How & When It All Began?

Arts & Culture Culture, Arts, Literature & Linguistics
1

HOW & WHEN IT ALL BEGAN?
HOW DID WEDDINGS START?
Marriage as a custom, goes back to the very earliest history of man. It has passed through three stages the first was marriage by capture, primitive man simply stole the woman he wanted as his wife.

Then came marriage by contract or purchase. A bride was bought by a man. Finally came the marriage based on mutual love. But even today we still have traces of the first two stages. “GIVING THE BRIDE AWAY” is a relic of the time when the bride was really sold the “THE BEST MAN” at weddings today probably goes back to the strong armed warrior who helped primitive man in carrying off his captured bride and the “HONEY MOON” itself symbolizes the period during which the bridegroom was forced to hide his captured bride until her kinsmen grew tired of searching for her.

“WEDDING”. Do you realize from where this word originated? Among the anglo-saxons, the “WED” was the money, horses or cattle which the groom gave as security and as a pledge to prove his purchase of the bride from her father. The custom of having “BRIDES MAIDS” goes back to Roman times when there had to be ten witnesses at the solemn marriage ceremony.

2

*WHEN WERE WEDDING RINGS FIRST WORN? *

The wearing of a wedding ring is one of the oldest and most universal customs of mankind the face that the ring is a circle may be one reason why it began to be used. The circle is a symbol of completeness. In connection with marriage, it represents the rounding off the life of a person. Some people believe the wedding ring really started as a bracelet that was placed on women who were captured in primitive times. Gradually the circular bracelet on the arm and leg which indicated that she was the property of one man in the tribe, was changed to a ring on the finger.

In Hieroglyphics which is Egyptian picture writing a circle stands for eternity and the wedding ring was a symbol of a marriage that would last forever. Christians began to use a ring in marriage around the year 900.

Why is the ring worn on the fourth finger of the left hand? The ancient Greek believed that a certain vein passed from this finger directly to the heart. But probably the real reason is that we use this finger least of all the fingers, so it is more convenient to wear an ornament on it!