Proverbs: Better Wed Over The Mixen Than Over The Moor

An old British proverb advising that it is wiser to marry nearby or a neighbour than a stranger from far away. It promotes marrying someone local whose background is known rather than risking the unknown. 

It encourages endogamy. Mixen or mixon refers to a hidden manure pile, symbolising one's own immediate farm yard or locality. A moor is a distant unfamiliar person or area. 

The proverb is recorded since the 17th century and highlights the importance of familiarity in partners over strangers. 

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