Wedding Gifts
Thursday, August 9th, 2007
“Customs from some parts of the world”
Just as the world is vast and so differant from country to country,it also stands to reason that wedding customs and gift giving around the world is also very much the same in some countries and so differant in others. So let me tell of some of them from some countries that I know of;
Scotland
Couples in Scotland do not require their parents permission to get married, so it was the ideal place for young couples from Ireland, England and Wales to go their for their marriage ceremony They had to be over the age of 16 years old and the most famous place was Gretna Green, which today performs hundreds of weddings annualy.
Afterwards the normal festivities would entail going to a hotel for food followed by mucic and dancing until the early hours of the morning.The initial dance is performed by the bride and groom. One of the main musical instruments associated with weddings in Scotland is of course the bagpipes. Traditional dress would the kilt and for good luck the a sprig of white heather would be worn in the bottonhole.
The customery wedding gift of money given inside a card is very acceptable.
Romania!
Romanians are noted for their festivities and parties which can last upto two to three days and will have musicians performimg traditional gypsy songs. Magicians and story tellers are part of this great occasion. Money is very welcome as part of the gift giving ceremony.
France!
The custom of the bride and groom coming to the wedding ceremony together is rather popular in a lot of french towns. The ceremony is performed much like other european countries in a church with minister of their faith presiding over the ceremony. Then when leaving the church petals and coins are thrown over the couple..
Household goods and money are the main wedding gifts as these will be useful to get the couple started in life.
Ireland!
Well this is the country that you will have a wedding ceremony the the memories will linger on well after the ceremony has ended.
Couples in this beautiful country tend to court for on average about two years before they decide to tie the knot. The custom of the groom having to ask the father of the bride for his daughters hand in marriage is still adhered to, but of course no as often as in times gone by. The wedding ceremony will last up to and hour, but be prepared to be in the church for up to two hours, as the custom of letting the groom wait for an hour is not unheard of.
After the ceremony the couple along with bestman , groomsmen and bridesmaids head to some senic area to have photos taken for the treasured photo album.
On to the hotel, where you will feast on some beautiful Irish food. The wedding speeches follow the meal where lots of nice things are said about everyone whether sincere or not. Dancing follows the feast, where the first ones on the floor are the bride and groom where the dance will end with the happy couple kissing and bowing to their guests.
Money, and items for the new home are the norm for wedding gifts in this country.In some cases the brides father will welcome his new son-inlaw by giving him a few acres of land to build a new home.