Chinese wedding traditions: clothing, flowers, food and decorations

Following the traditions of ancient culture, Chinese weddings involve numerous symbolic preparations and rituals that are evident even in modern day Chinese wedding ceremonies and celebrations.

Clothing: Traditional Chinese clothing and attire varies among the wide variety of cultures and ethnic groups that make up the history of China. Two very popular styles of wedding clothing include Cheongsam (meaning “long dress”) and Qi Pau (meaning “Chinese jacket”). Between these two styles, the Cheongsam is more modern, as it was developed during the 1920s in the Hong Kong region. Female Cheongsams are beautiful, long gowns and feature two slits placed on each side, which allows for easy walking and moving, and are traditionally worn by the bride and her bridesmaids. There also exists a men’s style of Cheongsam known as a Da Gua, which features front-closing tunics that are either knee length or hip length. The Qi Pau is the oldest and most traditional style of wedding clothing, and its existence dates back over 100 years. This style features beautiful Chinese jackets made of silk and silk brocades that are worn by the grooms and groomsmen during wedding ceremonies.

Throughout history, Chinese ancestors created a method of weaving patterns into fabric, mostly made of silk, instead of embroidering, printing or otherwise stamping the patterns onto the fabric. This method is known as the brocade. In Chinese weddings, most brides and grooms wear specially-made wedding brocades made of all-silk fabrics that are integrated and weaved into their attire. These brocades traditionally feature Chinese wedding symbols such as the Shuang Xi, which represents “double happiness” because of its two xi (meaning “joy”) characters placed side-by-side, or the dragon and phoenix symbols. The phoenix symbol is brocaded into the bride’s attire as a flaming crested bird with a long tale and symbolizes the powerful Phoenix with her life-giving song. For the groom, the dragon symbol is mostly brocaded as a wingless male dragon and symbolizes a powerful Emperor. Both of these symbols represent the Chinese tradition of treating the bride and groom as “Empress and Emperor” for a day, and is rooted in ancient mythology wherein the dragon represents the mighty Emperor, with his majestically powerful Phoenix by his side. Any of these symbols can also be woven into the attire of the bridesmaids or the groomsmen attending at the wedding as well.

Whatever Chinese attire is worn, all articles of clothing must not include any white coloring, either in the fabrics, brocades or any other attire. White is a symbol of death and funerals in Chinese culture, and must be avoided in all Chinese wedding ceremonies. By contrast, red is the color of happiness and joy in all aspects of Chinese culture, and is especially true in their wedding ceremonies and celebrations. Red should be incorporated into the bride and groom’s silk brocades and their traditional clothing, as well as any accessories or other items the bride or groom may be wearing or carrying.

Flowers: In Chinese traditions, flowers and floral arrangements are symbols of happiness, joy, life and fertility, which are all desired attributes in a Chinese wedding and marriage. Again, the symbolism of red in Chinese culture is powerful, joyous and deep, so adding as many red flowers to the floral decorations of a Chinese wedding is important. The only white-colored flowers that are accepted for use in Chinese wedding bouquets are white roses, so long as they are tied together with red or other colored ribbons or silks. Any other types of white flowers are considered symbols of death, so white flowers other than roses must not be used. Other popular flowers used in Chinese weddings include: peonies, which are symbols of renewed life; lotuses, which are symbols of the four virtues in the Buddhist religion popular among Chinese culture, such virtues being scent, purity, softness and loveliness; daffodils, which symbolize change and renewed life and are mainly used for Chinese weddings held in the spring; and orchids, which are the most popular flowers used in Chinese wedding bouquets and other decorations, as they are the symbols of love and fertility in Chinese culture. Orchids are also very commonly used as corsages for the mothers of the bride and groom.

Remembering departed ancestors and respecting the elders and family members of the bride and groom are essential elements in a Chinese wedding ceremony. More importantly, Chinese weddings are a bigger symbolism of the joining of the two families, rather than the joining of bride and groom alone. To honor this, most Chinese weddings feature a table or an altar decorated with white flowers to symbolize the passing of departed ancestors. In the alternative, two altars can be placed in front of the bride and groom, and following the exchanging of their vows, the couple kneels at these two altars to join them together. After this display of union, family members of the newly joined couple may kneel along with the bride and groom as a symbol of a larger unity and joining of the two families.

Receptions and Food: Chinese wedding receptions are notorious for their grand nature and elegant extravagance. By far, a Chinese wedding reception is the most significant part of the bride and groom’s wedding day, as well wishes of prosperity is shown through the magnitude of the large reception feast. Because the groom’s family is responsible for the planning and preparation of the wedding reception, the reputation of the groom’s family is measured by the grandness of the reception and its success. The menu selected to be served to reception guests is perhaps the most important indicator of a reception’s success. The menu should consist only of the finest Chinese food, including roast pig, fresh fruit of all types, lobster, abalone and other Chinese delicacies. When entering the reception hall, the bride and groom are welcomed by firecrackers lit by guests, which is thought to scare away any evil spirits who might be present or desire to cause harm to the couple in the future. Guests are then seated at small tables, customarily arranged so that the guests who are not familiar with one another are seated together. A host of the reception is usually hired to entertain the guests and make announcements throughout the evening. Unlike wedding ceremonies in some other cultures, guests of a Chinese wedding usually give money to the bride and groom instead of customary wedding gifts and presents. At the conclusion of the reception, the newly-married bride and groom stand at the door of the reception hall and give their thanks to the guests as they depart.

Decorations: Perhaps the most important aspect of Chinese wedding decorations is the representation of numerous Chinese symbols and characters. The dragon and phoenix symbols, which symbolize the bride and the groom, are evident in many items used to decorate for a Chinese wedding and the reception hall, such as invitations, reception favors, or the guestbook. Chinese wedding invitations must not be printed on white paper with red ink, as this is considered a death threat in Chinese culture. A Chinese wedding guestbook is traditionally made of silk, instead of paper materials, and consists of a square of red lightweight silk that can be embroidered or feature other decorative symbols. Customarily, a brush pen and black ink is used. Once all guests sign their names to the silk, the silk is then folded and kept as a keepsake of the wedding ceremony. For other wedding decorations, red ribbons, centerpieces constructed of red flowers, red linens for the tables and other bold, joyful pieces are essential to a Chinese wedding ceremony and celebration and add to the joyous occasion of the day.

Chinese wedding ceremonies and celebrations are full of symbolic actions, items and events, from the joyful integration of bright, bold colors to the reverent recollection and respectfulness shown to departed ancestors. Even with the differences between wedding traditions apparent in other cultures and the traditions of a Chinese wedding, the emotion, love and family closeness of a wedding in any culture truly remain universal.