A wedding is always the most vivid and memorable moments in the lives of two young people. The sacrament of the wedding ceremony gave rise to a huge number of traditions and ceremonies, which have as many scenarios as there are people of different faiths and nationalities. For example, a bride from Nigeria before the wedding significantly adds weight, because it is customary to return a thin bride to her parents. The English bride must wear blue in her clothes, the groom from Germany wears wheat grains in his pockets, and in Russia the groom is forbidden to look at the wedding dress before the wedding.
Wedding traditions came to us from the distant past and many seem to be ordinary rituals without any semantic load. Nevertheless, each such rite is of great importance, although it changes over time. It is understandable, because life does not stand still. The Ossetian wedding also has its own rites and customs, but they also underwent a number of changes and today it is not the same as it was before.
For centuries, wedding traditions have been formed in Ossetia. At the moment, a marriage can even be concluded by mutual consent of two young people, but more recently, a girl could be married to her only after she was paid for kalym, or in Ossetian ioed. Likewise, it was not allowed to marry or marry a person who has a different nationality and religion.
At the moment, many Ossetian families are more loyal to this issue. Also, the rule of seniority has long been forgotten, based on which, younger children could not go down the aisle before their older sisters and brothers. All this over the years has changed and is presented in the form in which it is.
But not all customs have undergone changes; there are some that the Ossetian people have been honoring for many years. Indestructible centuries-old traditions can be observed in the stages of the wedding. As usual, the Ossetian wedding originates from matchmaking. The most respected relatives of the groom go to the bride's house to make an official offer. Even if the parents of the bride agree that their daughter should bear the surname of the groom, this is not accepted at the first meeting, this is not said openly, but simply made clear. This is because matchmakers are sent to the bride’s house three times.
After the third visit, with a positive answer, a wedding date is set, the details of its holding are discussed, invited guests at the wedding, and the person who will present the sacrificial bull is selected. At the same time, at such a meeting, a table with three pies must be laid. Another ritual is paying the bride for the bridegroom's relatives, the so-called reinforcement of an agreement on a future celebration.
Previously, the time between matchmaking and the wedding lasted a very long time. This happened because the bride was given a dowry, and the groom left to work in order to present the kalym. It was because of him that the custom appeared to steal the bride so as not to wait long.
Shortly before the wedding, the groom and his best friends visit the bride's house, bring her a dress, and sweets for relatives. But the main reason for the visit is the engagement ring that the guy gives to his beloved girlfriend. Such a visit is usually secret.
The Ossetian wedding also has a difference in that it takes place simultaneously in two houses.
During a visit to the bridegroom and his wedding retinue, which includes the best man, friend and named mother, gifts, gold and jewelry are presented to the girl from the family and relatives of her future husband at the bride’s house. After that, with the permission of the senior family members, she is dressed in a wedding dress, while her brother is given the role of the person who lowers the veil. The girl is taken under the arms and taken to the wedding procession. After the newlyweds get out of the car, the bride presents sweets, cakes or money to the boys blocking their path.
The painting in the registry office smoothly goes into a party in the groom's house. In the past, guests almost did not sit at the table, and if they drank alcohol, then in small quantities, the newlyweds did not touch alcohol at all. Ossetian dances at weddings were the main decoration. Such dances as "Simd" and "Chepena" were known to every Ossetian who respected himself.
Today, the Ossetian wedding is not at all the same as before. The celebration began to be associated with a table and a drink, the younger generation even arranges peculiar competitions, who will drink whom. In the end, everyone gets drunk to indecent.
Ossetian customs can be described for a long time, but the main thing in all these rites is that they are passed down from generation to generation. And the Ossetian wedding is proof of this.