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Chinese Wedding Traditions!
Red is the Color of
Weddings in China
Red is central to the wedding theme of China. It
signifies love, joy and prosperity and is used in a
variety of ways in Chinese wedding traditions. The
bride's wedding down is often red, as are the wedding
invitations, and wedding gift boxes or envelopes for
cash gifts. Even the bride and groom's homes are
decorated in red on the wedding day.
Before the Chinese Wedding Day.
Before her wedding celebration, a Chinese bride
traditionally goes into seclusion with her closest
friends. This Chinese custom gives the bride-to-be some
time to symbolically mourn the loss of her friends and
family. |
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Some time before the couple are
married, the groom's family carries wedding gifts in
red baskets and boxes to the bride's house. One of
the baskets will contain "uang susu" or 'milk
money'. Others will contain personal things for the
bride, so that on her wedding day all of her
personal belongings will be in the groom's house.
The bride takes the gifts to another room where they
are sorted through.
Three days before the wedding day, women from the
bride's family reciprocate, bearing gifts --
including some 'returns'-- in red wrappings to the
groom's family.
The Day of the Wedding
Ceremony
Wedding anniversaries in China, are carefully chosen
according to astrological signs. It is also
customary for couples to be married on the half-hour
or their wedding day rather than at the top of the
hour. In this way, the couple begins their new lives
together on an 'upswing', while the hands of the
clock are moving up, rather than down.
On the morning of his wedding day, the groom is
symbolically dressed by his parents. The groom
arrives at the house of his bride on the way to the
wedding chapel. He brings gifts of cash, wrapped in
red tissue, to give to his bride's friends, in
exchange for 'letting her go'. In some families, the
wedding couple serves tea to both sets of parents
while kneeling in front of them. a symbolic gesture
of asking for permission. The bride and groom then
leave for the wedding site together.
Chinese Marriage Ceremony
and Wedding Reception
The wedding ceremony is usually attended only by the
couples' immediate families. Just after the ceremony
and before the wedding reception, the bride who
honors tradition will serve tea to her in-laws in a
formal ceremony. The couple will usually go to a
professional studio for wedding pictures before they
proceed to their reception. The wedding reception,
an elaborate standing only affair.
A welcoming speech is usually performed by an MC who
is hired for the occasion. The speech is followed by
a cake cutting ceremony. The traditional wedding
cake is immense, with many layers. The layers
symbolize a ladder that they couple will 'climb to
success', so couples will cut the cake from the
bottom and work their way up. The cutting of the
cake is the only event of the reception. The bride
and groom feed each other a piece of cake with arms
entwined, trying not to destroy the bride's
elaborate makeup. A piece is then cut for each of
the parents and for the grandparents, who are fed by
the bride and groom holding the cake together.
Sometimes a wedding toast is given and guests are
invited to greet the newlyweds and their parents.
Musical entertainment, which ranges from a simple
keyboard player to a symphony or orchestra,
accompanies the receiving line It is customary for
guests to shake hands again before leaving the
reception. At more elaborate Chinese weddings, a
sit-down reception may feature a 9 or 10 course meal
as well as musical entertainment.
Chinese brides often change outfits at least three
times during the reception. |
