All wedding traditions
674 traditions so far, best known first. 108 more are on the list to be written. Filter by region, kind and stage of the wedding.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
🇪🇸 Seville, SpainSevillanas
A traditional Andalusian folk dance performed by couples at weddings and local festivals in Spain.Performance · Reception, dance and gifts
🇺🇦 UkraineSong about the RushnykПісня про рушник (Pisnia pro rushnyk)
A Ukrainian song that celebrates the embroidered cloth used in weddings and family life.Performance · The ceremony
🇵🇱 PolandSto lat
A Polish song sung to wish a person long life and good health at weddings and other gatherings.Performance · The wedding feast
🇷🇺 RussiaEastern Orthodox marriage
The Byzantine Rite ceremony where a priest crowns the couple to seal their union in Christ.Rite · Engagement and betrothal
🇪🇸 Spain and 4 moreMantilla
A lace or silk veil worn over the head and shoulders by women in Spain and Latin AmericaAttire · The weeks before
🇺🇦 Ukraine and 2 moreRushnykрушник (Ukrainian), ручнік (Belarusian), ручник/рушник (Russian)
The embroidered linen cloth that marks life stages and guides the couple through the wedding ceremony in East Slavic culAdornment · The weeks before
🇮🇹 Rome, ItalyWeddings in ancient Rome
The religious ceremonies and attire that marked a union in the city of Rome before the rise of Christianity.Rite · The weeks before
🇩🇪 Hamburg, Germany and 3 moreWimpelווימפל
A linen sash made from a baby boy's circumcision cloth that binds the Torah scroll.Adornment · The weeks before
🇩🇰 Copenhagen, Denmark and 2 moreKransekakekransekage
A towering almond ring cake central to Scandinavian wedding and holiday traditions.Feast custom · Reception, dance and gifts
🇬🇷 Athens, GreeceLoutrophorosλουτροφόρος
An ancient Greek vessel that carried water for a bride's bath or marked an unmarried death.Attire · The weeks before
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreCare cloth
A linen or silk cloth held over the heads of a bride and groom during a Christian wedding blessing.Attire · The ceremony
🇩🇪 Hanover, Germany and 5 moreBridal crownBrautkrone
A headdress worn by brides in Central and Northern Europe to symbolize purity and status.Attire · The ceremony
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreBridal bouquet
The handheld flower arrangement carried by the bride during her wedding ceremony.Attire · The ceremony
🇺🇦 Ukraine and 4 moreKorovaiкоровай (Ukrainian), каравай (Russian), кравай (Bulgarian)
A large round braided bread shared at weddings to bless the couple and unite the community.Feast custom · The ceremony
🇵🇱 Poland and 6 moreKolachколач (kolach), калач (kalach), kołacz, colac, kalács
A braided or ring-shaped bread that marks weddings and major holidays across Eastern Europe.Feast custom · Engagement and betrothal
🇪🇸 Spain and 2 moreWedding cord
A satin loop placed around the couple to symbolize their lifelong union in Catholic weddings.Rite · The ceremony
🇩🇪 Berlin, Germany and 5 morePolterabend
The German pre-wedding evening where guests smash porcelain to bring luck to the couple.Blessing · The eve
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreEpithalamium
A poem or song written to celebrate a bride as she goes to her wedding chamber.Performance · The eve
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreBread and salt
A traditional welcome offering of bread and salt to guests or newlyweds in Slavic, Baltic, and Balkan cultures.Feast custom · The weeks before
🇵🇱 Kraków, PolandWedding of the Weddings
A Polish annual gathering for couples who chose alcohol-free wedding receptions.Feast custom · The ceremony
🇷🇴 Romania and 4 moreCălușariCălușarii
A traditional Romanian spring dance and male society known for acrobatic leaps and ritual healing.Performance · The weeks before
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreAnastenariaΑναστενάρια (Greek), Нестинарство (Bulgarian)
A barefoot firewalking ritual performed by Orthodox Christian communities in Greece and Bulgaria.Rite · The weeks before
🇳🇴 NorwayEsbat
A monthly Wiccan gathering held around the moon phases for ritual and communityBlessing · The ceremony
🇵🇱 Poland and 5 moreTuroń
A horned effigy that visits homes during Carnival to wish for fertility and collect gifts.Blessing · The weeks before
🇺🇦 UkraineMnohaya litaМногая літа
A Ukrainian song sung at weddings to wish the couple many years of life.Performance
🇮🇹 Venice, ItalyMarriage of the Sea ceremonySposalizio del Mare
The annual ritual where Venice symbolically marries the Adriatic Sea with a golden ring.Rite · The ceremony
🇮🇹 Viterbo, ItalyMacchina di Santa Rosa
The annual procession in Viterbo where men carry a towering structure to honor their patron saint.Blessing · Procession and arrival
🇷🇸 Serbia and 3 moreLazariceлазарице (Serbian), лазаруване (Bulgarian)
A South Slavic procession of young unmarried women who bless homes before Palm SundayBlessing · The weeks before
🇵🇱 Poland and 5 moreDożynki
A Slavic harvest festival where farmers bring the last sheaf of grain to the village in a ceremonial wreath.Feast custom · After the wedding
🇭🇷 CroatiaZa križen
A night-long Maundy Thursday procession on Hvar island that honors the Weeping of the Lady.Blessing · The weeks before
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 3 moreMartenitsaмартеница
White and red yarn charms worn in the Balkans to welcome spring and wish for good health.Adornment · The weeks before
🇬🇧 United KingdomWassailing
Singing and drinking to bless trees or homes during the Christmas seasonFeast custom · The weeks before
🇷🇴 Ieud, RomaniaNunta mortului
A symbolic Romanian rite that dresses an unmarried dead person as a bride or groom to complete their life cycle.Rite · The weeks before
🇭🇷 CroatiaŽudijeŽudije (čuvari Kristova groba)
Catholic guardians who stand watch over a replica tomb of Christ in Dalmatia until Easter Vigil.Rite · The weeks before
🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreLenten veilFastentuch
A large painted or embroidered canvas that covers the altar during Lent to create a period of visual penance.Rite · The weeks before
🇷🇴 Romania and 3 moreMărțișor
The red and white string charm worn in early spring to welcome the new year.Adornment · The weeks before
🇮🇹 Gubbio, Italy and 1 moreSaint Ubaldo DayFesta dei Ceri
A procession where runners carry massive wooden pedestals with saint statues through the streets of Gubbio and Jessup.Blessing · Procession and arrival
🇩🇪 GermanyBollenhut
A straw hat with woolen pompoms worn by women in specific Black Forest villages as part of their traditional dress.Attire · The weeks before
🇵🇱 Poland and 3 moreEaster palmPolish: palma wielkanocna; Lithuanian: verba
A decorated willow or juniper bundle blessed on Palm Sunday to protect homes and crops.Blessing · The weeks before
🇬🇷 Corfu, GreeceBotidesμπότηδες
The throwing of clay pots filled with water from balconies in Corfu on Holy Saturday to mark the Resurrection.Blessing · The ceremony
🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreLaternelaufen
A lantern procession held by children in Germany and Austria on St. Martin's Day to celebrate sharing and light.Blessing · The weeks before
🇧🇪 Bruges, BelgiumProcession of the Holy BloodHeilig Bloedprocessie
A Catholic parade in Bruges that carries a relic on Ascension Day.Blessing · The ceremony
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreWhite tie
The highest level of formal Western evening attire for men and womenAttire · The ceremony
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreShoe tossing
A wedding superstition where old shoes are thrown at the couple for good luckBlessing · After the wedding
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Turoń: Museum: The Seweryn Udziela Ethnographic Museum in Kraków, CC0, source
- Bridal crown: Daderot, CC0, source
- Loutrophoros: Picture taken by Marcus Cyron, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sevillanas: Anual, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Wassailing: Joss Smithson, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Shoe tossing: Zarateman, CC0, source
- Za križen: E.mil.mil, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Saint Ubaldo Day: Marco Riccardini, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- White tie: jonlo168, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Macchina di Santa Rosa: Amras Carnesîr, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Laternelaufen: Heinrich Hermanns, Public domain, source
- Botides: Gkaridis0, CC BY 4.0, source
- Marriage of the Sea ceremony: Francesco Guardi, Public domain, source
- Easter palm: Evaldas Liutkus, CC BY 2.0, source
- Bollenhut: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Kransekake: Kjetil Ree, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Eastern Orthodox marriage: VitVit, CC BY 3.0, source
- Dożynki: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Wedding cord: Phil! Gold, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Bread and salt: Olli Niemitalo, CC0, source
- Weddings in ancient Rome: Meister der Aldobrandinischen Hochzeit, Public domain, source
- Rushnyk: Pavlo Boyko, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Epithalamium: Lorenzo Lotto, Public domain, source
- Polterabend: 4028mdk09, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mnohaya lita: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Care cloth: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Lazarice: Svetlina bov at Bulgarian Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Kolach: Лобачев Владимир, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Wimpel: Wikipedia Loves Art participant " The_Grotto ", CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Mantilla: Museu Valencià d'Etnologia, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Martenitsa: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Nunta mortului: Iosif Berman, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Lenten veil: Plutowiki, CC0, source
- Bridal bouquet: James Vick's Sons (Rochester, N.Y.); Henry G. Gilbert Nursery and Seed, No restrictions, source
- Anastenaria: Artkostov, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Procession of the Holy Blood: Cbl62, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Călușari: El bes, CC BY 3.0, source