Wedding culture
Marriage is a Concept?
Marriage is the promise we make to each other to embark on the path to happiness together. No matter the country, no matter the culture, this promise will always be the same. Nowhere in the world will a gesture be purer and more wonderful than the marriage of two people who love each other. It has often been said that love is stronger than anything and knows no barriers or prejudices. Of all times, of all cultures, marriage is the most sublime way to express one's love. However, from one culture to another, there are some particularities of which you will find an overview here.
THE WEDDING IN BERMUDA:
Bermuda Islanders add a small tree to their wedding cake. The day after the wedding, the newlyweds plant this tree in their garden where they can watch it grow throughout their life together.
MARRIAGE IN AFRICA:
During the wedding ceremony, the bride and groom will have their wrists tied, a symbol of the union of their body and their soul. Often the future bride, as a sign of modesty, will have her face veiled by the braids of her hair. After being declared united by the bonds of matrimony, the newlyweds will jump over a broom acknowledging that their free single life has been left behind them and declaring that they will fulfill the domestic responsibilities of their marriage together. Finally, as an offering to the Gods, the newlyweds will pour wine on the earth.
AMERICAN INDIAN (NATIVE) MARRIAGE:
The dress of the future wife will be in the colors of the four corners of the earth; white for East, blue for South, yellow for West and black for North. Before starting the wedding ceremony, the future spouses will wash their hands in order to leave behind their old loves and the demons of their past. During the ceremony, as a symbol of their union, the future spouses will share a pancake made of white corn and yellow corn. The yellow representing the wife and the white the husband.
THE AMISH WEDDING:
Amish marriage is very simple. It is the spouses themselves who will hand-deliver the wedding invitations. The wedding will always be celebrated after the harvest season so that everyone can attend. The wedding will take place in the middle of the week for the same reasons. The bride's dress will be simple enough to then wear to Sunday mass.
ARAB (MUSLIM) WEDDING:
Before the ceremony, the Koran is given to the future spouses. During the ceremony men and women will be separated. Thus, the room where the wedding will be celebrated must provide spaces reserved for women and others reserved for men.
For the ceremony, the bride's hands will be decorated with henna. These patterns, representing fine intertwined lace, symbolize the union of the couple.
At the end of the ceremony, Muslim women bid farewell to the bride with tears in their eyes.
MARRIAGE IN CHINA:
The wedding invitations are placed in red envelopes with gold lettering, red and gold being the colors of love and joy. All the gifts that will be presented to the newlyweds must also be wrapped in red and gold paper for the same reasons. Fine gold jewelry will be placed in a red silk pouch and given to the bride-to-be to mark her new status. During the ceremony, the bride and groom will pay homage to their parents and their ancestors imploring their protection. After the ceremony, firecrackers or will-o'-the-wisps will be lit to chase away demons and evil spirits.
THE CUBAN WEDDING:
The Cuban wedding is enlivened with music and dancing. All men who wish to dance with the new bride must pin a ticket to her dress. All guests bring gifts which are placed prominently on a large table. The newlyweds will also give a gift to each of their guests to thank them for their presence.
MARRIAGE IN CZECHOSLOVAKIA:
Before the ceremony, a very young child will be lying on the bed of the bride and groom to bring fertility to the couple. On the steps of the Church, the couple is presented to all the guests and a legal text listing the responsibilities of the future spouses is read by the "Starosta", that is to say the benefactor of the couple. During the ceremony, the bridesmaids will tie sprigs of rosemary to each guest's clothing, again to bring fertility to the couple. After the ceremony, the veil of the new bride is removed and replaced by the traditional bonnet while the guests sing the "Pisen Svatebni", a traditional song.
Czechoslovakians do not throw rice, petals or bubbles when the newlyweds come out, rather they throw peas.
Czechoslovakians do not throw rice, petals or bubbles when the newlyweds come out, rather they throw peas.
MARRIAGE IN GERMANY:
As a sign of commitment, the spouses exchange a gold ring which they wear on their left hand. During the ceremony when the spouses kneel, the groom puts his knee on the hem of the bride's dress to tell her that he will keep her in the "straight line". The bride, in return, when she gets up, steps on the groom's foot to signify that she is fully asserting herself and will continue to do so... After a German wedding, the newlyweds plant a tree in their garden in order to see it grow at the same time as their love grows. With each flowering, the spouses will renew their wedding vows.
MARRIAGE IN ENGLAND:
At an English wedding, young girls lay flower petals on the carpet that will lead the bride down the aisle in hopes of bringing her a life filled with happiness. During the wedding march, the bride holds a horseshoe adorned with ribbon in the crook of one of her arms, a sign of good luck. The traditional English cake is a fruitcake. The first row of the cake called “baptism cake” will be kept and reused during the baptism of the couple's first child.
MARRIAGE IN THE PHILIPPINES:
After the wedding ceremony, as a symbol of their undying love, the Filipino newlyweds release a pair of doves. Until their release, the doves will be kept in a cage completely covered with flowers. During the reception following the Filipino wedding, banknotes are hung on the clothes of the future groom and the future bride so that they can dance with each of them. Sometimes raising money becomes a competition where the husband's family tries to raise more money than the wife's family.
MARRIAGE IN FRANCE:
Laurel leaves will be placed on the ground at the exit of the church and the newlyweds will walk on them when leaving. Bay leaves guarantee happiness and fertility to newlyweds. At the reception, the couple will drink wine from a two-handled cup that has been passed down from generation to generation. This cup is called the “bridal cup”. After the reception, it is customary for the couple's friends to wake the newlyweds in the middle of the night by banging on stoves and cauldrons and singing loudly outside their room. The groom must then invite the revelers in and serve them a drink.
THE INDONESIAN WEDDING:
In Indonesia, honey is a symbol of sweetness. During the ceremony, the bride and groom or the celebrant says:
This day is a day of great joy.
This day is yours Allah and we thank you for creating this sweet substance.
We ask you to bless this honey and our union.
Then the husband dips his finger into a container of honey and gently touches his wife's tongue with that finger. The wife does the same.
You have shared a delicate sweetness.
Under the eyes of the loving and protective gods, in love and in joy, you will share your life.
be happy
THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN MARRIAGE:
The couple demonstrate their commitment by crossing long, narrow wooden sticks. This tradition dates back to the time of slavery and represents the life and strength symbolized by the tree. By crossing the wooden sticks, the couple expresses the wish to have a rich life and a strong love like the most robust of trees.
There is broom jumping, another ritual where the couple hold a broom and together sweep a circle around them in order to ward off evil spirits that could harm their marriage. Then the broom is placed on the ground and the couple must jump over it to mark the beginning of their life together. Just before the jump, the following small ritual text is recited:
The weather can get dark and stormy
But this couple is now united.
That only he who can create the storm can ever separate them
I ask you both
to be good, to achieve your dreams and to keep your name.
Once the broom is jumped, the world will be yours
(Jump from the broom)
This woman is now yours, go kiss her.
MARRIAGE ACCORDING TO THE YORUBA TRADITION (NIGERIA):
According to Yoruba tradition, the spouses taste four flavors each representing an emotion; a lemon for bitterness, vinegar for pungency, cayenne for heat and honey for sweetness. By tasting each of these flavors, the couple symbolically demonstrates that they will be able to face the good and bad sides of life and enjoy all the pleasures of life.
MARRIAGE IN BANGLADESH:
During the wedding banquet, the “Mala Badol” ritual is performed. A light veil is then placed on the newlyweds. Under the veil, the spouses eat each other and drink the "borhani", a drink made from spicy yoghurt. At the same time, the spouses look at their reflection in a mirror and the guests ask them:
" What do you see ? »
And the spouses respond, in a romantic tone:
“I see the rest of my life”
The spouses finally embrace each other with a garland of flowers.
THE JEWISH MARRIAGE:
After the Jewish wedding ceremony, the new husband breaks a glass under his foot. This symbolic gesture represents the destruction of the first Temple in Jerusalem and symbolizes the fragility of the couple. As the pieces of glass can never be reattached, the couple can never be separated.
THE KOREAN WEDDING:
The wife offers dates and nuts, a symbol of childbirth, to the parents of the husband while they are seated at a low table covered with other offerings. In return, the parents of the husband offer the wife sake by throwing dates and nuts to her. She then tries to catch them in a wide veil. The more nuts she takes, the more children the couple will have. Finally, the family members of the groom offer the bride jewelry and money in white envelopes.
MARRIAGE IN GREECE:
In some Greek islands, the wedding ceremony ends by offering honey and nuts to the newlyweds in silver spoons. The nuts are chosen because they break into four parts, each of which represents: the bride, the groom and their family respectively.
THE HAITIAN WEDDING:
At a Haitian wedding, guests give gifts, but never cash gifts. The wedding cake is not cut at the reception but later at the house of the newlyweds.
THE INDIAN WEDDING:
An Indian wedding can last up to 3 days. The hands and feet of the bride are decorated with henna. After the ceremony, the bridegroom's brothers throw rose petals towards the bride and groom so that demons and bad luck are kept away from them.
THE LATIN AMERICAN WEDDING:
The ring bearer and the flower girl wear a costume identical to those of the bridegroom and the bride, in a miniature version. The bride's father holds a plate full of coins representing the bride's dowry.
THE MEXICAN WEDDING:
Before the ceremony, the spouses are blessed by their parents. The husband presents the wife with thirteen gold coins to prove to her that he will always take care of her.
THE PUERTO RICAN WEDDING:
The priest blesses a plate containing coins and then gives it to the bridegroom. In turn, the husband gives it to his wife who must keep it as a souvenir of their marriage. These pieces are kept preciously to ensure the newlyweds fortune and prosperity. During the reception, the men will pin tickets to the bride's dress. The necessary pins are placed on dolls, the "capias" dressed identically to the bride. On the "capias" will be inscribed the name of the spouses and the date of the wedding and they will then be given to the guests.
THE LITHUANIAN WEDDING:
During the reception, the couple receives “the elements of life”; bread, salt so that he never knows hunger, wine and honey so that he can taste all the pleasures of life.
THE POLISH WEDDING:
In a ceremony called "Rospleciny", the bride's maiden braids are undone by her ladies-in-waiting. On their way to the Church, the path of the bride and groom is often blocked by children whom the man of honor has paid to give the couple various small gifts. At the reception, the spouses join their parents, who will give them the “elements of life”.
THE RUSSIAN WEDDING:
On her wedding day, the bride asks forgiveness from her parents for any offenses she may have caused. The parents then present the wife with bread and salt so that she never needs them for food. During the reception, champagne flutes are thrown on the floor. If they break up, the couple will have a happy life. When they leave, the newlyweds will attach a small doll to their car if they want their first child to be a girl or a little teddy bear if they want it to be a boy.
THE SCANDINAVIAN WEDDING:
On the way to the church, the procession is composed, among others, of violinists and trumpeters. The wife wears a small crown set with stones as a sign of purity. During the nuptial blessing, the spouses are covered with a veil, which will have the effect of protecting them from bad luck.
THE SCOTTISH WEDDING:
The husband wears the kilt in the color of his family and the wife enters to the sound of the bagpipes.
THE VIETNAMESE WEDDING:
On the wedding day, the groom walks to the bride's house. Along the way, he will take with him friends and family members. Arrived at the wife's, they offer her gifts, fabrics, jewelry and money. Only the mother of the groom will be excluded from the procession in order to demonstrate to the bride that there is no rivalry between them.
THE EGYPTIAN WEDDING:
On the wedding day, women pinch the bride to wish her good luck. Then, the bride's family will take care of cooking meals to feed the couple during the first week after their wedding so that the couple can rest and produce beautiful children...
MARRIAGE IN FIJI:
During the wedding ceremony, the groom offers the father of the bride a "tabua": a whale's tooth. The whale tooth is a symbol of high social status and good health.
MARRIAGE IN FINLAND:
Before the ceremony, the already married women of the two families, each accompanied by a man also already married but older than her, a sign of a lasting marriage, go from door to door to collect gifts which they will deposit in pillowcases. The bride wears a golden tiara on her head. After the ceremony, the single guests form a circle around the blindfolded bride. She spins around and places her tiara on the head of the person in front of her, opening her eyes. This person will be the next to marry. During the reception, the newlyweds will occupy the place of honor. The bride will then hold in her hand a colander covered with a silk veil. The guests put money in the colander. Their names and the amount of the donation are then mentioned loud and clear by the newlyweds.
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