by Laura Lee Carter
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE
Few American institutions are so steeped in superstition and custom as marriage and weddings. Did you ever wonder why we give engagement and wedding rings? Why are they usually worn on your left hand? And what does the word “wedding” even mean? What is the origin of our tradition of honeymooning? Here are some answers.
A checkered past
The word “wedding” comes from the Old English word “weddian,” which meant to promise or pledge marriage. Some of the earliest marriages were by capture. The groom would kidnap a woman with the assistance of his “best man” and take her away to prevent family members from finding them.
The “honeymonth,” or honeymoon, was the period of time the groom and bride were in hiding from her family, and assumed that she would become pregnant by the time they found her. This evolved into marriage by purchase where the bride would be bartered for land, social status, or political alliances or simply exchanged for money or goods such as cattle.
The wedding ring’s changing role
Some of the earliest history of wedding bands is also fascinating. They are thought to have originated in ancient Egypt with the giving of twisted hemp strands fashioned into circles to signify never-ending love. And the choice of placement on the third finger of the left hand (“the ring finger”) symbolized a direct connection between that specific finger and the heart.
The wedding band was a part of the legal covenant of ownership. Trusted slaves wore similar finger rings. Wives in ancient times were the property of their husbands and the ring was proof of title.
During Roman times, rings were used as seals of ownership and wealth, and some rings were actually keys to storerooms. Therefore, at marriage, responsibility for a man’s storeroom was given over to his bride along with all his worldly goods. The tradition of engagement rings developed as partial payment for the right to court the bride, sort of like a down payment on her.