Ehelich

Ehelich is a German adjective that denotes something related to marriage or to status arising from marriage. In practical terms, it is used to describe relationships, statuses, or events that are recognized as belonging to a married couple.

In genealogical and civil-law contexts, ehelich is often contrasted with unehelich, a term that has largely fallen out of everyday use. Historically, unehelich referred to children born outside marriage, while ehelich referred to legitimate or legitimate-born offspring. Today, the term unehelich is increasingly avoided in favor of neutral phrases such as nicht ehelich, outside of wedlock, or non-marital, with priority given to parental rights and civil recognition rather than a stigma attached to legitimacy.

Common contexts for the word include eheliche Abstammung (legitimate descent), eheliches Kind (child born within wedlock), and eheliche Rechte (marital rights). It can also describe institutions, duties, or partnerships connected to marriage, such as eheliche Gemeinschaft (marital partnership) or eheliche Pflichten (marital duties). The form changes to match gender, number, and case in sentences.

Etymology and usage notes: ehe comes from the German word for marriage, and the suffix -lich turns the noun into an adjective meaning "pertaining to." In English-language discussions of German law or genealogy, ehelich is typically translated as “marital” or “legitimate” depending on the context, with attention to the historical nuances of legitimacy in inheritance and civil status.

Overall, ehelich serves as a technical term in German to indicate aspects tied to marriage, with diminishing use of its outdated counterpart unehelich in contemporary language.