'Sologamy,' the practice of marrying oneself, is culture's newest trend

Gone are the days that marriage necessarily meant a wedding between a man and a women. Gone also, apparently, are the days that marriage meant a wedding between two people at all.

That's the premise of "sologamy," or, the ultimate gesture in self-love, marrying oneself.

As Houston's KHOU, CBS Philly, the Telegraph UK, and others are reporting, people are forgoing typical white dress-black tux nuptials with a partner in favor of a celebration of all things solo.

It's not so much meant to be a narcissistic affair, as those who've participated have outlined, but rather, a day meant to celebrate "escaping something awful or returning to your own happiness and contentment," as Sophie Tanner in the U.K. told the Telegraph recently.

"By the end of that journey I was such an advocate for it as a concept that I thought I'd better do it myself," she said. "It felt like an obvious step, and all of my friends and family had become really into it, so by the time I said I wanted my own wedding, they were on board."

Sologamy is the newest, and perhaps the oddest, wedding trend to hit. Sologamy is the newest, and perhaps the oddest, wedding trend to hit. Photo: Mykhailo Lukashuk/Getty Images Photo: Mykhailo Lukashuk/Getty Images Image 1 of / 27 Caption Close 'Sologamy,' the practice of marrying oneself, is culture's newest trend 1 / 27 Back to Gallery

The idea arose in part from a 2003 episode of "Sex and the City," in which main character Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, declares that she's sick of celebrating her friends' life choices and not her own. From there, the idea snowballed.

Others who have held their own ceremonies, like Brooklyn's Erika Anderson, use it as an exercise in self-affirmation.

"I would describe it as women saying yes to themselves," Anderson told KHOU. "It means that we are enough, even if we are not partnered with someone else."

And, as with all cultural revelations, some people are creating an industry out of it, including photographers specializing in solo marriages and jewelry designers like San Francisco's Jeffrey Levin, who started the website IMarriedMe.com.

So, it it just a passing trend? Or is sologamy for life?

As Tanner explains, it's the latter. "I hope seeing how empowering committing to yourself is, can liberate people and teach them that seeking solitude is a good thing," she says. "You can waste your life waiting for the one, when you are the one yourself."

Alyssa Pereira is an SFGATE staff writer. Email her at apereira@sfchronicle.com or find her on Twitter at @alyspereira.

