History Main / ExoticExtendedMarriage

* The Voch'khari from ''Webcomic/{{Alfie}}'' are a tribalistic race of [[FaunsAndSatyrs goat]]-esq BeastMen from the Red Woods. On top of preferring to go [[NationalGeographicNudity without clothes]], it is considered ordinary for tribesmen and women to take on many spouses of [[EveryoneIsBi both sexes]]. They are known for being very passionate and open about sex compared to other species, perfectly willing to copulate out in the open, expect their guests to partake in it for their hospitality (though they are not typically the most welcoming), and would even "swap spouses" during yearly celebrations. Ozge's [[CulturalRebel desire to enter into a monogamous relationship]] is considered "selfish" to them ([[YoureJustJealous though that could be because their leader wants Ozge to join her harem]]) and they are initially hostile to Alfie's travelling party because Ozge is escorting them.

* In ''Fanfic/{{Handmaid}}'', the titular handmaid system, while a bit out of practice, is still an acceptable way for a king to produce legitimate heirs while still being married to his wife, at least according to the Catholic Church. There is even a ceremony to mark the union [[spoiler:and if the handmaid produces a son she is crowned Princess Consort]]. Katherine of Aragon decides to convince Henry VIII to take this route so he can have heirs but Mary's life and legitimacy can still be preserved, and Anne Boleyn is chosen as the handmaid. (Anne's fine with this because the other big [[ForWantOfANail nail]] in this story is she falls for ''Katherine'', so will do this in order to stay close to her.)

* ''ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2020'': ComicBook/StarLord becomes stranded with a Mors and Aradia, a male and female alien couple, [[YearOutsideHourInside for one hundred and forty-four years]]. After the first year, the two of them invite him to be part of their "bond", but he refuses because he's still trying to find a way back home to Gamora. When he tries to explain monogamy to them, she playfully calls him weird. After the ''twelfth'' year, a way home is finally found but he [[IChooseToStay accepts the alien dimension as his new home]] and indeed joins the pair in their relationship. Aradia, in fact, seemingly gives birth to a child named "Rocky" from the relationship (while it's never said that Rocky is Peter's, he clearly cares for the child as much as any father would, and the name is clearly Earthling). After more than one hundred and forty years, the corrupted Greek Gods come looking for him in his new home and he reluctantly chooses to return back to his original home, leaving his lovers behind.
* A ''ComicBook/SupermansGirlfriendLoisLane'' story has Lois fall in love with Titanman, a muscular {{Human Alien|s}}. On their wedding day, Titanman reveals to Lois he comes from a planet that legalized polygamy, and that she will become his ''eighth'' wife. Lois objects to the thought of having to share a husband with seven other women, so Titanman tranquilizes her into proceeding with the wedding. Superman [[OutOfCharacterMoment jealously refuses to save her]], but [[spoiler:she escapes having to marry Titanman by awakening back in the Daily Planet.]]
* The practice of polygyny is carried over from some real life Islamic cultures into the world of ''ComicBook/{{Iznogoud}}''; Caliph Haroun el-Plassid has multiple wives and dozens of children (so many that he can't reliably remember all of their names), as does Sultan Pullmankar. In "A Calculated Risk", the Caliph and Sultan Pullmankar sign a marriage contract engaging the Caliph's 37th son to the Sultan's 42nd daughter.
* ComicBook/BlackBolt was at one point married with four different Inhuman queens besides his official {{love interest}} [[ComicBook/MedusaMarvelComics Medusa]]. They belonged to different alien species known as Universal Inhumans, who were experimented by the Kree and underwent similar augmentation processes as Terrigenesis, and they all married him due to an prophecy regarding the Midnight King who was thought to be him. [[spoiler:They were all killed (with the exception of Medusa) by the [[SuperSoldier Super-Inhuman Vox]]]].
* In ''ComicBook/{{Elfquest}}'', Savah mentions that Sun Villagers have occasionally taken more than one mate. Such cases presumably are needed when elvish Recognition - an involuntary drive to hook up with another elf whose genes are highly compatible - demands they select one partner, but their emotional connection is firmly with another.

* In ''Literature/HighSchoolDxD'', Devils consider polyamory and polygamy a matter of preference for those involved. This may have something to do with their [[ImmortalProcreationClause long lifespans and low fertility]], especially after the GreatOffscreenWar appears to have [[MenAreTheExpendableGender left a gender disparity in its wake]]. Rias and her brother are children of such an arrangement, but not only are they the only (known) children of it, they both have the same mother. Part of it appears to also be a leftover from less-enlightened times, as a Master sleeping with their servants is also considered normal, but one who admits to doing so without consent is considered scum. All this means Issei goes from shocked to ''[[HaremSeeker delighted]]'' with his FirstEpisodeResurrection.\\ On the other hand, it's also shown that monogamy isn't alien to them either. The only thing considered outlandish about Sirzechs and Grayfia is that he has the title of Satan, yet she [[AlmightyMom wears the pants]].

* Several stories in Creator/UrsulaKLeGuin's Literature/{{Hainish}} 'verse are set on the planet O, where people are divided into "Moieties"[[note]]A real sociological term for societies that arbitrarily or semi-arbitrarily divide themselves into two two complementary halves. The most notable are probably the moieties of the Iroquois/Haudenosaunee tribes.[[/note]] known as Evening and Morning, and all of society is built around said moieties. On O, a traditional marriage consists of an Evening man and woman and a Morning man and woman. Each person has a wife and a husband of the opposite moiety, both of whom they're expected to be sexually intimate with, and an additional spouse of the opposite gender but the same moiety as them, whom they're forbidden to be sexually intimate with. Le Guin adds that these marriages may open up to six or eight people total, and include siblings as partners--but the siblings, being of the same moiety, will not be intimate. Funnily enough, O is by and large a conservative and predictable world, and these extended marriages are the only really unusual thing about them compared to other planets.

-->-- '''Chief Justice Waite''', 1878 court case ''Reynolds v. United States'' [[note]]This isn't exactly true; polygamy was common in Europe well into classical antiquity. Even well into the medieval era it was practiced by non-Christian groups, such as the Vikings. It is true that the Classical Greeks and Romans both practiced nominal monogamy, forbidding any man from taking more than one formal wife, and did so even before the arrival of Christianity. However, both civilizations (1) were very weird in their day for that prohibition and (2) ''de facto'' allowed their elite men to be polygamous by turning a blind eye to affairs and concubinage. Suffice it to say, polygamy has been practiced at one time or another on every continent and is not in fact particularly exotic. It simply happens to be uncommon in the modern day, largely due to the spread of Christianity as well as economic factors that make large extended families impractical.[[/note]]

* In the [[UsefulNotes/{{Furry|Fandom}} Webcomic ''Webcomic/TwentyFirstCenturyFox'' the giraffes Cecil, Barb, and Beth form a "herd". Their vulpine friends find the idea of wanting to share one male a bit odd.

* In the FurryWebcomic ''Webcomic/TwentyFirstCenturyFox'' the giraffes Cecil, Barb, and Beth form a "herd". Their vulpine friends find the idea of wanting to share one male a bit odd.

* ''TabletopGame/Pathfinder'''s ''Mwangi Expanse'' expansion introduces the anadi, a group of sapient spiders. The anadi tend to form "web marriages" of up to five anadi, who all communally raise their young. Anadi are named by taking a syllable from each member of the web marriage, though they may take on a phrase-title once they settle into their identity.

-->-- Chief Justice Waite, 1878 court case ''Reynolds v. United States'' [[note]]This isn't exactly true; polygamy was common in Europe well into classical antiquity. Even well into the medieval era it was practiced by non-Christian groups, such as the Vikings. It is true that the Classical Greeks and Romans both practiced nominal monogamy, forbidding any man from taking more than one formal wife, and did so even before the arrival of Christianity. However, both civilizations (1) were very weird in their day for that prohibition and (2) ''de facto'' allowed their elite men to be polygamous by turning a blind eye to affairs and concubinage. Suffice it to say, polygamy has been practiced at one time or another on every continent and is not in fact particularly exotic. It simply happens to be uncommon in the modern day, largely due to the spread of Christianity as well as economic factors that make large extended families impractical.[[/note]]

* In ''Literature/{{Dune}}'' Fremen commonly take multiple wives as a way of pinpointing male sterility. Imperial nobles are allowed only one wife but may take bound-concubines whose children by him are considered legitimate (a bit like how things worked in the Ottoman Empire and Qing Dynasty China), but lower in the line of succession than children from a wife. Paul is the son of a duke and his beloved concubine (who in a bit of a subversion of the usual course was his ''only'' mate;[[note]]At the time at least; the [[FanonDiscontinuity "prequels"]] hold [[Literature/PreludeToDune he had taken another bound-concubine before]], the daughter of the deposed and disgraced Earl of Ix.[[/note]] Duke Leto liked to play UsefulNotes/ElizabethI's game and pretend to court various noble women for political advantage), and it causes Paul no small bit of angst that he has to relegate his Fremen love Chani to a concubine and marry the emperor's daughter in a SexlessMarriage in order to legitimize his coup.

*** In the episode [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS1E13AngelOne "Angel One"]], the ''Enterprise'' crew visits an alien race where the women are larger in stature than the men and hold all of the business, scientific, and government jobs as well as any occupations requiring physical strength. The smaller men are thought to be better suited for domestic and artistic endeavors. Important women, especially, have multiple husbands, and they all share a marital bed. This is all part of a PersecutionFlip as AnAesop.
*** This trope is the alternate interpretation of a throwaway line from [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS4E11DatasDay "Data's Day"]] that Andorian marriages consist of four people. The Literature/StarTrekNovelverse preferred the BizarreAlienSexes interpretation, with there being four genders needed to participate in Andorian reproduction (two humans perceive as masculine and two we perceive as feminine).
*** In "Up the Long Ladder", the crew of the ''Enterprise'' discovers two human [[LostColony Lost Colonies]], both of which are under threat. The Bringloidi are an agrarian society that has given up advanced technology for a simple life, but their planet is no longer habitable. The Mariposans are a more technically advanced society of clones derived from five original settlers who survived a crash, threatened by CloneDegeneration. The only solution provided by Dr. Pulaski is to re-join the two peoples (they originally came on the same ship). However, in order to provide enough genetic variety to ensure long-term survival, each Bringloidi or Mariposan will need to have three mates. This state of affairs is likely to last for generations, until enough genetic variety has been created. Even then, cultural inertia is likely to keep them doing it for long after the necessity has passed. One Bringloidi woman seems relieved at the idea of being surrounded by intelligent and well-mannered Mariposan men.

*** In the episode "Sanctuary": among the Skrreea, a matriarchal society, the women take multiple males as mates. The main Skrreea character isn't familiar with the word "husband" but describes her own two men as "bonded to me". She's a little surprised to find out Kira doesn't have ''any'' males of her own ("at the moment") and notes that "they come in very handy".
*** The episode [[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS07E13FieldOfFire "Field of Fire"]] has a throwaway mention that a murdered [[RedShirt Gold Shirt]], a Bolian, had a wife and co-husband on Bolias.

* In ''Series/BabylonFive'' Londo Mollari has three wives, all {{Arranged Marriage}}s, whom he hates. It's apparently not uncommon for high status Centauri nobles, and made easier by their [[ExoticEquipment six "appendages"]]. In the episode [[Recap/BabylonFiveS02E07SoulMates "Soul Mates"]], he's granted dispensation by the Emperor to divorce two of them, and chooses to stay married to Timov. Unlike Mariel and Daggair, she's known for her BrutalHonesty and doesn't pretend to like him, but won't plot to assassinate him either.
* Sister Clarice Willow on ''Series/{{Caprica}}'' is married to multiple men and women, who are all married to each other. This is implied to be unusual but perfectly legal, and although Clarice and her spouses are secretly members of a monotheistic religion it's obviously practiced by some polytheist families as well, since the fact they're monotheists is secret but the fact they're all married is not.
* The Nietzscheans of ''Series/{{Andromeda}}'', a genetically engineered HumanSubspecies who believe in SocialDarwinism, practice polygyny. A male can marry as many females as his displays of genetic fitness attract; alpha males often have ten or more (despite this, it is actually the females who are in control and matriarchs preside over the approval of genetic matches in their pride).
* Polyamorous marriages aren't considered unusual in the setting of ''Series/TheExpanse'' (and presumably [[Literature/TheExpanse the novel series it's based on]]). Holden has eight parents (five fathers and three mothers) and was conceived via a mixing of all eight genetic profiles. It's implied that such marriages also produce naturally-conceived children with two "true" parents, but with all the adults being equally considered as mothers and fathers.
* ''Series/{{Sliders}}'': In "[[Recap/SlidersS05E10EasySlider Easy Slider]]", polygamy is legal on the world that the sliders visit.

* ''Series/MotherlandFortSalem'': The fictional witch culture at least in the US has polyandry (marriage between a woman and multiple men) as a common feature. In fact it's standard among High Atlantic witches, an elite upper class group, with three husbands being an average number. This is explained as a way to have a larger source of positive genetics in any child's conception (which [[ExtraParentConception they all contribute to simultaneously]], probably [[MysticalPregnancy by magic]]).

* Vonda N. [=McIntyre=]'s ''Starfarer'' series has at least one married triad (Victoria Fraser [=MacKenzie=], Stephen Thomas Gregory, and Satoshi Lono). There was originally a fourth spouse, but [[GenderNeutralWriting they]] died before the series kicks off.

-->-- Chief Justice Waite, 1878 court case ''Reynolds v. United States'' [[note]]Polygamy was common in Europe well into classical antiquity. Even well into the medieval era it was practiced by non-Christian groups, such as the Vikings. It is true that the Classical Greeks and Romans both practiced nominal monogamy, forbidding any man from taking more than one formal wife, but both civilizations (1) were very weird in their day for that prohibition and (2) ''de facto'' allowed their elite men to be polygamous by turning a blind eye to affairs and concubinage. Suffice it to say, polygamy has been practiced at one time or another on every continent and is not in fact particularly exotic. It simply happens to be uncommon in the modern day, largely due to the spread of Christianity as well as economic factors that make large extended families impractical.[[/note]]

* Several stories in Creator/UrsulaKLeGuin's Literature/{{Hainish}} 'verse are set on the planet O, where people are divided into "Moieties" known as Evening and Morning, and all of society is built around said moieties. On O, a traditional marriage consists of an Evening man and woman and a Morning man and woman. Each person has a wife and a husband of the opposite moiety, both of whom they're expected to be sexually intimate with, and an additional spouse of the opposite gender but the same moiety as them, whom they're forbidden to be sexually intimate with. Le Guin adds that these marriages may open up to six or eight people total, and include siblings as partners--but the siblings, being of the same moiety, will not be intimate. Funnily enough, O is by and large a conservative and predictable world, and these extended marriages are the only really unusual thing about them compared to other planets.

-->-- Chief Justice Waite, 1878 court case ''Reynolds v. United States'' [[note]] this is not true. Polygamy was in fact fairly common among the elite in Ancient Greece and Iron Age Europe. Even well into the medieval era it was practiced by non-Christian groups, such as the Vikings. Suffice it to say, polygamy has been practiced at one time or another on every continent and is not in fact particularly exotic. It simply happens to be uncommon in the modern day, largely due to the spread of Christianity as well as economic factors that make large extended families impractical.[[/note]]

* A couple of fanfics written before the premier of ''Anime/Pokemon2023'', set during an era of fan speculation of new protagonist Liko's possible relation to Ash, and by extension his female companions, let to a few works, such as ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/44060416/chapters/110783530#workskin Riko Has All the Moms]]'' and ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14187559/1/A-Visit-From-Grandma A Visit]]'' ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/44362870 From Grandma]]'' where polygamy is uncommon, but not unheard of, in the Pokemon world, and Liko is the daughter of such a relationship, with the latter having more parents while the former's parent includes a [[InterspeciesRomance Latias]]. The question of 'who' her mom isn't particularly important in either work, as she is raised and loved by all of them with a specific title for each of them to keep it all straight.

* A couple of fanfics written before the premier of ''Anime/Pokemon2023'', set during an era of fan speculation of new protagonist Liko's possible relation to Ash, and by extension his female companions, let to a few works, such as ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/44060416/chapters/110783530#workskin Riko Has All the Moms]]'' and ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14187559/1/A-Visit-From-Grandma A Visit]]'' ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/44362870 From Grandma]]'' where polygamy is uncommon, but not unheard of, in the Pokemon world, and Liko is the daughter of such a relationship. The question of 'who' her mom isn't particularly important in either work, as she is raised and loved by all of them with a specific title for each of them to keep it all straight.

* In ''{{Film/Tron}}: Endgame Scenario'' (a ''[[{{VideoGame/Tron20}} Tron 2.0]]/{{Film/TronLegacy}}'' PatchworkFic series), Programs are commonly "bundled" in groups from two to five members.

* In ''Literature/ChildrenOfTheBlackSun'', group marriages are normal in Ricalani culture, with multiple men and multiple women all being considered a single household. Characters from other cultures consider this decidedly odd, but as certain [[{{LoveTriangle}} Love Triangles]] arise, the idea starts to look more practical.

* In ''LightNovel/CatPlanetCuties'', the Catians have no issues with a male choosing multiple mates due to there being a gender imbalance in the species resulting in there being about 20 female Catians for every 1 male. This becomes relevant to the plot when [[spoiler:Kio's house]] is converted into the official [[spoiler:Catian embassy, leaving Kio [[MarryThemAll free to marry]] all three of the girls in love with him]].
* In ''LightNovel/HighSchoolDxD'', Devils consider polyamory and polygamy a matter of preference for those involved. This may have something to do with their [[ImmortalProcreationClause long lifespans and low fertility]], especially after the GreatOffscreenWar appears to have [[MenAreTheExpendableGender left a gender disparity in its wake]]. Rias and her brother are children of such an arrangement, but not only are they the only (known) children of it, they both have the same mother. Part of it appears to also be a leftover from less-enlightened times, as a Master sleeping with their servants is also considered normal, but one who admits to doing so without consent is considered scum. All this means Issei goes from shocked to ''[[HaremSeeker delighted]]'' with his FirstEpisodeResurrection.\\ On the other hand, it's also shown that monogamy isn't alien to them either. The only thing considered outlandish about Sirzechs and Grayfia is that he has the title of Satan, yet she [[AlmightyMom wears the pants]].

* ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'': Season 4 shows that marriages between three people are apparently unremarkable in Atlantean culture, so long as all the participants wish it. Lagoon Boy has both a husband and a wife.

-->-- Chief Justice Waite, 1878 court case ''Reynolds v. United States''[note] this is not true. Polygamy was in fact quite common in Ancient Greece and Iron Age Europe. Even well into the medieval era it was practiced by non-Christian groups, such as the Vikings. Suffice it to say, polygamy has been practiced at one time or another on every continent and is not in fact particularly exotic. It simply happens to be uncommon in the modern day, largely due to the spread of Christianity as well as economic factors that make large extended families impractical.[/note]

-->-- Chief Justice Waite, 1878 court case ''Reynolds v. United States''

-->-- Chief Justice Waite, 1878 American court case ''Reynolds v. United States''

->''"As [maternal grandmother] was in early clan marriage (Stone Gang) and shared six husbands with another woman, identity of maternal grandfather open to question. But was often so, and I'm content with the grandpappy she picked."''
-->-- '''Manuel Garcia O'Kelly-Davis''', ''Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress'' by Creator/RobertAHeinlein

Historically, the most common form of extended marriage was one man with multiple wives. The technical term for this is "polygyny",[[note]][[YouKeepUsingThatWord/LessPedantic "Polygamy" is any multi-spouse setup, while "polygyny" is specific to one man and several wives]][[/note]] and it has appeared in a wide variety of cultures. For this reason, adventure stories set in an exotic corner of the Earth are most likely to feature polygyny. To some extent, this can be TruthInTelevision. The equivalent term for a woman who married several men is polyandry.

* ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'': In early Season 1, Daemon Targaryen's claims that he's going to take Mysaria as a second wife (after Rhea Royce, who's still alive) "in the tradition of Old Valyria", much like Aegon the Conqueror, who was married to both his sisters Rhaenys and Visenya. The exoticness is intentional, {{Invoked|Trope}}, since Daemon has decided to become a polygamist entirely for attention.