Sibling-in-law

Relationships

Siblings-in-law are related by a type of kinship called affinity like all in-law relationships. All of these are relations which do not relate to the person directly by blood.

Just like the children of one's siblings, the children of one's siblings-in-law are called simply nieces and nephews – if necessary, specified whether "by marriage", as opposed to "by blood" or "by adoption".

If one pair of siblings is married to another pair of siblings, the siblings-in-law are thus doubly related, each of the four both through one's spouse and through one's sibling, while the children of the two couples are double cousins.

Culture

One study, examining the issue of envy in the triadic system of sibling, sibling-in-law and spouse, concluded that "The sibling-in-law relationship shared similarities with both spousal and sibling relationships" and that "Relational closeness and satisfaction for all relationships in the triad were correlated."

In Islamic law (Sharia) and Jewish law (halakha), sexual relations between siblings-in-law are prohibited as incestuous, unless the spouse is no longer married. Conversely, in Judaism there was the custom of yibbum, whereby a man had a non-obligatory duty to wed his deceased brother's childless widow, so she might have progeny by him.

References

References

1. "Co-Sister".
2. "Co-Brother".
3. Cambridge Dictionaries Online. "[http://dictionary.cambridge.org/topics/family-and-relationships/non-blood-relations/ Family: non-blood relations]".
4. Yoshimura, C.G. (2010). "The experience and communication of envy among siblings, siblings-in-law, and spouses". Journal of Social and Personal Relationships.
5. {{qref. 4. 23
6. [[Leviticus]] 18:16, 18:18.
7. [[Deuteronomy]] 25:5–10.