Marriages between relatives are widespread in the Middle East

[VetLegion]

http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/saudmarr.htm

MARRYING CLOSE TO HOME

Marriages between relatives are widespread in the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia, where a government study has found that 56.8% of all marriages are between first and second cousins or more distant relatives.

Percentage of marriages between relatives in several Saudi provinces surveyed as well as other countries in the region:

JORDAN: 50.2%

IRAQ: 57.9%

KUWAIT: 54.3%

BAHRAIN: 39.4%

U.A.E.: 61.6%

EGYPT: 28.9%


SAUDI ARABIA

Northern Province: 52.1%

North Western Province: 67.7%

South Western Province: 54.2%

Central Province: 60.8%

Eastern Province: 59.1%

Rub Al-Khali


The Saudi government study involved a survey of 3,212 families in five Saudi provinces in 1995.


SOURCE: Saudi Arabian government agencies

Supposedly, they marry cousins to retain wealth in the family. Still these percentages strike me as unbelievably high. Granted, probably most of them aren't between first cousins. Too bad the text doesn't break up the figures that way so we could see that.

So, what are the stats for your neck of woods?

[Starchild]

I live in East Anglia. I swear I see people who's family trees haven't branched in generations.

[Jon Miller]

Yeah, use to be the case in England and America also.

JM

[VetLegion]

I'm fairly confident it was never the case in Croatia and neighbouring countries. Maybe Catholicism has a bigger taboo on cousin marriages than other religions?

I think it's illegal to marry first and second cousins if you're a Catholic, only the third are an option.

[SlowwHand]

It's illegal here. Jon is used to West Virginia, which is somewhat middle east in USA.

[Dinner]

That was never the case in the US other then a few rural areas where just about everyone in the area was related.

[Proteus_MST]

At least among the royal families it is no wonder IMHO.

In europe the same thing was common among noble families, too.
Which resulted in hemophilia being common in the royal bloodline.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by VetLegion
I'm fairly confident it was never the case in Croatia and neighbouring countries. Maybe Catholicism has a bigger taboo on cousin marriages than other religions?

No. The prohibition on marrying close cousins is only a relatively recent one in human history.

[Provost Harrison]

Re: Marriages between relatives are widespread in the Middle East

MARRYING CLOSE TO HOME

Marriages between relatives are widespread in the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia, where a government study has found that 56.8% of all marriages are between first and second cousins or more distant relatives.

Percentage of marriages between relatives in several Saudi provinces surveyed as well as other countries in the region:

JORDAN: 50.2%

IRAQ: 57.9%

KUWAIT: 54.3%

BAHRAIN: 39.4%

U.A.E.: 61.6%

EGYPT: 28.9%


SAUDI ARABIA

Northern Province: 52.1%

North Western Province: 67.7%

South Western Province: 54.2%

Central Province: 60.8%

Eastern Province: 59.1%

Rub Al-Khali

DEEP SOUTH

Any of it: 99.9%

The Saudi government study involved a survey of 3,212 families in five Saudi provinces in 1995.


SOURCE: Saudi Arabian government agencies

[Dinner]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara


No. The prohibition on marrying close cousins is only a relatively recent one in human history.

I thought there was some biblical prohabition or something.

[SlowwHand]

Moron. Go car shopping.

[VetLegion]

No. The prohibition on marrying close cousins is only a relatively recent one in human history.

It's as recent as populations bigger than 20. It doesn't make sense to marry cousins, it's bad practice and most populations know this from instinct and the occassional kid born with three legs. So the first opportunity to marry outside of family was taken and this was thousands of years ago, at the very least when agriculture spread enough to enable higher population density, and this was looooong ago.

So no, West Virginians and Arabs don't have the excuse of being only slightly behind.

[Jon Miller]

the biblical (And other placeS) is for marrying your sister

not your cousin, which is generally legal here

JM

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Oerdin


I thought there was some biblical prohabition or something.

Hardly.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by VetLegion

No. The prohibition on marrying close cousins is only a relatively recent one in human history.

It's as recent as populations bigger than 20.

It's far less recent that that. It's pretty much a 20th Century thing, and then only in the West.