Wedding traditions of Tehran
The Iranian capital, where the aghd ceremony takes place at a floor spread set with mirror, candles and sugar cones.
In Tehran the wedding is built around the sofreh aghd, an arranged spread laid on the floor or a low table with a mirror, candelabra, a Quran, sweets and herbs. Two female relatives hold a cloth over the bride and groom and rub sugar cones above it to wish them a sweet life. The mahrieh, the sum promised to the bride, is read aloud and signed.
A wedding here
The bale boroon, or asking, begins courtship; then the shirini khoran sweet-eating, the engagement and the aghd. After the ceremony the couple feeds each other honey and a sweet. Guests dance to music at the evening reception, often segregated or mixed depending on the family and the law on public events.
Law and change
Marriage in Iran is governed by civil and religious law; the legal age is set in the civil code at 13 for girls and 15 for boys with court approval for younger ones, and child marriage is a human-rights concern raised by activists and international bodies. Many urban couples marry later and hold smaller parties.
Wedding customs of Tehran
Iranian weddingThe Persian wedding spread.Iranian weddingThe sequence of Persian weddings.
Henna nightThe henna night, hana bandan.Also part of it, and being written: Mahr (The sum or gift owed to the bride.).
A wedding trail idea for Tehran
- Grand Bazaar of Tehran The long covered market where gold, fabrics and wedding goods are sold.
- Golestan Palace A royal palace where couples often photograph.
- Tehran gold and bridal streets Streets near the bazaar known for jewellery shops.
Written by the EveryShaadi desk with AI assistance. Opening hours, venues and wedding-season dates change; check locally before travelling. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
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Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Iranian wedding: Flickr.com user "avlxyz", CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Henna night: Izzah Zainab, CC BY 2.0, source