Monogamy

The monogamy is the practice that is based on having a sexual relationship or marriage with one person at a time. In general, it means being emotionally , romantically and sexually committed to only one person. Monogamy is the most common relationship style in North America. Being monogamous can mean different things depending on the person, this being the case then some people may be open to their partner forging a close emotional bond with another person, as long as the relationship does not turn sexual. Other people may want to include their partner in all social activitiesBut don’t want your partner to develop close emotional relationships with other people.

Etymology

The word monogamy is a term that comes from the word of Greek origin ” μονογαμία “, which means ” of a single marriage “. This word arises from the words ” monkey ” which means ” one alone “, and the word ” gamos ” which means ” marriage “, in addition the suffix ” ia ” is added, which means quality or action. In this way, monogamy is defined as that a form of relationship or custom that a certain person has of establishing and having a relationship with only one partner.

Origin of monogamy

Monogamy evolved in humans as low-ranking men changed tactics not to compete with higher ranked rivals and to reveal their more compassionate side to potential suitors. At some point in early human history our ancestors stopped mating promiscuously and adopted the new and more orderly mating system of monogamy. It is not yet fully understood why this transition would have occurred, but a North American scientist has used simple mathematical models to predict how the evolutionary quirk arose and why it has influenced the configuration.of some unique characteristics of our species .

Monogamous family

The monogamous family arises from the syndiasmic family , when the world began to evolve. It is characterized by having as its foundation the predominance of man, by having as its main objective to procreate children and that they inherit from the father. These ties that exist in the monogamous family can only be destroyed by the man and the two spouses share the affections and care for the children. It is the way to create a unity within society , which is firm and has greater coherence. In them, women receive greater and better protection, acquiring a hierarchical rank .

Monogamy in animals

Monogamy in animals is the mating of a single male with a single female , it is a very common behavior in birds , but rare in most other animals, however, there are exceptions to the rule. Monogamy generally requires animals to be able to recognize their partner as an individual , not a particularly easy cognitive task . In theory, a monogamous pairing ensures that both partners will contribute to the care of their offspring and to mutual defense .

The greatest cost of monogamy is that each individual makes their entire reproductive investment dependent on the physical condition of their partner. This places great importance on choosing a suitable companion, this because choosing an inappropriate mate could have catastrophic costs for the animal. Monogamous animals use two methods to pick and win at partner choice bets. First, they can engage in serial monogamy , bonding with one partner during one mating season , but choosing a different partner in a later season. Second, many apparently monogamous couples are often subject toinfidelities or extra couple copulations. While more than 90% of bird species appear to be monogamous, genetic studies show that in most populations at least some young in each generation result from mating with non-pair pairs.

Some examples of animals that practice monogamy are:

• Gray wolf: it  is one of the most loyal animals that exist, it does not like loneliness and, therefore, the pack is very important and is based on the family : male wolf, female wolf and cubs. The first – born of the children is in charge of helping his mother in the upbringing of his siblings. They may have several partners in their life, but only one at a time.
• Albatross : they make great tours around the world, but they return with the pair they chose to reproduce . They are very affectionate with each other and the couple’s bonds are formed over several years and last a lifetime.
• Macaw : this type of bird is one of the most romantic and stays with the same partner until it dies.
• Penguins : They are believed to be monogamous to maximize their chances of development and survival . The two share equally everything related to raising children and fight for both them and their partner throughout their lives.