Which social functions has marriage served besides raising children?

Beyond the raising of children, marriage serves several fundamental social and personal functions that provide structure to human societies:

• Economic Cooperation: Marriage facilitates a division of labor between partners and organizes economic production and consumption. Historically, it has also served as a mechanism for managing property, inheritance, and socioeconomic advancement through alliances between kin groups.1234
• Regulation of Relationships: It provides a framework for sexual regulation and gratification. Furthermore, marriage acts as a cooperative liaison between different groups of kin, sometimes serving as a socially sanctioned channel to manage or relieve tensions between those groups.15
• Personal and Social Needs: Marriage satisfies individual needs for companionship, affection, and status. It also confers a recognized social status upon the partners and defines the permissible social relations for their offspring within the broader community.12
• Social Maintenance: By establishing stable, legally or socially sanctioned unions, marriage acts as a mechanism for the orderly maintenance of society, providing a structure through which individuals can lead organized lives.5