dowry
has been listed 6 times with 0 comments
jointure
has been listed 4 times with 2 comments
coverture
has been listed 1 time with 3 comments
wive
has been listed 1 time with 1 comment
wifthing
has been listed 3 times with 4 comments
wifkin
has been listed 1 time with 4 comments
wifish
has been listed 1 time with 3 comments
wifing
has been listed 1 time with 3 comments
wifely
has been listed 1 time with 2 comments
wifedom
has been listed 1 time with 1 comment
uxorious
has been listed 67 times with 16 comments
uxoricide
has been listed 11 times with 1 comment
uxorial
has been listed 10 times with 3 comments
uxor
has been listed 4 times with 2 comments
Yes, polygyny is the word you're looking for.
Thanks Bilby, I'll check out that Wiki page when I have a chance.
As for polygamy, again I respectfully decline as it technically applies to spouses, not wives in particular. Here's what OED says on the matter:
1. a. The practice or custom of having more than one spouse at the same time. Contrasted with monogamy.
Chiefly applied to the practice or custom (more explicitly called polygyny) in which a man has several wives at once, but also including polyandry, in which a woman has several husbands.
Sometimes also used with reference to sexual partners rather than spouses.
Wikipedia has an entry on mahr which may be of relevance. And by definition polygamy - it's not paper-folding for maths professors - refers to wives :-)
Thanks! I added the first two, but since settlements and prenup (presumably you mean pre-nuptial agreements?) also apply to husbands, I respectfully leave them to find their own list.
There's also jointure, dowry, and settlements. Oh, and there's prenup, too.
uxorilocal presumably refers to the kind of trophy wife who is always on a diet. I kind of like the word helpmeet, which seems always to be used to refer to a particular kind of wife.