Marriage and Migration in Asia

The articles in this special issue bring a gender-sensitive perspective to bear on aspects of marriage and migration in intra- and transnational contexts. In particular they consider: (a) how given specific rules of marriage and (post-marital) residence the institution of marriage may itself entail womens migration; (b) how marriage can be used as an individual and family strategy to facilitate migration and conversely how migration may become an important factor in the making of marriages; (c) the fluid boundaries between matchmaking and trafficking in the context of migration; (d) the political economy of marriage transactions; and finally more broadly (e) the impact of intra- and transnational migration on the institution of marriage family relations and kinship networks. While most of the articles here concern marriage in the context of transnational migration we consider it important--given the reality of uneven development within the different countries of the Asian region--to emphasise the overlap and commonality of issues in both intra- and international contexts. (excerpt)