The countries where same-sex marriage is legal, mapped

Last week, Taiwan passed a bill legalising same-sex marriage, making it the first Asian nation to do so.

But although same-sex marriage has advanced in countries and regions where acceptance of homosexuality is more widely accepted, countries which allow same-sex unions are still the minority.Two-thirds of countries that allow same sex marriage are in Western Europe, while most others are in North America.

A new map, put together by Statista, illuminates the countries which allow same-sex unions worldwide. The map shows that several European countries still do not allow same-sex unions, including Italy and Switzerland. South Africa remains the only country to have legalised same-sex marriage in Africa while no countries have done so in central and eastern Europe.

Graphic: Statista

The map also shows the years that each country legalised same-sex marriage, which might surprise you.

Most shockingly, the UK is still, in 2019, not fully coloured in because Northern Ireland’s LGBT+ community do not yet have access to same-sex unions. This was a major reason for the UK slipping down the International Gay & Lesbian Association Europe’s annual Rainbow Index. Having topped the list in 2014, the UK is now only the 8^th best place to be LGBT+ in Europe

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