Wedding traditions with bells and noise
Wedding bells are a phrase and also a practice.
Wedding bells are a phrase and also a practice. Bells, drums, firecrackers and horns chase off evil, announce a happy event and fill the air with joy. A quiet wedding is rare in most places.
Noise to protect
Many cultures believed that spirits are driven away by loud sound. Chinese weddings have firecrackers and drums, Indian ones the dhol and the shehnai, and Scottish and Irish ones the bagpipe. Church bells in Europe ring when the couple come out, and in Britain cans on the back of a car recall the older custom of tying noisy objects to the wedding carriage. In Germany and Poland, honking and shooting in the air are not uncommon, though in some places illegal.
Bells and charm
In Ireland, small bells are used for luck at the wedding, and a bell may be rung by the couple. In Hindu weddings a temple bell signals the start of worship. Handbells and cowbells have a long role in European wedding processions.
Written by the EveryShaadi desk with AI assistance. Background on Bells and noise (symbol). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreMandapaमण्डप (maṇḍapa)
The pillared pavilion that serves as the stage for Hindu wedding rituals and temple gatherings.Setting · The ceremony
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreMarriage coin charm夫妇和合花钱 (fū fù hé hé huā qián)
Numismatic amulets from East Asia that carry wedding blessings and fertility symbols.Adornment · Engagement and betrothal
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreAnastenariaΑναστενάρια (Greek), Нестинарство (Bulgarian)
A barefoot firewalking ritual performed by Orthodox Christian communities in Greece and Bulgaria.Rite · The weeks before