The state of being married; the married condition or marriage itself.
From Old English 'wedlac,' where 'wed' (pledge) + 'lac' (gift, offering). Originally meant the gift or pledge exchanged in marriage, then came to mean marriage itself.
The word 'wedlock' is archaic now, but it reveals something fascinating: the '-lock' part comes from Old English 'lac' (gift), not 'lock' (confinement), though many people misinterpret it as marriage being a prison!
Wedlock historically positioned marriage as a legal property transfer and reproductive arrangement; women lost independent legal personhood and property rights upon marriage (coverture). The term carries embedded assumptions about women's subordination.
Use 'marriage' or 'matrimonial partnership' to emphasize equality; if using 'wedlock,' acknowledge its historical context of legal inequality.
["marriage","matrimonial union","spousal partnership"]
Women's rights advocates—Mary Wollstonecraft, Lucretia Mott, Susan B. Anthony—fought to transform marriage from a structure of coverture into a legal contract between equals; their work created modern marriage law.
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