The same wedding idea in 16 places, grouped by region. Each entry is a short portrait; follow the link for the full tradition.
At many Hindu weddings the mother-in-law or an aunt puts a black dot of kajal behind the bride's ear, and the couple's wrists are tied with a sacred thread (kalava or mauli). Rice is poured into the bride's hands and thrown over the groom as a blessing of plenty.
Evil eye, being writtenAt a mehndi night, a plate of henna and lit lamps is carried to the bride, and a black thread or a pinch of kohl is often used to guard the couple. Coins and sweets are waved around the heads of bride and groom and given away, a custom called sadqa, to take the evil eye with them.
Read: MehndiRice grains, coins and flower petals are showered on the couple as they leave the church, and a pair of white doves is released at many weddings. The aras, thirteen coins blessed by the priest, are handed from groom to bride as a promise of provision.
Read: Las arrasRed is the colour of luck, so the bride wears red, firecrackers are lit, and the symbol of double happiness is cut in paper and pasted on doors. Families pick the day and hour from the almanac, and in some places a bride steps over a basin of burning charcoal to enter the new home.
Read: Double HappinessThe Shinto bride may wear the white hood tsunokakushi, and the couple share three cups of sake three times in the san-san-kudo, an act of union and blessing. Gifts and envelopes are tied with a mizuhiki knot that cannot be undone, for a marriage that will not be untied.
San-san-kudo, being writtenThe groom's family brings a horn of wine, and the wedding supra is led by a tamada who proposes toasts to the couple, ancestors and the future. A newlywed bride in some regions is welcomed at the new house with honey and bread.
Supra, being writtenThe groom breaks a glass under his foot at the end of the ceremony, and the guests cry mazel tov. Explanations include the memory of the destroyed Temple and the reminder that joy and fragility sit together.
Breaking glass, being writtenThe bride's hands and feet are painted with henna on a night that mixes song, protection and blessing, and milk and dates are offered to the couple on arrival. Many families keep a small bowl of salt or an amulet near the bride to ward off envy.
Read: Henna nightYoruba and Igbo brides are prayed over by elders at the traditional wedding, and kola nut and a bitter-sweet list of items are blessed and shared. Guests spray money on the dancing couple, a sign of goodwill and good luck.
Nigerian wedding, being writtenZulu brides in some families offer gifts to the groom's relatives, and an animal may be slaughtered to introduce the bride to the ancestors, who are asked to bless the union. The couple often receive a blessing from elders using a gourd of water or beer.
Zulu wedding, being writtenParents greet the couple at the door of the reception with bread and salt, and a glass of vodka that the pair then throw over their shoulder. Bread means never being hungry, salt means sharing the bitterness of life.
Read: Bread and saltA horseshoe is carried by the bride or hung at the door, and the Claddagh ring is worn with the heart pointing in or out. The handfasting cord, a revived Celtic custom, is tied around the couple's joined hands in some ceremonies.
Read: HandfastingBrides follow the rhyme of something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue, and many Black American couples jump the broom, a custom with roots in the era of slavery and revived for ceremonies today. Rice, birdseed, petals and sparklers are used for the exit.
Read: Jumping the broomA large rosary-shaped cord called the lazo is looped around the couple's shoulders by godparents, and thirteen coins, the arras, are given to the bride. Both signs mean unity and shared fortune.
Read: Wedding cordAt Andean weddings in the highlands the couple are given coca leaves and a blessing to Pachamama, the earth, and godparents offer the first gifts. Guests dance the huayno and toss confetti and petals over the pair.
Pachamama, being writtenAt the Fijian wedding the exchange of the tabua, a polished whale's tooth, and of mats and cloth is a blessing between the families. Kava is shared and prayed over, and guests join in with song.
Read: TabuaWritten by the EveryShaadi desk with AI assistance. 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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