12 Lucky Wedding Traditions For Around The World

Lucky wedding traditions from across the globe

While July may be infamous for unlucky weddings, couples worldwide have found unique ways to ward off bad luck on their wedding day! From sugar cubes to sai sins, these twelve cultural traditions are believed to bring happiness and prosperity to newlyweds.

• In Asia, cranes embroidered on a bride’s dress symbolize fidelity and a long marriage.
• Bulgarian couples step into the church right foot first for good luck!
• In China, post-ceremony firecrackers chase away evil spirits and protect the couple’s union.
• In Cambodia, tradition has it that carrying a sword to the altar will bless the marriage with harmony and strength.
• In the Czech Republic, guests throw peas at the newlyweds for good luck and best wishes.
• On the eve of the wedding, German couples will smash dishes so that nothing will break in their newly united homestead.
• In Great Britain, brides consider it good luck to find a spider lurking in her wedding dress!
• In Greece, the bride will slip a sugar cube into her glove to sweeten her marriage.
• In Holland, the happy couple plants lilies of the valley around their home for a love that blossoms every spring.
• To start married life with a clean slate, Nigerian couples wash their feet with cold water before entering their home as man and wife.
• Swedish brides place a gold coin bestowed by her father and a silver coin given by her mother in each shoe to symbolize lifelong prosperity and fortune.
• In Thailand, wedding guests tie white strings, known as sai sins around the bride’s wrists for luck. Wearing them for three days confers extra good fortune!

Whether you’ve planned a traditional June ceremony, a winter wedding, or are taking your chances with a July matrimony, consider one of these traditions for a stroke of luck on your special day!

Sharon Schweitzer , J.D., is a cross-cultural trainer, modern manners expert, and the founder of Protocol & Etiquette Worldwide. In addition to her accreditation in intercultural management from the HOFSTEDE centre, she serves as a Chinese Ceremonial Dining Etiquette Specialist in the documentary series Confucius was a Foodie , on Nat Geo People . She is the resident etiquette expert on two popular lifestyle shows: ABC Tampa Bay’s Morning Blend and CBS Austin’s We Are Austin . She is regularly quoted by BBC Capital, Investor’s Business Daily, Fortune, and the National Business Journals. Her Amazon #1 Best Selling book in International Business, Access to Asia: Your Multicultural Business Guide , now in its third printing, was named to Kirkus Reviews’ Best Books of 2015. She’s a winner of the British Airways International Trade Award at the 2016 Greater Austin Business Awards .