off topic (but still graph theoretical)

I've heard of a case where a woman married her direct uncle.¹

Now I started wondering:

Is it legally possible that she is also his direct aunt?

I don't think so, but I can't wrap my head around it ...

(FWIW marrying your cousin counts as legal, like in most western* countries, the taboo stems from medieval Catholic church law)

Cheers Rolf
(addicted to the Perl Programming Language :)
see Wikisyntax for the Monastery

*) surprisingly many US states don't fall under my western definition - > Cousin marriage

°) turns out laws are so inconsistent, that I need to define it:

German rules:

Spoiler Update

Updates

¹) since I've been asked: this was a Jewish marriage in Cairo/Egypt. In the Middle East marriages are mostly regulated by the communities, and apparently it's not a taboo in Judaism. Avunculate marriage lists another (again Jewish) case in New York, which was upheld in court.

As always you'll also find many examples in the pedigrees of royal houses, like the Windsors.

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: Pairing Riddle (OT)
by LanX (Saint) on Apr 25, 2026 at 13:27 UTC
    Given the down votes it attracted, it might have been better to motivate it with breeding dogs to avoid touching on taboos.° =)

    But I enjoyed it from a mathematical perspective, since it's a a problem which can be perfectly described in graph theoretical terms: a directed graph with a "child of" relation with certain restrictions:

    Here the solution in short, but hidden behind a spoiler tag to protect those interested.

    Cheers Rolf
    (addicted to the Perl Programming Language :)
    see Wikisyntax for the Monastery

    °) apparently do most so called "purebred" dogs have an inbreeding factor of 25%. That's like the outcome of incest. One more reason why I'd always opt for a mongrel.

    ¹) in some western countries this is technically legal, because the laws don't cover that case.