The FamilySearch GEDCOM 5.5.1 specification gives the impression that marriage is the only couple relationship in existence, and seems to exclude same-sex marriage. It is possible to record other relationships, and it is possible to record same-sex marriages, but you need to read the spec carefully, and not all developers have figured theses things out. Developers have used extensions to record same-sex marriage, and some are still using extensions to record other relationships.
The GEDCOM 5.5.5 specification explicitly supports same-sex marriages and relationships other marriage. The GEDCOM 5.5.5 specification does so without any syntax changes. All that's changed between GEDCOM 5.5.1 and 5.5.5 is the explanatory text around the unchanged syntax.
| MARR.TYPE value | description |
|---|---|
| unknown | relationship (type unknown) |
| marriage | marriage |
| not married | not married |
| civil | civil marriage |
| religious | religious marriage |
| common law | common law marriage |
| partnership | partnership |
| registered partnership | registered partnership |
| living together | living together |
| living apart together | living apart together |
| not this | but this |
|---|---|
| English | English |
| unmarried | not married |
| extramarital | not married |
| reli | religious |
| church | religious |
| German | English |
| Unbestimmte Verbindung | unknown |
| Uneheliche Verbindung | unmarried |
| Ziviltrauung | civil |
| Zivil | civil |
| amtlich | civil |
| bürgerlich | civil |
| Standesamtlich | civil |
| Standesamtliche Trauung | civil |
| Lebensgefährten | living together |
| Lebensgemeinschaft | living together |
| Verheiratet | married |
| Gemeinschaft | partnership |
| nicht ehelich | not married |
| Nicht verheiratet | not married |
| unverheiratet | not married |
| außerehelich | not married |
| Kirchliche Trauung | religious |
| kirchlich | religious |
| katholisch | religious |
| evangelisch | religious |
| Dutch | English |
| ongehuwd | not married |
| niet gehuwd | not married |
| partnerschap | partnership |
| geregistreerd partnerschap | registered partnership |
| samenwonend | living together |
Same-sex marriage is recorded in just the same way as opposite-sex marriage.
It involves the HUSB and WIFE records, because that is how FamilySearch defined it,
but those records do not imply a particular gender or role.
The Same-Sex Marriage in GEDCOM article discusses this is some detail.
GEDCOM 5.5.5 clearly states that an individual's sex is specified by INDI.SEX and INDI.SEX only.
FamilySearch GEDCOM 5.5.1 calls the MARR record the marriage record
.
GEDCOM 5.5.5 keeps the record for compatibility, but uses more accurate terminology; relationship record
.
The MARR record is the relationship record because it can and must be used for every couple relationship, not just marriage.
GEDCOM 5.5.5 explicitly states what some developers already figured out, yet other did not;
the actual relationship can and should be specified through the MARR.TYPE record.
Developers that still use proprietary extensions should stop doing so, and use the MARR.TYPE record instead.
The GEDCOM 5.5.5 specification contains a list of possible relationships. That list was not made from scratch, but is largely based on already existing usage. It does not propose something new, but codifies existing practice.
This list should not be taken as an exhaustive list, developers can add additional relationships,
but the list is provided to start some standardisation.
When looking at existing practice, we noticed different applications using different terms for the same thing.
We also noticed that Dutch applications used Dutch terminology, and German applications used German terminology.
That's not wrong, that's simply what happens when developers are challenged to support multiple relationship in the absence of any standard for doing so.
Applications should all use the same terms for the same thing,
and while applications should translate relationship to match the language of the user interface,
they should stick to English terminology in the GEDCOM file, to increase compatibility with other applications.
To promote standardisation and increased compatibility between different applications,
the table of MARR.TYPE values is not only provided in the GEDCOM 5.5.5 specification, but in the GEDCOM 5.5.1 Annotated Edition as well.
The Married, Divorced, Married Again article discusses how to record a couple that marries, divorces and then later marries each other again.
The GEDCOM 5.5.1 spec is not clear about this, but multiple MARR records within the same FAM (family group) record are for recording the same marriage multiple times.
To record a new marriage after divorce, a new FAM (family group) record must be used.
This is not only the simplest and most consistent way of doing it.
This way there is no confusion about the different marriages being different marriages.
Moreover, and this is not unimportant, only when recorded this way, does it remain possible to order each individual's FAM (family group) records in chronological order.
The Married, Divorced, Married Again article documents this as best practice for GEDCOM 5.5.1 files.
The GEDCOM 5.5.5 specification is explicit about have to usie a new FAM (family group) record for each new marriage.
The following few GEDCOM 5.5.5 rules are best practices for GEDCOM 5.5.1:
HUSB or WIFE record is used.INDI.SEX and INDI.SEX only.MARR.TYPE record to record couple relationships other than marriage.FAM (family group) record.FAM (family group) record.The GEDCOM SEX, Marriage in GEDCOM, and Same-Sex Marriage in GEDCOM have several GEDCOM 5.5.1 example files. The GEDCOM Site has a small GEDCOM 5.5.5 same-sex marriage and remarriage examples on the GEDCOM Samples page.
Copyright © Tamura Jones. All Rights reserved.