Levirate marriage is the practice of a woman being obliged to marry the relative (usually brother) of her dead husband. It is a practice that is common to a lot of cultures throughout the world, for example the Jews practiced it (see the book of Ruth).

In Nigeria the Igbos and the Yorubas have this as part of their culture. It is possible that other tribes/cultures have it as well, but these are the ones I know about. There is even a case in my family that I know of: My grandfather's first wife for example was a Levirate marriage.

Now Levirate marriages served two primary purposes. The first is to keep the property of the deceased man in the family, and the second is to provide protection for the new widow and her family. In Igbo culture I think the widow can chose any of the qualified relatives, but it others she has to go to a certain relative.

Levirate marriage is the logical solution in a culture where women can't own property and there is no social safety net. However it is only logical by its own assumptions. After all the logical solution would be to simply allow the woman to own the property.

I thought this solution would apply to everybody, only for me to get into a conversation with someone who thought that Levirate marriage is a valid part of the village culture in Nigeria. I mean I can understand, and maybe even accept, that it still goes on, but I was surprised that people would be defending the fact that it does. However the more I thought about it, his argument made sense from a "Second-best" perspective.

The best option would obviously be to allow women to own property and have self determination, as stated above, however it is almost impossible to achieve that aim in the short term due to the various cultural factors that operate in those villages. Levirate marriage can be a second best outcome when you consider the welfare of the woman and any of her children in that village.

Ultimately the solution to this, as to many of our problems, is education. Educated women rarely agree to form such unions, neither would educated men be as willing to perform "their duty." This is good cos I don't really see an army of Mary Slessors running through Nigeria putting a stop to the evils of Levirate marriage. The problems with our education system on the other hand, are a story for another day.

Laters