2015年02月23日
Weddings in America Part 1
As I mentioned before, I recently went home for a wedding and after talking to some of my students I realized that many Japanese people are curious about weddings in America. In America typically the man proposes to the woman at which point they become engaged and can be refer to themselves as fiancé (for the man) and fiancée (for the woman). Yes those words are pronounced essentially the same. Usually engagements last about one year but of course there is a lot of variation in this. For example my friend's engagement lasted only six months and I have other friends that have been engaged for 3 years.
During the engagement the couple and their family plan the wedding and ask their friends and family if they'd like to be in the wedding. Usually the bride (the woman) asks her friends or sisters to be bridesmaids who will stand up with her at the ceremony. There is one woman she picks out to be special and she is called the Maid (or Matron) of Honor. Likewise the groom (the man) does the same and ask his friends or brothers to be groomsmen and a special person to be his Best Man. Also a flower girl and ring bearer are usually asked to join the wedding party as well and play a small part in the wedding.
