Marriage is a legally and socially , and often a religious and spiritual, agreement between the gathered demanding people. Marriage may be entered into religious or civil . It varies on a state recognizes only monogamous marriage between persons of different gender, recognize marriages between persons of the same sex (so-called same-sex marriage ) or recognize marriages of polygamous relationships.

Usually the marriage is concluded in a separate room, a church , synagogue , mosque , temple or equivalent with regard to religious ceremonies, at a town hall or similar for civil marriage ceremonies. It varies between countries if one believes that a religious marriage is also civil law binding or if they included such a marriage must also enter into a civil marriage for the relationship to be legally regulated. Marriage are often surrounded by more or less extensive rituals and celebrations

The basis for marriage vary among different cultures. Quite often, marriage is one of the community or state more or less explicit demands for relations and family formation. In many contemporary Western cultures is the requirement much lower, and marriages instead often involves legal or purely emotional reasons, to show that they intend to live with someone for life or very long. In some cultures, decisions about the marriage of the parents as spouses, children or very young, see child marriages . It also happens that the groom pays a fee to the father-in for his bride, see the bride price , or the bride's parents pay the groom's parents to accept the bride or pay a dowry for her daughter to the newly married couple. Child marriage is illegal in many countries but still sometimes practiced even in states where prohibited. Agreement on child marriage, bride price and dowry is not valid according to Western law.

The Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox churches is marriage a sacrament . Marriage as sacrament is a theological concept that should not be confused with civil marriage .