Traditionally more weddings take place in June than any other month of the year.  Naturally, you might think that this is because of the wonderful weather that we enjoy nationwide during this month.  While that may be the deciding factor for a lot of brides and grooms, there’s a lot more to this tradition than just the weather.  There are actually several good theories to the origin of this popular wedding tradition.

The custom for June weddings may have begun in ancient Rome.  Roman mythology dictated a lot of their customs and traditions and the goddess, Juno, was the Roman goddess of marriage.  Desiring their marriages to be blessed by Juno, they honored her by marrying in the month named after her.

Another theory to the origin of this custom dates back to the 1400’s when the ‘annual bath’ was held in May, making the large gathering for this type of celebration a little less offensive in the odor department.  Still another theory suggests that since many brides became pregnant on their honeymoon, the newlywed wife wouldn’t be too far alone during harvest time if the wedding was in June and could therefore still be of help bringing in the crops.

Today many couples have to plan their weddings around school and work schedules, and typically, the summer months are a little easier to plan for. 

The tradition of the preacher asking for objections and stating ’Speak now or forever hold your peace’ dates back centuries and originates in the Catholic Church.  It was a common  practice to publicly announce upcoming marriages several weeks prior to their taking place.  This practice was called a ‘bann’ and was intended to make certain that the bride and groom were not closely related.  It also was meant to inform parents of their children’s upcoming weddings, just in case the couple was trying to get secretly married without their parents’ knowledge.

Today, the obtaining of marriage licenses makes this tradition unnecessary.  In fact, unless it’s the bride or the groom that has the objection, or someone else with a genuine legal reason to object, the marriage will not be stopped.  Most marriage ceremonies have totally done away with this age-old question, although it’s still good for a little suspense in ‘TV Land’.

Ever wonder why the cars carrying the newlyweds and the bridal party honk their horns as they leave the church on their way to the reception?  This noisy tradition dates back to the Middle Ages when it was believed that by making a loud ruckus, it would ward off evil spirits. 

This is also the reason that the tradition of tying cans to the bumper of the ‘getaway car’ came into being.  As lucky as the bride was considered to be, she was also thought to be highly susceptible to the pranks of evil spirits. 

Ever wonder why the bride traditionally stands on the left side of the groom during the wedding ceremony?  Long ago it was not unusual for kidnapping attempts to be made on a bride-to-be.  The bride, therefore, would stand on the left side of the groom in order for him to keep his sword arm free in case he needed to protect his bride.

Typically, the groom recruited the aid of one of the best warriors in his tribe to help him in just such an emergency.  This was the beginning of today’s best man.  Although it is still a special honor to be chosen for this position, the job description is far less life threatening (unless, of course, the best man loses the rings)!

There are several beliefs stemming from long ago that made carrying the bride across the threshold such an enduring tradition.  One goes along with the common idea that newlyweds, especially brides, were easy targets for evil spirits.  In order to protect the vulnerable bride from these evil spirits, barriers were placed between the bride and the ground, thus making it impossible for these spirits to reach her.  Just as the bridal aisle runner blocked the evil spirits, by picking his bride up off of the ground as they entered their home, the groom also protected his bride from attack.

It was also considered to be bad luck for the bride to trip as she entered her home for the first time.  Carrying the bride over the threshold seemed to prevent the possibility of this occurring. 

Another belief stems from the fact that it was considered unlady-like for a bride to be too willing to enter her husband’s home.  By stopping at the front door and refusing to enter, the groom had to carry his bride inside, this keeping her modest character in tact.

This beloved tradition dates back to early Rome where it was customary to seal a contract with a kiss.  This made the contract legal and binding.  This apparently was such an important part of the wedding ceremony, that without it, the wedding would be considered null and void.

The wedding kiss was also believed to impart a portion of one’s soul into the other; an exchange of each other’s spirits.  This is a wonderful picture of the two becoming one.  It is sad that time tends to loose the symbolic beauty of many of our traditions and today we view the first kiss as husband and wife only as a sign of affection for one another. 

Did you know that the unity candle is one of the newest wedding traditions?  It became a popular part of today’s traditional wedding ceremony in the 1990’s.  Typically, the bride and groom each light their own smaller taper candle, signifying their individual families.  It is also traditional for the mothers of the bride and groom t0 light the family candles.  During the ceremony, the bride and groom take the individual candles and together light a larger pillar candle.  This represents their unity; the creation of one new family.  Once the larger candle is lit, the bride and groom have the choice to leave the individual candles burning, or blow them out.

If this is your second marriage and there are children from previous marriages, you may want to include them in on this part of your wedding ceremony.  If they are old enough, allow the children to help light the larger pillar candle with their own little candles.  This will help the children to feel a part of the creation of your new family unit.

The traditional marriage proposal has always consisted of the man asking the woman for the honor of having her as his bride.  However, another custom, dating back hundreds of years, has allowed the woman to propose to the man on February 29th.  As far as English law was concerned, this date held no legal recognition, and therefore, traditions could also be set aside for this one day.  The term ‘leap year’ was coined since the law seemed to disregard or ‘leap over’ this day. 

Today a man will typically get down on one knee to ask for the favor of a woman’s hand in marriage.  This symbolizes that he truly views receiving her as his bride as an honor for which he is willing to humble himself.  Long ago, proposals could be carried out in a number of different ways.  One way in which a man would propose was to send a pair of gloves to the woman, and if she wore them to church, he knew that she would be willing to marry him.

In Wales, men would carve beautiful wooden spoons and give them to his intended.  If she returned his affections and wanted to accept his proposal, she would wear the spoon on a ribbon around her neck.  This is where the term ’spooning’ originated from.

The tradition of wearing a white wedding dress dates back to late 15th century France when Anne of Brittany first wore white for her marriage to Louis XII.  Queen Victoria also wore white for her marriage to her cousin, Albert of Saxe-Coburg in 1840. 

For common folk, buying a special dress to be married in was unusual and most women just wore what they considered to be their best dress.  The color was not important.  Later, during the depression, it became a common practice to make a nice white dress for your wedding, only to dye it another color in afterwards in order to get plenty of use from your investment.

Today, white is the color of choice, especially for a first time bride.  The color represents purity and innocence.  White is no longer unheard of for consecutive marriages, however most women still seem to prefer colors such as ivory in these cases.

I’ve found a few more international wedding customs that are quite interesting and may even make a wonderful addition to your heritage theme wedding.

Australia
It is traditional to give the bride and groom a marriage Bible as a wedding gift.  These Bibles are treasured family heirlooms and are often passed down from generation to generation.

Finland
Long ago, during the wedding ceremony, a crown of gold was placed upon the bride’s head.  Once the ceremony was over, the bride was blindfolded and all the unmarried females would gather around her.  The bride would then move around blindly until she chose someone to pass the gold crown to.  This person was believed to be the next to be married.

Ireland
New Year’ Day is considered to be the luckiest day to be married on.  The couple may receive a horseshoe to hand in their new home for good luck.  The horseshoe should always be hung with the open side up so none of the luck spills out.  The Claddagh ring is the traditional wedding ring.  It bears a symbol containing a heart, crown and hands which stand for love, loyalty and friendship.

Japan
Japanese weddings are known to be some of the most extravagant wedding ceremonies.  During the ceremony, the bride and groom take nine sips of sake (a traditional rice wine).  The couple is considered to be married after the first sip.  It is common for the bride to change clothing three to four times during the ceremony.  Guests not only enjoy delicious food and wonderful entertainment, they are also given extravagant wedding favors that may be valued up to half of the price of the wedding gifts given to the couple.

Romania
A common tradition here is for the guests to shower nuts and candy on the bride and groom as a symbol of prosperity.

Sweden
The bride will carry a bouquet of fragrant herbs in hopes of keeping away trolls.  Even the groom would have thyme sewn into his wedding attire.

United States
Long ago, the newlyweds would receive a drink consisting of hot spiced milk and brew instead of wedding gifts.  It was believed to provide the couple with stamina for the wedding night.  A common pre-Civil War belief among African-American brides was that Tuesdays and Wednesdays were the best days on which to marry.  It was thought to ensure a long and happy married life together.