The state of Mississippi has the lowest legal marriage age - allowing females to marry without parental permission at what age?

While the standard age for marriage without parental consent across the United States is 18, Mississippi's law is a notable exception and a holdover from a different era. The state's statutes permit females to marry without any parental or judicial approval at the age of 15. For males, the age is slightly higher at 17, creating a rare gender-based distinction in modern marriage law. This makes Mississippi the state with the lowest marriage age for females without requiring permission from a guardian.

These types of laws are often relics of older legal traditions, sometimes stemming from English common law, which historically permitted marriage at much younger ages. They have simply remained on the books without being updated to align with modern standards. In fact, Mississippi's law runs counter to a growing national movement to prevent child marriage. A number of states, including Delaware, New Jersey, and Minnesota, have passed legislation in recent years to set a firm marriage floor at 18 with no exceptions, highlighting the ongoing debate over these older, outlier statutes.