Entries Tagged as 'Ghanaian Marriage'
Ghanaian Marriage – The Best Ghanaian Marriage Site at AfricanLove.com
The Ghanaian marriage ceremony is very traditional. It involves the Ghanaian groom asking for the Ghanaian bride's hand in marriage in the presence of family, friends and well wishers. The ceremony is an integral part of Ghanaian marriage protocol. In Ghana today, some couples perform this alone as part of the Ghanaian marriage ceremony, however, most Ghanaian couples also go on to perform the westernized wedding in a church in addition to the traditional marriage ceremony.
A traditional Ghanaian marriage ceremony starts with the "knocking" (kokooko) on the door ceremony. This involves having the groom, his father and some elder members of the family visiting the bride’s house to announce their marriage intentions. The Ghanaian groom's family brings along two bottles on Schnapps, some money and a soda to the house to present to the Ghanaian brides family. When the drinks are presented, the groom’s designated spokesman formally asks the bride’s family for permission to enter the house and announce their intentions. If the drinks are accepted then it means permission has been granted to the groom to state his intentions. The spokesperson will then explain the groom has seen a "beautiful flower" in the house of the bride’s family and would like to "uproot" that flower from its keeper. He is here to ask for the brides hand in marriage and inquire about what is required to make the flower his own. Once the intentions are announced, the bride’s family may ask the groom and his family to come back at a set later date during which the bride’s family will investigate the grooms family background further to see: if the family has no chronic illness or genetic disabilities in the family; if family has a good reputation; the groom has no illegitimate children or is already married; and the groom has good character.
If the brides’ family is satisfied with what they discover, they will send a list of things to the groom and his family to provide before they can marry the bride. This list can include: a dowry; a bottle of whisky or gin; money for the bride’s father; a pair of sandals and money for the bride’s mother; jewelry for the bride; 6 pieces of traditional wax print cloth for the bride; an engagement ring and bible; shoes, headpieces, other gifts for the bride; drinks, money and food for the guests attending the Ghanaian wedding; and money for the brothers or male cousins (if the bride has no brothers).
On the day of the Ghanaian wedding, the groom’s family sits on one side while bride’s family sits on the other side facing each other. Elders from both families begin the Ghanaian marriage ceremony with a prayer and introductions. The groom’s family presents the dowry and all the other items on the list. The bride is not present in all of these proceedings. Once everything has presented to the bride’s family, the bride would then be brought into the gathering. The groom is asked to verify if this is indeed his bride. Once he confirms, she is asked three times by her father if she agrees to marry the groom. She is asked if they should accept the dowry and accompanying gifts from the groom’s family. When she agrees, the groom will slide the ring onto her fingers and kiss and hug her. An elder presents a bible to both the groom and bride as a symbol of how important religion should be in their married life. Prayers are said and blessings are given. The married couple is now congratulated and each elder in the room offers marriage advice to the new couple. Once all of this is done there is a huge celebration/reception where food & drinks are served. There is lots of music and dancing till nightfall. Ghanaian marriage is beautiful. Ghanaian marriage: the best Ghanaian marriage site at AfricanLove.com.