I would like to know how a traditional Czech wedding is celebrated and whether there are special "games" associated with it? (In Germany for example, the bride is kidnapped and the bridegroom has to find her in a local pub and then has to pay the bill for the kidnappers; or the couple has to saw a tree and so on...) How can I congratulate a soon-to-be-married couple? I'm grateful for some useful phrases.
We incorporated some Czech customs into our wedding. We also flew out a Czech chef to do our cooking and make our cake (it was wonderful!). In response to your questions: Czechs traditionally have sprigs of rosemary handed out to their wedding guests to pin on. This is either to symbolize fertility, or luck (depending on who you ask). I have also heard of some traditions that we did not use - the bride is to smash a glass, and the groom sweeps up the glass. The grrom is also supposed to go outside and chop a log. Here is a link to a webiste you might find useful in your research: http://www.iarelative.com/wedding/czech.htm Take care, Jaki
Here are some of the difference between a Czech wedding in I went to in Prague this summer and traditional American weddings: - The order is different: First the wedding, then lunch with the wedding party, the bride and groom open up gifts in front of the wedding party, then all of the guests come back for the party at night - Springs of rosemanry here handed out to the wedding party to pin on - The cars were decorated with white ribbon and wreaths of rosemary for luck - The Bride and Groom see eachother before the wedding! - The wedding party is invited for breakfast and drinks at the bride's house before the ceremony - After the ceremony, baskets of kolachies are handed out for the guests to enjoy - The groom's friends put a ball and chain on the groom's ankle and a yoke around his neck. His friends hide the key and he has to pay them in alcohol for clues to find it. The bride then gets to unlock him - The bride and groom break a plate and clean it up to show they can work together - They eat a bowl of soup together (one spoon and a napkin tied around both of their necks) - People can pay the groom to see the bride's garter and dance with her - The bride is kidnapped and taken around to local pubs and the groom has to pay his friends once again in alcohol for clues on where to find her -While they are gone, the guests buy raffle tickets and win prizes The churches over there are so much more beautiful and even though I didn't understand of word of what was going on, the whole experence was fabulous!
That was quite a colorful wedding, lam1230. I have been to a few weddings in CR (including my own) where none of these customs were observed. Mostly just the ceremony and lunch/ dinner. The most striking difference between American and Czech weddings is that the ceremony MUST first take place at the city hall. The religious ceremony is optional and has no legal status.
Well, it is not true anymore. In the past (i.e. during the communist regime), a civil ceremony had to be performed to make the marriage legally valid (a religious one was optional, usually held after the civil one, but not necessarily). Now, religious and civil ceremonies are of the same legal validity.
My fiance from Liberec and I just attended a civil ceremony here in the States. He was horrified by the whole thing. He said it was better than a comedy (with hoardes of couples & families witnessing the ceremonies and clapping afterwards.) My understanding is at least in his area this is certainly not the standard wedding.
Jana wrote: >Now, religious and civil ceremonies are of the same legal validity.< Good Lord? Since when? I'm definitely out of touch. :?
Since July 1, 1992 - see Zákon o rodině 94/63 Sb. (Family Law), as amended in 1992, Chapter 1, §3, 4a, 4b, 4c.
Really colourful, the weddings I've been to had only some of these "features" The rosemary springs and eating soup together are traditions maintained on possibly every wedding. The rest is optional. In my area, there is no kidnapping the bride. To the various quests the pair has to do after the ceremony, I would add: Groom - cut some wood with an axe. - cut a leaf of bread with his own knife ("The true man must have a knife" saying). - before leaving the bride's house for the ceremony, the groom must sometimes guess which one of several girls with covered faces is the bride. The others are usually old female relatives or even men, so no hard guess Bride - sweep the broken plate (to show she can handle the household - very politically incorrect these days , maybe now being replaced with the cooperation mentioned by lam1230) - there is sometimes a chamberpot with a chocolate poo in it (very realistic ), but I can't remember why is it there and what to do with it. The pair may throw away some coins, which the children pick up eagerly. Again, no idea of the meaning.
