Editing Comoros (section)

=== Marriage ===
There are two types of marriages in Comoros, the little marriage (known as ''Mna daho'' on Ngazidja) and the customary marriage (known as ''ada'' on Ngazidja, ''harusi'' on the other islands). The little marriage is a simple legal marriage. It is small, intimate, and inexpensive, and the bride's dowry is nominal. A man may undertake a number of ''Mna daho'' marriages in his lifetime, often at the same time, a woman fewer; but both men and women will usually only undertake one ''ada'', or grand marriage, and this must generally be within the village. The hallmarks of the grand marriage are dazzling gold jewelry, two weeks of celebration and an enormous bridal dowry. Although the expenses are shared between both families as well as with a wider social circle, an ada wedding on Ngazidja can cost up to €50,000.<ref>Walker, Iain. "Islands in a Cosmopolitan Sea: A History of the Comoros." Hurst Publishers. 2019, p 212.</ref> Many couples take a lifetime to save for their ada, and it is not uncommon for a marriage to be attended by a couple's adult children.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Walker |first=Iain |year=2002 |title=Les aspects économiques du grand mariage de Ngazidja |journal=Autrepart |volume=23 |pages=157–171 |doi=10.3917/autr.023.0157}}</ref>

The ''ada'' marriage marks a man's transition in the Ngazidja age system from youth to elder. His status in the social hierarchy greatly increases, and he will henceforth be entitled to speak in public and participate in the political process, both in his village and more widely across the island. He will be entitled to display his status by wearing a ''mharuma'', a type of shawl, across his shoulders, and he can enter the mosque by the door reserved for elders, and sit at the front. A woman's status also changes, although less formally, as she becomes a "mother" and moves into her own house. The system is less formalised on the other islands, but the marriage is nevertheless a significant and costly event across the archipelago. The ''ada'' is often criticized because of its great expense, but at the same time it is a source of social cohesion and the main reason why migrants in France and elsewhere continue to send money home. Increasingly, marriages are also being taxed for the purposes of village development.<ref name="Walker, Iain 2010">Walker, Iain. "Becoming the Other, Being Oneself: Constructing Identities in a Connected World." Cambridge Scholars Publishing. 2010.</ref>