Across
- 4. In the symbolic language of jewels, a ______ in a wedding ring means marital happiness.
- 6. _____ is the least popular month to get married. Only 4.7% of weddings occur in this month.
- 8. Brides in ______ put a silver coin from their father and a gold coin from their mother in each shoe to ensure that they’ll never do without.
- 11. In Holland, a _____ tree can be planted outside the newlyweds’ home as a symbol of fertility and luck.
- 12. The tradition of having a _____ ______ comes from ancient Rome, where revelers broke a loaf of bread over a bride's head for fertility's sake.
- 14. Although women have worn these for thousands of years, men only began to commonly wear _____ _____ during World War II.
- 15. A Finnish bride traditionally went door-to-door collecting gifts in a ________, accompanied by an older married man who represented long marriage.
- 17. A _____ engagement ring is said to be bad luck because its shape echoes that of a tear.
- 19. Men who kiss their wives in the morning are said to live _____ years longer than those who don’t.
- 20. In _____, white was always the color of choice for bridal ensembles—long before it was popularized in the Western world.
Down
- 1. Engagement and wedding rings are worn on the fourth finger of the left hand because it was once thought that a vein in that finger led directly to the ________.
- 2. ______ _______ and New Year's Eve are the two busiest "marriage" days in Las Vegas.
- 3. In Roman times, people believed evil spirits would attend the wedding in an attempt to curse the bride and groom. _____ were required to dress exactly like the bride in order to confuse the spirits and bring luck to the marriage.
- 5. An old wives' tale: If the younger of two sisters marries first, the older sister must dance _______ at the wedding or risk never landing a husband.
- 6. The Roman goddess _____ rules over marriage and childbirth, hence the popularity of June weddings.
- 7. _____ ______ is credited with starting the Western world's white wedding dress trend in 1840 — before then, brides simply wore their best dress.
- 9. Ancient Greeks and Romans thought wearing a _____ protected the bride from evil spirits.
- 10. In many cultures, the groom historically often _____ the bride, and the groom’s friends would help him, leading to the modern-day groomsmen.
- 11. _____ are thrown at Czech newlyweds instead of rice.
- 13. At the alter, the groom historically stood on the bride’s right side so his right hand would be free to reach his ______.
- 16. The first known culture to exchange wedding rings were the _____. Their rings were made of braided hemp and reeds.
- 18. Moroccan women take a _____ bath to purify themselves before their wedding ceremony.