Dating is a stage of romantic relationships in which two individuals regularly engage in activity together, most often with the intention of evaluating each other's suitability as a partner in a future intimate relationship. It falls into the category of courtship , consisting of social events carried out by the couple either alone or with others.
The first date is considered important, sometimes for making a good first impression , or because dating may lead to a more serious relationship, or a breakup , or friendzoning. If the relationship progresses, the next steps may include meeting the parents or other family and eventually cohabitation , engagement and marriage. Even after the relationship develops, couples still may organize a date or "date night". With the internet, many dating sites have been created to modernize the personals section of newspapers as a way to find prospective partners.
Speed dating , blind dating , and the use of matchmaking are all possible ways of beginning the dating process. Group dating is a modern dating practice especially popular in Japan. The earliest usage of the noun "date" is in by George Ade , a columnist for the Chicago Record. In Ade's "Fabels in Slang", he used the term "Date Book" to describe a type of ledger system a cashier used to track dates with suitors until she married. While the term dating has many meanings, the most common refers to a trial period in which two people explore whether to take the relationship further towards a more permanent relationship; in this sense, dating refers to the time when people are physically together in public as opposed to the earlier time period in which people are arranging the date, perhaps by corresponding by email or text or phone.
Another meaning of the term dating is to describe a stage in a person's life when they are actively pursuing romantic relationships with different people. If two unmarried celebrities are seen in public together, they are often described as "dating" which means they were seen in public together, and it is not clear whether they are merely friends, exploring a more intimate relationship, or are romantically involved.
A related sense of the term is when two people have been out in public only a few times but have not yet committed to a relationship; in this sense, dating describes an initial trial period and can be contrasted with "being in a committed relationship". Social rules regarding dating vary considerably according to variables such as social class, race, religion, age, sexual orientation and gender. Behavior patterns and dating preferences are generally unwritten and constantly changing.
