Wedding traditions of Sub-Saharan Africa
Lobola and the knocking on the door, kente and the wedding cloth, Gerewol and the Ethiopian zemed. 65 traditions on EveryShaadi so far.
Countries
🇦🇴 Angola 1🇧🇯 Benin 5🇧🇼 Botswana 0🇧🇫 Burkina Faso 0🇧🇮 Burundi 2🇨🇲 Cameroon 3🇨🇻 Cape Verde 0🇨🇫 Central African Republic 1🇹🇩 Chad 1🇰🇲 Comoros 0🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo 1🇩🇯 Djibouti 0🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea 0🇪🇷 Eritrea 2🇸🇿 Eswatini 2🇪🇹 Ethiopia 9🇬🇦 Gabon 0🇬🇲 Gambia 3🇬🇭 Ghana 7🇬🇳 Guinea 1🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau 0🇨🇮 Ivory Coast 0🇰🇪 Kenya 7🇱🇸 Lesotho 0🇱🇷 Liberia 1🇲🇬 Madagascar 0🇲🇼 Malawi 0🇲🇱 Mali 5🇲🇺 Mauritius 1🇲🇿 Mozambique 0🇳🇦 Namibia 1🇳🇪 Niger 7🇳🇬 Nigeria 23🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo 1🇷🇼 Rwanda 4🇸🇹 São Tomé and Príncipe 0🇸🇳 Senegal 2🇸🇨 Seychelles 1🇸🇱 Sierra Leone 1🇸🇴 Somalia 1🇿🇦 South Africa 14🇸🇸 South Sudan 2🇹🇿 Tanzania 2🇹🇬 Togo 5🇺🇬 Uganda 16🇿🇲 Zambia 4🇿🇼 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)
🇪🇹 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
🇬🇭 Ghana and 2 moreKente clothnwentoma
Hand-woven silk and cotton strips from Ghana that mark weddings and graduationsAttire · The ceremony
🇳🇬 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
🇺🇬 UgandaEkitaguriro
A traditional Ankole dance celebrating cattle and community milestones like marriage.Performance · The wedding feast
🇺🇬 UgandaTamena Ibuga
A traditional Soga dance from Busoga that celebrates unity and harvest through energetic drumming.Performance · The wedding feast
🇺🇬 UgandaBakisimba
A lively Baganda circle dance performed at weddings and royal ceremonies in Uganda.Performance · Reception, dance and gifts
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreOkpu Aguokpu agụ
A traditional knitted cap worn by Igbo men at weddings and ceremonies to signal status and heritage.Attire · The ceremony
🇬🇭 GhanaAdowa dance
A traditional Akan dance from Ghana that uses hand and foot movements to express emotions at weddings and other ceremoniPerformance · Procession and arrival
🇿🇦 South AfricaUkusina
An energetic Zulu dance where performers kick and stamp to drums during weddings and ceremonies.Performance · The ceremony
🇰🇪 Kenya and 1 moreAdumuEnkipaata or Aigus
The high-jumping warrior dance performed by the Maasai at weddings and rites of passage.Performance · The ceremony
🇷🇼 Rwanda and 1 moreIntore
A traditional Rwandan and Burundian war dance performed by men to celebrate heroism and historyPerformance · The wedding feast
🇺🇬 Uganda and 1 moreEkikibi
A circular dance by the Bakonzo that mimics swimming fish to celebrate marriage.Performance · The ceremony
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Okpu Agu: Justice kelechi achinefu, CC0, source
- Intore: Ji-Elle, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ekitaguriro: Aubry Arihona, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Bakisimba: Kalungi Nathan, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Adumu: K15photos, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Adowa dance: Quami43, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Zuria: Kurt Bauschardt, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Ukusina: Vulane Mthembu, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kente cloth: ZSM, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Gele: Royalesignature, CC BY-SA 4.0, source