16 Unique Wedding Traditions From Around The Globe

We stick to traditional our wedding customs for the most part, such as wearing a white wedding dress, wearing a garter belt, and carrying a bouquet, but have you ever wondered what other traditions are floating around out there in other parts of the world? Every culture has its own wedding customs that come into play when a couple gets married.

Kenya

In Kenya, it is customary for the bride's father to spit on his daughter's head and chest in order to bring her good luck in her marriage. If she runs and tries to escape, she supposedly will turn to stone.

Malaysia

Right after the wedding celebration, instead of going on a fun honeymoon getaway, the bride and groom stay locked up in their new home and do not use the bathroom…. at all. For three whole days this goes on, and it is supposed to bring good luck to the couple.

Scotland

In some remote parts of this beautiful countryside, brides and grooms are "blackened." In this wedding tradition, friends and family dump sticky and dark substances such as molasses, ashes, syrup, etc., on the couple in order to make them extremely dirty. Once they are covered in muck, they are then humiliated in public. This is supposed to symbolize endurance. If they can handle this, they can handle a marriage.

France

A tradition called "La Soupe" takes place when friends and family of the newly married couple put food or chocolate in a toilet and feed it to the couple. This tradition usually takes place when many guests are still drunk from the celebration. In times past, leftover food from the wedding was used.

Fiji

It is common for a man to ask his bride's father for permission to take her hand in marriage. In Fiji, it is customary to bring the father of the bride a whale's tooth as well.

Japan

A Japanese bride is painted all white to show her purity and then wears a covering on her head to hide her "horns of jealousy" and prove that she is determined to be a good wife and stay obedient to her husband.

Jamaica

Family and friends of the bride and groom in a traditional Jamaican wedding celebration will gather in the street and watch as the bride parades by. If she is not looking her best or they feel that she can look better, she will be publicly scorned and criticized.

Wales

The bride is commonly kidnapped right before the wedding day in Wales. The groom, his family, and many of his friends will follow along behind the one who has kidnapped her. The man who rescues the bride is supposedly the next one in line to get married.

Sweden

Once at the reception table, the bride and groom should try not to get up to use the bathroom. Once the bride gets up, the guests at the reception can all kiss the groom before she gets back. If the groom gets up, the men at the reception can all go and kiss the bride before he returns to the table.

India

The bride and her attendants are often covered with henna tattoos in order to bring good luck on the wedding day and in the future with her new spouse. The tattoos also represent peace and love.

South Korea

Groomsmen or other men at the reception will tie up the groom and slap his feet and legs with fish. This stinky tradition is supposed to bring good luck in the bedroom on the wedding night.

Germany

On the night before the wedding in Germany, family and friends of the bride and groom will smash dishes outside the couple's new home. This is to bring luck to the couple in their new life together.

Indonesia

At the wedding ceremony, the bride sits on the floor and washes her groom's feet. This ceremony is performed in front of all of the guests and is to represent her devotion to serving her new husband.

Ireland

The Irish believe that the bride's feet must stay on the floor at all times during her wedding ceremony and reception, especially during the dancing. They believe that if her feet leave the floor, fairies in search of something beautiful will whisk her away from her new life.

Russia

Traditional Orthodox couples are treated as royalty for the day of their nuptials. They must race to a carpet where they are crowned for the day and where they recite their vows. The winner of the race is considered to be the head of the household in their new home.

China

It is customary in some areas of China that the groom shoots three arrows at his bride. Fortunately for her, there are no arrowheads on these arrows, but still, the shock of them hitting her must hurt. If he hits her three times, it shows that their love will last forever.