Global Wedding Traditions Inspire Couples To Consider Cultural Origins
Wedding traditions--the exchange of rings, or the tossing of a bridal bouquet to determine the next bride-to-be, seem virtually set in stone. Why call them traditions, otherwise? Mostly, we know the reasons and origins of our own history, but with today's mobile population, it's fun, if not good etiquette to be aware of the customs of our co-workers and in-laws who may have come from another culture.
And if you're marrying in a leap year you might want to think about that aspect.
So, if you're planning a wedding in Vancouver, travelling to another country as a wedding guest or hosting a pre-nuptial party for a culturally-mixed couple,or wish to put a modern twist on your traditional heritage, here are some tips on cultural differences.
Of course you realize that wedding-traditions information is not exclusively from Flowers Unlimited. After all it originates at its source, and this is a compilation from a variety of sources.
If you're off to another country for your wedding celebration or travelling on your honeymoon, good manners are a passport to success.And while lighthearted, here's a quick overview of table manners here and there.
AFRO-AMERICAN:-
When slavery was practiced in the United States it was not legal for slaves to marry, so slaves would wed by jumping over the broom, which represents sweeping away the old and bringing the new.
This tradition is not limited to Afro-Americans however; the Cajuns , who did not often have access to a minister for long periods of time because of their remote location often jumped the broom as well until a minister could arrive.
BUDDIST:
From consulting anastrologer to choose the date to making offers to Buddha, this wedding minister reviews the tradition. Others include Jewish tradition.
CHINA:
Love,joy and prosperity are signified by the use of red. Red is everywhere form the bridal gown,invitations, gift envelopes and decorations for the bride and groom's residences.Being married on the half-hour symbolizes that the newly-marrieds begin their new lives on an 'upswing' as the clock hands move up, rather than down.
On the wedding day, the bride may be busy changing outfits up to three times, but beforehand, a Chinese bride may go into seclusion with her closest friends, as a symbol of time to mourn the loss of her friends and family.
EGYPT:
Traditionally, it is held by Egyptians that the vein of love--vein amoris-- on the ring finger runs straight to the heart.
ESTONIA:
To determine the next man to marry, the groom is blindfolded and spun about by the single men until the he selects the future groom by putting his top hat on him.
FINLAND:
As symbol of protection and shelter for the new bride, an older man shelters her with an umbrella as she walks door to door with a pillowcase to receive gifts.Traditionally, the last dance--a weaning waltz sees the women start the waltz with the bride and the men with the groom as a test to see how quickly the bride and groom will forget each other.
GERMANY:
If tradition followed the birth of a girl, the trees planted at her birth would be sold prior to her wedding for dowry money.
GREECE:
Spitting on the bride for luck!! Before being crowned, that is....And don't think about planning a wedding in a leap year --2008!!--as it's considered bad luck.
INDIA:
This comprehensive site haswedding link.And to see flowers for the bride and groom. And the sweet tuberose takes center stage for the summer wedding season, particularly in Bengal where the floral heads are woven into wedding crowns. The tuberose is believed to increase emotional capacity.
IRELAND:
They jumped the broom hundreds of years before the Afro-Americans and the Cladagh ring is special.
"Irish Marriage Blessing:
May God be with you and bless you;
May you see your children's children.
May you be poor in misfortune,
Rich in blessings,
May you know nothing but happiness
From this day forward."
JAPAN:
The bride is painted white to declare her maiden status to the gods, wears a white kimino and an elaborate ornamental headpiece to invite good luck.Instead of a veil, a white hood hides her 'horns of jealousy' from the mother-in-law who will now become head of the family. Once the couple has drunk nine cups of sake, the newlyweds are considered united.
In Japanese business culture, one should not speak about business before the host brings up the subject, or write on someone's business card in their presence. For other aspects of business etiquette in Japan, this site is useful.
Same-sex marriage is still controversial in the US. Twenty-six states have passed laws against it. Only in Massachusetts is same-sex marriage legal; New Jersey, Vermont, Connecticut, and New Hampshire permit civil unions. Most recently, New Jersey’s governor has indicated he will sign a bill legalizing same sex marriage (after the November elections); California’s state Supreme Court will be considering their stance.
The Wiki map shows that same-sex marriage is now legal in the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada and South Africa;in Iran, Sudan, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and Mauritania homosexuality (not same-sex marriage, just being homosexual) is punishable by death.
JEWISH TRADITION:
Following the exchange of vows, seven marriage blessings are read as the groom steps on a wine glass to symbolize the fragility of human happiness. For more information about Jewish holiday traditions, generally, this site is useful.More detail about the hupah and circling the groom .
RUSSIA:
Orthodox traditions state that the newly married couple are crowned as royalty for the day. The bride and groom must stand on a special carpet as the recite their marriage vows, but first they must race each other to it. the one to reach it first is presumably the head of the new household.
SOUTH AMERICA:
Parents of the bride and groom carry fire from their hearths to the home of the new couple where a new fire would be lit.
SPAIN:
As a symbol of his commitment to support the bride, the groom gives her a wedding present of 13 coins that she carries into the ceremony.
WALES:
As a courtship ritual, the man carves symbols such as hearts,key, bells into a wooden spoon to demonstrate his intentions for engagement and marriage.....just prior to the wedding it is traditional for the bride's family to kidnap the bride. The groom and his family persue and whoever rescues the bride-to-be will marry within a year.--courtesy of BWF, WTN and WTC.
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