Africa is blessed with rich culture and traditions that have been passed from one generation to the other.
Among these traditions is the marriage rites which differ in different tribes. Here are some of the most unusual marriage customs.
A ‘servant’ hides under a bed
In the Swahili culture, there is the tradition of keeping a servant under the bed in a new;y wed couple’s room.
The bride who got married because of an arranged marriage has the privilege of having a marriage mentor known as a (some), who stays under the bed during their first night.
This marriage mentor stays under the bed to ensure that what the bride learned was perfected on their first night.
High leg kicks to prove virginity
In the Zulu kingdom, brides dance at the height of their wedding ceremony. At a certain point during the dance, the brides have to kick their legs up high.
They do this act to prove to their mothers that they are still virgins.
Smeared with cow fat
Welcome to Namibia where a crazy marriage custom is experienced. After the wedding ceremony, the couple heads to the bride’s family house.
The groom is told of the responsibilities of his wife. The next thing that happens is the craziness that many people will run from. The groom is smeared with butterfat from a cow that symbolizes that he has become a part of the new family. This custom is a form of acceptance into a family.
Kidnap the bae, Sudan
In the Latuka tribe of Sudan, when a man intends to marry a woman, he kidnaps her to indicate his interest. Then elderly members of his family go and seek the consent of the girl’s father.
If he agrees, the father beats the man up as a sign of his acceptance of the union, but even if he doesn’t, the man might forcefully marry the girl anyway.
Blood on the sheets
We take you to Tunisia, where we have another type of crazy marriage custom. Virginity is taken as a virtue in some places. To prove that the bride is a virgin, she has to prove it with the blood on the sheets during the first night of the couple
