7 Interesting Proposal Rituals Around the World
Going down on one knee and blurting a romantic line as the man holds forth a ring is the most common way to propose marriage. There is a bunch of creative and different ways in which marriage proposals are made around the world. Here are some of the most interesting engagement and proposal rituals of different countries.
1. Women proposing men
Although it is still traditional for men to propose to women, there is one day a year when women have historically proposed to men. Ladies, if you have been waiting endlessly for him to propose and are fed up of playing this waiting game, then you can propose your guy on February 29. The English traditionally considered this day to be outside of law, which meant that it was a day when women could be free from conventional gender restrictions. The catch in this situation is obviously that of the leap year which comes only once in four years.
2. Kenyan proposals
Men belonging to the Rendille tribe in Kenya send beads to the women whom they are interested in marrying. If she keeps the beads, then the couple is considered to be engaged. The woman’s family then give her a special ornament to add to her beads if they also accept the engagement.
3. Indian and Chinese fixed engagements
The engagement rituals are somewhat similar in India and its neighboring country, China. Owing to their conservative culture, most engagements in India are fixed by the man and woman’s respective families. They visit each others houses and chat over tea and snacks and if the couple in question like each other, then gifts are exchanged. In China, the two Chinese families involved gift one another money wrapped in red envelopes, tea, wine and sweets such as a double happiness cake decorated with traditional Chinese symbols. When a couple in China get engaged, they wear their rings on the right hand and then switch to the left when they marry.
4. Brazilian proposals
As per Brazilian folklore, before making a proposal to a woman, the man has to prove himself a suitable husband by taming an unbridled donkey. Men who don’t live in Brazil can heave a sigh of relief for this is any day tougher than simply going down on one knee.
