Wedding Wednesday…Bridesmaids
We have all been to weddings and seen the friends and relatives of the bride standing next to her and looking on, teary-eyed, as the bride says her vows. They have been there helping her plan and throwing showers for her. As a former bridesmaid to many a wedding, it is an exciting time for all involved. But where did this tradition come from?
Where did this start?
There are 3 trains of thought as to the origin of bridesmaids. The first actually dates all the way back to the Bible where Jacob married both Leah and Rachel, each woman brought her own “maid” (as in, “bridesmaid”), though they functioned more as literal “maids”. This was not about posing for pictures or helping pick out fine China. It was about being an actual maid to tend to the bride-turned-wife.
The next thought is from the Roman Empire. It was Roman law that in order for a marriage to be official there had to be 10 witnesses. Since the Roman Empire was steeped in superstition, the bridesmaids had to dress the same as the bride and the groomsmen had to dress the same as the groom. The idea behind this was to confuse the evil spirits lurking to wreak havoc on the wedding day.
The third train of thought for this tradition also dates back to the Roman Empire but with a slightly different twist. It was the groomsmen who would accompany the bride and the bridesmaid to the ceremony. They went to protect the bride and her dowry. The bridesmaids were set up as a sort of decoy to avoid any kidnapping of the bride. That is a far cry from organizing the gifts at the end of the wedding. I love my friends but not sure I am ready to be hauled off to some foreign camp to be held hostage for a ransom. But apparently, this happened a great deal.
It continues…
Today in many weddings you will usually see some form of a bridal party. It could be a stretch of gal pals flanking the bride or it could be the family pet. Today’s wedding is more detailed to the bride and groom with bits and pieces of tradition thrown in. Of course, one bit of tradition that still exists and will always be part of the happy couple’s special day is the idea of hiring this wedding photography Charlottesville company to ensure that every single moment of the day is captured. This will allow the couple to look back on this for years to come and to always reminisce about this day. That is the beauty of tradition, as well as being able to move with the times. Regardless, we have come a long way from being maids or decoys.
And yes…that is me on my wedding day with my bridesmaids and I assure you none were hauled off to the enemy clansmen!
Thanks for the interesting info. Never heard about origin of bridesmaid , i mean heard something about ward against evil spirits , but not the rest
Glad we don’t have to worry about that any more!
Very interesting , thanks for series. I learn something new with each article
Glad you like the information!
I loved reading this, and never had given it much thought or had heard about bridesmaid history before. It can get expensive to be a bridesmaid these days, and weddings in general, but can be a lot of fun.
I LOVE weddings!!!! I have been in a couple but thankfully the bride made it very income easy!
Very cool , interesting post
Great story behind bridesmaids