While many people understand the basics behind what goes into a wedding, not everyone understands why we celebrate weddings the way we do.  Researching the many wedding traditions helps uncover explanations as to how weddings have evolved into what we know today.

Bride on the Left Groom on the Right

If you’ve ever wondered why the bride stands to the left of the groom it’s due to the fact that the groom would need his right hand available for using his sword to fight off ex-suitors or even those trying to save a captured bride.

Seating at the Ceremony

Do you ever wonder why the two families sit on opposite sides of the church?  Fathers would often present their daughters as a peace offering to opposing tribes/families; as a result, the two sides would sit apart from each other in order to avoid any feuds during the ceremony.  Once the unity was finalized, however, the feuding was resolved.

Wearing White

Wearing a white bridal gown stood as a symbol of purity which was thought to ward off evil spirits.  Before white dresses became the tradition (set by Anne of Brittany when she married Louis XII in 1499) women simply wore their best dress.

Bridesmaids Dresses

The ancient belief of evil spirits prompted the wedding party to all dress alike in order to confuse and ward off these spirits.  If the bridesmaids all dressed like the bride and the groomsmen all like the groom, the spirits (or later on real life warriors) would not know who the real bride and groom were.

The Wedding Kiss

A couple of customs arrive with the final wedding kiss.  One believed by the Romans states they used a kiss to seal a contract.  Another states the kiss signified the swapping of souls between the newlyweds.

The Wedding Ring

Exchanging rings symbolizes an eternal love which is promised to be undying and unending, much like the circular shape of the ring which has no end in its shape.  The material used to make the wedding rings evolved from grass, leather, stone, metal, iron and now gold and platinum. 

Wedding ring on the Third Finger of the Left Hand:

This tradition comes from the ancient Egyptian belief that the “vein of love” ran from the ring finger directly to the heart.  Another custom stems from the belief that in older ceremonies the priest would state you were married in the name of “The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit” touching each finger and finally placing the ring on the first available finger which happened to be the third finger.