Preparing a wedding today, is synonym of joy, celebration, excitement, getting together family and friends and living a day that turns out to be an experience, the creation of a new memory to carry with you the rest of your life. Weddings today are so full of beauty and energy that we could go on forever with the list of adjectives and still not find enough to define them . Let’s talk about weddings through time.
It has not always been like this:
It hasn’t always been like this. Weddings, as we know them today, are the result of society’s evolution through its extreme changes in time. To find the first signs of marriage contracts and wedding ceremonies we have to travel in time and go to Mesopotamia, 4000 years ago. We also find weddings in the Bible like the Weddings at Cana, famous for Jesus’ miracle of turning water into wine; according to St. John’s Gospel, this was his first miracle. The real change, the real evolution of modern wedding begins with the Industrial Revolution. The first was between 1760-1840 and the second between 1880-1914. This brought many adjustments in every way, but especially for women, who entering the labour market, claimed their independence and rights. The woman was no longer forced to marry the one chosen by her parents (although this still happened in some families and still happens today in some parts of the world); she started dreaming and making her own wedding plans. Of course, this was not from one day to the next, but it was the beginning of change and how we got to where we find ourselves today.
Family picture from 1940
Love comes into play, sexual freedom prevails and both love and sex are now important factors when choosing your couple. One of the first noticeable changes we see is the age of couples when making the decision of getting married; for example, the average age of the couple in the 1980s was about 25, currently it is about 34 years old for women and 37 years old for men. This fact has several advantages; the most important is the couple’s purchasing power. Both men and women are already situated in the labour market at this age and are economically independent, which gives them the power and freedom to choose the wedding of their dreams.
What has happened in the last 50 years?
The most important and significant changes until today’s present weddings, have taken place in the last 50 years. At the end of the 20th century we saw an increase of interracial and civil weddings. It is at the beginning of the 21st century that gay weddings are finally legalized. In Spain this happened in the year 2005, they started permitting LGBT weddings celebrations; it is the most notable change in recent years. In Spain, since then, LGBT weddings are increasing year after year. Currently there are about 30,000 and they are still growing. If we look at wedding celebrations from 50 years ago and compare them to the ones today we can appreciate, visually, many of the changes that have taken place in various aspects; for example, the bridal gown -this deserves a chapter of its own- , the location, decoration, traditions, wedding favors, etc.
Picture by Chrysostomos Galathris in Pexels
Picture by Olya Kobruseva in Pexels
These are not the only changes. In the second half of the last century, it was almost always the bride, the one in charge of organizing the wedding celebration, only 49% of men participated. Currently, there are more than 70% who do. It is an event that they want to personalize, that they know will create memories that will last forever in videos, social media, etc. Now couples want THEIR special day, a day that represents them and that they can enjoy and share with friends and family. Destination weddings have also increased in the past years. For those who might not know what they are, a destination wedding is a wedding in a foreign country. It is when the couple gets married in a country that is not where they are from or where they live.
Foto von Edward Eyer von Pexels
For this type o f celebration couples are looking for an ideal setting, a charming, magical place. There has been a significant boom in outdoor weddings, hidden places or beaches with turquoise seas and white sandy beaches. Today’s weddings are more complex, elaborated and personalized, which has almost tripled the cost of what they had in the late ’90s. For example, the average budget 30 years ago was about 15,000 euros and today about 40,000 euros.
This new situation requires professionals capable of organizing all this and letting the couple enjoy their day without having to worry about anything on what is supposed to be the best day of their lives. The answer to this need is the role the WEDDING PLANNER. The WEDDING PLANNER appeared in the USA in the middle of the 20th century and in Spain at the beginning of the 21st century. The complexity of new wedding styles, and the undeniable influence of the film industry with films like “The father of the bride”, “Wedding plans”, or “My best friend’s wedding” have helped increase the popularity of this figure. Currently more than 35% of weddings are organized by wedding planners and every year the number of couples that rely on one for their wedding, increases. A wedding requires all the attention and affection posible during its preparation, so that when the day arrives everything is adjusted to the couples’ desire. We recommend that you always choose a wedding planner who makes you feel comfortable and that you know will do the job just the way you want it. How about you ? Looking for a wedding planner?
