African-American Wedding Invitations

Every culture has its own unique wedding traditions. Even within families, you’ll find certain activities, songs, foods, dances, etc. that are incorporated into celebrations, including weddings. With some African-American families this is particularly true. While some families choose to stay close to more recent traditions, others want their weddings to embrace the traditions of their West African heritage.

Linking Past Traditions with Modern Celebrations

For individuals interested in adding some of those West African traditions to their own ceremony, there are plenty of unique elements you can add. Because these cultures had great respect for their elders, it became customary for elders to play an important role in their celebrations. For example, you could ask a great grandparent to pour a glass of wine for the couple to share or to read a special poem.

West African wedding traditions also include a bit of heat as a symbol of the passion that should be a part of the newlyweds’ relationship. To accomplish this element, the couple can share a hot pepper or two at the reception or even at the ceremony.

Your wedding invitation should also reflect these traditions. Normally, you would want to stick with very neutral colors with splashes of color. The Brown Celebration Pocket and the Umber Signature Pocket wedding invitations are both wonderful choices, particularly for formal weddings.

Other African American Traditions

A number of African American traditions have grown out of the past culture of slavery. One example are the gospel and spiritual songs. These songs helped enslaved African Americans to have the strength and courage necessary to keep surviving under harsh and unjust circumstances. Today, these songs are sung all over the country in churches and at celebrations as a reminder of the importance of hope. They are also an ideal part of wedding ceremonies. You could have your church’s choir performing during the ceremony, for example, and the entire audience of guests could sing along.

You might also want to add in the tradition of broom jumping. In Africa, broom jumping was a symbolic act representing the start of a domestic union and shared household. When slaves were brought from Africa to the United States, they carried that tradition with them but also gave it an additional meaning. Because slaves were not allowed to marry, jumping over a broom became a symbolic act alerting everyone around them that they were a couple.

Celebrating marriage with these important traditions is one way to keep your heritage and your culture with you forever.

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