brideprice and bridewealth

brideprice and bridewealth

(ANTHROPOLOGY) a payment from the groom's kin to the bride's kin at marriage. The term ‘brideprice’ is rarely used now because of the implication that the woman is being purchased. It is considered to be an inappropriate Western metaphor for a practice that occurs in many cultures, usually those with PATRILINEAL DESCENT systems.

Collins Dictionary of Sociology, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2000