The reasons for the custom of bride kidnapping in the North Caucasus are investigated. The analysis of statistical indicators of the number of kidnappings, the number of criminal cases, the unemployment rate, the dynamics of per capita income in the region. There are three main reasons for the bride’s abduction: lack of time or desire for courtship; lack of money for redemption and holding a wedding celebration; the inability to obtain consent to the marriage of the bride’s relatives. The authors pay special attention to the socio-economic reasons that characterize the standard of living in the North Caucasus region. The results of sociological research show that the vast majority of abductions lead to extremely negative consequences — unhappy marriages, broken families, broken lives, a vendetta, murder and suicide, etc. To prevent this it is necessary to make use of complex approach: from crime prevention to criminal prosecution. © 2019 Ivanovo State University Publishing. All rights reserved.

Marriage by abduction Traditions Customs Bride kidnapping gender relations

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