Russian
Wedding Traditions
- by KissMeGoodnight.com
Russia has a long history of wedding traditions.
The traditional Russian wedding ceremony does not have many
traditions and many couples opt for a simple civil service
that is not widely attended by their friends and relatives.
The wedding reception however is a very important
part of Russian tradition. Perhaps the most distinguishing aspect of a traditional
Russian wedding is that it lasts for at least two days.
Russian
law does not recognize church weddings so couples wishing
to marry must have a civil wedding ceremony. At the
conclusion of this ceremony the couple is given bread and salt
which represents health and prosperity. This civil ceremony
is considered unimportant by family members and many of them
do not attend. In the Russian culture the wedding reception
is a two day extravaganza that is considered to be more important
than the ceremony itself.
The
first day of a Russian wedding ceremony is filled with
a series of events that includes the civil ceremony, a tour
of the city and the start of the reception. The wedding day
begins with the bride and groom in separate locations each
accompanied by their own friends and family members. The groom
will arrive at the bride’s location well before the two of
them need to arrive at the civil service. This is necessary
because the bride’s friends and family members make it difficult
for the groom to reach his bride. For example, if the bride
lives on a high floor of an apartment complex, the groom will
be detained by friends or family members at each floor and
asked trivia type questions about his bride. If he answers
incorrectly, he must pay cash to advance to the next step.
Once he arrives at his bride’s side, the two of them travel
by train, in separate cars, to the location of the civil service.
Only their closest friends and family members accompany the
bride and groom to this ceremony as it is not considered very
important. It is viewed as merely a way to have the union recognized
by the government.
Immediately
after the civil ceremony the couple takes a tour of the
city to visit memorials of those who have died. This
tour is usually two to three hours long and during this time
the couple honors those who were killed in wars by laying flowers
at their memorials. The couple is usually only accompanied
by the two witnesses to their wedding on this journey. Sometimes
a few other close friends will come with the couple but family
seldom partakes in this tour because they are busy making preparations
for the reception.
After
the tour of the city the couple arrives at the reception
and this is where the true celebration begins. The reception
always starts with a toast and usually the parents are the
first to toast the bride and groom. The rest of the guests
then offer their toast. Following the toast is the most prominent
Russian wedding tradition. The guests drink wine after each
toast and after they sip the guests will begin to shout, “Gor’ko”
which means bitter. The couple then has to kiss in order to
sweeten the wine. The guests will continue this tradition after
each toast requiring the couple to kiss after each toast.
The
rest of the first night is filled with dancing and another
Russian tradition of playfully “kidnapping” the bride. The
groom’s friends will take advantage of the chaos that ensues
as all the guests start to dance and “kidnap” the bride. They
will then demand the groom pay a ransom for her return. The
bride’s friends also get in on the good natured fun by “stealing”
the bride’s shoes. Again the groom has to pay a ransom before
her shoes are returned. This first day of the reception continues
on late into the night leaving the guests exhausted.
The
second day of a traditional Russian wedding is usually
held at the house where the couple will begin there lives
together. This is a more relaxed day and although anyone from the first
day is invited to attend, usually only the closest friends
and family members attend this second day of festivities. Day
two of a traditional Russian wedding usually begins in the
late afternoon or evening. The guests all enjoy a meal together
and after the meal comes another Russian tradition of having
the bride clean the floor. The guests will litter the floor
with currency and the bride has to “clean” the floor by picking
up the money. The guests can continue to litter the floor with
additional currency while the bride is “cleaning” and are particularly
fond of coming to the festivities with a large amount of coins
to make the bride’s job as difficult as possible. This tradition
gives the guests the opportunity to make a contribution to
the new couple.
Traditional Russian weddings are essentially two fun days
of food, drink and friends. The ceremony itself is not viewed
as the highlight of the wedding. The government will only recognize
a marriage that is verified through a civil service and the
church will not perform a church wedding unless a civil service
has already been performed so couples often participate in
both types of ceremonies separately. It is instead the reception
that is the focal point.
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KissMeGoodnight.com : 2005
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