Widow inheritance

marriage in which the brother of a deceased man is obliged to marry his brother's widow

Yevamot (, "Brother's Widow", also pronounced Yevamos, or Yavmus) is a tractate of the Talmud that deals with, among other concepts, the laws of Yibbum (, loosely translated in English as levirate marriage), and, briefly, with conversion to Judaism. This tractate is the first in the order of Nashim (, "Women").

Yibbum (, ) is the form of levirate marriage found in Judaism. As specified by , the brother of a man who died without children is permitted and encouraged to marry the widow. However, if either of the parties refuses to go through with the marriage, both are required to go through a ceremony known as halizah, involving a symbolic act of renunciation of their right to perform this marriage.

thumb|right|Engraving of a chalitza ceremony

marriage practice in Protestant Europe in the early modern age