A wedding is not only to mark an important day in a person's life, but also an occasion to show the customs of the people of a country. And there are countries with different wedding traditions around the world that are unique just like its culture.

From setting free pigeons in the Philippines, to sawing a log of wood in Germany, or breaking porcelain dishes in Greece, every country has a beautiful and unique wedding ceremony to be proud of.

Do you want to learn those interesting cultural rituals? Let's accompany the papmall® team in the following article to find out more information about 13 beautiful wedding traditions from around the world, beginning with the nation of the cherry blossom.

1. Japanese wedding traditions - The San San Kudo

Weddings in Japan are a traditional ceremony that is not only beautiful in the matter of the outfits, but also in its rituals. From the reception stage to the wedding party, Japanese weddings include a chain of meaningful acts, and there’s one ceremony that cannot be missed. That is the sake-sharing tradition called San San Kudo.

San is the number three, Ku is the number nine, and Do means “deliver”. It is a symbolist ritual that is performed by the groom, the bride, and the parents of the couple.

To do the San San Kudo ritual in the right way, the wedding couple will take turns to finish sake from a small nuptial cup called Sakazuki with 3 sips, and for 3 times. The number 9 is a lucky number in Japanese’s belief. Then their parents will do it later as well.

Each of the sip has its own meaning:

• The first 3 sips symbolize one set of the three couples, the groom and the bride, and the parents of both sides.
• The second 3 sips represent three things that an ordinary human possesses, which is hatred, ignorance, and passion.
• The last 3 sips are to set them free from the mentioned human flaws.

San San Kudo - The Sake-sharing ceremony in Japanese wedding traditions.

2. German wedding traditions - The Wood Sawing

In marriage rituals around the world, a German traditional wedding is probably the most interesting since the German people absolutely love to play games and pranks at their wedding. And one of them is the wood sawing game at the end of their wedding.

Right after the wedding ceremony is over, the bride and her newly married husband will have to saw a log of wood together. In order to do it right, the husband and wife both held one end of a jigsaw and saw a log of wood placed on a sawbuck in front of everybody. The more smoothly they push and pull the jigsaw at a good pace, the more their married life will be happy and equal later on.

The wood sawing game is an old tradition of the German and is fun to play, as well as possess a meaningful wish, that is why it is an important part of their wedding ceremony until now.

A German newly-wed completes their big day with the wood sawing game.

German Log Sawing Wedding Tradition

3. French wedding traditions - The White Ribbon-cutting

In all the world wedding traditions, having your big day celebrated in France is the dream of many people. It’s not only because France has the most perfect places for celebrating a wedding, but also because the traditional weddings are meaningful and lovely.

One of those lovely traditions comes from a small village of the French countryside, the white ribbon-cutting ritual. The ritual begins when the groom and his mother come to his soon-to-be wife’s house in order to pick her up before the wedding. The bride and her father then lead the procession alongside the musicians on the way to the church, followed by the groom and his mother.

While they are walking on the road, the children on both the roadside will stretch out a long white ribbon to block their way. The bride, in order to get through it, will have to cut the ribbon, which symbolizes her ability to overcome any challenge in her married life and be happy ever after with her partner.

In modern times, the white ribbon is replaced with a huge white sheet of cloth or paper, and the ones who cut it now are both the groom and his bride. It is to show that they will always go through each of their obstacles together in the future.

Cutting a white ribbon marks the couple’s new blessing journey.

4. Greek wedding traditions - The Crowning

The highlight in the Greek’s traditional wedding has the appearance of the crowns. In “The Crowning” ritual, the groom and the bride when walking onto the aisle will have a crown called the Stefana, on each of their heads. Those crowns can be made in precious metal like gold or silver, flowers, or foliage.

The Greek bride and groom are wearing Stefana while standing in front of the Father.

Before putting on the couple’s heads, the best man (Koumbaro) or the maid (Koumbara) will swap the crowns back and forth three times. The wedding couple then wear them on their heads and walk around the altar three times, which symbolizes their future together.

When the Father or the Master Ceremony announce they are husband and wife, he will then place one ribbon onto the two crowns to connect them together, the act representing the connecting of two lives together.

The crowns worn by the bride and groom represent that they are the Queen and King of their home, and that they are going to be the founders of another generation.

The Crowning ceremony in Greek wedding tradition.

5. Indian wedding traditions - The Henna and The Vermilion

The Vermilion

A traditional wedding ceremony in India includes several cultural rituals, and one of them is the Vermilion, or often called Sindoor. Vermilion is the name of a red or orange powder that is painted on the bride's head, particularly along her hairline, to mark the marital status of the married woman.

Being older than most marriage customs around the world, the Vermilion ritual had been said to appear in the Indian wedding for over 5,000 years and continue to be an essential part of the Hindu communities of the modern days.

The wedding girl in India gets her Vermilion ritual performed.

The Henna

You may have heard of the word “Henna” as a kind of tattoo before, but do you know that Henna is also an indispensable part of a wedding in India?

In many married traditions around the world, have you ever seen an Indian Wedding where the bride has well-designed tattoos all over her arms and a part of her face? Yes, those tattoos are called Henna, and the Indian brides wear them on their wedding day as accessories.

Let’s take a look at the picture below. Isn’t she pretty in those Henna tattoos?

An Indian bride with Henna tattoos on her arms.

6. Chinese wedding traditions - The Tea Ceremony

The tea ceremony in the wedding is one of the most important rituals that began from the Tang dynasty (618 - 907) in China, in which the newly married couple show their respect to the adults from both sides and ask for the acceptance to be a member of their families.

Throughout Chinese history, tea plays an essential role in their culture as something that represents the connection, the respect, and longevity. The present of the tea in a wedding embraces those meanings and brings the two families together.

During the tea ceremony, the parents of the groom and the bride will take a seat at a most honorable place in the house. Then the newly-wed couple will at the same time, with all respect, kneel on their knees in front of the adults and serve them the tea in traditional tea cups.

Right after that, relatives including grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles will hand the groom and the bride a red envelope with money or jewelry inside to wish them luck on the new life together.

A Chinese newly-wed couple serving tea to their parents.

7. Italian wedding traditions - The Almond Candy

In many wedding customs around the world, including Italian, invited people do throw rice or confeties to the happy couple. Traditionally, the guests in Italy coming to the wedding will prepare to gift the newlyweds with colorful marzipan. Which is a bag filled with almond candy that is called Jordan almonds in many colors, but traditionally, white-shelled almond candy is often preferred.

Usually, the candy bag is filled with five almonds symbolizing their wishes for the wedding couple to be blessed in happiness, wealth, health, longevity, and fertility.The five almonds bring health, wealth, happiness, fertility, and longevity.

Bags of five white-coated Jordan almond candies in Italian weddings.

8. Irish wedding traditions - Tie the knot

Yes, the popular phrase you often use to describe marriage is originally from ancient Ireland. The tradition is also called the “Hand-fasting” ceremony.

When performing the “Tie the knot” ritual, the hands of the bride and groom will be tied together with a rob in the fisherman’s knot which is to symbolize their strong bonding with hardship and a journey fulfilled with happiness and fortune.

An Irish couple getting their hands tied in their traditional wedding ceremony.

9. Filipino wedding traditions - The Dove-freeing

A wedding in the Filipino culture has a poetic, ethereal tradition called the Dove-freeing. After the Father announces them as husband and wife, the happy newly-wed in the Philippines will perform the act of releasing a pair of doves—one male, one female—into the sky in front of everyone.

The couple of doves representing the groom and his bride, which is also a universal symbol of peace, are said to represent their upcoming life with only joy, blessing, harmony and peace together.

Releasing doves on the wedding day is a Filipino tradition.

10. Congolese wedding traditions - The No-smiling Wedding

Unlike any different types of weddings around the world, the Democracy Republic of Congo tradition has one strict rule for the newly-wed man and woman on their wedding day. Particularly, they can not express their joyfulness on their wedding day. During the entire wedding ceremony, they must keep their face straight.

Any action representing happiness is not allowed since that is the sign that they are not serious about marriage.

A typical wedding in Congolese tradition has everyone in serious expression..

11. Korean wedding traditions - The Foot Beating

Getting beaten by the in-laws on your wedding day sounds kind of a weird thing, right? In fact, it is actually a ritual in Korean wedding tradition called the Foot Beating, or the Falaka ceremony.

The Falaka begins when the groom is forced to lay down on a table and have his shoes and socks taken off by his in-laws while his both feet are held up in the air. The bride's family then gather to take turns beating him in the soles. While suffering from the pain, the groom needs to answer continuous questions, which are often just trivia quizzes.

This may look and sound like a fun activity that brings laughter to the invited guests, and the pain to the groom. However, the ritual reflects a more serious meaning than it shows. In Korean culture, people believe that this challenge will enhance his strength for the wedding night. And by answering those questions, his memory will be improved.

The Foot Beating ritual in Korean wedding traditions

12. Czesh Republic wedding traditions - Placing a baby on the couple’s bed

Different from many other cultures, the Czesh Republic people have a little cute baby on their wedding day, but not only to melt the hearts of everyone, but also to wish luck to the newly-wed couple.

In the Czesh Republic traditions, before the man and his beloved come to the church and announce their vows, they will place a baby on their new bed to bless and enhance their new life together. This is also a ritual to wish the couple to have a child as they wish in the future.

Following this lovely ritual, right after they become the husband and wife in front of the witness of everyone, the guests will shower them with rice, peas, and lentils as they walk along the aisle.

Placing an infant on the newly-wed bed brings blessing to the wedding couple.

13. Norwegian wedding traditions - The Bridal Crown

Just like the Crowning in Greek traditional weddings, the bride in Norway will also wear a sivel-made crown on her head on her wedding day. Usually, the crown is made attached to the bride’s long veils and it is there to represent her as the Virgin Mary, symbol of the purity of a woman.

The bridal crown on her head also has the purpose to scare off any evil spirit that comes near to her. While dancing and playing games are international wedding traditions around the world, there’s a dance party in the Norwegian wedding and while the bride is dancing, those little silver bangles of the crown will dangle and make some sound to ward off bad luck and evil things.

A Norwegian bride wearing a silver crown on her wedding day.

Conclusion

For that to be said, one’s wedding day is an occasion that both express their traditional culture and personal trademark. We bet that your wedding day has those unique features as well.

So, do you want one of your most beautiful days to be captured and kept forever? Contact our most professional and experienced freelance wedding video editors here on the papmall® platform to experience those beautiful moments of your life again.

It’s a great thing for us, papmall® team, to know more about your culture. We are looking forward to hearing from you.