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How do Africans
Celebrate Marriage
Bridal
Dos
Africa is rich in cultural
traditions, especially wedding and marriage rituals. The people of
Africa celebrate the bonding of a woman and a man in a variety of
ways, from being courted by cousins to kidnapping the bride-to-be.
Explore the many ways Africans celebrate marriage
In Ethiopia:
Karo
The Karo people of Ethiopia
celebrate a young bride’s puberty with scarification. Cuts are made on
her abdomen, and ashes are then massaged into the scars in order to
promote healing. The wounds are supposed to enhance the bride’s
desirability.
Source: National Geographic Magazine, November 1999, Volume 196, No. 5
In Kenya:
Swahili
Marriages are arranged in the
Swahili tribe of Kenya. Before the ceremony, a number of rituals
intended to enhance the bride’s attraction are performed. She is
bathed in oils and sandalwood, and has henna designs temporarily
tattooed on her limbs. A somo, an elder woman of the tribe, instructs
the bride how to please her husband, and may even hide under the bed
in case there is a problem consummating the marriage.
Masai
Marriages are also arranged among
the Masai of Kenya, and often the brides are matched with older men
that they do not know. The father of the bride spits his blessing for
the couple on the bride’s head and breasts, and as she departs, she
does not look back, fearing the myth that she will turn to stone. One
Masai custom is for female relatives of the groom to insult the bride
in order to ward off bad luck
In Namibia:
Himba
Among the Himba, the groom and
members of his family kidnap the bride before the ceremony, and
decorate her in an ekori, a marriage headdress made of leather. When
the bride arrives at her husband’s new home, his relatives tell her
what her responsibilities as his wife will be, and they show her their
acceptance into their family by anointing her with butterfat from
cows.
In Niger:
Wodaabe
Their cousins, who wear what they
consider to be their most powerful amulet to heighten their charm for
the bride to be, typically court women of the Wodaabe tribe of Niger.
Often, male cousins who are close to one another are attracted to the
same girl. Once the bride-to-be selects her mate, the cousin who was
not chosen is still welcomed into their home, and if the bride
consents, their bed.
In South Africa:
Ndebele
Weddings of the Ndebele of South
African are celebrated in three stages, the end of which can take
several years. The first stage is negotiation of the wedding is
payment for the bride, or lobola, and is paid in installments of money
and livestock. A two-week sequestration of the bride is the second
stage, during which time other women teach the bride how to be a good
wife. The third stage is completed only when the bride has her first
child.
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e information contained
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