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Irish wedding traditions

By
Edythe Preet
,
Irish America Magazine Feature Writer

Published Wednesday, May 27, 2009, 12:41 PM
Updated Thursday, July 23, 2009, 5:23 PM

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Irish wedding traditions | IrishCentral




Read more: Weddings, Culture and Lifestyle, Marriage, Relationships, Ireland, Dublin, James Joyce, Leopold Bloom, Beverages, Food and Cooking
The Irish boys and the Italian girls: Ambrose Burns, George Burns, Edythe Musacchio and Matilda Musacchio. George and Edythe are the writer's parents, who married On June 16, 1937.

These practices faded during the Famine years, but charms and rituals continued being employed to assure a couple’s fertility. Though the phrase tying the knot now means uniting two people with marriage vows, folk once believed the bride could be made sterile by anyone who tied knots in a string during the marriage ceremony. A protective ritual involved tying a hen that was about to lay an egg to the newlyweds’ bedpost.

Whiskey played a part at every stage of the nuptials. In A Historical and Statistical Account of the Barony of Upper Fews in the County of Armagh, 1838, J. Donaldson described a country wedding. “The male brings the female to his relations’ house, and the girl’s relatives follow to negotiate the match. When the couple’s families agree on a mutually acceptable bride-price, an agreement bottle of whiskey is shared, whereupon the bride returns home to prepare for her marriage.

On the wedding day, the groom’s party rides to the bride’s home, where they are met by the bridal party. Before leaving her home, the couple take three mouthfuls from a plate of oatmeal and salt to ward off the evil eye. Then all ride to the priest’s residence. After the nuptial blessing, everyone retires to an ale-house for the bride’s drink, from whence they gallop to the bride’s house in a race for the bottle.

The first person to arrive at the bride’s house receives the bottle, returns to the wedding party, and gives the whiskey to the bridegroom, who drinks then hands it to his bride, who also partakes. The bottle is passed round until nearly empty, at which point the bridegroom flings it and its dregs away. They return to the bride’s home, where a cake is broken over the bride’s head while young people scramble for bits to place under their pillows so they may dream of their future mates.”

Since ancient times, a couple’s marriage contract has been sealed with a ring, the symbol of eternity. During Ireland’s medieval period it was often a three-part ring of two hands clasped over two hearts. One each of the three parts was kept by the girl, her suitor and the priest, and all sections were united at the marriage ceremony. The design is very much like today’s popular Claddagh ring.

The highlight of every wedding dates from ancient Rome. To signify their willingness to share all things, Roman brides and grooms shared a piece of cake. The rest of the cake was crumbled over the bride’s head to guarantee she would produce many children. By the time Christianity arrived in Ireland, one cake had evolved into many thin wheaten biscuits. They were still broken over the bride’s head, and guests scrambled for “lucky” crumbs that fell to the floor.

During the Tudor period, the biscuits evolved into buns made with spices and currants. One bun was crumbled over the bride’s head, some were given to the poor and the rest stacked in a centerpiece, over which the couple kissed for luck. 

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