Early African American: Jumping the Broom. In the times of slavery in this country, African American couples were not allowed to formally marry and live together. To make a public declaration of their love and commitment, a man and woman jumped over a broom into matrimony, to the beat of drums. (The broom has long held significant meaning for the various Africans, symbolizing, the start of home- making for the newlywed couple. In Southern Africa, the day after the wedding, the bride assisted the other women in the family in sweeping the courtyard, indicating her dutiful willing ness to help her in-laws with housework till the newlyweds could move to their new home.) Some African-American couples today are choosing to include this symbolic rite in their wedding ceremony.

    Armenia: Two white doves may be released to signify love and happiness. The bride may dress in red silk and may wear cardboard wings with feathers on her head. Small coins may be thrown at her.

    早期非洲裔美國(guó)人：跳掃帚。在美國(guó)的黑奴時(shí)代，黑人男女是不允許正式結(jié)婚生活在一起的。為了向世人宣布他們的愛(ài)情和婚約，一對(duì)黑人男女和著鼓聲的節(jié)奏，一起跳過(guò)一把掃帚。(掃帚對(duì)各種非洲人長(zhǎng)期來(lái)都具有很重要的意義，因?yàn)樗�意味著新婚夫婦組成家庭的開(kāi)始。在南部非洲，新娘在婚后的第一天要幫助夫家的其他女性清掃院子，以此表明在住進(jìn)自己的新家前，她愿意盡職地幫助丈夫的家人承擔(dān)家務(wù)勞動(dòng)。)直至今日，一些美國(guó)黑人還在他們的婚禮上舉行這種象征性的儀式。

    亞美尼亞：人們放飛兩只白鴿，以示愛(ài)情和幸福。新娘穿著紅色絲綢的服裝，頭戴飾有羽毛的紙翼。人們還可向新娘投擲硬幣。
 
    Belgium: The bride may still embroider her name on her handkerchief, carry it on the wedding day, then frame it and keep it until the next family bride marries.

    Bermuda: Islanders top their tiered wedding cakes with a tiny sapling. The newlyweds plant the tree at their home, where they can watch it grow, as their marriage grows.

    Bohemia: The groom gives the bride a rosary, a prayer book, a girdle with three keys (to guard her virtue), a fur cap, and a silver wedding ring. The bride gives the groom a shirt sewn with gold thread blended with colored silks and a wedding ring. Before the ceremony, the groomsman wraps the groom in the bride‘s cloak to keep evil spirits from creeping in and dividing their two hearts.

    比利時(shí)：新娘可以將其姓名繡在手帕上，在婚禮舉行日隨身帶上它。婚禮后將手帕裝入鏡框保存，直到家里的另外一個(gè)姑娘結(jié)婚。

    百慕大：百慕大島民在他們的多層婚禮蛋糕的頂層插上一株小樹(shù)苗，新婚夫婦要將這株樹(shù)苗種在家中，這樣他們可以目睹樹(shù)苗伴隨著他們的婚姻一起長(zhǎng)大。

    波黑人：新郎向新娘贈(zèng)送一串念珠，一本祈禱文，一根上面串著三把鑰匙的腰帶(用以保護(hù)她的貞潔)，一頂毛皮帽，一個(gè)銀的結(jié)婚戒指。新娘則向新郎贈(zèng)送一件用金線和彩色絲綢縫制的襯衣和結(jié)婚戒指。婚禮前，伴郎將新郎裹進(jìn)新娘的斗篷里，以防惡魔侵入，拆散他們相愛(ài)的心。

    Caribbean: A rich black cake baked with dried fruits and rum is especially popular on the islands of Barbados, Grenada and St. Lucia. The recipe, handed down from mother to daughter, is embellished by each. It is considered a "pound" cake--with the recipe calling for a pound each of flour, dark brown sugar, butter, glace cherries, raisins, prunes, currants, plus a dozen eggs and flavorings. The dried fruits are soaked in rum and kept in a crock anywhere from two weeks to six months.

    Croatia: Married female relatives remove the bride‘s veil and replace it with a kerchief and apron, symbols of her new married status. She is then serenaded by all the married women. Following the wedding ceremony, those assembled walk three times around the well (symbolizing the Holy Trinity,) and throw apples into it (symbolizing fertility).

    加勒比地區(qū)：在巴巴多斯，格林納達(dá)和圣盧西亞，用干果和朗姆酒制作的味道濃郁的蛋糕十分常見(jiàn)。蛋糕的制作方法，由母親親手傳給女兒，并且各自對(duì)其加以修飾。人們把這種蛋糕叫作“一磅”蛋糕，因?yàn)橹谱鬟@種蛋糕需要面粉、棕糖、黃油、糖霜櫻桃、葡萄干、李子、紅醋栗各一磅，加上一打雞蛋和調(diào)味品。制作蛋糕的干果要在朗姆酒中浸泡并在瓦罐中保存兩個(gè)星期至6個(gè)月。

    克羅地亞：由已婚的女性親戚摘下新娘的面紗，換上一塊頭巾和一條圍裙，意味著新娘的已婚新身份。然后由所有的已婚婦女為新娘唱小夜曲。婚禮之后，所有來(lái)賓圍繞著井走三圈(象征著圣三位一體)，并向井中扔蘋(píng)果(象征著生育)。

    The Czech Republic: Friends would sneak into the bride‘s yard to plant a tree, then deco rate it with ribbons and painted eggshells. Legend said she would live as long as the tree. Brides in the countryside carry on the very old custom of wearing a wreath of rosemary, which symbolizes remembrance. The wreath is woven for each bride on her wedding eve by her friends as a wish for wisdom, love, and loyalty.

    Egypt: Families, rather than grooms, propose to the bride. In Egypt, many marriages are arranged. The zaffa, or wedding march, is a musical procession of drums, bagpipes, horns, belly dancers, and men carrying flaming swords; it announces that the marriage is about to begin.

    England: Traditionally, the village bride and her wedding party always walk together to the church. Leading the procession: a small girl strewing, blossoms along the road, so the bride‘s path through life will always be happy and laden with flowers.

    捷克共和國(guó)：朋友們溜進(jìn)新娘的院子去種一棵樹(shù)，然后再用彩帶和彩繪的蛋殼將樹(shù)加以裝飾。傳說(shuō)新娘將與這樹(shù)活得一樣長(zhǎng)。鄉(xiāng)村的新娘還保留著佩帶迷迭香花環(huán)的古老習(xí)俗，以表懷念之情。花環(huán)是在婚禮前夕由新娘的朋友編織而成，它象征著智慧、愛(ài)情和忠誠(chéng)。

    埃及：在埃及，由新郎的家人，而不是新郎本人，向新娘求婚。許多婚姻還是父母之命，媒妁之言。Zaffa，也就是婚禮，其實(shí)是一個(gè)充滿音樂(lè)的列隊(duì)游行，有鼓、風(fēng)笛、號(hào)角及肚皮舞，男人們手持火紅的劍。這個(gè)儀式宣告，婚姻即將開(kāi)始。

    英格蘭：按照傳統(tǒng)，鄉(xiāng)村的新娘和參加婚禮的人們總是一起步行走向教堂。一個(gè)小姑娘走在隊(duì)列最前面，她一路拋撒鮮花，預(yù)示著新娘一生的道路上也將開(kāi)滿鮮花，永遠(yuǎn)幸福。

    Finland: Brides wear golden crowns. After the wedding, unmarried women dance in a circle around the blindfolded bride, waiting for her to place her crown on someone‘s head. It is thought that whoever she crowns will be the next to wed. The bride and groom have seats of honor at the reception. The bride holds a sieve covered with a silk shawl; when the guests slip money into the sieve, their names and the amounts given are announced to those assembled by a groomsman.

    Greece: The koumbaros, traditionally the groom‘s godfather, is an honored guest who participates in the wedding ceremony. Today, the koumbaros is very often the best man, who assists in the crowning of the couple (with white or gold crown, or with crowns made of everlasting flowers, or of twigs of love and vine wrapped in silver and gold paper), and in the circling of the altar three times. Other attendants may read Scripture, hold candles, pack the crowns in a special box after the ceremony. To be sure of a "sweet life", a Greek bride may carry a lump of sugar in her glove on wedding day.

    芬蘭：新娘頭戴金色的花冠。婚禮后，未婚婦女圍著被蒙住眼睛的新娘跳舞，等著新娘將她頭上的花冠戴到某個(gè)人的頭上。被新娘戴上花冠的人被認(rèn)為是下一個(gè)要結(jié)婚的人。新娘和新郎坐在婚宴的貴賓席上，新娘手持一個(gè)篩子，篩子上蓋有一塊絲綢披巾。當(dāng)來(lái)賓們將錢(qián)塞進(jìn)篩子時(shí)，一個(gè)伴郎會(huì)向在場(chǎng)的來(lái)賓宣布放錢(qián)的來(lái)賓姓名以及禮金的數(shù)額。

    希臘：通常是新郎的教父，擔(dān)任婚禮上的嘉賓，現(xiàn)在嘉賓常常由伴郎擔(dān)任，其職責(zé)是協(xié)助新郎新娘戴上花冠(花冠有白色和金色的，花冠由四季開(kāi)放的鮮花，或由用金色或銀色的紙包起來(lái)的象征愛(ài)情的樹(shù)枝和藤編織而成)。戴上花冠后，新人們圍著圣壇繞三圈。別的出席婚禮的人則朗讀《圣經(jīng)》，手持蠟燭，并在婚禮后將花冠放置在一個(gè)特殊的盒子里。為了確保婚后生活的甜蜜，希臘新娘在結(jié)婚那一天，可在手套里塞一塊糖。

    Korea: Ducks are included in the wedding procession because ducks mate for life. The groom once traveled to the bride‘s house on a white pony, bearing fidelity symbols--a gray goose and gander.

    Malaysia: The groom‘s gifts to the bride are delivered to her home by costumed children in a noisy procession, carrying lavish trays of food and currency folded into animal or flower shapes. Each wedding guest is given a beautifully decorated hard-boiled egg, a symbol of fertility.

    Mexico: A "lasso" a very large rosary, is wound around the couple‘s shoulders and hands during the ceremony to show the union and protection of marriage. Guests at many Mexican weddings gather around the couple in a heart-shaped ring at the reception, perhaps before the first dance.

    韓國(guó): 在婚禮行列中會(huì)包括鴨子，因?yàn)轼喿涌偸墙K身相伴。過(guò)去，新郎騎一匹小白馬去新娘家，并帶上一對(duì)象征著忠誠(chéng)的灰色的雌鵝和雄鵝。

    馬來(lái)西亞：新郎贈(zèng)送給新娘的禮物由盛裝打扮的孩子們組成的熱鬧隊(duì)伍送過(guò)去，孩子們捧著許多盛有食物和用錢(qián)折疊成的動(dòng)物和花卉形狀的托盤(pán)。每位參加婚禮的來(lái)賓都獲贈(zèng)一個(gè)裝飾精美的煮熟了的雞蛋, 它是生育的象征。

    墨西哥：在婚禮上，新婚夫婦的肩膀和手被一串很大的念珠(“套索”)所纏繞，表示雙方的結(jié)合和對(duì)婚姻的保護(hù)。在許多墨西哥人的婚禮上，在第一支舞曲前，來(lái)賓們圍繞著新婚夫婦站成一個(gè)心形的圈。