Marrying First Cousin

[barry1010]

The death of Jerry Lee Lewis has prompted outrage and disgust on some news reports and social media outlets that he married his cousin when she was 13.
I'm sure you know he didn't break any laws when he did so and some US states still don't have a minimum age for marriage.

I have been bewildered by the posts from UK citizens who are disgusted that he married his second cousin - here in the UK first cousins can legally marry.
A petition calling for this to be made illegal in 2014 got only 8 signatures https://petition.parliament.uk/archived/petitions/54278

Another got 105 supporters https://www.change.org/p/uk-parliament-ban-first-cousin-marriages-in-the-uk

Last year's attempt got 221 signatures https://www.parallelparliament.co.uk/petitions/592255/ban-marriages-of-1st-cousins-and-give-registry-offices-powers-to-order-dna-tests

I am interested to hear your views - is it okay for first cousins to marry? I get the impression that 'Outraged of Oldham' and 'Disgusted of Derby' love venting their spleen on social media (so much less effort that putting pen to paper and writing to the newspapers) but are too bone idle to actually do anything to change things.

I wanted to marry my first cousin. I was 6 and she was training to be a nurse. When I was 7 I wanted to marry the girl next door.

[jno]

genetics may be an issue if you marry blood relatives. I think it was her age as well as their kinship that upset people at the time. It's the sort of thing people say about Norfolk when they think they're being funny.

[Old_Geezer]

I think it unadvisable, and definitely needing a deal of thought if they didn't intend to be childless, but otherwise it is their decision.

[naomi24]

Bit late for outrage now. It happened years ago when he married her and he's dead now.

To answer the question I don't think it's a good idea for cousins to marry.

[andres]

One of my aunts married her first cousin and unfortunately three of their five children had medical problems.

[davebro]

I only had one female cousin - can't remember ever meeting her.

[davebro]

she's dead now - never married.

[barry1010]

I don't know how long the medical world has been aware of the problems that children of first cousins may have but now we are aware maybe it is time it was outlawed.
I think a lot of people don't know that it is legal.

[Old_Geezer]

Just to follow up, one doesn't need a marriage ritual to have offspring; so one wonders what use a marriage ban would be.

[jno]

barry, it used to be common among royal families aas a way of keeping power in the family. Lots of Egyptian pharaohs seem to have had congenital deformities, jusging by the mummies.

The "Habsburg lip" was a famous example

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/distinctive-habsburg-jaw-was-likely-result-royal-familys-inbreeding-180973688/

[barry1010]

Yes, Jno, most of our royal family married relatives, Charles and Diana were distant cousins and Camilla is his 9th cousin once removed.

[barry1010]

O-G, sex between first cousins could be classified as incest and be a criminal offence.

[Gill1941]

Egyptian pharaohs often married siblings which, obviously, is not advisable or legal.
Quite a bit of disapproval at the time about JLL marrying 13 year old but it was legal then in US.
Many people nowadays like to express outrage at things that happened in the past.

[Old_Geezer]

And what does one do with such a criminal ? Fine them and take resource for the child away from the family ? Or maybe imprison them and take away a breadwinner ? Or presumably both ? I don't see it working well.

[douglas9401]

Provided she had a pretty face, a pony tail hanging down and a wiggle when she walked then, aye.

[barry1010]

Marriage between first cousins is still legal in some US states. I don't really understand what that means. Just as youngsters used to elope to Gretna to get married because they couldn't do so in England and Wales, can Americans elope to a different state to marry their first cousin?

[barry1010]

O-G, the current sentence in England and Wales for incest between consenting adults is a maximum 2 years imprisonment. There doesn't have to be any children of the union, the offence is the sexual act, not the pregnancy

[Ellipsis]

> Just to follow up, one doesn't need a marriage ritual to have offspring; so one wonders what use a marriage ban would be.

Good point.

Marriage isn't the issue. The issues are sex with a 13 year old (already illegal) and procreation among relatives (difficult to legislate).

[rockyracoon]

If genetically, there's no problem with first cousins having children, then I don't see the problem with them getting married. Though I wouldn't marry mine.

I wonder if a set of identical twins married another set of identical twins, would their offspring be able to marry each other? They would genetically be brother and sister, wouldn't they?

[jno]

barry, 9th cousins aren't likely to be a genetic problem. In fact it's thought that pretty well every Brit is decended from Edward III over 21-24 generations

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Issue_of_Edward_III_of_England

[Old_Geezer]

Ah, so if cousins share a house the government installs cameras in the bedroom ? Hmmm....