Miai (見合い?, "matchmaking", lit. "looking at one another") or omiai (お見合い?) is a Japanese traditional custom in which unattached individuals are introduced to each other to consider the possibility of marriage. "Miai" or "omiai" is sometimes translated as an "arranged marriage" in other languages. Miai has done for centuries in Japan what can be described as "a meeting opportunity with more serious considerations for the future".
Some Japanese people consider that descriptions of miai in non-Japanese languages do not match reality in Japan. Ren'ai kekkon (恋愛結婚?, lit. "love marriage"), a Western ideal introduced after World War II, is sometimes seen in contrast with "miai marriages" when translated. Therefore, they feel that foreigners have misconceptions that the two are incompatible, and that "miai marriage have less love or that there are strong interference by parents." The same people believe that marriages that result from an introduction through a miai meeting can lead to a "love marriage," as the process of courtship can lead to a couple deciding not to get married.
Miai is also a common go term. It is a concept for describing pairs of moves for which if either one were played then the opponent would immediately play the other. Both alternatives would have equal significance for the game, so there is no advantage for either player to initiate the exchange. The miai concept is frequently used to simplify analysis of go positions.
Read more about Miai: History, Participants, Nakōdo, Selection Process, Investigation, Introduction, Kotowari (excuse, Apology, Refusal), Discrimination, Attitudes, Gender and Miai