Vows, contracts and witnesses at weddings around the world: a comparison by country

A wedding is also a legal and moral act. In some places the couple speak vows, in some they walk around a fire, in some a contract is signed and read, and in nearly all someone watches and signs. Marriage is registered by the state in most countries, sometimes in a civil office and sometimes through a faith leader authorised to do it. The laws differ, so the safe rule is to ask the local registry before the day.

The spoken promise

Christian weddings in much of the world use spoken vows ("to have and to hold"), and the Western civil ceremony has borrowed the form. Hindu weddings use the saptapadi, the seven steps taken together round the sacred fire, with a promise at each step. Sikh couples walk four times round the Guru Granth Sahib in the lavan. In a Jewish wedding, the groom's declaration and the giving of a ring under the chuppah make the marriage, and in a Muslim nikah the offer and acceptance are spoken before witnesses.

The written promise

Many marriages are made by a contract. The Jewish ketubah, which records the husband's obligations, and the Muslim nikah contract, which records the mahr and may add conditions, are signed by witnesses. Civil registers do the same job. Couples may add personal clauses, and in several Muslim-majority countries brides can include conditions in the nikah contract about work, study or residence. Prenuptial agreements are used in many countries.

Who witnesses

Two witnesses are the norm in civil law, in Islamic law and in the Orthodox church, where the koumbaro is both witness and sponsor. Best men and maids of honour sign registers in Britain and the United States. In Hindu rites the fire is the witness, and in Sikh rites the scripture is. Registers record the date, the names and the officiant, so the marriage can be proved later.

Law and equality

Marriage law covers the minimum age, consent, who may marry, and whether religious ceremonies have legal effect. Child marriage is illegal in most countries and condemned as a human-rights violation. As of 2026, same-sex marriage is legal in many countries across Europe, the Americas, Oceania and parts of Asia and Africa, and not in most others, so couples should check the law of the country where they marry and of the country where they will live. Laws change, and this is a quickly moving area.

Vows, contracts and witnesses around the world

🇮🇳 India

Hindu couples take the saptapadi, seven steps round the sacred fire, which completes the marriage under the Hindu Marriage Act 1955. Marriages can also be registered under the Special Marriage Act 1954, which lets people of different faiths marry without conversion.

Read: Saptapadi

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

Muslim marriage is made by the nikah, with a kazi, a witness for each side and a signed nikahnama that records the mahr. Couples can add conditions in the nikahnama and the marriage must be registered.

Nikah, being written

🇹🇭 Thailand

Couples may hold a Buddhist rite and the water-pouring ceremony, rod nam sang, at which guests pour water over their joined hands. The legal marriage is registered at the district office.

Culture of Thailand, being written

🇯🇵 Japan

Many Japanese couples hold a Shinto ceremony with san-san-kudo, three cups of sake exchanged in turn, but legal marriage is made by filing a form at the municipal office. As of 2026, same-sex marriage is not yet recognised nationally, though several courts have ruled the ban unconstitutional.

San-san-kudo, being written

🇨🇳 China

A marriage is registered at a civil affairs office, and the red marriage certificate is exchanged for the ceremony. The formal bows to heaven and earth, to the parents and to each other are the traditional spoken part.

Chinese marriage, being written

🇦🇲 Armenia

In the Armenian Apostolic rite the priest blesses the rings, the couple are crowned and a cross is placed over them with prayers. The couple may drink wine and take bread and salt as a blessing.

Culture of Armenia, being written

Compare all 16 places

Traditions to start with

SaptapadiThe seven steps of a Hindu wedding.

KetubahThe Jewish marriage contract.

Anand KarajThe Sikh wedding ceremony.

Sheva BrachotThe Jewish seven blessings.

Same-sex marriageThe legal position around the world.

Also part of it, and being written: Nikah (The Islamic marriage contract.), San-san-kudo (Three sips of sake.), Civil marriage (Marriage by the state.).

Questions people ask

Do I need a religious ceremony to be legally married?

Not in most countries, where a civil registration is enough. In some countries a religious ceremony is legally valid, and in a few it is the only route, so check local law.

Who can be a witness?

Usually any adult of sound mind, often two of them. Some countries and faiths have more specific rules.

Can couples write their own vows?

In many places yes, in a civil or interfaith ceremony. Religious rites may use set words, and the officiant can say what is allowed.

Is same-sex marriage legal everywhere?

No. As of 2026, it is legal in a growing number of countries, but not in most of the world. Laws are changing, and couples should check carefully.

About this page

Written 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.

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Slave marriages in the United States: An 1899 illustration of a broomstick wedding. Schomburg Center for Res, Public domain, source

Sealing (Mormonism): NewNameNoah, CC BY 4.0, source

Bedding ceremony: Isaac Cruikshank, Public domain, source

Interfaith marriage in Christianity: Andreas Praefcke, CC BY 3.0, source

Ketubah: Unknown author, Public domain, source

Laavaan: Ashish 100, CC BY 2.0, source

Sheva Brachot: מנחם יוסיפון, CC0, source

Seudat mitzvah: Unknown author, Public domain, source

Saptapadi: Bhumish143, CC BY-SA 4.0, source

Same-sex marriage in Brazil: Fabio Pozzebom/ABr, CC BY 3.0 br, source

Same-sex marriage: Stefano Bolognini, CC BY-SA 3.0, source

Collective wedding: Tribunal de Justiça do Estado do Pará, Public domain, source

Handfasting: Sander van der Wel, CC BY-SA 2.0, source

Jumping the broom: credited only as "Hipstamatic shots, CC BY-SA 2.0, source

Care cloth: Unknown author, Public domain, source

Marriage in Korea: Jérôme Banal ( Eden2004 ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source

Nikah: عامر شاہین, CC BY-SA 3.0, source

Maithil Vivah: Sntshkumar750, CC BY-SA 4.0, source

Wedding veil: David Ring, CC0, source

Blessing ceremony of the Unification Church: Unknown author, Public domain, source

Mystery of Crowning: Shakko, CC BY-SA 3.0, source

Blessing ceremony: Farragutful, CC BY-SA 3.0, source

Hindu wedding: Dinesh Cyanam, CC BY-SA 2.0, source

Confarreatio: Agnete, CC BY 3.0, source

Proxy marriage: Alejandro Cicarelli, Public domain, source

Badchen: Unknown author, Public domain, source

Vows, contracts and witnesses