1.
German
Traditional
Marriage

2.
German Traditional Marriage
If you visit Germany during wedding
seasons, you will find various wedding
traditions that are unique. Usually
the wedding in Germany is completed
in three days; these three days need not
to be consecutive. Following are
important features of
German weddings.
First Day Wedding Rituals
The first day of wedding ritual takes
place in the presence of the justice of
peace. It is known as Standesbeamte.
The German wedding …
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traditions don’t legalise the marriage
when it is held only in church. This
ceremony is attended by the couple’s
family members and closest friends.
The couples intending to get married
need to give a six-week notice. If this is
not done, the marriage is held in the city
hall and attended by two witnesses
apart from the couple and their parents.
The ceremony is followed by the lavish
dinner.
Second Day Wedding Rituals
After one week or one day of the…
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German Traditional Marriage

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Standesbeamte, an informal party
(known as Polterabend) is held by the
relatives and friends of the couple. They
bring kitchenware and old porcelain and
break in front of the couple. It is
believed that the broken crockery will
bring good luck and happy married life
to the couple. After that the couple are
cleaning everything. This is to ensure
that nothing will be left broken in their
lives.
The junggesellenabschied is the custom
in which the groom along with his
friends goes to local pub. …
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German Traditional Marriage

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Third Day Wedding Rituals
The third day wedding ritual takes place
in church. The groom and the bride
together enter the church and walk
down the aisle. You will find the bride in
a white gown with fingertip veils. She
carries bread and salt to symbolise
good harvest. The white ribbon of
attached with her bouquet is tied to the
car antenna after the ceremony. The
groom usually wears black tuxedo and
carried grains symbolising wealth and
good luck. …
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German Traditional
Marriage

6.
The couple while coming out of the
church receives the rains of rice thrown
by their friends. There is a belief that
they will have as much children as
much rice is hidden in hairs of the bride.
In the return, the couple throws the
coins to the children. The wedding car
of the couple is decorated with flowers
and it carries them to the reception
venue. The guests follow the couple
and shout slogans for their good luck.
Kidnapping of Bride
There is custom that the bride…
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German Traditional
Marriage

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is kidnapped by the friends and taken to
the local pub. The groom ties to find her
out and when he succeeds, he pays the
bills of drinks taken by friends.
Reception and Dance
Both the fathers make speeches to
praise the couple at reception dinner.
This followed by the dance of bride and
groom together. Then the dance takes
place by bride and her father, the groom
and his mother, the bride’s mother and
the groom’s father respectively. At last
all the guests reach the…
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German Traditional
Marriage

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dance floor and participate in the dance.
After the dinner, when the couple leave,
their path is blocked with ribbons by the
friends. The couple is allowed to go only
when they promise for another party.
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German Traditional
Marriage

9.
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10.
Thank You!
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