Wedding traditions of Sub-Saharan Africa
Lobola and the knocking on the door, kente and the wedding cloth, Gerewol and the Ethiopian zemed. 42 traditions on EveryShaadi so far.
Countries
🇦🇴 Angola 1🇧🇯 Benin 4🇧🇼 Botswana 0🇧🇫 Burkina Faso 0🇧🇮 Burundi 0🇨🇲 Cameroon 2🇨🇻 Cape Verde 0🇨🇫 Central African Republic 0🇹🇩 Chad 1🇰🇲 Comoros 0🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo 0🇩🇯 Djibouti 0🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea 0🇪🇷 Eritrea 2🇸🇿 Eswatini 2🇪🇹 Ethiopia 9🇬🇦 Gabon 0🇬🇲 Gambia 3🇬🇭 Ghana 4🇬🇳 Guinea 1🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau 0🇨🇮 Ivory Coast 0🇰🇪 Kenya 6🇱🇸 Lesotho 0🇱🇷 Liberia 1🇲🇬 Madagascar 0🇲🇼 Malawi 0🇲🇱 Mali 4🇲🇺 Mauritius 0🇲🇿 Mozambique 0🇳🇦 Namibia 1🇳🇪 Niger 5🇳🇬 Nigeria 19🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo 0🇷🇼 Rwanda 1🇸🇹 São Tomé and Príncipe 0🇸🇳 Senegal 2🇸🇨 Seychelles 0🇸🇱 Sierra Leone 1🇸🇴 Somalia 1🇿🇦 South Africa 13🇸🇸 South Sudan 1🇹🇿 Tanzania 1🇹🇬 Togo 3🇺🇬 Uganda 6🇿🇲 Zambia 3🇿🇼 Zimbabwe 2
Cities and towns
On the calendar
Shubh Vivah muhuratThe Nigerian December wedding seasonGhana, from Easter to DecemberSouth Africa, the spring and summer seasonEthiopia, the season after the rainsThe Coptic and Ethiopian Great LentRamadanGerewol (Wodaabe Courtship Festival)Umhlanga (Reed Dance)Marriage Equality, South Africa (1 December 2006)
🇦🇴 Luanda, Angola and 4 moreKizomba
A slow, sensual partner dance from Angola that turns wedding parties into intimate social gatherings.Performance · The wedding feast
🇸🇳 Senegal and 2 moreSabar
The Senegalese drum that drives the music and dance at Wolof weddingsPerformance · Reception, dance and gifts
🇳🇪 In-Gall, Niger and 2 moreGuérewol
A week-long courtship dance where Wodaabe men display their beauty to win the attention of marriageable women.Rite · The weeks before
🇸🇿 Ludzidzini Royal Village, Eswatini and 1 moreUmhlanga
The annual Swazi and Zulu gathering where young women cut reeds to preserve chastity and offer tribute labour.Rite · The eve
🇬🇭 Ghana and 2 moreKente clothnwentoma
Hand-woven silk and cotton strips from Ghana that mark weddings and graduationsAttire · The ceremony
🇿🇦 South AfricaUmemulo
The Zulu coming of age ceremony that marks a woman as ready for marriageRite · The weeks before
🇲🇱 MaliWeddings in Mali
Multi-day Malian wedding traditions blending Islamic rites, civil law, and local customs with bazin attire.Rite · Engagement and betrothal
🇳🇬 Iseyin, Nigeria and 2 moreAso okeAṣọ òkè
Hand-woven cloth worn by the Yoruba for weddings and formal gatheringsAttire · The ceremony
🇪🇹 EthiopiaEskistaእስክስታ
The shoulder dance of the Amhara people that brings joy to Ethiopian weddingsPerformance · Reception, dance and gifts
🇳🇬 Lagos, Nigeria and 3 moreAso ebiAsọ-Ẹbí
Matching outfits worn by groups to show solidarity at Yoruba weddings and other ceremoniesAttire · The weeks before
🇪🇹 Addis Ababa, EthiopiaWedding customs in Ethiopia
A collection of diverse marriage rites across Ethiopian tribes and the Orthodox Christian community.Rite · Finding a match
🇪🇹 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and 1 moreZuria
The ankle-length dress with woven hem bands worn by Tigrinya and Amhara women for weddings and holidays.Attire · The weeks before
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 2 moreGeleGèlè
The towering Yoruba head tie that crowns the bride and marks her status on the wedding day.Attire · The weeks before
🇳🇬 Lagos, Nigeria and 2 moreOwanbeÓwàńbẹ̀
The extravagant Yoruba celebration where music, fashion, and money spraying mark life's milestones.Feast custom · Reception, dance and gifts
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreHausa traditional marriage
The Islamic marriage rites of the Hausa people in Northern Nigeria and Niger.Rite · Finding a match
🇳🇬 NigeriaFattening room
A traditional Nigerian retreat where Efik women are secluded to learn skills and gain weight before marriage.Betrothal · Engagement and betrothal
🇺🇬 UgandaGomesi
The floor-length traditional dress worn by women in Buganda and Busoga for weddings and formal events.Attire · Engagement and betrothal
🇿🇦 South AfricaUkuthwalwa
A South African practice of abducting a woman for marriage, now largely illegal and contested.Betrothal · Finding a match
🇰🇪 KenyaKoito
A Kalenjin dowry negotiation ritual that marks the formal agreement between families.Gift custom · Engagement and betrothal
🇳🇬 NigeriaLefe
The presentation of gifts from the groom to the bride in Hausa weddings.Gift custom · The weeks before
🇿🇦 South Africa and 1 moreLobololobola (Zulu, Xhosa, Swazi, Ndebele), mahadi (Sesotho), mahari (Swahili), magadi (Sepedi), bogadi (Setswana), lovola (Xi
The livestock or cash payment from a groom's family to a bride's family that formalizes a customary marriage in SouthernGift custom · Finding a match
🇸🇸 South Sudan and 1 moreGhost marriage in South Sudan
A union where a living brother stands in for a deceased groom to secure lineage and wealth.Betrothal · Engagement and betrothal
🇳🇬 NigeriaYoruba traditional weddingIgbeyawo
The multi-day Yoruba marriage ceremony featuring traditional attire, family introductions, and the Eru Iyawo gift list.Attire · Engagement and betrothal
🇳🇬 NigeriaMoney marriage
A practice in southern Nigeria where a girl is given in marriage to settle her family's debts.Gift custom · Finding a match
🇸🇿 EswatiniUmtsimbauntsimba
A multi-day Swazi wedding procession where the bride joins her husband's family through ritualised stages.Rite · Finding a match
🇳🇬 NigeriaIgbo traditional marriageIgba Nkwu
The multi-stage Igbo marriage process that formalizes a union through family negotiations and the wine-carrying ceremonyRite · Finding a match
🇿🇦 Cape Town, South AfricaSame-sex marriage in South Africa
The legal recognition of same-sex unions established by the Civil Union Act of 2006.Modern · The ceremony
🇰🇪 Kenya and 1 moreAyie
The Luo bride price ceremony where the mother accepts payment and agrees to the marriage.Gift custom · Engagement and betrothal
🇬🇳 GuineaPolygamy in Guinea
A polygynous marriage structure regulated by Guinean family law since 2019.Gift custom · Engagement and betrothal
🇿🇦 South AfricaCivil partnership in South Africa
A legal union in South Africa that grants same-sex and opposite-sex couples the same rights as marriage.Vow · Engagement and betrothal
🇿🇦 South AfricaUkungenwa
A South African custom where a widowed woman is inherited by her late husband's male relatives.Family role · After the wedding
🇬🇲 GambiaPolygamy in the Gambia
The legal recognition of men having multiple wives in West African society.Family role
🇳🇬 Kano, NigeriaPolygamy in Nigeria
A marital practice where men take multiple wives, legally recognized in twelve northern states under Sharia law.Family role · Engagement and betrothal
🇿🇦 South AfricaProhibition of Mixed Marriages Act, 1949
An apartheid-era law in South Africa that banned marriages between white and non-white citizens.Modern
🇰🇪 KenyaRecognition of same-sex unions in Kenya
The legal ban on gay marriage alongside traditional female-to-female unions that persist in some communities.Vow · Engagement and betrothal
🇱🇷 LiberiaPolygamy in Liberia
A customary practice allowing men to have multiple wives despite civil law.Modern
🇺🇬 UgandaRecognition of same-sex unions in Uganda
The legal status of same-sex marriage and civil unions under Ugandan law.Modern
🇹🇩 ChadPolygamy in Chad
A legally recognized marriage structure where one husband has multiple wives across Chadian communities.Family role
🇿🇼 ZimbabweRecognition of same-sex unions in Zimbabwe
The legal and social landscape for same-sex marriage in ZimbabweModern
🇿🇲 ZambiaPolygamy in Zambia
A legal form of marriage allowing one man to have multiple wives under customary law.Family role · Engagement and betrothal
🇳🇦 NamibiaRecognition of same-sex unions in Namibia
The legal status of same-sex marriage and foreign union recognition in NamibiaVow
🇿🇦 South AfricaPolygamy in South Africa
The practice of men marrying more than one wife under customary and Islamic law in South Africa.Vow · Engagement and betrothal
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Polygamy in South Africa: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Umtsimba: Cat7624, CC0, source
- Weddings in Mali: HawaG, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kizomba: Obe Images, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sabar: AbaDiop, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Guérewol: Dan Lundberg, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Yoruba traditional wedding: Fhadekhemmy, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Umhlanga: Amada44, Public domain, source
- Kente cloth: ZSM, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Aso oke: Wolf D., Public domain, source
- Ukuthwalwa: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Public domain, source
- Eskista: https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Hanay, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Aso ebi: SUPREME LACE, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Zuria: Kurt Bauschardt, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Gele: Royalesignature, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Recognition of same-sex unions in South Korea: Nerd271, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hausa traditional marriage: Bembety, CC0, source
- Igbo traditional marriage: Olugold, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Lefe: Useendk, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Lobolo: Iwuala Lucy, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gomesi: sarahemcc, CC BY 2.0, source
- Ayie: SteveRwanda, CC BY-SA 3.0, source