Japanese Marriage

Marriage itself became a central means of officially or ceremonially cementing alliances.

Arranged marriages (omiai) spread through all classes of Japanese society.

Women were often married by the age of 16.

Emperor introduced a constitution called the 'Meiji Civil Code' which severely limited womens rights. According to the law women who were unfaithful would be immediately divorced but men would only suffer a little for their actions.

The family system ('ie') as part of the legal system was abolished.

For women the average marriage age was 27 and a half years old but for men it was around 30 years old.