Wedding Traditions

Wedding Superstitions and Traditions
Wedding Traditions and Superstitious Beliefs
Many of today's common wedding traditions and superstitions actually originated in ancient myth and folklore when it was thought that engaged couples were particularly vulnerable to bad luck and evil spirits right before their wedding day. Some traditions are commonplace, such as the bride not being seen in her wedding dress by the groom before the ceremony, others are unique and vary widely between cultures; all are thought to either ward off bad luck or surround the bride and groom with go...

What Is a Shivaree?
Learn about the Old-Fashioned Wedding Night Custom, the Shivaree or Chivaree
I'd heard about shivarees (or chivarees) when I was a kid, but even then, the custom had mostly died out. Now very few people even know what a shivaree was. Recently my interest in this old custom was piqued by a poem written by octogenarian, Monte Manka. In his eighties, but with still vivid memories of the good old days, Monte writes poems about his youth in the 1930s and 40s. Here's his poem, plus I'll get my mother's memories of her own shivaree to add and some research I did on the topi...

US Wedding Traditions
Keep Tradition Alive
Because our nation is a melting pot, US wedding traditions are a hodge-podge resulting from the blending of many different cultures. This means that there are plenty of traditions to choose (or not to choose) when you're planning your own personalized ceremony. It also means more work for the bride and the groom, because you can't necessarily just do what "everyone else does." While researching this site, I really enjoyed reading this great site about Enduring Wedding Traditions. It's a bit...

Meaningful Wedding Traditions
Symbolic Customs to Include in Your Wedding
Weddings are symbolic. The entire point of getting married and having a wedding is to stand up in front of your family and friends and say: "This is the one. We love each other and we hope that we will always love each other. We want to be a family and to support each other and we want your support and help to maintain the bond we have today." Many of the wedding traditions and customs that couples have incorporated into their wedding days over the centuries are symbolic attempts to secure ...

Wedding Jumping Brooms
Jumping Brooms, Decorations, Favors & More
Here you will find Jumping Brooms for purchase, as well as information on other online stores where you can purchase jumping brooms. You will also find ideas for decorations, favors and other jumping broom themed merchandise. Jumping brooms are used in weddings as a symbol of jumping into a new life. Broom jumping is a beautiful tradition that dates back hundreds of years to a variety of countries around the world. Photo used under creative commons from theilr.