All wedding traditions

646 traditions so far, best known first. 428 more are on the list to be written. Filter by region, kind and stage of the wedding.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 1 moreMarriage in KoreaKorean marriage (결혼) A look at how Korean weddings blend ancient Confucian rites with modern legal practices.Rite · Finding a match

🇲🇲 MyanmarMarriage in Myanmar A blend of Buddhist rites, astrological timing, and family negotiations that defines union across Myanmar's diverse ethnRite · Finding a match

🇲🇦 Imilchil, MoroccoImilchil Marriage FestivalAgdoud N'Oulmghenni A Berber marriage festival in Morocco where tribes gather to arrange unions and celebrate with music and dance.Betrothal · Finding a match 🇾🇪 Yemen and 4 moreKafa'ahالكفاءة (al-kafā'ah) The Islamic legal principle of social and religious equivalence between spouses in marriage.Vow · Finding a match

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreMaithil Vivahमैथिल विवाह The arranged Hindu marriage of Maithils in the Mithila region, guided by Vedic texts and local customs.Betrothal · Finding a match 🇪🇹 Addis Ababa, EthiopiaWedding customs in Ethiopia A collection of diverse marriage rites across Ethiopian tribes and the Orthodox Christian community.Rite · Finding a match 🇮🇳 IndiaSambandam The traditional matrilineal marriage alliance of Kerala's Nairs and Nambudiris.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇸🇬 Singapore and 3 moreMatchmaking The practice of pairing two people for marriage through an intermediary or system.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan and 2 moreAla kachuuала качуу A Kyrgyz custom of taking a woman for marriage, ranging from consensual elopement to forced abduction.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇮🇳 IndiaChaklong wedding The traditional Ahom marriage system involving rice powder mandalas and ancestral rituals.Rite · Finding a match

🇿🇦 South Africa and 1 moreLobololobola (Zulu, Xhosa, Swazi, Ndebele), mahadi (Sesotho), mahari (Swahili), magadi (Sepedi), bogadi (Setswana), lovola (Xi The livestock or cash payment from a groom's family to a bride's family that formalizes a customary marriage in SouthernGift custom · 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

🇨🇳 Beijing, China and 1 moreMarriage market Public spaces where families gather to find spouses for their children through listings and brokers.Betrothal · Finding a match 🇧🇳 BruneiBrunei Malay wedding The sequence of ceremonies that mark the engagement and marriage of Brunei Malays.Rite · Finding a match

🇮🇳 India and 2 moreArranged marriage in the Indian subcontinent The family-led matchmaking process that shapes most marriages across South Asia.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇯🇵 JapanMiai見合い (Miai) A traditional Japanese matchmaking meeting where a man and woman consider marriage with the help of a go-between.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇮🇳 IndiaGandharva marriageगान्धर्व विवाह (gāndharva vivāha) A consensual union between a man and a woman without rituals or family involvement.Betrothal · Finding a match 🇪🇬 EgyptKhatbaخاطب A traditional Egyptian matchmaker who helps families find suitable marriage partners.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇨🇳 China and 2 moreChinese pre-wedding customs三書六禮 (sàam syù luhk láih) The traditional betrothal rituals of the Book of Rites that prepare a Chinese marriage.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea and 5 moreSister exchange A marriage arrangement where two brothers each take a sister from the other family as their wife.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇮🇳 IndiaMeitei weddingLuhongba (ꯂꯨꯍꯣꯡꯕ) The traditional union of the Meitei people, marked by clan exogamy and specific courtship rituals.Rite · Finding a match

🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreArab weddingزفاف or فرح or عرس A series of family-centered rites and processions that mark marriage across the Arab world.Rite · Finding a match 🇨🇳 China and 1 moreGhost marriage冥婚 (mínghūn) A union arranged for deceased individuals to ensure harmony in the afterlife and care in this one.Rite · Finding a match

🇻🇳 VietnamTraditional Vietnamese weddingLễ cưới truyền thống Việt Nam The multi-stage ceremony of betrothal, engagement and union that marks a marriage in Vietnam.Attire · Finding a match 🇵🇰 Pakistan and 4 moreWatta sattaوٹّا سٹّا / شغار A reciprocal marriage arrangement where two families swap brides to bind households and manage domestic tensions.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇿🇦 South AfricaUkuthwalwa A South African practice of abducting a woman for marriage, now largely illegal and contested.Betrothal · Finding a match 🇮🇳 IndiaTelugu Hindu weddingతెలుగు వివాహ వేడుక A multi-day Telugu Hindu marriage marked by seven vows around fire and family rituals.Rite · Finding a match

🇹🇱 Dili, Timor-Leste and 1 moreTimorese wedding traditionsBarlake The gift exchange and family alliance rituals practiced on the island of Timor.Gift custom · Finding a match 🇵🇭 PhilippinesPamamanhikan The formal visit by the groom's family to ask the bride's parents for her hand in marriage.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇦🇿 AzerbaijanAzerbaijani wedding traditionsAzərbaycanın toy adətləri The multi-step family rituals of Azerbaijani weddings, from matchmaking to the henna night.Rite · Finding a match

🇮🇷 Tehran, Iran and 1 moreIranian weddingمراسم عروسی در ایران A multi-stage ceremony rooted in Zoroastrianism and Islam that binds families through courtship, feasts, and sacred vowsRite · Finding a match

🇨🇳 Shanghai, ChinaShanghai Marriage Market人民公园相亲角 (Rénmín Gōngyuán Xiāngqīn Jiǎo) Parents pin written profiles of their unmarried children to strings in a Shanghai parkBetrothal · Finding a match

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreGroomsman A male attendant who supports the groom and assists guests at a wedding.Family role · Finding a match 🇭🇺 HungaryVőfély The Hungarian wedding host who guides the couple through rites, speeches, and traditions.Family role · Finding a match 🇲🇷 Mauritania and 5 moreLeblouhالبلوح The forced fattening of girls to improve their marriage prospects, a harmful practiceBetrothal · Finding a match 🇮🇶 Mosul, IraqWedding traditions in Iraq The arranged courtship, religious rites and multi-day celebrations that mark marriage in Iraqi society.Betrothal · Finding a match 🇳🇬 NigeriaMoney marriage A practice in southern Nigeria where a girl is given in marriage to settle her family's debts.Gift custom · Finding a match

🇸🇾 Syria and 3 moreAssyrian wedding Marriage ceremonies blending ancient Assyrian rites with modern cultural practices among the Assyrian people.Rite · Finding a match 🇮🇩 IndonesiaNgerorod A traditional Balinese Hindu elopement where couples marry by mutual consent despite family opposition.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇨🇳 ChinaTraditional Chinese marriage婚姻 (hūnyīn) A union between two families governed by Confucian rites and the exchange of gifts.Rite · Finding a match 🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreBaháʼí marriage A spiritual union requiring parental consent and a specific vow to establish harmony between partners.Rite · Finding a match 🇵🇪 Peru and 4 moreBride service Labor provided by the groom to the bride's family as part of the marriage arrangement.Gift custom · Finding a match

🇳🇬 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

🇺🇦 UkraineTraditional Ukrainian weddingТрадиційне українське весілля A multi-day sequence of folk rites, bread baking and church vows that marks the transition from maidenhood to married liRite · 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 🇲🇲 Myanmar and 1 moreMayu-Dama The Kachin kinship system that defines who can marry whom through wife-giver and wife-taker rolesBetrothal · Finding a match 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia and 5 moreCousin marriage in the Middle East A traditional practice of marrying close relatives, especially paternal cousins, across Middle Eastern communities.Betrothal · Finding a match

🇵🇭 Cebu, PhilippinesCourtship in the Philippines A traditional Filipino courtship marked by serenade, service, and family involvement.Betrothal · Finding a match

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Hausa traditional marriage: Bembety, CC0, source
Umtsimba: Cat7624, CC0, source
Marriage market: Tim Sheerman-Chase, CC BY 2.0, source
Courtship in the Philippines: Markytour777, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Miai: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Arranged marriage in the Indian subcontinent: Hindustanilanguage, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Gandharva marriage: Amitdighe, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Marriage in Korea: Jérôme Banal ( Eden2004 ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Marriage in Myanmar: Thant Zin Myint, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Imilchil Marriage Festival: Zakaria ElQotbi, CC BY 2.0, source
Chinese pre-wedding customs: Anonymous ( China ) Unknown author, CC0, source
Azerbaijani wedding traditions: Azim Azimzadeh, Public domain, source
Maithil Vivah: Sntshkumar750, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Chaklong wedding: Chiring chandan, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Iranian wedding: Flickr.com user "avlxyz", CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Shanghai Marriage Market: Jpbowen, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Matchmaking: Pavel Fedotov, Public domain, source
Groomsman: Jenny Mealing, CC BY 2.0, source
Assyrian wedding: Yucalyptus, CC0, source
Traditional Chinese marriage: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Traditional Ukrainian wedding: Пимоненко, Николай Корнильевич, Public domain, source
Lobolo: Iwuala Lucy, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Igbo traditional marriage: Olugold, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Sister exchange: Wilses, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Meitei wedding: Dabu Leichombam, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Arab wedding: 13th century artist, Public domain, source
Traditional Vietnamese wedding: Gabrielle M. Vassal, Public domain, source
Ukuthwalwa: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Public domain, source
Timorese wedding traditions: ColinTrainor, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Ala kachuu: Illus. in: Turkestanskii al'bom, chast' étnograficheskaia: ..., 1871-1, Public domain, source

All wedding traditions

Photo credits on this page

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