Concubinage is a term that comes from the Latin concubinatus and that refers to the marital relationship that a couple maintains without being married. The members of these couples are known as concubines although, in certain cultures, the concubine was a woman of lower social position than the man in a marriage-type relationship.
For example: “Marta and I live in common law since we do not believe in marriage”, “The common law of the actress and the footballer ended in the middle of a scandal”, “Ezequiel is in favor of the common law, but I told him that only I would go live with him if we get married in the Church ”.
The concept of concubinage dates back to Ancient Rome and biblical times. In general, the concubinage was voluntary (either by an agreement between the man and the woman or between the man and the woman’s family) since this relationship was considered to bring economic security to the woman. In any case, there was the servile concubinage that supposed the sexual slavery of women.
In the Roman Empire and ancient China, the concubinage had a lower legal status than marriage. This means that a man could have a wife and a concubine simultaneously. Western laws, on the other hand, only allowed monogamous marriage and left the concubine outside any legal protection.
At present, on the other hand, the common-law partner is associated with a common-law partner who lives in a stable way and who maintains a relationship analogous to the matrimonial or conjugal one. For this reason, many States have included these couples within a legal framework to avoid the abandonment of any of their members in the event of illness or death.
Although there are still many impediments and profound ignorance and denial about it, concubinage applies to both heterosexual and homosexual couples. For the latter, however, the situation is not usually easy, since it is normal that they are not recognized all of their rights, if they are lucky enough to live in a country in which it is not legal to sentence them to death. for their sexuality.
From a legal point of view, the official recognition of cohabitation between two people has benefits, such as access to social security that one of the two can provide their partner through their work. For this, in the case of heterosexual couples, it is usually enough to point to the other individual, attesting to the existing relationship between them; on the other hand, few countries allow this right to two people of the same sex living under the same roof.
According to DigoPaul, the concubinage carries a series of commitments that are often overlooked, since its meaning goes far beyond shortening distances. Relationships usually begin with a stage of infatuation that is opposed to a careful analysis of the other person’s traits; This level of objectivity usually occurs after a time of coexistence, and it is through this close experience that ties are put to the test, which can result in them becoming stronger or destroyed by poor livelihood.
Sharing life with another person means walking in the same direction, even when each has different vocational goals. Concubinage works if it starts from a common moral base, a series of principles that represent both parties, if the level of enrichment that the relationship provides cannot be rejected. It is an experience that we all have the right to live, whenever we want to, regardless of our sexuality, and this last aspect should not have any importance for individuals outside the couple.
