Many Wedding Ceremony Traditions
Wedding ceremony traditions vary from culture to culture and also according to religion. We will only discuss the traditional American wedding ceremony in this article, since it is fairly consistent with ceremonies in most English speaking countries.
Some of the traditions are far from complicated. The basic ingredients are the bride and groom, and an officiating persona that will marry them, which is usually a priest, a rabbi, or a civil official for non-religious ceremonies.
Two or more witnesses are customarily required to recognize the ceremony legally. A wedding needs witnesses just like the signing of a legal document.
Most people, however, prefer to have family and friends with them when they pledge their love to one another. Most brides have a male figure who can give them away, a maid of honor (or a matron), bridesmaids and a flower girl. The groom will invite a best man, plus often one or more groomsmen. The ring bearer is often a young boy who carries the wedding rings on a cushion.
Ushers will be there to organize, accompany guests to their seats and do anything that needs to be done to ensure the ceremony runs smoothly. Guests will usually sit on one side or the other depending on whether they are more closely associated with the bride or the groom, but this is not always followed. If one side of the family is much larger than the other, seating may need to be rearranged.
The groom should get to the church earlier and wait for his bride. It is often traditional for the bride to be a little late, but the groom must not be late!
Family members usually seat close to the front, and the first row of seats is usually occupied by the wedding party. At times the wedding party stands the whole time. In that case the parents and grandparents of the bride and groom will sit in the front row on each side.
In traditional American weddings, the bridesmaids enter first, along with the groomsmen. They are followed by the maid of honor who may be accompanied by the best man. Then comes the ring bearer followed by the flower girl, or the two may walk together. Last but not least, the bride enters on the arm of the man who will give her away.
In some other cultures, for example in the UK, the bride and her father will enter at the head of the bridal procession with the maid of honor and bridesmaids following behind. If the bride's dress trails, the train is carried by the bridesmaids.
After the ceremony, the bride, groom, witnesses and the official that married them are required to sign the marriage license or register. Without this happening correctly, the marriage is not legal, however closely it may have followed the other wedding ceremony traditions.
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tags:Weddings,relationships,love,marriage
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