Saudi Man Told to Pony Up iPhone 6 in Order to Marry

Before he can marry his fiancee, a Saudi man must provide her with a phone that's not even on the market yet, according to her brother. The brother has set an iPhone 6 as the price of marriage, Gulf News reports, though the would-be bride's father had earlier asked only for money. The site notes that such exchanges—known as dowries when provided by a wife's family to a husband—are firmly established in certain Arab and Asian cultures, with some families seeking hefty gifts.

"We have heard about quite a few ... things, but an iPhone 6 that has not even hit the markets here is a bit bizarre,” notes a Bahraini office worker. As to when the phone might be available in Saudi Arabia, the Independent notes no date has been announced for the country. (More dowry stories.)