There are many different wedding traditions in the world, traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation. Some wedding traditions stem from religious beliefs and some stem from family beliefs and traditions that have been handed down from generation to generation for hundreds of years.
In Africa there are many different wedding traditions. For example, depending on what region you live in, your wedding might be a one day event or it might last for several days. Also, depending on what region you live in, a typical wedding ceremony will include several couples getting married at the same time. In some regions of Africa, children are allowed to marry as soon as they have reached physical adulthood, usually between the ages of 13 and 15.
In Sudan, during the wedding, it is customary for the bride and the groom to kiss the knees of their parents. This is a symbol of them asking the parents for forgiveness and blessing, and promising to always serve their parents. The Sudan people also have an egg breaking ceremony, also called nincak endog, where the groom is pronounced as the master of his house. During this ceremony, seven broomsticks are burnt and thrown away dramatizing the discarding bad habits which endanger married life.
A traditional Moroccan wedding ceremony lasts four to seven days. It is custom for a Moroccan bride to receive a purification milk bath before receiving a ritual henna painting, or Beberiska, of her hands and feet. Once the couple has said their wedding vows, the bride walks around the outside of her house three times before she can become the mistress of her new home.
Even in America, there are many different wedding traditions. The wedding rings are exchanged, rings with no beginning or end, and this symbolizes an everlasting love. The meaning of the traditional kiss symbolizes the sealing of their union to their families and friends. At the end of the wedding ceremony it is customary to throw rice and the newlyweds as a symbol of fertility.
Different religions have wedding traditions too, such as the Jewish breaking of the glass at the conclusion of the ceremony. The groom (and in some modern ceremonies, the bride as well) smashes a glass with his foot. One interpretation of this is that the marriage will last as long as the glass is broken, forever. Another interpretation is that people need to remember those who are suffering even in their greatest moments of joy, and to remember the destruction of the second temple. After the breaking of the glass, the guests yell, “Mazel Tov!” which means good luck.