Weddings Traditions- Europe, Africa and the Middle East

Traditions from Around the World

For my last two posts highlighting wedding traditions of all walks, I decided to end with a bang and introduce some of the most popular cultural wedding traditions!

Dutch

A wonderful Dutch custom that can be seen at an abundance of modern weddings is a wedding "wish tree." At the reception a beautiful tree branch is placed next to the bride and groom's table, and paper leaves attached to pieces of colorful ribbon are placed at each guest's place setting. Guests write their special wish for the happy couple on their leaves, which the bride and groom can then read and hang on the tree. Modernly, this replaces the guest book and is placed at the escort table rather than by the couple during the reception.

During a traditional Dutch ceremony, the bride and groom walk on a bed of flowers to the altar and flowers are tossed at them as they depart. During the reception, instead of tossing her bouquet, the bride would give out her crown and whoever got it was the next to be married. After the wedding celebrations, the newlyweds planted lilies of the valley around their house to symbolize the return of happiness and with each season their love would be renewed.

French

A few customs have been adopted from the French, but nothing too notable. One I love though, is the groom customarily walks his mother down the aisle before arriving at the altar to be married. This is a lovely, sincere gesture that can be easily adopted and will surely elicit a collective "aww" from the guests!

The traditional layered wedding cake originated in France, but another common cake is called the croquembouche, which is essentially a pyramid of crème-filled pastry puffs covered in a caramel glaze. If the bride and groom can kiss over the cakes without knocking them over, then it said that  they will have a lifetime of prosperity.

Irish

A popular Celtic design is the love knot and is used in many, many traditional Irish weddings. It is a pattern created by using continuous, unending lines that intertwine. The design represents eternity, unity, and fidelity and is an important part of the ceremony. A four leaf clover depicts hope, faith, love, and luck. Bells were thought to keep evil spirits away, so for an exit,  guests ring little wedding bells or use them instead of clinking glasses at the reception. The shamrock, bells, the celtic design, and the color green are a huge central idea for wedding decor!

The traditional wedding ring is called a claddagh, and depicts two hands holding a heart bearing a crown. The hands represent faith, the heart love, and the crown honor.

The brides typically wore wildflower wreaths in their hair and in their bouquets—especially lavender—and they braided their hair to symbolize feminine power and luck. Another accessory for the bride is a lucky horseshoe, which is tied around her bouquet. However, the points must face up so that it can catch and hold all the good luck. To insure good luck, someone must throw a shoe over the bride’s head as she is leaving the church; just make sure not to hit her!

African

You may have heard of "jumping the broom." It is a tradition stemming back to the days of slavery when slaves were forbidden from marrying. They created this ritual to represent the beginning of their new life together. In modern ceremonies, couples jump over a broom, often decorated with ribbon and tulle, after they’re pronounced married. Because of the controversial roots however, this tradition may sometimes be frowned upon by older generation African-Americans who are eager to forget slavery and the memories, or therefore of, it created.

During the ceremony, there is a tradition that involves the marrying couple to taste four elements:
-lemon for sour
-vinegar for bitter
-cayenne pepper for hot
-honey for sweet.

The four tastes represent the different times or moods of married life. In some tribes, the couple’s wrists were bound with plaited grass for the ceremony and the walk down the aisle. Many couples incorporate this tradition by simply holding hands.

Cowrie or other seashells represent purity and beauty in African culture. The colors of African royalty are purple and gold which make a bold combination for a wedding theme. African dancers and drummers for the reception and traditional African foods are also ways to incorporate the heritage!

Armenian

Before the ceremony, the bride’s brother will place money in her shoe for good luck and he will place the bride’s shoes on her feet. Before the bride’s veil is placed on her head, she circles the veil over the heads of the single women in her dressing room to bring them fortune in finding a husband. Then the happily married woman closest to the bride will place the veil on the bride’s head to bring her new marriage luck.

"May you grow old on one pillow" is one popular toast that is also commonly used as the theme of Armenian weddings. You can print the phrase on invitations and programs or engrave it on a silver keepsake wedding favor for guests.

A traditional Armenian bride will wear a red silk gown and a cardboard headpiece that is shaped like wings and covered with feathers; however, it is safe to say that tradition is squashed. More and more young Armenians women are sporting a headpiece rather than an obnoxious, unflattering cardboard piece on their head. Celebrities such as Kim Kardashian embraced her Armenian roots during her August 2011 wedding (which incidentally only lasted 72 days) by donning a newer-traditional headpiece. 

Persian

I recently began reading and researching Persian weddings in the midst I'd have a Persian friend or two marry in the near future. There are two parts: the Aghd (ceremony) and the Jashn-e Aroosi (reception) which sometimes can last up to 7 days. The most intricate and important part of the marriage celebration, Sofreh-ye Aghd, is an elaborately decorated spread on the floor in which the couple sits in front of during the ceremony. On the Sofreh-ye Aghd, the following items are placed:

• A mirror and two candlabras on either side of the mirror representing the couple's brightness and future.
• A tray of seven multi-colored herbs and spices to guard the couple from the evil eye, witch craft, and evil spirits. 
• A specially baked and decorated flatbread with blessing "Mobaarak-Baad" written in calligraphy on it.
• A basket of decorated eggs
• A basket of decorated almonds, walnuts, and hazelnuts to symbolize fertility.
• A basket of pomegranates and/or apples for a joyous future.
• A cup of rosewater to give aroma.
• A bowl made out of crystallized sugar to sweeten life for the newlyweds. 
• A brazier of burning coals sprinkled with wild rue for good health.
• Two sugar cones  which are ground together over the couple's head during the ceremony.
• A scarf or shawl to be held over the couple's head
• A cup of honey to sweeten life.
• A bowl of coins representing wealth and prosperity.
• A needle and 7 strands of colored thread to figuratively "sew up" the mother-in-law's lips from speaking unpleasant words to the bride.
• A copy of the couple's Holy Book (Bible, Avesta, Qur'an)
• A prayer carpet or prayer kit including a rosary/cross, Bible, and strand of prayer beads.
• An assortment of sweets and pastries to be shared with guests after the ceremony.

 

Sources: Beau-Coup

Wedding Traditions- Western Europe

We know weddings consist of a bouquet, a best man, bridesmaids, and that common phrase "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue..." but what most of us fail to realize is the incredible significance behind them all. Western Europe has played an immense roll in shaping traditional American weddings throughout the past century.

The Bouquet

The bride's bouquet has become a staple necessity in weddings. Regardless of the size, style, color scheme, or culture of the wedding, there is inevitably always a bouquet flowers. In fact, the bouquet is something even I find so important, that I always advise my clients to skip the "DIY" when determining the purchase of their floral arrangement. Unless you're goin' way back to barn yard, old American wedding, play it safe and SPEND THE MONEY on a bouquet. Trust me, it'll be worth it.

Most modern brides, actually, will often have two bouquets. One elaborate wedding bouquet is designed to be carried down the aisle during the ceremony and used in photographs while the other is typically smaller and designed to be thrown into the throng of the bride’s available girlfriends who will then proceed to scramble and claw at one another in an attempt to be the lucky girl who “catches” the bouquet and thus becomes the next woman destined to be married.

While it’s obvious that the flowers are a symbol of fertility, most may not know the meaning even behind that. If you really want to be traditional with this concept, you may want to consider carrying garlic and dill down the aisle! That's right, until modern times, brides did carry garlic and dill. The practice probably originated from the time of the Plague, when people clutched the herbs over their noses and mouths in a desperate effort to survive (HSW).

Survivors of great tragedy can affix tremendous protective powers to anything that has provided comfort, and the herbs made it into the ceremony marking renewal. Over time, brides added better-smelling flora to the arrangement, and a whole dictionary of meaning arose to define each type of blossom.

The Garter

Throwing garters is considered to be the oldest surviving wedding tradition. In the Dark Ages it was customary for friends, relatives and guests to accompany the bridal couple to the marriage bed. This was first done to safely see the married couple settled in their wedding bed and once established, the crowd respectfully left the newly weds to their own company.

The wedding garter toss became a game of sorts. The bridal party would toss the garter at the grooms nose and the person who successfully landed the garter on his nose would be the next to marry.
The custom became rowdier and bawdier until the guests were eager to help the bride out of her wedding clothes. The wedding guests would try to grab the bride's garter for good luck. It is thought to forestall such impropriety, the bride's garter was given to the mob as a distraction. Soon this became an established custom.

Throwing the garter to the groom's men is what remains of the custom. In Northern England the old custom was for male guests to rush the bride at the altar when the ceremony was finished and remove her garter from her leg. In the panic this usually meant the bride was knocked over and trampled on.
Gradually brides made garters easier to detach and finally to avoid threat of injury they tossed their garters away at the end of the ceremony. Garters were imbued with fertility and the bride's garter signified consummation, fulfillment, and progeny and was always fiercely sought after. Untying the bride's garter had a deeply symbolic act. In the past the lucky guest to receive the bride's garter would wear it proudly on his hat, before giving it to the girl of his choice for luck (ECC).

The Best Man

In ancient times, it was customary and preferable for a man to marry a woman from within his own community. However, when women came into short supply “locally,” men who wished to marry had to seek out a bride from another village. In these circumstances, men captured women to make them their brides. Since the likelihood of cooperation from non local villagers never certain and abduction is often a multi-person operation, the future groom would be accompanied by his strongest and most trusted friend to help him fight resistance from the woman's family and other civilians. Our custom of the best man is a throwback to this two-man, strong-armed tactic. The future groom wanted not just any man but he wanted the best man he knew to come along for assistance.


This friend, therefore, was considered the best man among his friends. In Anglo-Saxon England, the best man remained at the groom’s side throughout the marriage ceremony, alert well-armed and with his hand on his sword.

Bridesmaids

The bridal party is a tradition that has been established for many centuries. For a long time the purpose of the bridal party was to fool evil spirits. The bride's friends dressed similarly to her (most times, wearing the exact same white dress as the bride!) in order to confuse any virulent presences that might be lurking about. Today bridesmaids are there to support the bride in the stressful times during the wedding.

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue

Oh, this is my favorite! This catchy phrase is often used in every modern, American wedding--but why? The answers are quiet easy and in fact, still very meaningful to today's vows. The original poem can be broken down as such:

Something Old- symbolic of continuity, represents the bride's link to her family and the past. Much like today, the bride may choose to wear a piece of family jewelry or her mother or grandmother's wedding gown.

Something New- represents hope for good fortune and success in the future. The bride often chooses the wedding gown or wedding bands as her "new item."
 

Something Borrowed- usually comes from a happily married friend of the bride and is thought to lend some of her good fortune and joy to the new bride.

Something Blue- a symbol of love, fidelity, and purity of the bride. In ancient times blue was the color of purity and often both the bride and the groom wore a band of blue cloth around the bottom of their wedding attire. (Before the 16th century, brides actually wore blue wedding dresses!)

 

And a Sixpence in Your Shoe- to wish the bride wealth in her future life.

Sources: How Stuff Works, Wedding Vendors, Celebrations Studio, Info Please,  Eye Catching Creations, Alex Labry

Wedding Traditions- The Engagement Ring

For the next few entries I want to focus on wedding traditions from around the world! I am so excited to start this blog series because this is a topic I hold dear to my heart. It is absolutely AMAZING to see where all of our modern wedding traditions have come from!

The Engagement Ring

One of ancient Western Europe's most popular traditions maintains it's popularity today. The engagement ring has been said to have dated long before Christ, but it was  in 860 AD that Pope Nicholas I proclaimed that not only was an engagement ring required to seal the agreement to be married, but that the engagement ring must be made of gold. The labor and monetary cost of the gold signified that the groom was willing to make a financial sacrifice for his new bride-to-be (WWT). 

A good 617 years later, the tradition of adding a diamond to an engagement ring began. In 1477 King Maximilian presented the Mary of Burgundy with a diamond engagement ring.

 The Evolution of the Engagement Ring

 

Pre-History: The caveman tied cords made of braided grass around his chosen mate’s wrists, ankles, and waist, to bring her spirit under his control.

Circa 2800 BC: Egyptians were buried wearing rings made of a single silver or gold wire on the third finger of their left hands, believed to be connected directly to the heart by the vena amoris.

2nd Century BC: According to Pliny the Elder, the groom gave the bride first a gold ring to wear during the ceremony and at special events, then an iron ring to wear at home, signifying her binding legal agreement to his ownership of her.

1st Century BC: Puzzle rings first appeared in Asia then spread to the Arab world, where sultans and sheiks used them to tag each of their wives. These puzzle rings were able to fall apart when taken off and could only be put back together by its creator so a husband would insist his wife wear it so he could tell if she had been disloyal and removed the wedding ring.

1217: The bishop of Salisbury put an end to the popular practice of seducing girls into mock marriage with rings made of rushes. His solution? Declaring a marriage with a rush-ring legally binding.

1477: In one of the first recorded uses of a diamond engagement ring, Archduke Maximilian of Austria proposes to Mary of Burgundy with a ring that is set with thin, flat pieces of diamonds in the shape of an “M.”

1700s: Silver “poesy rings” (seen below) engraved with flowery sayings were in vogue in Europe. Across the Atlantic Ocean, the Puritans gave their betrotheds useful thimbles instead of rings, which are derided as frippery. Eventually, however, many thimbles get their tops sliced off and are worn as rings anyway.

1800s: The highly sentimental Victorians make jewelry from human hair, and use gemstones to spell out names or endearments, such as a D-E-A-R-E-S-T ring set with a sequence of diamond, emerald, amethyst, ruby, emerald, etc. These rings spelled out words using the first letter of each gemstone.

1867: Diamonds are discovered in the Cape Colony (now a province in South Africa), the beginning of a huge increase in the diamond supply.

1880: Cecil Rhodes, who arrived in South Africa in 1873, founds the DeBeers Mining Company with other investors. Within the decade, they will control 90 percent of the world’s diamond production.

1886: Tiffany & Co. introduces the “Tiffany setting,” a six-prong ring designed to maximize a diamond’s brilliance by raising it up from the band.

1890s: Affordable wedding rings and diamond engagement rings appear in mail-order catalogs, such as Sears & Roebuck.

1918: Cartier creates the Trinity Ring—intertwined hoops in pink gold (love), white gold (friendship), and yellow gold (fidelity)—for Jean Cocteau, who gives one to his lover, poet Raymond Radiguet. It is still a traditional wedding ring in France.

1920s: Manufacturers and retail jewelers tried to launch the concept of men’s engagement rings, which sank like a lead balloon.

Early 1940′s: Engagement rings became the leading line of jewelry in most department stores.

Sources: World Wedding Traditions, Reader's Digest, Keli Gwyn