Wedding Customs around the World
Early African American: Jumping the Broom In the times of slavery in this country, African American couples were not allowed to formally marry and live together. To make a public declaration of their love and commitment, a man and woman jumped over a broom into matrimony, to the beat of drums. (The broom has long held significant meaning for the various Africans, symbolizing, the start of home- making for the newlywed couple. In Southern Africa, the day after the wedding, the bride assisted the other women in the family in sweeping the courtyard, indicating her dutiful willing ness to help her in-laws with housework till the newlyweds could move to their new home.) Some African-American couples today are choosing to include this symbolic rite in their wedding ceremony.
Armenia: Two white doves may be released to signify love and happiness. The bride may dress in red silk and may wear cardboard wings with feathers on her head. Small coins may be thrown at her.
Belgium: The bride may still embroider her name on her handkerchief, carry it on the wedding day, then frame it and keep it until the next family bride marries.
Bermuda: Islanders top their tiered wedding cakes with a tiny sapling. The newlyweds plant the tree at their home, where they can watch it grow, as their marriage grows.
Bohemia: The groom gives the bride a rosary, a prayer book, a girdle with three keys (to guard her virtue), a fur cap, and a silver wedding ring. The bride gives the groom a shirt sewn with gold thread blended with colored silks and a wedding ring. Before the ceremony, the groomsman wraps the groom in the bride's cloak to keep evil spirits from creeping in and dividing their two hearts.
Caribbean: A rich black cake baked with dried fruits and rum is especially popular on the islands of Barbados, Grenada and St. Lucia. The recipe, handed down from mother to daughter, is embellished by each. It is considered a "pound" cake--with the recipe calling for a pound each of flour, dark brown sugar, butter, glace cherries, raisins, Prunes, currants, Plus a dozen eggs and flavorings. The dried fruits are soaked in rum and kept in a crock anywhere from two weeks to six months.
Croatia: Married female relatives remove the bride's veil and replace it with a kerchief and apron, symbols of her new married status. She is then serenaded by all the married women. Following the wedding ceremony, those assembled walk three times around the well (symbolizing the Holy Trinity,) and throw apples into it (symbolizing fertility).
The Czech Republic: Friends would sneak into the bride's yard to plant a tree, then deco rate it with ribbons and painted eggshells. Legend said she would live as long as the tree. Brides in the countryside carry on the very old custom of wearing a wreath of rosemary, which symbolizes remembrance. The wreath is woven for each bride on her wedding eve by her friends as a wish for wisdom, love, and loyalty.
Egypt: Families, rather than grooms, propose to the bride. In Egypt, many marriages are arranged. The zaffa, or wedding march, is a musical procession of drums, bagpipes, horns, belly dancers, and men carrying flaming swords; it announces that the marriage is about to begin.
England: Traditionally, the village bride and her wedding party always walk together to the church. Leading the procession: a small girl strewing, blossoms along the road, so the bride's path through life will always be happy and laden with flowers.
早期非洲裔美國(guó)人：跳掃帚 在美國(guó)的黑奴時(shí)代，黑人男女是不允許正式結(jié)婚生活在一起的。為了向世人宣布他們的愛(ài)情和婚約，一對(duì)黑人男女和著鼓聲的節(jié)奏，一起跳過(guò)一把掃帚。（掃帚對(duì)各種非洲人長(zhǎng)期來(lái)都具有很重要的意義，因?yàn)樗馕吨禄榉驄D組成家庭的開(kāi)始。在南部非洲，新娘在婚后的第一天要幫助夫家的其他女性清掃院子，以此表明在住進(jìn)自己的新家前，她愿意盡職地幫助丈夫的家人承擔(dān)家務(wù)勞動(dòng)。）直至今日，一些美國(guó)黑人還在他們的婚禮上舉行這種象征性的儀式。
亞美尼亞：人們放飛兩只白鴿，以示愛(ài)情和幸福。新娘穿著紅色絲綢的服裝，頭戴飾有羽毛的紙翼。人們還可向新娘投擲硬幣。
比利時(shí)：新娘可以將其姓名繡在手帕上，在婚禮舉行日隨身帶上它?；槎Y后將手帕裝入鏡框保存，直到家里的另外一個(gè)姑娘結(jié)婚。
百慕大：百慕大島民在他們的多層婚禮蛋?nbsp| 的頂層插上一株小樹(shù)苗，新婚夫婦要將這株樹(shù)苗種在家中，這樣他們可以目睹樹(shù)苗伴隨著他們的婚姻一起長(zhǎng)大。
波黑人：新郎向新娘贈(zèng)送一串念珠，一本祈禱文，一根上面串著三把鑰匙的腰帶（用以保護(hù)她的貞潔），一頂毛皮帽，一個(gè)銀的結(jié)婚戒指。新娘則向新郎贈(zèng)送一件用金線和彩色絲綢縫制的襯衣和結(jié)婚戒指?；槎Y前，伴郎將新郎裹進(jìn)新娘的斗篷里，以防惡魔侵入，拆散他們相愛(ài)的心。
加勒比地區(qū)：在巴巴多斯，格林納達(dá)和圣盧西亞，用干果和朗姆酒制作的味道濃郁的蛋?nbsp| 十分常見(jiàn)。蛋?nbsp| 的制作方法，由母親親手傳給女兒，并且各自對(duì)其加以修飾。人們把這種蛋?nbsp| 叫作“一磅”蛋?nbsp| ，因?yàn)橹谱鬟@種蛋?nbsp| 需要面粉、棕糖、黃油、糖霜櫻桃、葡萄干、李子、紅醋栗各一磅，加上一打雞蛋和調(diào)味品。制作蛋?nbsp| 的干果要在朗姆酒中浸泡并在瓦罐中保存兩個(gè)星期至6個(gè)月。
克羅地亞：由已婚的女性親戚摘下新娘的面紗，換上一塊頭巾和一條圍裙，意味著新娘的已婚新身份。然后由所有的已婚婦女為新娘唱小夜曲?；槎Y之后，所有來(lái)賓圍繞著井走三圈（象征著圣三位一體），并向井中扔蘋果（象征著生育）。
捷克共和國(guó)：朋友們溜進(jìn)新娘的院子去種一棵樹(shù)，然后再用彩帶和彩繪的蛋殼將樹(shù)加以裝飾。傳說(shuō)新娘將與這樹(shù)活得一樣長(zhǎng)。鄉(xiāng)村的新娘還保留著佩帶迷迭香花環(huán)的古老習(xí)俗，以表懷念之情?；ōh(huán)是在婚禮前夕由新娘的朋友編織而成，它象征著智慧、愛(ài)情和忠誠(chéng)。
埃及：在埃及，由新郎的家人，而不是新郎本人，向新娘求婚。許多婚姻還是父母之命，媒妁之言。Zaffa，也就是婚禮，其實(shí)是一個(gè)充滿音樂(lè)的列隊(duì)*，有鼓、風(fēng)笛、號(hào)角及肚皮舞，男人們手持火紅的劍。這個(gè)儀式宣告，婚姻即將開(kāi)始。
英格蘭：按照傳統(tǒng)，鄉(xiāng)村的新娘和參加婚禮的人們總是一起步行走向教堂。一個(gè)小姑娘走在隊(duì)列最前面，她一路拋撒鮮花，預(yù)示著新娘一生的道路上也將開(kāi)滿鮮花