Marriage is obligatory among the Dinka. Every male is expected to raise a family and can marry as many wives as possible. Relatives marry to the ghost of a male who died in infancy –many ‘ghost fathers’ exist among the Dinka.
The bride price differs from one Dinka section to the other. It ranges from some tens (Upper Nile) to a few hundreds (Bahr el Ghazal). In the same way the bride price is raised by the groom’s family – contribution, it is distributed accordingly (uncle to uncle, brother to brother, etc.) in the Bride’s clan.
Chief’s daughters fetch more cattle in the same way chief’s son is expected to pay more cattle for his wife. University graduates fetch more bride prices; a factor that is likely to positively affect enrolment of girls in schools. Like other Nilotics, sex among the Dinka is only for social reproduction. Thus, fornication is prohibited; adulterers are despised and heavily fined, sometimes this may be source of conflict and clan fighting. Incest is usually unimaginable and indeed abhorred.
Marriage in Dinka is exogamic up to several generations. Traditionally, marriage is everyone's goal and having a family is regarded as the ultimate fulfillment in life. Men seek women through courtship. A man may create songs in which he praises his intended bride and her relatives and urges his own relatives to support him. Most marriages are through consent of the couple. When a man is regarded as eligible for marriage by his family, they sit with him to decide which, among the girls he has courted, he loves the most. He could also make suggestions and the family chooses from his list. Once an agreement is reached on the bride, his family makes a visit to her home to announce their intention and to discuss the number of cattle to paid in bride-wealth. Sometimes disagreements may arise and the man and woman may decide to elope. Once married, the couple may reside with the man's family for some time before they move out and establish their own home. They are free to live anywhere they desire, but newly-married couples generally reside with the man's family.
Dinka marriages are quite stable; divorce only occurs when the woman is unable to conceive. The bride's family usually makes sure the chances of saving the marriage are exhausted before agreeing to divorce, as termination of the union would mean return of the bride-wealth. If the union has produced children, part of the bride-wealth is kept by the bride's family as payment for the children who remain with the man.
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