W e dd i ng s Gu id e fo r 2 0 0 5
Alison Shiboski
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Timeless Traditions
Friday & Saturday
January 14 & 15
10am–6pm
Why we do what we do when we say‘I do.’
This is your chance to buy direct from
African Art & Bead Importer
Musa Jawara
Large selection of African trade beads from
around the world. Vintage glass from Europe and
contemporary beads from Africa.
BY VANESSA SALVIA
A
newly married couple departs the
church in a car bedecked with soup
cans tied onto the bumper, horn blaring. A
bridesmaid tosses petals on the ground in
front of the bride. It’s all tradition, with a
capitol “T.” But why? Where do these
strange customs come from?
Many of the wedding traditions we take
for granted today have rich histories going
back thousands of years. Celebrating a wed-
ding with noisemaking dates back to ancient
China, where people believed exploding fire-
practice dates even further back. Kenyan
couples crossed wooden sticks during their
weddings to call upon the natural life force
found in trees. African slaves brought the
practice to this country.
Flower girls trace back to England.
Brides strolled down paths strewn with
flower petals to symbolize a smooth and easy
experience during marriage.
If you’re Greek, you might break a plate
at your wedding. The origins of this are
murky, but some folklorists believe it is a
with decorum. The delicate glass is wrapped
in a towel and gently crushed underfoot. This
is a poignant reminder of the fragility of life
and isn’t meant to be a destructive act.
Traditional marriages between two
Hispanic/Latino people are typically per-
formed as part of a full Catholic mass. One
tradition modern couples frequently honor is
the arras, recalling the Moorish tradition of
paying the bride’s family. Thirteen gold
coins are placed in a small, decorative chest
or box. The coins symbolize the
Celebrating a wedding with noisemaking dates back to ancient China,
where people believed exploding fireworks repelled evil spirits.
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works repelled evil spirits. Many cultures
embrace noisemaking to ward off demons. In
the U.S., newlyweds honored those tradi-
tions, even if they couldn’t light fireworks.
The Western tradition of bell ringing comes
from this Chinese idea, and explains why
bells are a popular wedding motif.
The old adage “tying the knot” actually
refers to the Celtic ritual of handfasting,
where the couple’s hands were literally tied
together during the marriage rites. Modern
brides follow the Victorian saying by wear-
ing “Something old, something new, some-
thing borrowed, something blue.” This tra-
dition originated with the Israelites, whose
brides carried something “old” from a fami-
ly member and wore blue to symbolize faith-
fulness, purity and love.
Some modern African American couples
jump over a ceremonial decorated broom.
This emulates an African tradition of using a
broom to sweep away evil spirits. But the
4 • E u g e ne W e e k ly W e dd in g G ui de f or 2 00 5
spontaneous expression of kefi, or “spirit of
joy.” Of course, sometimes plates get broken
during violent or angry outbursts, so con-
trolled plate-breaking may have been a way
to impel evil spirits away from the wedding,
tricking them into believing the occasion was
not a joyous one.
Either way, plate-breaking is officially
discouraged in Greece now due to the dan-
gers of flying shards. Today Greek establish-
ments catering to wedding parties must be
licensed to allow the practice. In this country
it’s difficult to find a caterer or venue that
permits it. If you adopt this practice, remem-
ber: It’s plate-breaking, not plate-smashing.
It is considered discourteous to pick up
pieces of a broken plate to further break
them, or to throw plates (even in jest) at a
person or wall. The accepted way to break a
plate is to hold it out and drop it to the floor.
This rite is very similar to the Jewish practice
of breaking a glass, which, again, is done
Twelve Apostles and the couple’s union. The
groom presents them to the bride one at a
time.
Of course, you don’t have to be born into
a specific culture to admire its ceremonial
traditions and incorporate them into your
modern wedding. Sometimes the most mem-
orable moments are when you adapt a mean-
ingful tradition in a way that makes it per-
sonal for you. One couple I know who have
visited Italy many times modified a tradi-
tional ancient Roman ceremony and spoke
their vows in Latin, though they are not of
Italian heritage.
One custom we probably won’t be seeing
in the modern wedding ceremony is the
Slovakian tradition of the bride seizing a
broom and spontaneously dancing a polka
with it to symbolize her joy at assuming the
role of housewife. Whatever tradition you
incorporate, have fun making it meaningful
❤
and personal to you.
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