Indigenous and traditional wedding traditions
Indigenous and traditional weddings belong to specific peoples and places, and no single description holds.
Indigenous and traditional weddings belong to specific peoples and places, and no single description holds. They often join two families and two lineages, involve the community, and may include gifts, song, dance and a blessing from elders or ancestors. Each page is specific to a people, and care is taken to write what that people has chosen to share.
Families and community
Among the Maasai, the Zulu, the Yoruba and the Igbo, the wedding is a negotiation and a celebration between two families, with gifts, songs and a long meal. The Zulu umembeso is a ceremony of gifts to the bride's family, and Igbo couples perform the wine-carrying, igba nkwu, in which the bride finds her husband in the crowd with a cup of palm wine. The Yoruba ceremony includes the introduction, the engagement and the traditional wedding, with matching aso ebi cloth.
Other continents
In many Native American nations, ceremonies may include a blanket, a pipe, a basket or a corn ceremony. Among the Navajo, a wedding basket of cornmeal mush is shared. In Aboriginal Australian communities, practices differ by nation. Among the Maori, the Pacific and the Sami, custom is shaped by whakapapa, kin and place, and the Sami may wear gákti and silver brooches. In Papua New Guinea, bride price in the form of pigs and shell is exchanged.
Respect and law
Some customary marriages are recognised in law, as in South Africa under the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act, and others are not. Many communities now hold both a customary and a civil wedding. Some practices, such as forced or child marriage, are illegal and are being challenged by the communities themselves.
Written by the EveryShaadi desk with AI assistance. Background on Indigenous and traditional (faith). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇮🇩 Indonesia and 2 moreKenduri
A communal feast and prayer gathering held by Javanese and Malay communities to mark life events.Feast custom · The weeks before
🇲🇦 MoroccoAhidusⴰⵃⵉⴷⵓⵙ (aḥidous)
A collective Berber dance from Morocco performed in circles or lines to celebrate unity and victory.Performance · Reception, dance and gifts
🇺🇦 Ukraine and 4 moreKorovaiкоровай (Ukrainian), каравай (Russian), кравай (Bulgarian)
A large round braided bread shared at weddings to bless the couple and unite the community.Feast custom · The ceremony
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreBread and salt
A traditional welcome offering of bread and salt to guests or newlyweds in Slavic, Baltic, and Balkan cultures.Feast custom · The weeks before
🇳🇵 Nepal and 2 moreKhata
A ceremonial scarf offered to show respect and welcome at weddings and other gatherings in Tibet and Nepal.Adornment · Reception, dance and gifts
🇷🇴 Romania and 4 moreCălușariCălușarii
A traditional Romanian spring dance and male society known for acrobatic leaps and ritual healing.Performance · The weeks before
🇮🇩 IndonesiaSlametan
A communal Javanese feast that brings neighbors together for peace and social unity.Feast custom · The weeks before
🇲🇳 MongoliaBiyelgeeБиелгээ / Бий
A seated Mongolian dance that mimics herder life through upper-body movement and traditional instruments.Performance · The wedding feast
🇿🇦 South AfricaUkusina
An energetic Zulu dance where performers kick and stamp to drums during weddings and ceremonies.Performance · The ceremony
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Korovai: Olli Niemitalo, CC0, source
- Ukusina: Vulane Mthembu, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kenduri: Andreasprasetya, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ahidus: Fotograaf / photographer: Drs. F.M. (Frits) Cowan (1931 - 2010), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Biyelgee: J bayarmagnai, CC0, source
- Călușari: El bes, CC BY 3.0, source
- Slametan: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Khata: Wiki-uk, CC BY 3.0, source