Best Greek Wedding Traditions That Everyone Likes
Are you planning to take your wedding to Greece or just looking for a little inspiration of Greek culture for your ceremony? You have come to the right place.
A lot of cultural and religious symbolism is woven into the tapestry of weddings celebrated throughout the world and Greek weddings are not an exception. If you are a couple looking to get married, there is a rich well of unique Greek wedding traditions. Here are the 5 best Greek wedding traditions that everyone likes.
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One of the biggest and most recognized traditions of the Greek wedding tradition is the wedding crown, locally known as a Stefana. The tradition of placing the crown on top of the bride and groom, before the priest can then go on to bless the couple, originated in the 11th century. Stefanas are very beautiful Greek wedding decorations and attractive pieces made from flowers and valuable metal, specially joined together. They symbolize the union of a couple.
Popular to Greek orthodox tradition, there are dates for your wedding which are considered good fortune and other dates which are very much discouraged. January, February, and June in Greek culture are generally considered good months of fortune and marriage. The dates that the Greek will most likely avoid include August 29, a day that marks the death of Saint John; the first two weeks of August, devoted to the Virgin Mary Lent and September 14, the celebration of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
Some families in Greek culture may go through the ritual of making the bed. The tradition includes the throwing of money and sometimes rice to represent prosperity for the marriage and after that, a baby has to be put on top to signify blessings for fertility. Although this might be outdated for other Greek families it’s still very much alive in most Greek families.
Before the wedding, the best man will shave the groom in the morning to represent trust and then after that, close friends will help him dress. For the women, the maid of honor leads the dressing of the bride to get her ready for the wedding ceremony.
Traditional Greek wedding dances include the Sirtaki, Zeibekiko, and the Dollar dance. In the Sirtaki dance, the family and best friends of the groom dance in a circle with their hands on each other’s shoulders. The newlyweds traditionally share the last dance of the night, popularly known as the dollar dance, and guests can throw money at them, or pin money to their clothes.
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