8 Wedding Traditions

According to the dictionary, the definition of traditions is the transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation. Wedding traditions work much in the same way. Some have been passed down from the Middle Ages, even though they have changed. A few have changed enough that it is hard to see where they first originated from. While weddings are all unique and different, there are many western traditions that are common enough that almost everyone has heard about them. So where did they come from?

1. The White Wedding Dress

White wedding gowns came from Queen Victoria. Queen Victoria is the second longest royal leader of England, she was the longest running for decades until Queen Elizabeth II recently beat that. Queen Victoria married her cousin Prince Albert. But it wasn’t the traditional arranged marriage. They truly fell in love. They married on February 10, 1840 her in a white gown. She said in her diary “I never could have hoped to have felt before! He clasped me in his arms, & we kissed each other again & again. His beauty, his sweetness & gentleness—really how can I ever be thankful enough to have such a husband.”

Now after her wearing a white gown they became popular. Eventually they were associated with purity, where a girl wore white if she was a virgin. This is now not the case with a variety of color options available. However, unlike the wedding dress the veil has a somewhat…seedier purpose in history. Many weddings used to be arranged and in the case of the veil it kept the groom from backing out by seeing what the bride looked like until after the wedding. It might also have something to do with warding off evil spirits.

2. Bridesmaids

Evil spirts were actually the purpose of bridesmaids. The idea was you had a lady or two standing next to you dressed up with the flowers and such as well. Again, at that time there wasn’t a thing as a bridal gown or a white dress. So, the purpose was to confuse the evil spirits.

3. Groomsmen

We talked about how bridesmaids were to trick demons from finding the bride. On a completely different note, groomsmen came from a long time ago where men would kidnap women from other tribes, groups, etc. for marriage. Their job was to fight any father, brother, whoever who came to try to stop the wedding and to keep any flighty bride from running off. Obviously, there is problems with this, the lack of let’s say choice of women.

4. Bouquets

In original bouquets there was items in the flowers to ward off evil spirits and to keep the bride safe. Things in original bouquets included garlic along with flowers that had a strong smell. Also, since indoor plumbing was not a thing, the strong scent of the flowers probably helped that as well.

5. Wedding Showers

What were originally bridal showers the idea of showering the bride and groom with gifts or items they need for their future dates to Holland of all places in the 16th century according to Bride’s magazine. At the time it was expected that the bride’s father or family offer a dowry to her future husband. Gives a fun meaning to pay you take her off our hands. Anyways the story is the father refused to give up any dowry, so the town joined up and got small gifts to help them on their way.

This eventually transformed over time to these presents being brought to a bride put in a parasol and then opened over the bride’s head to shower her with gifts. All I can think in my head is a toaster popping open in an umbrella and clunking the bride on the head. I know these were probably smaller softer gifts, but still it is an image that is stuck within my head.

6. Wedding Registries

This gained ground through the idea of the dowry or bride price. Speaking of there is a website that can tell how many camels you are worth should someone choose to sell you, or you sell them. And no, I don’t remember how I found that out. It was later that the dowry changed from money that the husband was given to a chest of items that the bride brought with her that she collected over the years. The traditional hope chest. These could include clothes, nice vases, pillowcases, sheets, etc. It was in 1924 that Marshall Field’s in Chicago (which would eventually be purchased by Macy’s) came up with the first official nationwide bridal registry. Creating what they termed “the Bride’s House” with a showroom to show the young bride all the things that she would need.

This has since changed to not only store front locations for these types of events, but online ones and nontraditional types of registries that you can contribute to a honeymoon or to a charity on behalf of the couple.

7. Garter Toss

This tradition is probably the one that weirds me out the most. Even the modern version is not quite my style (but to each there own). One place this is seen in history comes from when the bride and groom would leave the wedding to consummate the marriage. A rowdy crowd of guests would follow them back to their house and make noise outside their window. To quiet them down the groom would toss the brides stockings out the window. This came to be good luck as well.

8. Wedding Traditions Involving Fertility:

Fertility is very much linked to many wedding traditions. Which, I don’t think is a bad thing exactly. At the time that’s what was expected out of a marriage. You were supposed to marry and have kids. One example of these is the idea of the rice tossing. Now this has changed overtime, there is issues with rice being dangerous to birds so now we shower the couple with petals, bubbles, or do a sparkler send off. But all of these things originated from the rice toss which began with the Celts to appease the God’s and spirits to get fertility for the couple. In Rome they did the same thing with wheat. The idea of the cake in the wedding also came from a belief that it related to fertility. At one point you would break the cake over the couple’s head for the good luck.