Marriage has for centuries been at the heart of religious and secular law. With the newest reforms of the law of personal status in Germany, entering into force on 1.01.2009, for the first time since 1875 it is possible to hold a religious marriage ceremony in Germany without previously performing a civil marriage. This work examines the roots of our marriage ceremonies going back to the old Germans and Romans as well as to Scandinavian marriage traditions. While family law and international human rights law build the cornerstone of the work, the religious perspective of marriage and marriage formation is analysed, too. The actuality of the work lies in its effort to analyse the effect of our current law in Germany and in Sweden in dealing with child marriages, forced marriages, sham marriages, polygamous marriages and informal marriages. Additionally, the influence of the introduction of same sex marriages in Sweden on the formation of marriage is dealt with.weiterlesen