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I am a German girl. Yes, there may be other odd ethnicities mixed in (a little Irish here, a little Dutch there), but the majority of my bloodlines come from Germany. And interestingly enough, so do Mr. Powder Puff’s. So, after we’re married, I will be trading in my strong German maiden name for the mister’s strong German name.
Since we are both German, and proud of our heritage, I thought it would be nice to incorporate some Bavarian traditions into our wedding. Well, after I did a little research, it is safe to say that that WILL NOT be happening. Instead of nice things, like a tea ceremony, the Germans instead have crazy things they do to celebrate the joyous occasion of die standesamtliche trauung (a wedding).
Here are just a few for your consideration.
Hochzeitslader
The Germans like to fancy things up. So instead of a paper invitation, they send their guests a singing telegram!
Or, at least, a man dressed in fancy garb that rhymes the invitation to each guest at their door. The guests accept by pinning a ribbon on him, or giving him something to drink. Maybe a bit of the tasty beverage known as bier? Ja? Because what could be more German than that!
The bride’s family would then be able to gauge how many people had agreed to attend the wedding by the number of ribbons and/or level of intoxication of the hochzeitslader. If he doesn’t even make it back, then you know it’s going to be a slammin’ partay!
Junggesellenabschied
Basically, this is a super long name for a bachelor party. Weird name, same old stuff. Can’t men be any more creative?
Polterabend
The night before the wedding is the time to let loose and smash some plates to scare off evil spirits that might want to mar your nuptials. And then you can tense up again by cleaning up the entire mess with your husband-to-be. Tradition says that this shows the bride and groom can work together, and that nothing will ever be broken in their home again, but I think it’s a sneaky way for the guests to go wild ruining your dishes, and then getting out of the cleanup.
Their guests never should have sent them a hochzeitslader.
Baumstamm Sägen
After the bride and the groom exit the church, they stumble upon a log on a sawhorse, which they must saw in half together before they leave (to symbolize overcoming tough tasks together). Since, of course, any good Bavarian girl knows how to saw. In a wedding dress.
Kidnapping of the Bride
At the reception, it’s traditional for the groomsmen to kidnap the bride and hide her from the groom. They usually hide her at a pub. Once the poor groom finds his new wife, he is then forced to pay for the drinks of the hooligans that stole his girl in the first place.
The scariest part about this tradition? My source for this information simply states, “Sometimes this ritual ends badly.” YIKES!!!
So, I’m sorry Germany, but I’m not going to be honoring you at our wedding. Auf wiedersehen!
Does anyone else know of any strange ethnic wedding traditions?
Photo #1 Source; Photo #2 Source; Photo #3 Source ; Photo #4 Source ; All info from Source
In the old country (Dominican Republic) they used to serenade the couple to their marriage bed. The couple would lock them out but they would stay outside hounding them. Then they would return again the next morning singing and hollering. I am so glad I’m in the US.
Ha! This is great! I actually attended the wedding of my German friend on Lake Feldafing, just south of Munich a couple of years ago (talk about Bavarian!). But I can’t say that I remember any of these traditions being exercised!! Thanks for sharing. I love that you know about and are in touch with your heritage!! 
Hilarious! Those traditions are pretty awesome, but I probably wouldn’t integrate those into my wedding. The log cutting is great! Maybe throw in a das boot instead of toasting flutes!?
My FH is German and Dutch and originally from WI. I forwarded him this post. He is probably figuring out ways to convince his family members to do all of the above.
That’s so fun! I’ve never seen that - I gotta ask my german friends if they know of this! We’re doing a traditional Korean ceremony during the rehearsal dinner (didn’t want the craziness of the actual day of to be tampered with)… I should look up traditional Italian weddings but he hasn’t spoken of any!
These things fall into the category of funny, but not if they happened at my wedding! I think serving some German beer will be good enough
Sawing!!! Oh dear! This is hilarious.
I went to a Macedonian wedding last summer, and there were all kinds of awesome rituals pre-ceremony. It was a blast!
There’s also the double cup — the bottom of the cup is a smaller cup that is on a swivel. If none of the wine in the cup spills while the bride and groom drink simultaneously, it’s good luck!
Hmmm, I’m with ES123, maybe serve German beer instead…
Haha. One of the many online checklists told me to “research wedding traditions” so I did the same thing you just did. And I found the same things you just did. So needless to say, we aren’t really incorporating anything German into our wedding. Which is fine b/c at this point I think the only German part remaining is FI’s last name.
LOL! How funny! I am imagining a drunk singing telegram-er showing up at my doorstep!
And I can’t imagine sawing a log in my wedding dress. Or being kidnapped…
Thanks for such a fun post!
Ohmigosh! thanks for sharing this, so interesting. I like the plate one (not the cleanup) and what it symbolizes same with the saw one…
I’m 100% dutch and it’s tradition (though it mgiht be a dutch-american tradition) for the bride and groom to pass around chocolates and cigars to our guests as we go table-to-table to greet them.
I don’t know of anything this crazy, though!
What about the cup?? You forgot to mention the one German tradition we’ll be using: the Neurnberg Bridal Cup, or Brautbecher!! Both the bride and groom can drink from it without spilling a drop! My FI is excited we’ll be celebrating some of his culture too!
LOL! Oh, those traditions are too funny! You should totally include a write-up on them and somehow include it in your wedding, just to delight your guests!
I’m Polish, and because of all the invading/border shifting that went on in eastern Europe in the 20th century, some German traditions have spilled over into the Polish culture. In my region of Poland, the Polteraband is VERY popular. Your guests don’t brake your plates, but bring old jars and assorted glass to break. Basically, the tradition is to have the groom come out with enough alcohol to intoxicate the visitors so that they stop braking glass.
I am dying to do this at my wedding, since I have been to several myself and they are so much fun (kind of like a lively rehearsal dinner)! I am having my dad put up a wooden crate without the top and one side in our yard so that we can do this without causing a serious mess and making the neighbors uncomfortable.
I’m Greek and my fiance is Filipino - dont know about any Filipino traditions, but Greeks usually throw plates to express “kefi” loosely translated as “pure joy.” Problem is, there is an exact art to it so that way no one cuts themselves - it’s gone to the point that it has been BANNED in Greece and replaced with carnations. Plus, you have to pay for the plates you break.
Ha ha, I think I went to the same online sources as you when I investigated this option too! West Coast Groom’s family is all German but unfourtunately, either he or I vetoed every one of the traditions I could find!
FYI, this post made me laugh crazy-loud at my desk. That’s what I get for checking up on you guys during the day, LOL. Too funny…
That telegram idea is Hilarious! That would be so funny to have some drunken singing guy with ribbons show up at your doorstep
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Mrs. Powder Puff, Chicago Age and Occupation: 25, Preschool Teacher Fiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Career Services Engagement Date: May, 2008 Wedding Date: July, 2009 Blogging Since: November 12, 2008 Venue: Outdoor ceremony, banquet hall reception About Me: I am your typical Midwestern girl attempting to plan a sane, budget-friendly, fun wedding to the man of my dreams. I love shoes, laughing at “Platinum Weddings”, crafts, inspiration boards, candy, and basically anything I can DIY. While weddings can certainly be all-consuming, I honestly can’t wait until the ceremony is over and I can finally call Mr. Powder Puff my husband!
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