There are many old wedding traditions that are still carried on today: a white wedding gown, the bride's veil, the cake cutting ceremony, and many more. These traditions are not only still practiced today in America, but other countries as well. But there are many other weird customs practiced around the world!1. Blackening the Bride - Perhaps the strangest of all wedding customs, this takes place in Scotland. The bride's friends and family sneak up on the bride and cover her in a mixture of disgusting substances (eggs, sauce, tar, etc.). The mixture is made to turn black--hence, blackening the bride. Not only does the poor bride have to endure this, but she is then paraded around town.
2. Breaking Dishes - In Germany, friends and family members of the bride and groom smash dishes prior to the wedding. Then, the bride and groom are responsible for picking it up. This custom is supposed to prepare the couple for their new life together.
3. Kidnapping the Bride - Also in Germany, though more popular in the smaller villages, is the tradition of kidnapping the bride. Friends of both the bride and groom will steal the bride and hide her somewhere, and the groom has to look for her. The groom usually begins by visiting the local pub and inviting people to join him on the search.
4. Log Sawing - Yet another German wedding tradition is the log sawing. After the wedding ceremony, the newlywedded couple must work together to saw a log in half. How neatly and quickly they do it is supposed to predict how they will be able to work together as a couple.
5. Stealing the Groom's Shoes - In India, the groom must take off his shoes prior to the wedding ceremony. His family is solely responsible for guarding and hiding the shoes from the bride's family, who are supposed to try to steal the shoes. Supposedly this tradition is taken very seriously, and both families will go to great lengths to fulfill their duties. If the bride's family succeeds in stealing the shoes, the groom has to pay them the amount of money requested to get them back.
6. Kissing the Bride & Groom - If the bride disappears from a Swedish wedding reception, all of the women line up to kiss the groom in her absence. The same goes for the groom--if he leaves, all the men run up to kiss the bride.
7. Banging Pots & Pans - The French's famous post-wedding tradition is known as Chiverie, where the family and friends of the newlyweds gather outside of where ever the couple is residing the night of the wedding. They then bang pots, pans, and blow horns creating a ruckus to startle the couple. The couple is supposed to go outside still wearing their wedding attire and provide drinks and refreshments to the pranksters.
The wedding favors tradition, however, aren't always used throughout the world - it is most popular in North America and Europe. Seems like there are a couple of really crazy wedding customs all over the world that are just, well...out of this world!
