In that period, even the aristocracy frequently cohabited without being legally married and without incurring legal penalties. The practice continued to develop for several centuries and by the ninth century cohabitation had acquired legal status and protections that gave cohabitants the right to inherit property and to share assets.
當時，即使在貴族之中，不具法律地位的未婚同居行為也相當普遍，而且同居的人也不會因而受罰。歷經幾個世紀的發展後，西元 9 世紀時同居更取得合法保障，讓同居人取得繼承和財務分配的權利。