Viking weddings were filled with symbolism and traditions that reflected the community's values regarding love, unity, and togetherness. With elements like wedding rings, handbands, and the blessing of the gods, a meaningful ceremony was created.
By understanding these traditions, we can gain a deeper appreciation of how love may have been celebrated throughout the ages.
Planning a Viking wedding today can be a fantastic way to honor these traditions and create unforgettable memories for the couple and their families.
Ceremony:
The wedding ceremony can take place at a blot site, a sanctuary, or at a chosen beautiful spot in nature. There are many elements that can be included in the ceremony.
Some examples are:
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1. Wedding Ring: A central symbol in Viking weddings was the wedding ring. The ring was a symbol of the promises made between the couple. It can be made of iron or a bent branch, and it should be large enough for the couple to exchange the rings through it. The wedding ring can be decorated with symbols that are important to you, runes that represent love and protection, or flowers.
2. Handband: Another traditional element was to bind the couple's hands with a band or a rope. This symbolizes their unity and bound life together. It was also a reminder that they were now a couple who would support each other through all of life's challenges. The handband could be simple, or adorned with flowers and ornaments. Feel free to choose a band where the color or pattern means something to you.
3. Vows: During the ceremony, the bride and groom can exchange vows. These vows do not have to be solely about romantic love but also about supporting each other in everyday life, growing together, or things you want to do in the future. Here, it is nice to direct the vows directly to your partner, but remember that all the guests will hear what you say, so it can become an emotional part of the ceremony.
4. The gods: The Vikings strongly believed in their gods and goddesses; at a wedding, it was common to invoke their blessing.
Weddings were often blessed by Freya, the goddess of love and fertility, who was also believed to bring happiness. A blessing from Freya would symbolize that the marriage would bring love and success.
Odin's blessing:
As the god of wisdom, Odin could also be involved to give the couple strength and clarity in their relationship.
An example of how a wedding can take place:
The master of ceremonies/Goden welcomes the participants, bride, and groom.
All present place their knives on the ground, so that spirits and gods know we are here for peaceful purposes.
The master of ceremonies/Goden calls for the attention of the gods, preferably with a drum, and/or with three horn blasts from a horn.
The master of ceremonies/Goden holds out the “Edsringen”, the couple holds it and recites after the master of ceremonies.
The couple gives each other the rings through the “Edsringen”
The master of ceremonies offers the horn to the bride and groom. Then he explains to the married couple.
Finally, one can let the drinking horn be passed around among those present, thus giving each person a chance to say a few words, or just raise a toast to the couple.
Clothes and decoration:
We know little about how the Vikings decorated their weddings, but probably the tradition of adorning with flowers is much older than we think. Decorating with the flowers and branches that the season offers is a good alternative.
In this way, you bring nature and its beauty into the celebrations. If you are getting married in the summer, summer flowers and birch twigs can adorn the table, bridal bouquet, and preferably also the bride's hair. If you are getting married in the winter, it can be nice to use spruce twigs, pine cones, and preferably branches with rowan berries or rose hips.
What you as a couple will wear is a vast field where the possibilities are endless. It is perfectly fine to have a Viking-style ceremony but wear a traditional white wedding dress. Or you may choose to wear Viking clothing made of wool and linen.
Choose clothes and jewelry that make you feel beautiful and comfortable. It may be that you choose clothes that are closer to today's tradition, but select jewelry and hairstyles that evoke thoughts of the Viking Age.
