8 Historical Wedding Customs That Will Surprise You

Back in 2014, an unusual trend emerged where bridal parties chose to commemorate the happiness and seriousness of marriage by mooning the wedding photographer. Ultimately, how you decide to capture your wedding memories is entirely up to you—and if you and your friends have a playful sense of humor, go ahead and let loose. After all, baring your backside to the camera is far from the most peculiar wedding custom invented over the last few centuries. 

Note: Most of these traditions were documented by outsiders between 100 and 250 years ago. If the descriptions come across as somewhat ... anthropological, that’s precisely why.

1. The Unique Cup Ritual of the Habesha People

As described in the 1885 publication English Traditions and Foreign Customs, edited by George Laurence Gomme, the Habesha people (previously referred to as the Abyssinians) practiced a unique wedding ritual involving wine, a cup, and a hole. The ceremony resembled modern weddings in many ways, featuring celebrations, joy, and sending the newlyweds off to their wedding night.

The following morning, the entire village would gather around the couple’s home to assess the outcome of the night—using a cup. The groom would emerge, presenting a cup to the bride’s father. At this point, one of two scenarios would unfold.

Ideally, the cup would simply serve as a vessel, and the two men would share the wine inside, solidifying the marriage in good spirits. However, if the groom released the cup, revealing a hole he had been covering with his finger, and all the wine spilled out, the wedding would be canceled. This act signaled to everyone that the groom had discovered his wife was not virtuous (referred to as “frail” by the 1802 author) before marriage, leaving him displeased. No words were exchanged, but the marriage was dissolved, and the father would reclaim his dowry and take his daughter home.

2. Welsh Wedding Customs: Face-Smacking, Trip Wires, and Poetic Verses

The Romans spent three decades trying to conquer Wales. It seems the Welsh have a knack for enduring lengthy battles, whether against the world’s greatest empire or during a wedding celebration.

According to Peter Roberts in his 1815 work The Cambrian Popular Antiquities, the couple would first complete the formal church wedding ceremony swiftly and discreetly. Afterward, the real challenge began. The bride and groom returned to their respective homes, and the groom’s friends mounted their horses, charging toward the bride’s house like a military unit, accompanied by the lively tunes of a piper.

Naturally, the bride’s friends had prepared traps and obstacles along the road to her house, such as straw ropes strung between trees and a peculiar device called a “gwyntyn” (known as a “quintain” in English) designed to knock riders off their horses. Even if the men survived the face-smacker, the bride’s friends would block their path, demanding they participate in skill-based challenges. Winning these games didn’t guarantee success, as the groom’s men still had to overcome further hurdles to unite the couple.

If the groom’s party reached the bride’s house, they had to perform poetry and sing clever songs outside the door. If the girls inside couldn’t respond with their own verses or songs, they had to open the door. The men would then gently escort the bride away, with her friends chasing after them, leading to yet another mock battle.

After a day filled with playful clashes and musical performances, the bride would finally be escorted to her husband’s home, where the festivities would carry on late into the night.

3. The Lillooet Tribe’s Unique Sash Dance

As documented in Edward Westermarck’s 1921 work The History of Human Marriage, Volume 2, the Lillooet People, native to what is now British Columbia, practiced a ritual known as “the touching dance.” During the dance, unmarried women wore sashes, and men would grab hold of a sash to propose marriage. If the woman rejected the proposal, she would reclaim her sash, and the man would leave. At the dance’s conclusion, the chief announced the names of pairs still connected by the sash. If a woman allowed a man to keep her sash until the end, they were officially declared married.

4. The Kamchadal Custom of Disrobing the Bride

The Kamchadal people, hailing from Russia’s northeastern region, had a unique marriage tradition. Suitors would travel to a neighboring village and work for the bride’s parents. If the parents approved of the man’s efforts, they granted him permission to marry their daughter by instructing him to find her and remove her clothing.

As noted in English Traditions and Foreign Customs, once the groom begins his pursuit, “All the village women rally to protect the bride, layering her with countless garments, wrapping her in fishnets and straps until she resembles a mummy.”

If the groom is fortunate enough to find his fiancée lightly guarded, he seizes the opportunity to undress her. As he works to free her from the layers, an alarm is raised, and the women rush to defend the bride, attacking the groom with kicks, scratches, and blows. If they drive him away, the chase continues. If he succeeds in stripping her, he flees. Tradition holds that the bride then “gently” calls him back and invites him to share her bed.

5. Russia’s Secretive Whip Ritual in Weddings

Unlike the lighthearted customs of other cultures, Russian weddings, as described in English Traditions and Foreign Customs, were far more austere. First, the groom’s female friends inspect the bride for flaws. If she meets their standards, the church ceremony proceeds, with hops scattered over her to symbolize fertility. During the feast, the bride and groom sit without eating while children sing vulgar songs. The celebration culminates in the couple’s retreat to the marital chamber.

The groom hides a trinket and a small whip in his boots. He instructs the bride to remove them; if she first uncovers the trinket, it’s seen as a sign of good luck. However, if she finds the whip first, he strikes her with it, symbolizing the challenges she may face in their marriage.

Afterward, the couple is left alone for two hours, with elderly women waiting outside the door. The bride must then show the women “proof of her virginity.” The women then braid the bride’s tousled hair and proceed to collect the dowry from her parents.

6. The Swedish Custom of Ensuring Wives Hold the Upper Hand

In Sweden, subtle strategies were employed to ensure the wife maintained dominance in marriage. As noted in E. Lumley’s 1851 work Scandinavian Popular Traditions and Superstitions, the bride had to see the groom before he saw her to secure her authority. Throughout the ceremony, she kept one foot ahead of his, and at the wedding feast, she sat down first. Additionally, the bride would drop an item, forcing the groom to pick it up, symbolizing his willingness to submit to her wishes.

7. The Custom of Whipping the Groom

This tradition, documented in the 1921 publication The History of Human Marriage, Volume 2, was practiced by communities in present-day Belarus and Colombia. In Belarus, the groom’s best man would enter the bedroom with the couple, wait until they were under the covers, and then whip the groom while shouting, “Look at each other, kiss, and embrace! Quickly!” In Colombia, a similar figure would accompany the couple to their marital hut, urging the groom to “Take the woman!” before striking him with a whip.

8. The Dutch Practice of Encouraging Men to Value Cats

In 19th-century Netherlands, a fondness for cats was considered advantageous for those seeking a spouse. As noted in E. Lumley’s Northern Mythology: North German and Netherlandish Popular Traditions and Superstitions, “Men who dislike cats are unlikely to find beautiful wives.”