What are the wedding customs in China?

Eve of marriage

Worship: the man should worship the ancestors of heaven and earth the day before the wedding and inform them that there is a wedding to be held.

Anqing Li: according to the eight characters, the house is facing ... to worship the mother's bed.

Wedding anniversary

Ancestor worship: Before a man gets married, he should worship his ancestors first.

Wedding procession: Even numbers are best, and multiples of 6 are best.

Firecrackers: firecrackers should be set off all the way to celebrate the wedding car.

Sister table: Before the bride leaves, she should have dinner with her family to show her farewell, and everyone should say auspicious words.

Please invite the groom: when the limousine arrives at the woman's house, a boy is waiting for the groom with a tea tray. After getting off the bus, the groom gave the boy a red envelope as a gift and then entered the woman's house.

Beaming: After seeing the bride's family say hello, the groom should hold a bouquet for the bride to be married. At this time, the bride's sister or close friend should deliberately stop him. After the groom pleads for mercy, he will make a deal with a red envelope of 999 yuan, which means a long time.

Veil: After the groom holds the flowers, he puts down the bride's veil and pulls it out of the hall.

Farewell: the bride and groom burn incense to worship their ancestors, the bride bows to her parents and the groom bows.

Going out: The bride is escorted by a lucky female elder with a bamboo curtain or a black umbrella and enters the limousine.

Gift car: a bamboo should be hung from the root to the leaf, and radish is hung on the root, indicating that it has a head and a tail. Behind the limousine, there are gossip and bamboo ornaments painted in ink.

Fan worship: Before the bride gets on the limousine, the lucky boy will hold a fan and put it on the tea tray to give the bride a red envelope gift.

Never say goodbye: never say goodbye to a woman's family when everyone is leaving her home.

Splashing water: After the bride gets on the limousine, her parents will sprinkle a bowl of water, rice and white rice on her body, indicating that her daughter has splashed water. I wish her food and clothing.

Throwing a fan: after the car starts, the bride throws the fan out of the window to show that she has abandoned her bad temper; Cry a few times after throwing the fan, and put a bamboo curtain behind the car to symbolize wealth.

The wedding team takes bamboo curtain as the first, with green bamboo with roots and leaves, and a piece of pork at the end of the bamboo to prevent evil spirits and white tigers.

Firecrackers: set off a salute all the way. When the car arrives at the man's door, firecrackers should be set off at home.

Touch oranges: A child greets the couple with two oranges, and the bride gently touches the oranges and presents a red envelope as a gift.

Holding the bride: When the bride got off the limousine, the man, a lucky elder, held a bamboo curtain on the bride's head and helped her into the hall.

Avoid stepping on the threshold: the threshold represents the facade, and newcomers should cross the threshold.

When the bride enters the hall, she must step over the brazier and crush the tiles.

Tea: Introduce the bride to the elders at home.

Worship heaven and earth: couples worship heaven and earth, worship the temple, and husband and wife worship each other and send them to the bridal chamber.

Into the bridal chamber: cover the bed with bamboo curtains, put a bronze mirror on the table to suppress the alarm, and the couple sat on the bench with the groom's pants in advance to show unity and hope to have a boy in the future. Then the groom lifts the bride's veil, raises a glass and eats sweet soup together, symbolizing the early birth of your son.

Avoid sitting in a new bed: no one can sit in a new bed on the wedding day.

Wedding reception: entertain guests and hold ceremonies at the same time.

Fujian: After the wedding banquet, the couple stood at the door with wedding candy to see Fujian off.

Tea: The married relatives and friends of the man drink the sweet tea of the bride, say auspicious words and give red envelopes.

Make trouble in the bridal chamber.

Late Qing dynasty:

Parents' orders and matchmakers' words

Reading the flavor of culture from a pile of old documents is the most suitable for A Qiang's collection of more than 500 marriage certificates.

The earliest "marriage certificate" collected by A Qiang is the "child-rearing marriage certificate" of Xuantongyuan in Qing Dynasty. The "wedding card" is red and the handwriting is written with a brush. The whole wedding invitation is not decorated with any patterns.

On the right side of the "wedding post", there are four sentences: "the words of the matchmaker, the life of parents, the marriage in previous lives, and the providence".

There is a note with dried jujube and Kun jujube in the middle, that is, the birthdays of men and women, and the "wedding card" also says "two hundred and twenty pieces of silver as a dowry".

Finally, with the date of the lunar calendar: the third day of June in Xuantong Yuannian (1909), write the words "one hundred years of harmony" on the left as a blessing. Judging from the collection place, this marriage certificate should be from Foshan at that time.

Whether it matches or not depends on it.

The matchmaker has a sharp mouth.

It is understood that child brides are born in poor families among the people. In order to avoid the burden of raising, women give their daughters to men. Some men's parents also look for child brides to avoid the dowry of their sons when they grow up.

In terms of age, child brides are generally older than their husbands. People often use "parents' orders and matchmakers' words" to summarize traditional marriage. All marriages are the words of a matchmaker, and then the parents decide, and the parties have no right to choose.

In ancient times, it was thought that if you were hired, you would be a wife, and if you ran away, you would be a concubine. According to your parents' orders and the matchmaker's words, you will be recognized by the society.

Become a temporary wind

"Sister-brother love"

Become a temporary wind

A Qiang's predecessors once told him that the ancients attached great importance to birthdays, and the collocation of eight characters combined heaven and earth, and yin and yang combined.

The man's high dowry of 220 taels of silver shows that the man was rich at that time. It can be seen from the date of the "wedding post" that the child bride was only 12 years old, and her "husband" should be under 12 years old.

The child bride bought is mainly to look after the "husband", play with the "husband" and read books. And the role is equivalent to the little babysitter now. When her "husband" grows to 15 years old, the two will officially get married.

This custom was also common in Foshan at that time.

At the beginning of this century:

Old habits are ancient, and civilized marriage is fashionable.

What is the historical background behind Zhang Jianguo's previous marriage certificate?

In A Qiang's collection, there are several marriage certificates before the founding of the People's Republic of China, one of which is dated 1930 1 1 23rd.

The reporter found that the font of Guangdong couples' marriage certificates began to use "variants", and the writing order was changed from right to left to top-down. The design and lace of the certificate have also changed a lot. There is a smiling angel above the marriage certificate, holding a red ribbon with obvious western colors. There are two overlapping hearts at the bottom of the marriage certificate, which are strung together with ribbons, meaning that they are blessed and United forever.

But to the reporter's surprise, the date of birth, a traditional man and woman, is still indicated in the marriage document. A Qiang, who collects this marriage certificate, told reporters that "civilized marriage" at this time is no longer a form of wedding, but has the significance of free love and voluntary marriage, and "the words of parents' matchmakers" are no longer important. However, because the custom of "big media as witnesses" is still deeply rooted, the wedding at this time is a transitional period. Although there are western wedding customs, they can't get rid of the traditional old customs in form.

It is reported that under the influence of western culture, some changes have taken place in China's marriage before the founding of the People's Republic of China. Young men and women began a new way of getting married, that is, after a period of communication and love, they got married with the consent of their parents, and some young men and women even chose to get married in church. This kind of marriage is relatively simple than traditional marriage and is called "civilized marriage".

Before the Revolution of 1911, "civilized weddings" had appeared among a few people in big cities such as Shanghai and Guangzhou. After the Revolution of 1911, there were some reforms in marriage. Most freedom lovers practice the trendy "civilized marriage".

Marriage certificate begins

Stamp the official seal of the government

"Civilized marriage" often refers to the old etiquette from "inviting marriage" to "accepting marriage" simply as engagement, bride price, or neither. On the wedding day, the man's parents should each give him a gold ring and a dress. The wedding is attended by the host, the introducer and the witness, and they and the newlyweds have to stamp the marriage certificate.

A Qiang said that there are two main types of people who can accept a new marriage. One is a rich man with western education, and the other is a Christian. His collection was a famous family in Foshan at that time. At this time, the "marriage certificate" has called the former "matchmaker" an "introducer", and the title has improved a lot. Witnesses mainly invite elderly people or government officials who have more prestige and status in society.

The official seal of the government also appeared on the "marriage certificate". A Qiang said that before the founding of People's Republic of China (PRC), the law stipulated that both men and women had to get engaged before they could get married. The appearance of the official seal also shows that the marriage between men and women is no longer their own private affairs, but is brought into unified management.