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You think you know your partner better than anybody else, but sometimes life can throw you a curveball.
Take this couple’s love story that seemed just perfect — they were college sweethearts, engaged, and planning a wedding.
But one family Christmas dinner changed everything.
Just six months before the wedding, they discovered that they were first cousins and their mothers were long-lost sisters.
The family they thought they knew opened a pandora’s box full of surprises and complications, pushing them to make the hardest decision — should they call off their engagement or stay together?
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At a family gathering, couple discovered they are first cousins
Woman embracing man tightly, showing engagement ring, symbolizing discovery of first cousin engagement after family Christmas.
In the Western world, the notion of marrying a cousin is largely alien. In Western Europe, North America, and Oceania, only around 0.1–0.2% of marriages take place between cousins or close relatives.
But it isn’t so unusual in other parts of the world. Research shows that globally, over 10% of people marry their close relatives, including cousins — this being more common in the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of Asia.
It also wasn’t so unusual a few centuries go. Charles Darwin married his first cousin Emma and went on to have 10 children, while Queen Victoria also married her cousin, Prince Albert. This practice was fairly common among the royal family in 19th Century Britain.
Some countries have already banned cousin marriage entirely. In the US, 24 states prohibit first‑cousin marriages entirely while in Norway, the practice became illegal in 2024.
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Other countries are gradually moving to outlaw this practice as well.
Cousin marriage is coming under more scrutiny across Europe, and in the UK, mainly from doctors, who say that children of first cousins are more likely to experience health problems.
Research says that although related parents share more common DNA and there is a chance of inheriting a genetic disorder, the overall risk is still low.
Experts say most children in such families are born healthy, but couples should still get genetic counseling to understand any potential risks.
“If you marry a first cousin and you also have a recessive condition, it does raise the likelihood that you will be at risk of your child being affected by that condition,” Alastair Kent, director of the Genetic Interest Group, told the Guardian.
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Couples are often left with difficult questions
There is a huge stigma around cousin marriages. For couples like this, who only learn that they are related years after being together — by accident or through DNA testing — the shock often comes with shame and fear of society as well as their close family.
Especially if these couple have children of their own, the situation gets more complicated.
Different couples react in different ways — some choose to stay together while others might go their separate ways.
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Experts say therapy and professional support can help people work through their feelings and reach a mutual decision.
Several countries also have educational courses for such couples, to make them understand the risks and possibilities. UK follows the policy of genetic counseling, where couples are asked to get extra screening in pregnancy and get specialist advice from their doctors.
Support poured in from readers who came up with solutions and gave practical advice
Screenshot of a Reddit conversation about a woman discovering she’s engaged to her first cousin during a family Christmas.
Online discussion about woman discovering engagement to her first cousin after shocking family Christmas revelation.
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Screenshot of a Reddit conversation discussing discovery of being engaged to a first cousin after a family event.
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Reddit users discussing a woman discovering she’s engaged to her first cousin after a shocking family Christmas.
Woman looks shocked after discovering her engagement to her first cousin during a surprising family Christmas gathering.
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Reddit conversation discussing a woman discovering she’s engaged to her first cousin after a shocking family Christmas.
Reddit conversation discussing a woman discovering she’s engaged to her first cousin after a shocking family Christmas.
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Screenshot of an online forum discussing a woman discovering she’s engaged to her first cousin during a family Christmas.
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Woman reacts with shock after discovering she’s engaged to her first cousin during a family Christmas gathering.
Comments on a woman's discovery she’s engaged to her first cousin and concerns about the family’s reaction.
Online discussion about woman discovering engagement to her first cousin and concerns over family genetics and resemblance.
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Comment thread discussing family history issues and shock of discovering engagement to first cousin after Christmas.
Screenshot of an online discussion about a woman discovering she’s engaged to her first cousin after a shocking family Christmas.
Some readers couldn’t resist making jokes
Text message conversation about wedding planning, humorously mentioning roaches involved, relating to woman discovers engagement shock.
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Screenshot of a user comment reacting to a story about a woman discovering she’s engaged to her first cousin.
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Screenshot of a comment discussing a shocking family Christmas where a woman discovers she’s engaged to her first cousin.
Screenshot of a Reddit comment about a family picnic where a couple discovered they were related, highlighting family engagement shock.
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Screenshot of a social media comment about a shocking family Christmas revealing a woman’s engagement to her first cousin.
Text conversation discussing a shocking family wedding reveal involving a woman engaged to her first cousin.
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I'm a Visual Editor for Bored Panda. I’m also an analog collage artist. My love for images and experience in layering goes well with both creating collages by hand and working with digital images as an Editor. When I’m not using my kitchen area as an art studio I also do various experiments making my own cosmetics or brewing kombucha. When I’m not at home you would most definitely find me attending a concert or walking my dog.
I'm a Visual Editor for Bored Panda. I’m also an analog collage artist. My love for images and experience in layering goes well with both creating collages by hand and working with digital images as an Editor. When I’m not using my kitchen area as an art studio I also do various experiments making my own cosmetics or brewing kombucha. When I’m not at home you would most definitely find me attending a concert or walking my dog.
My great aunt and uncle were first cousins who had two children, it was much more common then. If it's a one off cousin marriage then there isn't usually any problems with having biological children, the issue comes when there are multiple generations of cousin marriages.
In this case genetic screening could give them an idea of how safe having children would be.
Continue as they and best of luck. But keep in mind family secrets don't stay secret. As they found out. It's only a matter of time before a DNA test connects them
My great aunt and uncle were first cousins who had two children, it was much more common then. If it's a one off cousin marriage then there isn't usually any problems with having biological children, the issue comes when there are multiple generations of cousin marriages.
In this case genetic screening could give them an idea of how safe having children would be.
Continue as they and best of luck. But keep in mind family secrets don't stay secret. As they found out. It's only a matter of time before a DNA test connects them
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