Japanese Wedding Traditions

Japanese weddings, which typically take place during the fall and spring seasons in Japan, are lovely affairs from beginning to end.

As long as the venue is equipped with a chapel and shrine, it’s an appropriate location for a Japanese wedding. Chapels and shrines are ubiquitous in Japan, and can be found at most hotels and wedding halls.

The religious style depends on the couple, but not necessarily their religion. For example, if a couple has a traditional Japanese Christian wedding, it doesn’t necessarily indicate that the couple is Christian. It’s most common for Japanese couples to have Shinto, Buddhist, Christian, or non-religious weddings. The aforementioned practice goes against early Japanese wedding traditions.

If a couple wants to adhere to ancient Japanese wedding customs, they would have a Shinto-style wedding, and it would be held in a shrine. The bride would wear a white kimono, and the groom would wear a black kimono, a kimono jacket, and kimono pants.

It is customary that only close family members are invited to attend Shinto-style weddings. Exceptions could be made for extended family members and relatives.

During a Shinto-style ceremony, many rituals take place—the consumption of sake, a ring exchange, and the couple and wedding guests are invited to a kekkon hiroen, which is a party.

Read more:

• Japanese Wedding Planning
  
• Buddhist Wedding Planning
  
• Traditional Asian Weddings