Andean wedding
Weddings of the Quechua and Aymara of the Andes, with offerings to Pachamama, and in some communities an engagement time called watanakuy.
Also: watanakuy, Quechua wedding, Aymara wedding
Among Quechua and Aymara communities in Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador, weddings often combine a Catholic or civil ceremony with offerings to Pachamama, Mother Earth, and to the mountain spirits, apus. Offerings include coca leaves, chicha and flowers. In some Quechua communities of the Cusco region a couple may live together for a time, called watanakuy or sirvinakuy, before the wedding. Reports on how it is done and what it means differ, and some sources describe it as a trial marriage while others do not. The wedding feast is shared by the whole village, with music of panpipes and charango.
Region: Latin America and the Caribbean