Free US Law Dictionary

Bigamy

Affinityʉۢ Attachmentʉۢ Bondingʉۢ Boyfriendʉۢ Casualʉۢ Cohabitationʉۢ Compersionʉۢ Concubinageʉۢ Courtshipʉۢ Divorceʉۢ Domestic partnershipʉۢ Dower, dowry, and bride priceʉۢ Familyʉۢ Friendshipʉۢ Girlfriendʉۢ Husbandʉۢ Infatuationʉۢ Intimacyʉۢ Jealousyʉۢ Limerenceʉۢ Loveʉۢ Marriageʉۢ Monogamyʉۢ Nonmonogamyʉۢ Office romanceʉۢ Passionʉۢ Pederastyʉۢ Platonic loveʉۢ Polyamoryʉۢ Polyfidelityʉۢ Polygamyʉۢ Psychology of monogamyʉۢ Relationship abuseʉۢ Romanceʉۢ Separationʉۢ Sexualityʉۢ Serial monogamyʉۢ Sexual orientationʉۢ Significant otherʉۢ Weddingʉۢ Widowhoodʉۢ Wife
 This box: view â€¢ talk â€¢ edit 

The term polygamy (a Greek word meaning "the practice of multiple marriage") is used in related ways in social anthropology, sociobiology, and sociology. Polygamy can be defined as any "form of marriage in which a person [has] more than one spouse."[1]

In social anthropology polygamy is the practice of marriage to more than one spouse simultaneously. Historically, polygamy has been practiced as polygyny (one man having more than one wife), or as polyandry (one woman having more than one husband), or, less commonly as "polygamy" (one person having many wives and many husbands at the same time). (See "Forms of Polygamy" below.) In contrast, monogamy is the practice of each person having only one spouse. Like monogamy, the term is often used in a de facto sense, applying regardless of whether the relationships are recognized by the state (see marriage for a discussion on the extent to which states can and do recognize potentially and actually polygamous forms as valid).

In sociobiology, polygamy is used in a broad sense to mean any form of multiple mating. In a narrower sense, used by zoologists, polygamy includes a pair bond, perhaps temporary.