Yahoo Answers is shutting down on May 4th, 2021 (Eastern Time) and beginning April 20th, 2021 (Eastern Time) the Yahoo Answers website will be in read-only mode. There will be no changes to other Yahoo properties or services, or your Yahoo account. You can find more information about the Yahoo Answers shutdown and how to download your data on this help page.

When did they stop putting 'bachelor' and 'spinster' on UK marriage certificates?

I've just cot a copy of my sisters marriage certificate from last week (Nov 2008) and the registrar has put both her and her new husbands conditions down as 'single' rather than the traditional 'bachelor' and 'spinster' that I've seen on every other certficate I own. I'm guessing this is a fairly recent thing, but does anyone know how recent, or if the couple get an choice in the matter, or have the terms 'bachelor' and 'spinster' gone for good? Just curious.

5 Answers

Relevance
  • 1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    On September 5, 2005, the Registrar General in England and Wales officially abolished the traditional terms of "bachelor" and "spinster" and substituted the more politically correct "single" to coincide with the reform that introduced civil partnerships, explaining, "The word single will be used to mean a couple who has never been through a marriage or civil partnership."

  • ?
    Lv 4
    5 years ago

    What Does Spinster Mean

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    Well, when I was married in 1999 it was still bachelor and spinster - I thought it looked antiquated then, so "single" is better I think.

  • 1 decade ago

    I was married in the UK in 2004 and we had bachelor and spinster on ours.

  • How do you think about the answers? You can sign in to vote the answer.
  • 1 decade ago

    It might be just that registrars way of doing things, I remember when I got married 24 years ago the vicar would not let my wife have obey in the vows, he said it was not good to start marriage off with a lie.

Still have questions? Get your answers by asking now.