Child marriage - Youjikon

Japanese: 幼児婚 - ようじこん

A marriage arranged by the parents with a child as one or both of the parties. In extreme cases, such as the Chinese "belly marriage," it can be decided before birth. When the contract and cohabitation are separate, it is difficult to distinguish it from a child engagement. There are also reports that cohabitation from a young age, such as the Chinese "child raising" (tongyangshi), reduces sexual interest in the partner after adulthood. Therefore, in this case, rather than a sexual relationship between the two people, parents who cannot afford a high bride price buy their son's bride cheaply while he is still a young girl, use her labor power from an early age, and train the child from an early age themselves in order to smooth the relationship between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law after they become adults.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

幼児を双方または一方の当事者とし，その親によって取り決められる婚姻。極端な場合には中国の〈指腹婚〉のように，出生前に決めるものもある。契約と同棲が別々に行われる場合には，幼児婚約と区別し難い。中国で行われていた〈童養媳（トンヤンシー）〉のように，幼時からの同棲は，成人後の相手への性的関心を減退させるという報告もある。したがって，この場合は当人どうしの性的関係よりも，高額の花嫁代償を払えない親が息子の嫁を幼女のうちに安く買い取って，その労働力を早くから利用し，幼時からのしつけを自ら行うことによって，成人後の嫁姑関係を円滑にしようとするものと言えよう。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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