In December 2000, the Dutch legislature amended the nation’s Civil Code to allow same-sex marriage, thus becoming the first nation in the world to do so. In this way the Netherlands set off a wave of legislative changes that allowed for same-sex marriage in the countries of the European Union. The Netherlands had long been regarded as perhaps one of the more liberal nations in Europe, if not in the world, so it came as little surprise that the government would extend the right of marriage to same-sex couples. In addition to traditional marriage, Dutch law allows for legally recognized “registered partnerships” for same-sex (and opposite-sex) couples, allowing the participants to forgo traditional marriage but still assume various legal rights. The Dutch public overwhelming supports samesex marriage.