Wedding traditions of Sub-Saharan Africa
Lobola and the knocking on the door, kente and the wedding cloth, Gerewol and the Ethiopian zemed. 68 traditions on EveryShaadi so far.
Countries
🇦🇴 Angola 1🇧🇯 Benin 5🇧🇼 Botswana 0🇧🇫 Burkina Faso 1🇧🇮 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 10🇬🇦 Gabon 0🇬🇲 Gambia 4🇬🇭 Ghana 8🇬🇳 Guinea 1🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau 0🇨🇮 Ivory Coast 0🇰🇪 Kenya 8🇱🇸 Lesotho 1🇱🇷 Liberia 1🇲🇬 Madagascar 0🇲🇼 Malawi 0🇲🇱 Mali 6🇲🇺 Mauritius 1🇲🇿 Mozambique 0🇳🇦 Namibia 1🇳🇪 Niger 8🇳🇬 Nigeria 25🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo 1🇷🇼 Rwanda 4🇸🇹 São Tomé and Príncipe 0🇸🇳 Senegal 3🇸🇨 Seychelles 1🇸🇱 Sierra Leone 1🇸🇴 Somalia 1🇿🇦 South Africa 16🇸🇸 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)
🇳🇬 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
🇸🇸 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
🇳🇬 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
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreHausa traditional marriage
The Islamic marriage rites of the Hausa people in Northern Nigeria and Niger.Rite · Finding a match
🇿🇦 South AfricaUkungenwa
A South African custom where a widowed woman is inherited by her late husband's male relatives.Family role · After the wedding
🇺🇬 UgandaBakisimba
A lively Baganda circle dance performed at weddings and royal ceremonies in Uganda.Performance · Reception, dance and gifts
🇳🇬 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
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreHausa traditional marriage
The Islamic marriage rites of the Hausa people in Northern Nigeria and Niger.Rite · Finding a match
🇿🇦 South AfricaUkungenwa
A South African custom where a widowed woman is inherited by her late husband's male relatives.Family role · After the wedding
🇺🇬 UgandaBakisimba
A lively Baganda circle dance performed at weddings and royal ceremonies in Uganda.Performance · Reception, dance and gifts
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Bakisimba: Kalungi Nathan, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Igbo traditional marriage: Olugold, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hausa traditional marriage: Bembety, CC0, source