Same-sex Marriage Around the World
Same-sex marriage has been around since ancient times.
The Jewish text the Sifra, written in the 3rd century, CE mentions same-sex couples, and the Book of Leviticus prohibited homosexuality. In fact, the Hebrews were warned not to “follow the acts of the land of Egypt or the acts of the land of Canaan” (Lev. 18:22, 20:13). The Sifra explains that these “acts” included marriage between same-sex couples: “A man would marry a man and a woman a woman, a man would marry a woman and her daughter, and a woman would be married to two men”. So, you know, a progressive view amongst the ancients.
And in modern times...
Fast forward a mere 1700 years and be delighted to find that a number of governments around the world are currently considering whether to legalize same-sex marriages, the latest of which is Japan. So far, there are 30 countries that allow gays and lesbians to marry, mostly in Europe and the Americas, with Taiwan being the only Asian nation to do so.
In some of these countries, the marriage laws were changed by citizen vote, in others the courts recognized the existing laws as unconstitutional and overruled them. Below is a list of countries that have legalized the practice, with the most recent countries to do so shown first.
**UPDATE: Nepal provisionally recognized same-sex marriages as of 24 April 2024, but without fully equal rights, and pending a ruling by the Suprme Court. Thailand became the next country in Asia and only the first in Southeast Asia to recognize same-sex marriage official on 23 Jan 2025.
| Country | Year Legalized | Popular vote / Courts / Legislation |
|
Switzerland |
2022 | Parliament |
| Chile | 2022 | Legislature |
| Costa Rica | 2020 | Courts |
| Northern Ireland | 2019 | UK Parliament |
| Ecuador | 2019 | Courts |
| Taiwan | 2019 | Yuan Parliament |
| Austria | 2019 | Courts |
| Australia | 2017 | Popular vote |
| Malta | 2017 | Parliament |
| Germany | 2017 | Parliament |
| Colombia | 2016 | Courts |
| United States | 2015 | Courts |
| Greenland | 2015 | Parliament |
| Ireland | 2015 | Popular vote |
| Finland | 2015 | Parliament |
| Luxembourg | 2014 | Parliament |
| Scotland | 2014 | Parliament |
| England & Wales | 2013 | Parliament |
| Brazil | 2013 | Courts |
| France | 2013 | Parliament |
| New Zealand | 2013 | Parliament |
| Uruguay | 2013 | Legislature |
| Denmark | 2012 | Parliament |
| Argentina | 2010 | Legislature |
| Portugal | 2010 | Parliament & Courts |
| Iceland | 2010 | Parliament |
| Sweden | 2009 | Parliament |
| Norway | 2008 | Parliament |
| South Africa | 2006 | Parliament & Courts |
| Spain | 2005 | Parliament |
| Canada | 2005 | Parliament |
| Belgium | 2003 | Parliament |
| Netherlands | 2000 | Parliament |
For a more in-depth look at how citizens, courts and governments worked together or in opposition to pass these laws visit the Pew Research page here . . . https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/fact-sheet/gay-marriage-around-the-world/