Irish Wedding Traditions - Hand Fasting (Tying The Knot)

 

  Handfasting is an ancient Celtic custom common in Ireland in which a man and woman come together at the start of their marriage relationship.  During the ritual, the couple holds hands, right hand in right hand, and left hand in left with their wrists crossed.  A ribbon or cord is then wrapped around their wrists in a figure 8, signifying infinity.  Many people say this is where the saying "tying the knot" originated from. 

  I've had a few couples that have included handfasting in their ceremonies, but I wanted to learn a bit more about the history of the ritual.  And I was pretty surprised by what I found!  The handfasting ritual recognized just one of many forms of marriages permitted under the ancient Irish law. The man and woman who came together for the handfasting agreed to stay together for a specific period of time, usually a year-and-a-day. At the end of the year the couple faced a choice. They could enter into a longer-term "permanent" marriage contract, renew their agreement for another year, or go their separate ways.

  Maybe not the most romantic of origins, but isn't that almost always the case? :)

Slainte!