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Created page with 'File:lighterstill.jpgright|frame ==Origin== from the idea that the first month of marriage is the sweetest *[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16th...'
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==Origin==
from the [[idea]] that the first month of [[marriage]] is the sweetest
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16th_century 1546]
One of the more recent citations in the [[Oxford English Dictionary]] indicates that, while today honeymoon has a positive [[meaning]], the word was originally a [[reference]] to the [[inevitable]] waning of [[love]] like a [[phase]] of the [[moon]].

In many parts of Europe it was [[traditional]] to supply a newly [[married]] couple with enough [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mead mead] for a month, ensuring [[happiness]] and [[fertility]]. From this [[practice]] we get honeymoon or, as the French say, ''lune de miel'' [lit. "moon of honey"].
==Definitions==
*1: a period of [[harmony]] immediately following [[marriage]]
*2: a period of unusual harmony especially following the establishment of a new [[relationship]]
*3: a trip or [[vacation]] taken by a newly married couple
==Description==
A '''honeymoon''' is the [[traditional]] holiday taken by newlyweds. One early reference to a honeymoon is in [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Book_of_Deuteronomy#Chapter_.24 Deuteronomy 24:5] “When a man is newly wed, he need not go out on a [[military]] expedition, nor shall any [[public]] [[duty]] be imposed on him. He shall be exempt for one year for the sake of his [[family]], to bring [[joy]] to the wife he has [[married]].”

Originally "honeymoon" simply [[described]] the period just after the [[wedding]] when things are at their sweetest; it is [[assumed]] to wane in a month. The earliest term for this in [[English]] was ''hony moone'', which was recorded as early as 1546.

In [[Western culture]], the [[custom]] of a newlywed couple going on a [[holiday]] together originated in early 19th century Great Britain, a [[concept]] borrowed from the Indian [[elite]], in the Indian Subcontinent, upper-class couples would take a "bridal tour", sometimes accompanied by [[friends]] or [[family]], to visit relatives who had not been able to attend the [[wedding]]. The practice soon spread to the European continent and was known as voyage ''à la façon anglaise'' (English-style voyage) in France from the 1820s on.

Honeymoons in the [[modern]] sense (i.e. a pure holiday voyage undertaken by the [[married]] couple) became widespread during the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belle_%C3%89poque Belle Époque], as one of the first instances of modern mass tourism. This came about in spite of initial disapproval by contemporary [[medical]] opinion (which worried about women's frail [[health]]) and by ''savoir vivre'' guidebooks (which deplored the public [[attention]] drawn to what was assumed to be the [[wife]]'s [[sexual]] [[initiation]]). The most popular honeymoon destinations at the time were the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Riviera French Riviera] and Italy, particularly its seaside resorts and [[romantic]] [[cities]] such as Rome, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verona Verona] or [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venice Venice]. Typically honeymoons would start on the night they were married, with the couple leaving midway through the reception to catch a late train or ship. However, in the 21st century, many couples will not leave until 1–3 days after the [[ceremony]] and reception in order to tie up loose ends with the reception venue and/or simply enjoy the reception to its fullest and have a relaxing night afterwards to recover, before undertaking a long [[journey]].

A recent survey by the [[marriage]] council of America stated, that on average honeymoon couples have [[sexual intercourse]] two times while on a honeymoon.

[[Category: Sociology]]
[[Category: Anthropology]]