concubinage

Cohabitation of a man with one or more women who do not have the full status of a wife. Concubines were permitted in ancient Greece and their children were legitimate if recognized by their fathers. Roman law also recognized concubines. Concubinage is still found in Islamic countries.

In Rome in 18 BC, in order to encourage regular marriages, the Lex Julia de maritandis ordinibus stipulated that only women of low rank should be chosen as concubines. The children of these concubines were called ‘natural’ and were considered illegitimate unless their parents later married. Their right of inheritance was very limited. Christianity outlawed such unions, and Constantine the Great issued legislation to check the practice.