There are so many things to do while planning a wedding. There’s deciding on the style of the wedding dress, the flowers, the wedding décor, and the table linens for the wedding. Depending where you are from, there are many different customs carried out during the wedding ceremony. Here are the most common ones and some interesting reasons behind what we do in honor of this special day:
June Weddings:
In the United States, June is the most popular month for weddings, followed by August. Some say the reason for this is that the Roman goddess Juno rules over marriage, the hearth and childbirth, hence the popularity of June weddings.
The Wedding Dress:
Queen Victoria made white the bridal color of choice when she wore it to wed Prince Albert in 1840.However, because white is the color of mourning in Eastern cultures, white wedding dresses are uncommon.
The Flowers:
Early Roman brides carried a bunch of herbs, such as garlic and rosemary, under their veils to symbolize fidelity and fertility and to ward off evil. These herbs served as a precursor to the modern bridal bouquet.
Flower girls traditionally threw flower petals in the bride’s path to lead her to a sweet, plentiful future.
Guests in ancient times would tear off part of the bride’s gown as tokens of good luck, leading to the tradition of the bride throwing both her garter and her bouquet
Wedding rings are often placed on the third finger of the left hand because ancient Egyptians believed the vein in that hand (which the Romans called the “vein of love”) ran directly to the heart.
Throwing rice at weddings symbolizes fertility, prosperity, and bounty. In some countries, the bride might even carry or wear sheaves of grain. However, many modern churches and wedding locations discourage rice throwing because rice can be fatal for birds that eat it.
Wedding bells are an important symbol of a wedding. Traditionally, it was believed that demons were scared off by loud sounds, so following a wedding ceremony, anything that could make noise was used to create a diversion
Other Fun Facts:
The cake:
Queen Victoria’s wedding cake was three yards wide and weighed 300 pounds.
Queen Elizabeth II had 12 wedding cakes. The one she cut at her wedding was nine feet tall and weighed 500 pounds.
In the United States, there is no law or religious dictate that says the bride must take the groom’s last name. However, approximately 70% of Americans agree that a bride should change her last name.
Nearly $72 billion is spent on weddings every year in the United States.
Here is a list of some actual crazy marriage laws in some States in the US:
MISSISSIPPI: A marriage license will not be issued if the applicants appear to be drunk, insane or imbeciles
If you’re planning to get a marriage license in Mississippi, don’t start celebrating too early. If the circuit court clerk issuing the license believes you and/or your significant other is drunk, insane or an “imbecile,” he or she will not grant you a license.
NEW ORLEANS: Mystics, fortune tellers and palm readers may not perform marriage ceremonies
Tough luck for anyone hoping to have their favorite fortune teller officiate their wedding. In New Orleans, this is illegal.
MONTANA: The bride and groom do not have to be present during the wedding
Intended for members of the U.S. Armed Forces, “double proxy” marriages allow a couple to be married using “proxies.” That is, the bride and groom can each authorize someone to stand in for them during the ceremony. A judge leads the two “proxies” in the marriage vows, and after the proxies sign the requisite paperwork, the “original” bride and groom are legally married. While other states allow “single proxy” marriages, Montana is the only to allow both the bride and the groom to be absent during the ceremony.
DELAWARE: Annulment permitted if one or both parties entered into the marriage as a jest or dare
Next time you play “truth or dare,” be careful not to dare anyone to get married. If you live in Delaware, that’s grounds for an annulment. Makes you wonder how many couples dared each other to get married before this law was added to the books.
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