Scottish Wedding Music

The luckenbooth is a Scottish wedding brooch traditionally given to the bride by the groom on their wedding day; it was later pinned to the shawl of the first baby to protect it from evil spirits. It is reminiscent of the Claddagh ring of Ireland with its crowned heart. Sometimes it is inscribed with a phrase like " Of earthly joys thou art my choice."

The night before the marriage there is a "feet-washing." The groom's friends come to his house, fill a tub with water, plunge his legs into the water, and then rub them with a broom while smearing them with soot or bootblacking.

Meanwhile, at the brides home, her friends gather round the tub to wash her feet. A wedding ring from a happily married woman is put in the tub - they say the one who finds the ring is next to get marry. Men folk outside the door make jokes and try to watch through the doorway.

Before the bride is married, her mother holds an open house like a bridal shower. The wedding gifts are unwrapped and set out. Then the bride is dressed in long trains made of old curtains and given a baby doll, a plastic potty with salt in the bottom, and other small items to carry. She's escorted through town, there's singing and banging of pots and pans.

The groom gets taken out for a stag night which is the equivalent to the bride's taking out. There'll be practical joking, the groom being the main target. When the wild night winds down, the groom may be left in the street in front of his home partially or totally stripped of his clothes, and in some occasions tied up.

It would not be a Scottish wedding without the bride entering the venue and the Bride and Groom departing to the sound of the bagpipes. Mappamundi's Ken Bloom has piped scores of weddings and knows just what to do...

Just outside the church they would be met by the clergyman and make their wedding vows. Then a mass was held in the church, during which the clergyman blessed food brought by the guests. It was traditional for the clergyman, however shy, to kiss the bride.

Hand fasting was a Celtic wedding ceremony of the middle ages, a "temporary marriage" of a year and a day. Many Scottish villages did not a have local minister or priest - couples performed hand fastings which legally bound them until a clergyman came to town and could perform a ceremony. In a modern ceremony, a hand fasting is incorporated into many wedding ceremonies in a way to honor their Celtic heritage. The couples hands are bound together in a cord or a tartan cloth during their vows. This is to show that from that point forward, they are no longer two, but are one.

Following the proclamation of husband and wife this additional ceremony takes place, "The pinning of the tartan". This ceremony is customized to each family depending on whether the bride or the groom is being accepted into the clan. For instance if the bride is marrying into the clan, any member of the grooms family may present the bride with clan tartan in the form of a rosette pin or sash which is fastened with the clan badge. Often this presentation is pinned or dressed to the bride as acceptance into the grooms clan. Many times the groom himself will pin or dress the bride, but it is quite emotional when the groom's mother does the pinning.

This is a beautiful tradition where the groom presents his bride with a family sword that will be given to their first born son - or the bride's family would present the Groom with a sword to welcome him into the family and show he was now responsible for protecting his new wife.

This Scottish tradition is for a toddler to hand a horseshoe to the bride as she walks out of the church with her husband. The horseshoe signifies good luck in the marriage.

Start collecting your change for this uniquely Scottish custom.  As a gesture to insure good fortune in your marriage, upon leaving the church the bride and groom scatter coins to the assembled children. Legend has it that this token will be constantly returned to the bride and groom throughout the marriage.

The Bridal - Or The Penny Wedding
In Lowland Scotland the celebration of the union of man and woman has always been attended by a 'bridal'. This is an old Anglo Saxon word and consists of two words co-joined; BRYD meaning bride or woman and EALO meaning ale or beer. Thus the bridal is a brides drinking party.

In the past Lowland Scots weddings were called 'Penny Bridals' or 'Siller Bridals'. There is a great deal of information on them gathered by folklore researchers in the 18th and 19th Centuries. It is difficult to say when Penny Bridals began. They were certainly the most important occasions for singing, dancing and festivities and were immensely popular. They were attended by whole communities, as many as two hundred participants being not uncommon. It seems that invitations, although given were not specifically required and everyone attending was expected to contribute, hence the name 'Penny Bridal'.

These festivities, also known as Penny Weddings, were renown for feasting, drinking, dancing and fighting and were enjoyed by all except the clergy - who disapproved of such raucous behavior. Gifts were made to the newly weds towards the cost of the wedding feast

You can put this celtic knot image on any sort of paper product, or mugs and apparel for wedding favors and wedding gifts, at the Uncle Shlomo's Pushcart store on Zazzle

The traditional Scottish wedding cake consists of two tiers of brandy-flavored fruitcake. The cake is baked at the time of the couple's engagement. Only one tier is eaten at the wedding celebration, while the other is saved to celebrate the birth of the couple's first born

The new couple leads off the dancing with a traditional reel, and the bride's second dance is reserved for the person of the highest rank among the guests. The Sword Dance is usually performed at a traditional wedding in Scotland, which is similar to an Irish jig or a Highland fling. Guests gather in a circle before leaving the reception site and sing "Auld Lang Syne".

The first dance after eating is the shaimit reel, for the bride and groom and their bridal party. It was the privilege of the bride to choose the music for the 'Shaim Spring', which she danced with the bridegroom maids and best man.

The entire entourage escorts the young couple to their new home. Before the bride enters her new home, an oatcake or bannock is broken above her head and a piece of the cake is passed around to everyone. Then the bride is carried over the threshold. The Minister's blessing over the newlyweds, their home, and their marriage bed culminates the ceremony.

Guests invited by the bride arrive early at her house; those invited by the groom, at his. After eating, sometimes there was dancing until it was time to go to church.

The bride is given a Silver Sixpence to place in her shoe the morning of her wedding as a token of good luck.