Traditions and
Customs.
Wedding, Baptism
ceremonies
Olaine Secondary School No1
Lifelong Learning Multirateral Comenius School
Project
“We all came here from somewhere” -2011
Wedding

The wedding
celebration is
the family ritual
which has
survived most
completely
through the
centuries.
Wedding

Today's
weddings are
divided into
different
parts.

First is the
formal part the church or
the register
office
ceremony.
Wedding

The next part is
the multitraditional
part, when the
vedēji can show
their creativity
by completing
traditional
wedding values
with modern
interpretations.
Wedding

In the wedding
morning the
bride has to be
in her parents’
house and the
groom cannot
see her before
that.
Wedding

Latvian wedding
tradition is that
the groom and
the bride both
together go into
the church or
registry office.
Wedding

The groom and vedēji
( a woman and a man
who manage all the
wedding ceremony at
the reception) arrive
to the bride’s parents’
house and after the
groom has proved
that he is suitable for
their daughter, the
groom , the bride and
vedēji go to the churh
or registry office in
one car. The bride’s
parents follow them
in another one.
Wedding

After the formal
civil ceremony or
the ceremony in
the church newly
weds go on a small
trip.

Sometimes all the
guests follow them
but most often the
trip is only for
vedēji and them an
during this trip a
new couple takes
different photos.
Wedding

During the trip the
young couple has to
go trough different
trials.

One of the most
popular trial - the
groom has to carry
his bride over seven
bridges.

Crossing the bridge
symbolizes a
conversion from
status 'mine' and
'yours' to the status
'ours'.
Wedding

This is the time,
when they should
forget the previous
sins and also write
some wishes and
promises for further
life together as a
family.
Wedding

One of the trials is to
deal with “the gates of
honour” which are
erected by the invited
or most often
uninvited guests in
the way the young
couple must go.

As bigger the amount
of gates are as better
their further life will
be.

They can pass the
gates by paying some
ransom (money,
sweets, alcohol) or by
doing some tasks.
Wedding

In the evening all
invite guest and
the young couple
meet at the
wedding banquet.

The young couple
have to pass here
last three gates of
honour – Gates of
the Childhood, the
Youth and the
Family - again by
doing some tasks
demonstrating they
are suitable for
each other.
Wedding

When entering the
room, the groom
has to carry the
bride over the
path of towel with
a plate hidden
under it.

The groom has to
break the plate.
The amount of
pieces shows the
amount of
children in this
family.
Wedding

At the beginning of
the meal three
candles are lighted
by parents and
newly weds. This
fire in Latvian
culture symbolizes
a hearth.

In ancient times
that was the most
important in every
house – to keep in
fire. Those candles
are reference to
that.
Wedding

When the guests
try the first glass
of the drink
somebody starts
calling – Rūgts!
That means the
drink tastes bitter
and newly weds
have to make it
sweeter by kiss.
As longer lasts the
kiss as sweeter
tastes the drink.
Wedding

Usually the
dancing part of
the wedding party
starts with the
first waltz of the
young couple.

Later guests have
lots of fun by
singing, playing
games, dancing
and participating
in different
wedding
competitions.
Wedding

The culmination of
the traditional
wedding is
“mičošana” or
“tuckering” at
midnight when the
bride’s veil is taken
off anda wife’s
tucker is put on.
Now "the bride"
becomes "the wife,"
and she wears a
married woman's
cap. Also the groom
gets his husband’s
hat.
Wedding

Then the new wife
opens her hope
chest. The young
couple shares the
gifts saying
thanks to their
parents and other
people who are
notable for them
or have helped to
organize
weddings.
Wedding

Some time later at
night the young
couple is
accompanied to bed
while singing songs.

Predicting the
firstborn child in this
family, some things
are put under their
bed - an axe for a son
or a ladle for a
daughter.

After that guests
continue the party to
provide successfully
life for the new
family.
Wedding

The awakening of
the new couple in
the next morning is
also ritualized.

Normally the
husband and wife
are awakened by
the guests, who try
to make noise with
drums, voices, pans
and cooking pots
and singing.

Afterwards they
wash in the same
bowl and wipe in
the same towel.
Wedding

A lot of the
wedding customs
were derived from
the times of our
ancestors and a
lot of them are
inspired from
other countries.

Each generation
adds something
new to the
wedding rituals.
Baptism

If the wedding
traditions have
largely been
preserved
through the
centuries, the
ancient Latvian
baptism
traditions have
remained
mostly only in
folklore.
Baptism

Nowadays only
dievturi (Godskeepers – a
Neopagan
religious
movement, which
claims to be a
modern revival of
the folk religion of
Latvians before
Christianization
in the 13 th
century) baptize a
child according to
them.
Baptism

The majority of
Latvian people
chose between the
baptism in the
church (depending
on the family
religious
affiliation) or the
child’s
registration
ceremony at the
registry office.
Baptism

Only immediate
family members,
relatives and
selected friends
participate in
baptism ceremony.

After the
ceremony the
child receives
presents.
Thank you for attention!