As it is “wedding season” here in the United States it seems
fitting to address this topic. Weddings
and marriages are a cross-cultural phenomenon that occurs almost universally,
but the specific wedding customs practiced around the globe do vary. This blog post will explore some of these
wedding customs, some of which are unique and others are shared among various
cultural groups both regionally and worldwide.
Ransoms at the Wedding
Various cultural groups capture and hold either the bride or
an aspect of the wedding paraphernalia for ransom. It is customary to “ransom the bride” in Chinese
and various Eastern European cultures.
In these situations either the bridesmaids or the bride’s family will
keep the groom from seeing and marrying his bride until he passes a series of
tests. These can be answering a series
of questions or riddles or performing silly tasks, like goofily dancing. Ultimately, the purpose of this ritual is to
determine the groom’s desire and commitment to be married. In Pakistan and India, the groom’s shoes are
held for ransom, which is done out of good fun.
Warding Off Evil Spirits
Newlyweds are considered at great risk for misfortune as
their blissful day can come under scrutiny by malevolent spirits. Various wedding rituals have been put in place
to distract or deter such supernatural mischief. In Norway a bride wears a crown with hanging
charms, and as the charms make noise it is believed that it is enough to scare
away evil spirits. Jewish grooms smash a
glass under their foot, which is met with cheers of “Mazel tov!” (good luck) by
the wedding guests. Balancing bread
covered in honey on their shoulders and eating a spoonful of honey is
considered the most effective way of warding off evil spirits among Armenian
newlyweds, while German guests smash ceramic dishes to scare them away. Among the Masaai the bride’s father will spit
on her as she leaves with her husband.
This act is meant to represent some doubt in the marriage so as not to
tempt fate and guarantee its failure.
Lastly, among the Irish it is believed that if both of the bride’s feet
leave the floor while she dances she will be taken away by evil fairies.
Promoting Happiness and Fertility
Marriage is typically the most common socially acceptable
means for having children. Therefore it
should come to no surprise that there are a series of rites and rituals
performed before, during, and after the wedding to ensure the newlyweds have
many children. In America it is customary
to throw rice (although it is better to throw bird seed) at newly weds as they
leave their wedding ceremony. Among the
Czech it is customary to put a baby into the marriage bed. This is meant to encourage fertility between
the newlyweds. They are also showered
with rice, lentils, or peas on their wedding day as an additional means of
ensuring their reproductive success.
Predicting the Next to Get Married
If you have been to an American wedding then you are most likely
familiar with the tossing of the wedding bouquet or the bride’s garter. The individual who catches either of these
items is believed to be the next one to marry.
While this is the standard among various Western cultures it is not in
Peru. Instead they practice the “pulling
of the cake” ceremony. The wedding cake
is baked with various charms attached to string inside of it. One of the charms is a replica of a wedding
ring. When it comes to eating the cake the
wedding guests select a string and pull the charm out of the cake. Whomever finds the wedding ring is the next
one to be married.
To all those getting married this year or in the future we wish you many blessings and years of happiness.
Works Cited
Buckley, Erica. "A Cross-Cultural Study of
Weddings throughMedia and Ritual: Analyzing Indian and NorthAmerican
Weddings." McNair Scholars Journal (2006): 13-28. Document.
Lewak, Doree. "Different Rules for Different
Cultures: Be Prepared." New York Times 8 December 2008.
Electronic.
Mattia, Nancy and Andrea Park. "47 Fascinating
Wedding Traditions From Around the World." Brides 18 February
2019. Electronic.
Pappas, Stephanie. "10 Wedding Traditions from
Around the World." 1 November 2011. Livescience. Electronic. 20
May 2020.