The first Gay Marriage in South Africa

Date: 1 Dec 2006
Updated: 30 Sep 2019

On this day in South African history, Vernon Gibbs and Tony Halls became the first same sex couple to legally wed in the country, one day after President Thabo Mbeki’s government legalized gay marriage. This made South Africa the first country on the continent and the fifth country in the world to legalize same sex marriages.[1] End Notes [1] Meldrum, A., “Couple celebrates first gay wedding in South Africa,” (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/dec/04/worlddispatch.southafrica) 8 January 2017. ↵

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01Meldrum, A., “Couple celebrates first gay wedding in South Africa,” (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/dec/04/worlddispatch.southafrica) 8 January 2017.

Last updated · 30 Sep 2019

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2017, May 2). The first Gay Marriage in South Africa. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0123254

South African History Online (2017) 'The first Gay Marriage in South Africa', South African History Online, 2 May. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0123254 (Accessed: 22 September 2026).

South African History Online, The first Gay Marriage in South Africa [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0123254, (accessed 22 September 2026).

"The first Gay Marriage in South Africa." South African History Online, 2 May 2017, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0123254. Accessed 22 Sept. 2026.

South African History Online. "The first Gay Marriage in South Africa." South African History Online. May 2, 2017. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0123254.