A
Village Wedding
Dress up in a beautifully embroidered, colorfull costume...
Collect each and every atom of happiness you own...
And join the party celebrating the unity of two lovers in a traditional
Hungarian village
A traditional custom is likely to cause the groom a headache: the bride rarely makes the journey from the church to her new husband's house. During the wedding party's trip, a group of cheerful men or women stops the crowd with an often ridiculous excuse, and using the momentary turbulence, they "steal" the bride! The groom is to pay a ransom to retrieve his loved one. After a long bargain, they will finally agree at a fairly large sum, but the money will be given back later in the day.
The bride-reception is an essential part of the wedding, although it varies from village to village. In Ostoros, the groom's parents greet the bride and the party with a candle. In Vizvar they offer the bride a glass of wine, and after she had drunk from it,the bride tosses the glass behind her. Then they point her to an egg on the ground, which she is to break. It is believed that if an egg was sacrificed, the bride would give birth to healthy children. The most common custom is to leave a broom in the doorway and wait for the bride to grab it and sweep, as a proof that she is a good housekeeper. In the villages of North Hungary, the custom is to greet the newly wed couple with honey and braided cake. Eating this, they will ensure a "sweet" marriage.
Around midnight, the godfather will grab the bride, walk her around the dinner tables and proclaim "The bride is for sale!", thus starting the bridal-dance. The guests will then line up to dance with the bride - for a price (money and other goods, a calf, a piece of furniture, a pair of sheep, chicken...). This is the bride's opportunity to gather money, and goods, for the new life.
In the small hours of the night, the wedding party puts the couple to sleep. They lock the bride and the groom in a room, and themselves continue the partying.
PICTURES: http://www.magyar.org/Folklor/hagyomanyok.html