Traditional Roman law required ten witnesses to make a wedding legal. Another ancient Roman tradition involves the bridesmaids and guests dressing the same as the bride and groom to confuse any malevolent forces who may show up unexpected.
Summertime is the most popular time of year to get married in Sweden, with around 20 hours of sunlight you can’t get a better time to marry. Traditionally Swedes will live with each other for a couple of years before getting married. On the day of the wedding the bride will have a gold coin in her right shoe and a silver coin in her left one, to make things even more difficult to walk the bride’s shoes will stay unlaced, which is suppose to enhance the chances of easy childbirth.
Girls getting married in Switzerland wear a traditional crown or wreath, which symbolizes her maidenhood. Once the ceremony is completed the wreath is removed and burned. If the crown burns quickly the bride is considered lucky. A tree is planted in the yard of newlywed’s home which represents fertility.
Its Portuguese tradition for the oldest members of the community to attend a stag party for the groom, at which the groom kisses goodbye his single life. It’s custom at the wedding ceremony for the bride’s shoe to be passed around and guests stuff it with money. The money is used towards the newlyweds honeymoon and new life together.
A lot of today’s wedding traditions can be traced back to French beginnings. The traditional wearing of a white wedding dress began in France hundreds of years ago. Also decorating weddings with fragrant flowers and bridal bouquets has been popular for centuries in France. A custom which is still practiced in some French villages today involves the groom escorting his bride to the chapel. Along the way the town’s children stretch out white ribbons across the road which the bride cuts. On departure from the chapel, the couple walks across a path of laurel leaves.
A Belgium wedding tradition that brings the couple’s families together involves the wedding invitations, which are printed on two sheets of paper, one from the bride’s family and one sheet from the groom’s family. Another tradition which brings the two families closer together occurs during the ceremony. The bride stops while walking down the aisle and passes a single flower to her mother, the two embrace. During the recessional, the bride and groom walk to the groom’s mother and the bride gives her a single flower. The two embrace symbolizing the bride’s acceptance of her new mother.
Traditionally it’s been known that Romanian girls start planning for their wedding well before they know who their marrying. Girls aged as young as 6 years old start collecting accessories for their hope chest or trousseau. After the wedding ceremony it’s normal for guests to throw nuts or candy at the newlyweds.
In Hungarian tradition it was the job of the best man to personally visit each wedding guest and verbally invite them to the wedding. Not only did he have to invite them he had to do it using a rhyme. Also, the best man had the responsibility of organizing three days of wedding activities. These days it’s good manners for the bride and groom, to personally invite relatives and close friends to their wedding.
A Czech wedding tradition involves the bride’s friends who plant a tree in her yard. The tree is then decorated with colored ribbons and painted eggshells. Legend has it that the tree should live as long as the bride. Another tradition involving the bride’s friends occurs the night before the wedding. Friends give the bride a crown made out of rosemary which represents wisdom, love, loyalty and remembrance.
A Cyprus wedding tradition which is performed at the reception involves people pinning money on to the bride and groom during their first dance. The ’pin money’ goes towards the newlyweds new life together.
