Hawaiian Marriage

Main Point 1: Marriage 1. Marriage is a very important factor in the Hawaiian culture, today I will tell you about the traditional clothing, the superstitions in marriage, and other key traditions in a wedding ceremony. A. The Hawaiian traditional attire is a very important element in the wedding. 1. Flowers are a big cultural tradition with Hawaiians. a. The bride and groom both wear beautiful leis which are necklaces made of flowers, nuts, seeds, and other plant material woven together. b. Leis are a sign of love and respect, which is why they are traditionally worn on the wedding day. c. It is common for the bride and groom, to exchange leis; they may also have the flower girl present the leis. 2. The bride and grooms leis are not alike. d. The groom’s garland is composed of manly maile leaves. e. Sometimes the lei may have small white flowers called pikake woven in. f. The bride’s lei are usually composed of pink and white pikake which can be done with rosebuds or orchids. g. The kahuna pule which means holy man in Hawaiian, will bind the couples hands together with a maile lei. 3. The bride has similar ceremony clothing to the American culture. h. At a traditional Hawaiian wedding, the bride wears a long, white, flowing dress. i. She also wears a haku lei which is a smaller lei that is placed on her head instead of the tiara that we are used to seeing. 4. The groom’s attire is a bit different than the traditional suit and tie. j. The groom gets to wear white as well. k. What’s typically worn is a flow-y white shirt and white slacks with red sash around his waist. B. Now that I have told you about the traditional clothing, let me tell you about the superstitions of marriage. 5. The bride and groom are never wished good luck on their wedding day, as it is considered bad luck. 6. If someone does