Italian Wedding

By Catherine James

Although weddings have changed over the years some cultures still like to keep their big day with old rituals and tradition! Italian weddings are one of the cultures that as well as their country they like to keep their weddings traditional. A lot of traditional wedding acts carried out by the Italians are renowned over the world.

The veil that is worn by the bride on her wedding day is one of the traditions that has stemmed back to Italy. The veil suggests that as it covers the bride’s face they have never ‘known’ a man before which represents the purity of the woman, that they are still a virgin.

Other Italian traditions that we still see today at weddings across the world are diamond engagement rings – said to be made by the “flames of love”.

If the bride and groom want to stick to true Italian wedding tradition they will have their ceremony in the morning. Usually this happens so that after the married couple have united and said their vows they can spend some time together. Whilst this is happening friends and family will then take time to prepare for the afternoon celebrations.

The bride and groom will usually want to display their love and affection for each other. This can be demonstrated in various ways but the most modern way is the release of a pair of white doves.

Once the reception fun and activities begin this tends to go on until early hours of the morning, sometimes even after the bride and groom have left. The food served is plentiful and it often starts with antipasto – olives, salami, stuffed mushrooms to name but a few. This can be followed by anything up to another 12 courses so guests are kept happy and well fed.

Symbolic foods at an Italian wedding celebration because they bring good tidings include twists of fried dough, powdered with sugar known as wanda, and Italian wedding candy.

A bag is usually circulated around to the guests and is known as the ‘La Borsa’ so money can be collected. Typically the money is then given to the bride’s family to help cover the great costs of the wedding.

Once the majority of the eating has done then it is time for guests to burn off some calories and dance the night away. The traditional dance for Italian weddings is a dance called the Tarantella. It is formed in a circular shape and everyone of all ages takes part. As you can imagine this can get a little comical but all the guests have a good time and it is a fantastic way to get people up on their feet. It starts off by the bride and groom having their first dance and then both families will then come in join in. And once this has happened it is a free for all.

The whole day of at an Italian wedding is a joyous occasion and it memorable for all especially the bride and groom.

Social Bookmarks: