Most likely, the ancient Slavs did not even know what divorce was...

MARRIAGE - among the ancient Slavs this rite was called a sacred marital union... Wedding stands for SVA - heaven, BO - gods, DE - act... But in general - the Heavenly Act of the Gods... Marriage was invented by Christians... The Slavs interpret it in such a way that one of those entering into this union - with marriage - before the wedding he had “contact” with others...

"Marriage" from Ar. “KARB” – “twinning”, when individuals of different sexes become relatives (akriba) through a common fetus. Slavic “marriage” - from “to take”, i.e. take a woman of a different kind for yourself. And at the same time, they say: “marriage will not be called a good thing.., why.., MARRIAGE” is industrial from the Arabic “HARAB” - “to destroy, spoil”... And the German “marriage” means “broken thing”... all these troubles with a wedding, veil, rings, etc. came from Judea, later, after the emergence of Christianity, this custom came to Russia. Before, everything was much simpler with us: whichever girl you catch in the forest is yours. So, in Hebrew “blessing” is bracha. So much for marriage. There is another opinion: “to take”, as well as “abuse” (initially - a campaign for prey, and one of the catchy “images” of prey in ancient times were girls, potential wives) is more natural to relate to the word under discussion. By the way, the word “branka” once meant “captive.” At the same time, I do not rule out that the term “marriage” is also associated with the word “burden”, and if so, then there is an analogy with Hebrew: “נישואים” (“nisuim”, Aram. form “nisuiN”) - “marriage ”, and the root here is the same as in the word “לשאת” (“laset”) - “to carry” (“nose”, “נושא” - “I carry, you carry, carries”). Accordingly, married - “נשוי”, “nasui” (female phrase “נשוא”, “nesuA”), i.e., as if “burdened”... well, since the burden is also burdened, it means to bear both spouses owe it, with all the ensuing consequences...

Many words that have served us as protection and certain taboos since ancient times are distorted and turned inside out, replaced by alien ones. That’s why, perhaps, our everyday life has been unsettled for some time now and life has been uncomfortable. We have lost harmony not only in understanding ourselves, but primarily in determining others, what is happening around us in general. Again, we will look for those to blame, causing confusion and becoming weaker, or we will try to correct the situation ourselves, live and speak as our Ancestors bequeathed to us - the Laws and Rules of which are still impeccable, because they were guided by RIGHT and CONSCIENCE. And most importantly, LOVE for His Mother Earth...

And it is not surprising that today, according to statistics, almost every second family breaks up. After all, they enter into MARRIAGE with the Bride...

youthful c Why is marriage called marriage?

There are two versions of where the word “marriage” came from. One is official, the other is not. Let's look at each of them, and you decide for yourself which one you like best. The word marriage (marriage) comes from the Old Church Slavonic language, in which it meant marriage and is formed from the verb brati (to take) with the help of the suffix -k (similar to know-sign). The connection of the word marriage with this verb is confirmed by the expression take in marriage, and there is also a dialect take - get married, Ukrainian got married - got married. In those days, the word brother meant to carry. Based on this, it turns out that these words: marriage (matrimony) and marriage (izyan) are homonyms and have no relation to each other. Marriage in the meaning of flaw comes from the German word brack - lack, vice, which in turn is derived from the verb brechen - to break, break. This borrowing occurred in the time of Peter the Great, and since then there have been two different marriages in the Russian language and another reason for a joke.

Why is marriage called marriage? marriage, hypothesis, wedding, word formation
The second version is much less scientific and difficult to verify, but much more interesting than the first.
According to the tribal traditions of the Slavs, Vesta is a girl trained in all the wisdom of marriage, i.e. knowledgeable/knowledgeable, in the future a caring mother, a good housewife, a faithful, wise and loving wife. Only after the girl acquired such knowledge did she have a chance to become a wife. Brides were not taken in marriage, and if they were taken, then such a thing was called marriage. It is no secret that integrity, atmosphere and happiness in the family almost entirely depend on the woman. Vesta cannot have a bad husband because she is wise. Most likely, the ancient Slavs did not even know what divorce was...

MARRIAGE - among the ancient Slavs this ritual was called a sacred marital union... Wedding stands for SVA - heaven, BO - gods, DE - act... But in general - the Heavenly Act of the Gods... Marriage was invented by Christians... The Slavs interpret it in such a way that one of those entering into this union - with marriage - before the wedding he had “contact” with others...
"Marriage" from Ar. “KARB” - “twinning”, when individuals of different sexes become relatives (akriba) through a common fetus. Slavic “marriage” - from “to take”, i.e. take a woman of a different kind for yourself. And at the same time, they say: “marriage will not be called a good thing.., why.., MARRIAGE” is industrial from the Arabic “HARAB” - “destroy, spoil”... And the German “marriage” means “broken thing”... all these troubles with a wedding, veil, rings, etc. came from Judea, later, after the emergence of Christianity, this custom came to Russia. Before, everything was much simpler with us: whichever girl you catch in the forest is yours. So, in Hebrew “blessing” is bracha. So much for marriage. There is another opinion: “to take”, as well as “abuse” (originally - a campaign for prey, and one of the catchy “images” of prey in ancient times were girls, potential wives) is more natural to relate to the word under discussion. By the way, the word “branka” once meant “captive.” At the same time, I do not rule out that the term “marriage” is also associated with the word “burden”, and if so, then there is an analogy with Hebrew: “נישואים” (“nisuim”, Aram. form “nisuiN”) - “marriage ”, and the root here is the same as in the word “לשאת” (“laset”) - “to carry” (“nose”, “נושא” - “I carry, carry, carry”). Accordingly, married - “נשוי”, “nasui” (female phrase “נשוא”, “nesuA”), i.e., as if “burdened”... well, since the burden is also burdened, it means to bear both spouses owe it, with all the ensuing consequences...
Many words that have served us as protection and certain taboos since ancient times are distorted and turned inside out, replaced by alien ones. That’s why, perhaps, our everyday life has been unsettled for some time now and life has been uncomfortable. We have lost harmony not only in understanding ourselves, but primarily in determining others, what is happening around us in general. Again, we will look for those to blame, causing confusion and becoming weaker, or we will try to correct the situation ourselves, live and speak as our Ancestors bequeathed to us - the Laws and Rules of which are still impeccable, because they were guided by RIGHT and CONSCIENCE. And most importantly, LOVE for His Mother Earth...
And it is not surprising that today, according to statistics, almost every second family breaks up. After all, they enter into MARRIAGE with the Bride...

Today we will talk about the word "Marriage".

How often, especially people with unsuccessful family lives, say: “a good thing cannot be called “marriage.”
But really, why is marriage called marriage?? Let's figure it out together!

Origin of the word "Marriage"

There are several versions about the origin of the word “marriage”.

1. Marriage (marriage). The school etymological dictionary of the Russian language explains the formation of the word “Marriage” from Old Church Slavonic verb "brother"(to marry) using the suffix -k. Everyone knows this expression - “to take a wife.”

Exactly the same principle was used to form the word “sign” - from the verb “to know”.

2. Marriage (marriage). The second version, in my opinion, is more romantic :).

Before getting married, a man asks... what? Yes, that's right, the HANDS of your beloved! That is, marriage - this is a joining of hands to go through life together. And no matter what happens, be together “in sorrow and in joy.”

In Italian: braccio (il braccio) - arm from hand to shoulder.

In French: le braccia (le braccia) - hands, le bra - hands.

Latin: brachium (brachium) - arm (shoulder).

And then the words “getting married” mean “taking each other’s hands.”

3. Defect (poor quality product). Borrowed in the 17th century. through the Polish language, from the German language, where Brack is “worthless goods,” that is, “scrap” is a derivative of the verb brechen - (brechen) - “to break.” School etymological dictionary of the Russian language. Origin of words - M.: Bustard N. M. Shansky, T. A. Bobrova 2004.

It turns out that the words marriage (family) and marriage (defect) are homonyms and have nothing to do with each other!

What are homonym words?

These are like synonyms, only in reverse :) . Homonyms are a random coincidence of words that have the same spelling and pronunciation, but different meanings.
For example, onion (a plant) and onion (which is used to shoot).

What will it be like in other languages?

In Ukrainian, marriage is slub.

We create families and get married in order to have a loved one in this world. To share your warmth and accept the warmth and care of another person. To give birth and raise children together, to live happily ever after! :). And I sincerely wish everyone to find their love, their soul mate, start a family and be happy!

Marriage. This word, meaning poor-quality product, was borrowed in the 17th century. from German, where brack - “flaw, worthless goods”, derived from the verb brechen - “to break”. Let's point out another relative of this word - the English verb break (to break).

Marriage. There are two homonyms in our language: “marriage” - “marriage” and “marriage” - “damage”. They are of completely different origins.

“Marriage” - “marriage” is associated with the verb “to take”; and now they still often say: “He took (married) a girl from a neighboring collective farm...”

“Break” - “bad work” comes from the German language, where “brechen” - “spoil”, “break”, “Bruch” - “flaw”. We borrowed this word from the Poles.

I. “flaw”, since the time of Peter I; see Smirnov 65; rejector already in 1705; see Christiani 41. Through Polish. brak - the same (from the 16th century; see Smirnov, ibid.; Brückner 38) or from Middle-Nizhny Novgorod. brak “flaw, flaw” (lit. “fracture”), see Bernecker 1, 80 et seq. Through Polish obtained through, undoubtedly, Russian. to reject, Ukrainian reject, blr. brakvat - the same; Wed Polish brakować II. “marriage, matrimony”, old. also “festival”, Ukrainian. marriage, old-slav, marriage γάμος (Supr.), Bulgarian. marriage. The word is not a folk word either in Russian or in Ukrainian. (Berneker 1, 81). Bolg. marriage, Serbohorvian brȃk “marriage, wedding” are also considered as borrowing. from Tslav. based on their history; see Lang, LF 43, 404 et seq., who assumes, together with Sobolevsky (AfslPh 33, 611), the same for the Eastern Slavs. They consider the original form to be Praslav. *borkъ; Wed I take, like a sign: I know; see also Bernecker 1, in the same place where the word “to marry” is given. In the same way, Guyer (LF 40, 304), connecting this word with the Greek. φέρω, lat. fero, tries to reconstruct the ancient meaning. "kidnapping". On the contrary, Trautman (GGA, 1911, pp. 245 et seq.) assumes praslav. *brakъ - zero level in relation to the reduction stage *bъrati [See. also Trubachev, Therm. kinship, 1959, pp. 147. - T.]

Marriage(marriage). Borrowing from Art.-Sl. language, where it is suf. derivative (suf. -To) from take“to take” (to marry).

Marriage(poor quality product). Borrowing in the 17th century via Polish Subsidence from it. language, where Brack“worthless goods” brechen “to break.”

Strange - isn't it? Marriage is poorly made And union of man and woman simultaneously? How to explain this? I found a simple explanation quite recently. In ancient times, among the peoples who spoke the language from which the Russian language grew, a mature and trained girl was called Vesta. The girl's training consisted of skills in building relationships with a man (it was believed that relationships are a woman's responsibility, and future men were taught to be breadwinners and protectors). And the girls were taught by “Witches” - knowledgeable mothers (this status was held by older women who lived happily with their husbands and raised at least 12 children). So let's get back to marriage. If a trained girl got married ( Vesta), then this was called a union or family, and if the girl was untrained at that moment ( Bride), then it was called marriage.

So draw your conclusions, friends. It turns out that marriage is now called marriage absolutely correctly.

And here are the comments that users gave on another site:

I’ve been thinking about this since childhood, asking my mother, my friends, laughing that no one knows why the family was called marriage, and I didn’t even suspect that the answer could be so simple. This article amazed me! Nowadays, indeed, ALL girls are Brides! There is no one to teach! In the country, you can probably count on one hand the women who managed to raise 12 children in their lives and live happily with their husbands! Our parents and even grandparents have already lost the culture of building relationships.

To be fair, it must be said that boys are now not being taught to be protectors and breadwinners (fathers have weakened physically and morally, just as mothers have ceased to be women in the full sense of the word). So it turns out to be a double “marriage” for most people!!!

P.S.: We need to do a training program “Marriage-2” - how to build love :)

Eh, where can I find the “Witch” :)
I really don’t want to create “Marriage”, maybe there are still “knowing” mothers left in distant villages? :)

Don't worry, we're all getting married now
Your future husband is probably not trained in his craft either, and you are already planning to “learn” for him, to look for a witch in distant villages :)

It's strange how you talk...

I don’t know whether you are a “guest” - a boy or a girl, but I don’t understand what you are saying. If I am taught at least some basics of building relationships in a family, I can create a happy family with any man, even if he is not very trained in his craft, as you say.

And there is one more reason to study - the principle “like attracts like” - this means that if I am trained in my “feminine” field, I will meet a man who will be trained in his “male” field. For some reason I believe that this is exactly what will happen :)

From correspondence on this topic

In such a union, there is much more chance of failure (marriage) than of a successful project. And only through the work of each spouse on themselves does wisdom come that cements the family. And, if nothing helps, then it is better, thanking for the experience, to “destroy” the marriage and give a chance to create two families.

What if the marriage already has children?

The best thing that parents can give their child is a space of love! But, if this is not the case between the parents, then, just for the sake of the child, it is a sin to play false roles! The way out is to calmly instill in the child respect for his parents and continue to follow the path of creation and development, harmony and search! Otherwise, we break ourselves and our children as individuals. After all, the main thing is to come to an agreement with yourself!!! It is quite possible that people come together for a short time only for the sake of the fact that it is from this couple that the coming to earth of a beautiful child is planned from above! Then, all the more, there is something to thank each other for. After all, our life is a lot of lessons and exams that we need to pass with dignity!!!

Divorce is not an option!

is it better to get a divorce? You, dear Guest, are wrong even to the tip of your nail. especially when there are children. The easiest thing to destroy is something that has already been built. The point of marriage is to learn to live in harmony with your other half.

And love? you ask

Love is for children and youth. Love is a fleeting concept in any case! 2-3 years and nothing remains of the previous feeling of falling in love! those couples who realized that happiness does not lie in love, but in understanding and supporting each other, live and raise their offspring. And if in time we leave love as the reason for being together, this is at least stupid. It is necessary to look for more compelling reasons already in the initial stages of marriage (relationships). For example, a child is one of the most compelling reasons not to get divorced. But even a fool understands that we should not tolerate each other with gnashing teeth, but strike more softly, yield, obey, teach and learn, etc.

Family problems - solutions (advice for men)

The main problem people have when they are looking for a future partner is that they don’t know exactly who they want. You must first create this portrait in your soul with all the qualities and possible shortcomings that you may even like, or that you will be able to forgive, since there are no people without shortcomings.

Then, when choosing, it will be easier to realize “yes, I like this girl, she is attractive, and I see that she likes me too, but this is a “spring desire”, I am pleased with this state, but I see and feel in her a character or a predisposition to actions, which will hurt me in the future and I will suffer from this, this relationship cannot be consolidated for a long time, I need another woman.”

You need to be observant.

I don’t argue, even when you find the person who fits the ideal of your partner to start a family and love flows out of you for each other, scandals still arise. In any family there are such scandals, because this or that person is in a bad mood, or trouble happened somewhere and he carries this negative feeling home or life simply does not work out.

It is necessary to understand this and forgive each other, I repeat to each other once again, both must do this.

Scandals arise if spouses feel that they are not noticed, due to intimate dissatisfaction.

My husband says that the best remedy from scandals this is a bed.

The problem may be that it is more difficult for a woman to realize her desire, that she is furious precisely because she does not have enough of it, her hormones are fluctuating and subconsciously she understands that there is a person nearby who could satisfy her, and this bastard of this doesn't. And when you say directly let’s do it, he will say no, no need.

Conclusion: foreplay is needed. The main thing is not to even hint with words what you are trying to achieve, but to show with actions, gently touch your hand by chance, gently look into your eyes, speak in a slight whisper (you can simply tell the events of your day).

It is necessary, like teasing a cat, so that the desire reaches awareness and then everything will work out.

Another piece of advice is to say “I love you” to each other every day. Then, even after living for several years, you will feel as if you met yesterday. “I love you” is not only a declaration of love, it is a recognition that you believe in your partner, support him and that no matter what he does, you will forgive him, you thereby emphasize emotional reliability for each other. Any free time should be spent together; you don’t need a spouse for a tick in your passport, but so that you can go through life together.

In the film “Let's Dance,” the main character’s wife says that they get married so that there will be a witness to our life nearby.

When you see that your wife is having some kind of crisis, walking around gloomy for an unknown reason, tell her that you are glad and happy that you have the best woman in the world, the women around her cannot even compare with her.

Every couple goes through turning points.

Every couple experiences some turning points when the heart begins to
knocking in a different rhythm, everyone feels that something has changed, and what,
It’s hard to say, suspicion begins, self-indulgence, scandals begin.
It’s just that the couple is moving to another stage of life and it is necessary to accept it,
learn to live in a new way, take it for granted, since it won’t happen before, but
it will be different and maybe even better.

Why is a wedding called a marriage?

Marriage, whatever it may be,
It is, in essence, a marriage!
At least twist it like that,
At least spin it like that. If the builder makes a mistake
And he will build a crooked house,
Marriage is immediately obvious to everyone.
They won't live in it later.
Why do our people
Is a wedding called a marriage?
Marriage is something bad
Or is everything wrong in life?
I speak frankly
I don't understand, gentlemen:
A wedding is not a bad thing
But what does marriage have to do with it then!
Very controversial marriage and wedding
Just to identify...
Maybe it's worth marrying a bride
Accidentally look for it?
After all, the bride is always in white,
It's like a white flag
Threw it out, here at the wedding,
And she surrenders herself.
And the groom, on the contrary, is in black.
Understands what's what...
After the wedding you'll have to
Let him take the rap...
Probably on their wedding night
First, if so?
The bride and groom are doing
Together, amicably this marriage...
Before that, the bride is a virgin.
The night has passed and the maiden is gone.
The bride became a woman.
What's the secret to this marriage?
Everything is logical, since the girl
Got married for the first time!
At least there is some damage...
And the meaning is clear to us.
And when the girl gets married
Did you come out for the sixth time?
Excuse me,
This is not a marriage, but hemorrhoids!
Explain for God's sake
Where should she marry then?
No matter how hard I tried,
But I couldn’t understand...
Unfortunately, I didn’t find an answer
My answer to your question is simple.
Everything turned out just like in life:
Wedding - marriage and... hemorrhoids!
Vladimir Chartsev

Is a good thing called marriage?

There is an expression that a good deal cannot be called marriage. Usually, principled bachelors say this, hinting that an officially registered relationship is a defective relationship, as even their name “marriage” indicates. In fact, if we trace the origin of some words, including the word marriage, we will see that there is a certain amount of logic in such an interpretation. In ancient times, a woman who had already reached puberty and was ready to have sexual relations and give birth to children was called Vesta. And the one who is not ready for this yet, that is, the still immature one, was called the bride. However, there were circumstances in which people married brides. For example, if there were not enough mature women in the village, or if a young bride was dishonored and she was pregnant, and the like. Marriage to a bride, due to the lack of full-fledged women, was called marriage, which meant shortage. For example, in the Ukrainian language this root still performs this function “brakue” - means lack, and “marriage” in the context of “marriage of something” means lack of something. Well, then, when centuries passed, the original meaning of the words was forgotten, and people began to attribute to the word marriage its secondary functions, because after all, marriage led to the creation of a family, and the bride then became a wife. So we now use these words “wrongly”. Or rather, it would be incorrect if we were speaking in some dialect of Old Church Slavonic, but in Russian this is the correct meaning. There is an opinion that such a distortion of language occurred when our culture was implanted with the perverted idea of \u200b\u200bthe idealization of innocence, since now we are implanted with debauchery as a benefactor. In general, whatever the origin of this distortion, the fact remains that the saying in the title of this article, on the one hand, is true, but on the other hand, it has nothing to do with the question of what is better - a single life or a married life. In fact, the whole question is not whether it is a marriage or not. The most important thing is how young people will relate to their partner, to marriage and to themselves.

Modern wedding bears little resemblance to the rituals of the past, which secured the unification of two people into one whole - a family. But the essence remains the same - this is an event that becomes the beginning of the life of a new union, family, helps the bride and groom understand this and notifies others.

A wedding makes the couple’s relationship legitimate, that is, legalized and recognized in the eyes of society. In former times, it meant the entry of a new person - a bride into her husband's clan, but now it means the creation of a family by two people. At the same time, their parents and other relatives become relatives both to the son-in-law/daughter-in-law and to each other.

There are several theories regarding the origin of the word "wedding":

This is a derivative of the name of the ancient Roman goddess of persuasion, the patroness of festivals and fun - Svada.
It is formed from the verb “to reduce” in the sense of connecting, uniting into one and symbolized the formation of a family from two separate people who were previously strangers to each other.
It is based on the word “holy,” which emphasizes the sacredness and significance of the union.
The word comes from the word “matchmaker” and indicates the important role of a person who acts as an intermediary between the families of the bride and groom, a witness to the agreement between them.
It consists of several words that were significant for the ancient Slavs - “Sva” (sky), “Bo” (gods) and “De” (deed) and denotes the heavenly (important, beyond the control of man) act of the gods.

What is the origin of the word "marriage"?

Having found out what is a wedding, what our ancestors put into this word and what our contemporaries put into it, let us turn to the concept of marriage. If a wedding means a certain ritual, actions that symbolize the creation of a legal union, then marriage is living together, next after the celebrations have died down. Although initially it also meant a wedding feast.

According to the official version, the word “marriage” was formed during the use of the Old Church Slavonic language and comes from the verb “to take” by adding the suffix -k to the root of this word. The validity of this version is evidenced by the stable expression “get married”, as well as the Ukrainian word “betrothed” - got married.

This symbolizes the wife’s entry into a new family - the husband’s family and the fact that she is taken (taken away) from her parents. Our ancestors also used the word “take” to mean “steal” or “kidnap.” And in some historical periods, this is exactly what they did to girls - they forcibly took their future husband into the house.

There is also a humorous version based on the use of the word “marriage” both in the meaning of marriage and in the meaning of a flaw or lack. Many have heard the expression “a good deed cannot be called a marriage” in this regard. According to this version, in ancient times, girls ready for marriage were called Vestas, that is, those who knew (know) all the wisdom of housekeeping and caring for children, prudent and wise. And if a marital union was concluded by a girl who was not endowed with these qualities, then she was called the BRIDE, and her relationship with her husband was called marriage.

In fact, the word “marriage” in the meaning of flaw is borrowed from the German language and comes from the word brack (flaw, defect) and that, in turn, from brechen (to break, break). So these words are homonyms - they are the same in spelling and sound, but have different meanings. There are also theories about the origin of the word “marriage” from a similar-sounding word in Arabic, which means twinning.

Origin of the word "marriage"

Having found out, one cannot help but remember about matrimony, which means married life. According to Dahl's dictionary, it is derived from the word “to conjugate”, i.e. to unite, combine. Vladimir Dal calls “harness”, “yoke” and “pair” words that are similar in origin and meaning. The word “yoke” does not sound very pleasant in relation to married life; it is familiar to modern people in the meaning of an unpleasant, heavy burden. But it’s joint family life, in essence, is the long-term work of two people to improve relationships and everyday life.

Reveals the nature of marriage and another word close to it - “marriage”. This is a pair of horses or oxen yoked together to cultivate a field. Thus, marriage was understood by the Slavs as a difficult but necessary joint work of two people. Symbolically, they go through life in the same harness, plow the field (solve joint problems, improve their lives, raise children).