A wedding is a civil or religious ceremony at which the beginning of a marriage is celebrated.

Customs

---

General customs

Wedding ceremonies may contain any number of different elements, however most contain wedding vows of some kind and a proclamation of marriage, usually by the officiant.

Other elements may include music, poetry, prayer, scripture, or other traditions. In most societies a number of traditions or customs have emerged around the wedding ceremony, many of which have lost their original symbolic meaning in the modern world. Other wedding traditions are relatively recent. Some elements of the Western wedding ceremony symbolize the bride's departure from her father's control and entry into a new family with her husband. In modern Western weddings, this symbolism is largely vestigial, since husband and wife are of equal power and status. Recently in some cultures, same-sex weddings have begun to be celebrated.

The Western custom of the bride wearing a white wedding dress, came to symbolize purity in the Victorian era (despite popular misconception and the hackneyed jokes of situation comedies the white dress did not actually indicate virginity, which was symbolized by a face veil). Within the "white wedding" tradition, a white dress and veil would not have been considered appropriate in the second or third wedding of a widow or divorcee. The specific conventions of Western weddings largely from a Protestant and Catholic viewpoint, are discussed at "White wedding."

More on [ Wedding ]

Weddings - Twitter Search

RT @ecobeautiful: Atlanta: We are coming to do the Eco-Beautiful Weddings seminar on 12/8 - Register : http://ow.ly/zxN1 - Max of 40 spaces!
kelimorris (LittlePinkBookEvents) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:56:47 -0000
RT @ecobeautiful: Atlanta: We are coming to do the Eco-Beautiful Weddings seminar on 12/8 - Register : http://ow.ly/zxN1 - Max of 40 spaces!
ONTD: pete campbell cries at weddings, remains manly while doing so http://bit.ly/Qofy2
GossipFeeds (Gossip Feeds) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:55:20 -0000
ONTD: pete campbell cries at weddings, remains manly while doing so http://bit.ly/Qofy2
Save the Date: Celebrity weddings the week of Nov. 8-14 http://bit.ly/35eWvK
lifeloveromance (life love romance) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:54:21 -0000
Save the Date: Celebrity weddings the week of Nov. 8-14 http://bit.ly/35eWvK
I posted 35 photos on Facebook in the album "weddings" http://bit.ly/tyry2
peterlanephoto (Peter Lane) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:53:27 -0000
I posted 35 photos on Facebook in the album "weddings" http://bit.ly/tyry2
RT @GreenWedDC Atlanta: We are coming to do the Eco-Beautiful Weddings seminar on 12/8 - Register here: http://ow.ly/zxO8 -Max of 40 spaces!
gaywedding (Bernadette Smith) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:53:09 -0000
RT @GreenWedDC Atlanta: We are coming to do the Eco-Beautiful Weddings seminar on 12/8 - Register here: http://ow.ly/zxO8 -Max of 40 spaces!
Mammoth Reruns :: Kyle Barnes, Part II - Southern Weddings ... http://bit.ly/4zyUNO
BeachChapels (South Pacific Bridal) Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:52:29 -0000
Mammoth Reruns :: Kyle Barnes, Part II - Southern Weddings ... http://bit.ly/4zyUNO

Subscribe to Weddings RSS feed