13 traditional wedding ceremonies from around the world

A peek at some of the world's most unique and diverse marriage rituals

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Bulgarian Muslim bride Fatme Kichukova (C) has her make-up applied during her wedding ceremony in the village of Ribnovo.
A mother pours water on her son, the groom, during a traditional cleansing ritual the day before his wedding, at Yogyakarta Palace in Yogycarta, Indonesia. The wedding ceremonies are a continuous, three-day affair.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Beawiharta))

A make-up artist prepares the bride's traditional gele (Nigerian head wrap) before the start of her wedding in Lagos, Nigeria. The gele, which is wrapped and molded into specific shapes, is essentially a woman's crown and a sign of soc
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Akintunde Akinley))

The best man shaves the groom's face during a traditional wedding ceremony in Galicnik, Macedonia. The best man gets this honor because, it is assumed, the groom would be too nervous to get a clean shave himself.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski))

Bulgarian Muslim bride Fatme Kichukova has her face painted by the female members of her family. The ancient, face-painting tradition is called gelena in Bulgarian and is unique to the remote, largely Muslim village of Ribnovo, Bulgari
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov))

Maasai bride Namunyak Baiera wears traditional bead necklaces during her wedding in Olepolos, Kenya.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Damien Guerchois))

A bride and groom wearing traditional Eritrean dress arrive for their wedding at a Christian Orthodox church in Jerusalem, Israel.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Finbarr O'Reill))

Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah holds the arm of his son to bless the bride during the "bersanding," or enthronement ceremony, at their wedding in the Nurul Iman Palace in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Olivia Harris))

A groom shoots his bride with "Cupid's arrow" during their traditional Yugur wedding in Gansu Province, China. The shooting of the arrow (without an arrowhead) represents their everlasting love.
(Image credit: (Wang Jiang/Sipa Asia/ZUMA Press/Corbis))

An Indian Hindu bride ties a piece of turmeric in auspicious thread around her groom's wrist in Bombay, India.
(Image credit: (Dinodia/CORBIS))

A bride of the She ethnic group stands on a chair to listen to her family's advice at her wedding ceremony in Baimaxia Village, China.
(Image credit: (Xinhua/Zhang Jiancheng))

A bride and groom sit at their traditional Korean wedding ceremony in Anyang, South Korea.
(Image credit: (Topic Photo Agency/CORBIS))

An Ultra-orthodox Jewish bride watches her groom dance after their traditional wedding ceremony in Jerusalem, Israel.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun))

The bride and groom, who belong to the Miao ethnic group, are escorted to the bride's home after the ceremony in Sansui County, China.
(Image credit: (Qin Gang/Xinhua Press/Corbis))

Lauren Hansen
Lauren Hansen

Lauren Hansen produces The Week’s podcasts and videos and edits the photo blog, Captured. She also manages the production of the magazine's iPad app. A graduate of Kenyon College and Northwestern University, she previously worked at the BBC and Frontline. She knows a thing or two about pretty pictures and cute puppies, both of which she tweets about @mylaurenhansen.