Why is marrage nearly universal?

Marriage is a socially approved sexual and economic union, usually between a man and a woman, that is presumed, both by the couple and by others, to be more or less permanent, and that subsumes recipro- cal rights and obligations between the two spouses and their future children.

Why is marriage nearly universal ?

Humans can survive and reproduce without marriage but this social institution existed in almost all the cultures worldwide more or less universally. Even due to universality it can be assumed that marraige is adaptive advantages.

Reasons for existence of Marraige –

1. Gender division of Labour –– Females and males in every society known to anthropology perform different economic activities. This gender division of labor has often been cited as a reason for marriage. Marriage provided the way for dividation of labour betwen men and women and provide a way for society to train men and women differently and make specialised those in their specific task to solve the problem. Thus, although marriage may solve the problem of sharing the fruits of a division of labor, it clearly is not the only possible solution.

2. Prolonged infant Dependency –– Humans exhibit the longest period of infant dependency of any primate. The child’s prolonged dependence places the greatest burden on the mother, who is the main child caregiver in most societies. The burden of prolonged child care by human females may limit the kinds of work they can do. They may need the help of a man to do certain types of work, such as hunting, that are incompatible with child care. because of this prolonged dependency, it has been suggested that marriage is necessary. But marriage is not the only possible solution.

3. Sexual competition – Unlike most other female primates, the human female may engage in intercourse at any time throughout the year. Some scholars have suggested that more or less continuous female sexuality may have created a serious problem, sexual competition for mate between male and female, It is argued that society had to prevent such competition to survive, that it had to develop some way of minimising the rivalry among males for females to reduce the chance of lethal and destructive conflict –– marriage provide a permanent companion and reduce the sexual competition.

4. Other Mammal and Birds – Some birds such as Albatross, pigeon, animals such as Wolves and Beavers, have Female-male bonding. Species in which postpartum mothers cannot feed themselves and their babies at the same time do typically form male-female bonds like human. such that male can help them. On the other hand species on them mother can feed themselves and childern together doesn't have male-female bonding such as horse, cow, buffalo and other grazers, those children can walk right after their birth.