Ethnic Wedding Themes

Recently we posted three ethnic wedding themes – Afro-Centric, Chinese and Greek Ethnic Wedding Themes.  We had such a response that we are featuring four more – Italian, Hindu, Irish and Polish Ethnic Wedding Themes for brides who want to get in touch with theirs or their groom’s cultural background. Learn about the ceremony, traditions, menu and receptions for each of these ethnic weddings. You can click photos to enlarge.

Italian Ethnic Wedding

Italian Wedding

The Ceremony: For a traditional Italian wedding, the bride will wear a white dress, symbolizing purity, and a veil to keep the groom from seeing her face before the ceremony.  She will not wear any gold until the moment that her wedding ring is placed on her finger.  Most Italian weddings are also held in Catholic ceremonies. The ceremony will therefore be proceeded by a Catholic Mass. Most Italian wedding ceremonies take place in the morning or early afternoon. Following the wedding ceremony, it is customary to release two doves into the air. The best day to get married is Sunday, but weddings during Lent or Advent are often forbidden.

Traditions:  A bit of Italian folklore requires that the groom carry a small piece of iron ore in his pocket during the ceremony to ward off the evil eye.  Another Italian wedding tradition is the shattering of a vase or glass.  The bride and groom shatter the glass together, and each piece is said to represent one year of happy marriage.  A common wedding toast is “Per cent’anni”, which means “for a hundred years”.  This toast is often repeated several times at the wedding celebration.

Menu and Reception:  At an Italian wedding reception the meal may feature as many as fourteen courses. The meal will usually begin with an antipasto featuring items such as salami, pickled peppers, mushrooms, calamari, olives, and prosciutto.  Following this will be various courses of soups, salads, pasta, meats, and fruit. Wine is a common accompaniment to the meal. Dessert will often include an elaborate array of cakes and pastries accompanied by coffee. O ne symbolic wedding food is the “wanda”, which is a twist of fried dough coated in sugar. A t some Italian weddings, a traditional wedding cake will not be served. Instead, guests will receive small bags of sugared almonds which are a symbolic merging of bitter and sweet – much like marriage.

Irish Ethnic Wedding

Irish Wedding

The Ceremony: In traditional Irish weddings of the past, the bride would wear a wreath of wildflowers in her hair.  She also carried wildflowers in her bouquet.  Today this can translate into beautiful bouquets with a variety of mixed flowers. I t is considered bad luck for the bride to wear green on her wedding day.  In some customs this extends to the guests and wedding party as well.  A traditional Irish wedding ceremony is almost always Catholic and so follows all the customs of a Catholic wedding ceremony, including mass before the wedding.  To give the ceremony a distinctly Irish feel, some couples will include Irish music or even station bagpipers at the doors as guests enter.  An Irish wedding will traditionally feature a unity candle ceremony.  The vows are often unique to the couple and feature Irish blessings and proverbs. An Irish wedding emphasizes a marriage of equals.

Traditions: An Irish bride often carries a horseshoe for good luck. While this was an actual horseshoe many centuries ago, brides today will usually carry a small porcelain or fabric horseshoe. Another beautiful tradition is the magic hanky. The bride will carry a handkerchief with her on her wedding day that will later be turned into a bonnet for the couple’s first child. When the child grows up, the bonnet can be turned back into a handkerchief for their wedding day.

Menu and Reception: Corned beef and cabbage and Irish soda bread are some traditional Irish dishes that may be featured at the reception. Drinks should include Irish whiskey and Guiness, as well as a variety of Irish cocktails. Another customary drink is honey wine, which is thought to promote virility. For the wedding toast, the couple will usually share a single glass rather than having two separate champagne flutes. The traditional cake for an Irish wedding is fruitcake. Reception decorations may feature shamrocks, swans, and celtic symbols.

Polish Ethnic Wedding

Polish Wedding

The Ceremony: A Polish wedding ceremony has some unique features that differ greatly from American weddings. The bride and groom will walk down the isle together. A wedding party is very rare, and instead, witnesses are very important. There will usually be two witnesses for both the bride and groom. The ceremony itself consists of the reading of the vows by the priest, and the exchange of rings. In many cases, guests are only invited to attend the ceremony, and are not invited to the reception.

Traditions: It is customary for a bouquet of flowers to be presented to the new couple following the ceremony. These signify good wishes for the bride and groom. Other popular traditions include the Sto Lat toast, which signifies 100 good years together for the bride and groom, and the money dance. There are many variations on this dance. In most cases, during the money dance, the bride dances with each of the wedding guests and receives a monetary wedding gift. It is customary to give at least $40-$50 to the couple at this event.

Menu and Reception: The wedding reception will usually feature many courses. This includes a soup, main course, dessert, and fruit. Features dishes often include Polish beet soup, roasted meats, pierogi, and walnut torte. There is rarely a groom’s cake at Polish weddings. And even the wedding cake may be smaller and less elaborate than many extravagant American wedding cakes. Since the reception will last throughout the night and often into the next morning, guests will also be served a special late night dish as well. This is usually borscht soup, flaki (spicy pepper soup), or bigos (hunter’s stew). Drinks are also plentiful. Champagne is required, and vodka and other hard liquors are often popular as well. The wedding reception will also feature lots of dancing throughout the evening.

Hindu Ethnic Wedding

Hindu Wedding

The Ceremony: Traditional Hindu wedding ceremonies are usually performed at least partially in Sansrit, which is the language considered most Holy. Weddings are very colorful and the celebration can often last for days. Hindu weddings today often pick and choose among the various traditions to create a ceremony unique to the couple. Choices are influenced by the bride and groom’s caste. The ceremony is usually performed beneath a canopy with four pillars, known as a mandap. A sacred fire, the Agni, will be present during the ceremony. The bride wears a red and white sari. The groom will wear a long shirt known as a kafni, leggings called pijamo, and a turban. No one can wear shoes in the mandap, so both the bride and groom will choose footwear that can be easily slipped on and off.

Traditions: In preparation for the wedding, the bride will often have her hands and feet decorated with henna, also known as mehndi. The mehndi is applied in a variety of intricate and beautiful patterns. Mehndi takes a long time to wear off, and it is sometimes said that the length of time the mehndi lasts indicated how well the bride is treated by her in-laws. Another wedding tradition is the red dot placed on the forehead. Gests will apply this to both the bride and the groom following the wedding feast to wish the new couple good luck.

Menu and Reception: For many Hindu wedding receptions, the food will be provided by friends and family. Traditional Indian dishes include curry, pastas, rice and bean dishes, breads, and roasted potatoes. Though all meals eaten in the days prior to the wedding must be vegetarian, the celebration that follows the wedding ceremony may feature some non-vegetarian dishes, as well as alcohol. Hindu weddings typically forgo a traditional wedding cake. Instead, the bride and groom will feed each other five bites of a sweet dish such as honey and yogurt.

For other wedding theme ideas, read our Creative Wedding Theme post to see other wedding themes such as:

Winter Wonderland Wedding Theme, Undersea Adventure Wedding Theme, Red Wedding Theme, Wine Wedding Theme, Winter Wedding Theme in Blue, Princess Fairytale Wedding Theme,  Eco-Friendly Wedding Theme, Holiday Wedding Theme, Country Wedding Theme, Celebrity Style Wedding Theme, Evening Enchantment Wedding Theme, Autumn Style Wedding Theme, and Six More Wedding Themes.

Photo Credits: Italian Ethnic Weddings: Italian Weddings
Irish Ethnic Weddings: Celtic Shamrock, Irish Wedding
Polish Ethnic Weddings: Crucian Adventures
Hindu Ethnic Weddings: Tin Green Flicker Photos, Jovika Flicker Photos