Essay On Bridewealth

Introduction

History shows that many societies at a point in time have been recognized by their form of payment during the process of marriage. These payments were usually made by the parents who were also the arrangers of the marriage (Anderson, 2007). “These marriage payments came in various forms and sizes but could be classified into two broad categories: transfers from the family of the bride to that of the groom, broadly termed as dowry, or from the groom’s side to the bride’s, broadly termed as bridewealth” (Anderson, 2007). However, in ancient times these transactions even took the form of labour, where by the groom would work for the bride’s family for a specific period in what was loosely termed bride service. With the times changing and societies developing (economic stratification) this form of transaction slowly disappeared and bridewealth became more prevalent (Chinonyerem,2014).

Bridewealth is depicted as the payment a husband owes to the bride’s parents for the right to her labor and reproductive abilities amongst other factors. Where the magnitude of rights to be transferred is directly attached to the amount

Anderson (2007) stated that bridewealth serves different functions in different societies but amongst those differences there are universal similarities. Furthermore, one of those similarities that holds across sub-Saharan societies is the use of bridewealth as a way of “creating alliances between kinship groups” (Anderson, 2007). Second to that, it was thought to serve as a way of covering to the bride’s family for the loss of her services, and to legitimize the children born to the marriage (Anderson, 2007). However, this custom is practiced by many societies across the