who created or instituded marriage?

I think it is the christian religion who instituted formelly the marriage

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage your answer is there :)

Rafi, do you mean marriage or the wedding ceremony. Either way, you're
going way back and looking at practices that are as divergent as
society. What is remarkable is that every society has a ceremony for
marriage (and death, and sometimes reaching adulthood) despite the
differences in the details.

Xiutecutli, are you serious? You don't think anyone got married before
30 AD or so? Then what was the big deal about Mary's delicate
condition? Somebody has to read their Old Testament again!

Genesis 2 and Matthew 19

4 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made
them at the beginning made them male and female,
5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall
cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?
6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath
joined together, let not man put asunder.

that is God created marriage between the first 2 people and the
essential features of marriage apply in all societies (with or without
christian belief) all through this life - but no longer (see Matthew
22:30, Romans 7:1-3).

markvmd, i'm talking about the act, not the religious aspect of the
marriage, i think that the christian integrated it in the society.

> Xiutecutli, are you serious? You don't think anyone got married before
30 AD or so? Then what was the big deal about Mary's delicate
condition? Somebody has to read their Old Testament again!

I'm not believing in religion.

Xiu, ignoring the religious aspect of biblical stories, the Old
Testament was written between 3 and 5 thousand years ago and provides
a glimpse of life at that time. In it there are described marriages
and wedding ceremonies. These by far predate Christianity.

Apuleius (ancient Greece) wrote a story about the marriage of Cupid and Psyche.

Roman law required that a woman's property passed to her husband when they married.

Ancient Egyptians celebrated marriage as a sacred bond.

Every culture seems to have several common ceremonies-- an observance
of death, a boy's "manhood", and marriage. The practices have changed
radically even within a cultural subgroup, but they pretty much
remain. Even the old practice of boys wearing short pants until a
certain age is a manhood ceremony (brought about by the English
Church's schism with the papacy and the elimination of the rite of
Confirmation).

Marriage has pretty much been about contractual obligation, though,
and the recent "it's the bride's big day" biz is entirely marketing.

Now if someone would tell my wife to take off her shoes, get pregnant,
and give her a map to the kitchen, I'd be much obliged.

--Mark

PS You have to believe in religion-- there's all these people
practicing it weekly and they are not invisible (like the beloved
Flying Spaghetti Monster). You may not subscribe to it, but you gotta
admit that it's out there.

God. It is a critical part of His plan for the human family. In
western society, marriage and its importance is first described in
scripture by Abraham. Abraham's marraige to Sarai indicates that from
a strong bond of marriage form a strong family. From a strong family
comes strong communities, from strong communities arise strong
nations, and from strong nations arise a strong human family. In other
parts of the world, similar beliefs to the central role of marriage to
a strong society are present. Its clearly not something humans
invented, but rather it is the will of our Creator.

I admit that people can belieave in religion, but i don't believe in that's all :)