The weeks before
Invitations, the trousseau, the bridal shower, the bachelor night and the purifying baths.
The weeks before a wedding are a time of preparation: invitations, tailoring, shopping, cleaning the house, cooking and gathering family. Many cultures have rites in this period, from the bridal shower to purifying baths, and they are often held among women or among friends.
Invitations and gifts
Invitations range from printed cards to the traditional Indian practice of first inviting the deity Ganesha and then the family in person with sweets. In Ethiopia and many Arab families, relatives are invited verbally and in person. In parts of China, the groom's family sends cakes and tea to relatives. The trousseau is assembled, and in India and Pakistan a shopping trip for gold, cloth and gifts may take weeks.
Showers, stag nights and baths
Western brides may have a hen party and a bridal shower, and grooms a bachelor party or stag night. In Morocco and the Levant the bride visits the hammam with female relatives for a ritual bath. In Hindu tradition haldi and oil are applied. In Scotland the bride's friends may have a kitchen tea, and in Poland the panieński, the maiden evening, is held before the wedding.
What is changing
Pre-wedding events have expanded, with engagement shoots, destination bachelorette trips and multi-day celebrations. Many families now plan with shared online documents. Others scale back because of cost and keep only the core rite.
Written by the EveryShaadi desk with AI assistance. Background on The weeks before (stage of the wedding). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇪🇹 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
🇳🇪 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
🇿🇦 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
🇳🇬 Lagos, Nigeria and 3 moreAso ebiAsọ-Ẹbí
Matching outfits worn by groups to show solidarity at Yoruba weddings and other ceremoniesAttire · The weeks before
🇳🇬 NigeriaLefe
The presentation of gifts from the groom to the bride in Hausa weddings.Gift custom · The weeks before
🇿🇦 South AfricaUkuthwalwa
A South African practice of abducting a woman for marriage, now largely illegal and contested.Betrothal · 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
🇸🇿 EswatiniUmtsimbauntsimba
A multi-day Swazi wedding procession where the bride joins her husband's family through ritualised stages.Rite · Finding a match
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Umtsimba: Cat7624, CC0, source
- Weddings in Mali: HawaG, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Guérewol: Dan Lundberg, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Ukuthwalwa: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Public domain, 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
- Hausa traditional marriage: Bembety, CC0, source
- Lefe: Useendk, CC BY-SA 4.0, source