Scandinavian Wedding
In Denmark, it is traditional for an arch of pine branches be built in front of the bride's home. This arch is known as the Gates of Honor.
In Norway, when a couple is married, their families and neighbors plant two small pine trees on either side of their young couple's front door as a symbol of fertility.
In Sweden mother of the bride traditionally present her daughter with a gold coin to be placed in her right show and her father gives her a silver coin for her left shoe. In this way whey hope to endure that their daughter will never be poor.
When a girl in Sweden is engaged it is customary for her to receive an engagement right. Then during the wedding ceremony the bride's husband slips the wedding rig onto hi new bride's finger ply he slips a ring of motherhood onto her finer as well - meaning that Swedish wife will wear three golden rings.
In Russia, it is a common tradition for the maid of honor and the best man to wear sashes over their clothing.
In Brazil it is common for the groomsmen to carry or be pinned with a small Brazilian flag instead of a flower.
These are cookies call "Casadinhos" and are traditionally made as a wedding favor. They are two cookies put together with Marmalade, honey, jam, boston cream fudge, or anything that is sweet, wrapped in cellophane and then in crepe paper.
African wedding
African weddings are a family affair and involve the combining of two lives, two families, and sometimes even two communities! There are many different wedding traditions in the African continent and no two are exactly alike but in all communities the bride plays a very special role and is treated with respect because she is a link between the unborn and the ancestors.
The jumping of the broom is a common tradition but contrary to the belief that it has to do with slavery......it signifies their entrance into a new life and their creation of a new family by symbolically "sweeping away" their former single lives, problems and concerns and jumping over the groom to enter upon a new adventure as wife and husband.
American wedding lore
The bridal veil has long been a symbol of youth, modest, and virginity.
Tossing the wedding bouquet evolved from England where women used to try to rip pieces of the bride's dress and flowers in order to obtain some of her good luck so to escape form the crowd the bride would toss her bouquet and run away. Today the bouquet is tossed to a single woman with the belief that whoever catches it will be the next to marry.
The giving away the Bride has its roots in the days of arranged marriages. Today it is a symbol of the fathers blessing on the marriage.
The wedding rings have been worn on the third finger of the left hand since Roman times. The Romans believed that the vein in that finger runs directly to the heart. The wedding ring is a never-ending circle, which symbolized everlasting love.
The best man
In ancient times, men sometimes captured women to make them their brides. A man would take along his strongest and most trusted friend to help him fight resistance from the woman's family. This friend, therefore, was considered the best man among his friends and the best man accompanied the groom up the aisle to help defend the bride.
Bride on the Groom's left.......Because grooms in Anglo-Saxon England often had to defend their brides, the bride would stand to the left of her groom so that his sword arm was free.
There were so many different traditions with different meanings but the one I found the most fascinating were the covenant symbols in Christian wedding traditions and customs. They are all Bible based with exact scriptures and can be found here
Here is just one example:
The white runner symbolizes holy ground where two lives are joined as one by God. (Exodus 3:5, Matthew 19:6)
In Denmark, it is traditional for an arch of pine branches be built in front of the bride's home. This arch is known as the Gates of Honor.
In Norway, when a couple is married, their families and neighbors plant two small pine trees on either side of their young couple's front door as a symbol of fertility.
In Sweden mother of the bride traditionally present her daughter with a gold coin to be placed in her right show and her father gives her a silver coin for her left shoe. In this way whey hope to endure that their daughter will never be poor.
When a girl in Sweden is engaged it is customary for her to receive an engagement right. Then during the wedding ceremony the bride's husband slips the wedding rig onto hi new bride's finger ply he slips a ring of motherhood onto her finer as well - meaning that Swedish wife will wear three golden rings.
In Russia, it is a common tradition for the maid of honor and the best man to wear sashes over their clothing.
In Brazil it is common for the groomsmen to carry or be pinned with a small Brazilian flag instead of a flower.
These are cookies call "Casadinhos" and are traditionally made as a wedding favor. They are two cookies put together with Marmalade, honey, jam, boston cream fudge, or anything that is sweet, wrapped in cellophane and then in crepe paper.African wedding
African weddings are a family affair and involve the combining of two lives, two families, and sometimes even two communities! There are many different wedding traditions in the African continent and no two are exactly alike but in all communities the bride plays a very special role and is treated with respect because she is a link between the unborn and the ancestors.
The jumping of the broom is a common tradition but contrary to the belief that it has to do with slavery......it signifies their entrance into a new life and their creation of a new family by symbolically "sweeping away" their former single lives, problems and concerns and jumping over the groom to enter upon a new adventure as wife and husband.American wedding lore
The bridal veil has long been a symbol of youth, modest, and virginity.Tossing the wedding bouquet evolved from England where women used to try to rip pieces of the bride's dress and flowers in order to obtain some of her good luck so to escape form the crowd the bride would toss her bouquet and run away. Today the bouquet is tossed to a single woman with the belief that whoever catches it will be the next to marry.
The giving away the Bride has its roots in the days of arranged marriages. Today it is a symbol of the fathers blessing on the marriage.
The wedding rings have been worn on the third finger of the left hand since Roman times. The Romans believed that the vein in that finger runs directly to the heart. The wedding ring is a never-ending circle, which symbolized everlasting love.The best man
In ancient times, men sometimes captured women to make them their brides. A man would take along his strongest and most trusted friend to help him fight resistance from the woman's family. This friend, therefore, was considered the best man among his friends and the best man accompanied the groom up the aisle to help defend the bride.
Bride on the Groom's left.......Because grooms in Anglo-Saxon England often had to defend their brides, the bride would stand to the left of her groom so that his sword arm was free.
There were so many different traditions with different meanings but the one I found the most fascinating were the covenant symbols in Christian wedding traditions and customs. They are all Bible based with exact scriptures and can be found here
Here is just one example:
The white runner symbolizes holy ground where two lives are joined as one by God. (Exodus 3:5, Matthew 19:6)
3 comments:
A lovely and informative post.
It was a good blog - I liked knowing why we do some things - how the tradition started and why. sandie
Interesting, yet again. I didn't know that info about the white runner.
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