#Brides From #Africa #Cameroonianbride #Africanbride

Welcome to Brides From Africa
 

I'm back with Brides From Africa this year with the stunning Brides From Cameroon in west Africa.  


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Cameroon is a country in West Africa. It borders Nigeria to the west, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, Equitorial Guinea, Gabon and the Republic of Congo to the south.

 

 

 

Map of Cameroon

These Brides are from the tribe of Bamenda – also referred to as “Graffi” which means, people of the grasslands. The Bamenda people are mostly from the English-speaking part located in Northwest of Cameroon.

The Groom will typically approach the bride's father to get his initial approval to court his daughter.

Once the two families meet, an engagement will be officially announced, and the bride's father will decide on how much the marriage payment will be.

Among the Bamenda Tikar, the Groom pays a bride price to the bride's family.

 

 

The bride price consists of goats, fabric, oil, cash and farming tools.

During the traditional wedding of a Graffi person, most guests wear this traditional outfit that is, the Bamenda fabric also called the Atoghu.

There are so many rituals that occur during a traditional wedding.

One of them is when the family of the Bride tests the Groom to see if he can recognize his Bride-to-be.

 

At night, they parade different ladies whose faces are covered to see if the Groom will pick the his Bride.

When he finally chooses the correct lady, everyone rejoices.

 

 

The elders from both families represent the Bride and the Groom.

The Bride is not allowed to go to her Groom-to-be without the blessing of the elders in the family.

During this event, the Bride is given a drink that she must only share with her Groom.

The Bride must find her groom in the room full of men and give him this drink.

After the official wedding ceremony, the Bride will return to her parents' home to be cleansed and covered with camwood.

 

 

Afterward she will officially be "handed over" to her husband.

 

 

Read more about Cameroonian Traditional Marriage here.

All photos are courtesy of Bing.comBing.com

Thank you for visiting. Please leave me a comment.


If you have bridal photos to share from your place, send it to me via email and I'll share it here and give you credit. I love romance and swooning over bride photos is my hobby.


Love


Stella
  

******

Flirty & Feisty Romance 

Our promise...is to deliver an intensely emotional experience you'll never forget.

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#Brides From #Africa #UgandanBrides

Welcome to Brides From Africa

I'm back with Brides From Africa, a very popular post indeed. 

This week, I have brought you Brides From Uganda in East Africa.



Ugandan Flag

Uganda is a landlocked country, bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, to the west by The Democratic Republic of Congo and to the south by Rwanda.

Traditional Ugandan Wedding Ceremony:

 

After the agreement of proposal, for the Kwanjula (marriage) to be a resounding success, gifts are exchanged.

During the Kwanjula the  Groom's family is required to appear dressed in kanzu and they must also present kanzu to the bride's family.  The kanzu is always worn with a suit jacket, blazer, or sport coat.  It is customary, for Tribal Chiefs to wear the kanzu with a black bisht.
 

 

Before the Kwanjula, the Groom invites the Bride's parents to meet his family. The bride's family's wealth is assessed. 

In Uganda, the number of cows you own indicates the family's wealth.  If a family owned only one cow, this means they are very poor. 

There is a lot of dancing, feasting and merry making when the Groom's parents delivers the bride's wealth to the bride's family.  

Photo is courtesy of Bellanaija

The Groom also provides Kanzus for the Father in-law and brother in-laws. Gomesis are also provided for the mother in-law and Ssengas. (Kanzu and Gomesi are cultural dresses for males and females respectively). These are a must.

Ugandan Bride in her gomesi

The traditional kanzu has maroon embroidery around the collar, abdomen, and sleeves. The embroidery is called the omulela. The kanzu is worn at wedding ceremonies during the introduction. 

Envelopes containing money for the father in-law, mother in-law, Ssengas and brother in-laws are also given as gifts to the bride's family.

 

After this occasion is completed, the Groom’s mother, accompanied by another person would sing all the way to the Bride’s family home around 8:00pm. to fetch the Bride from her parents house.

The Bride is then handed over to the Groom’s mother and the Bride is taken back to the Groom's home with all three singing the whole way there. 

 

Once the Bride is back at the Groom’s home, the Bride is not supposed to sleep with the husband before she is washed in the ritual ceremony of okunabbya omugole.

 

The newly wedded couple stands under a tree and bathe in the same water furnished with appropriate herbs.  As the singing continues, they appear in the courtyard.
 

 

The Groom's mother pours a basin of water on the Bride’s back. The Bride spreads her fingernails out as custom demands and the older men would inspect them for any signs of pregnancy.

 

Thereafter, the Bride’s brother officially hands over the Bride to her husband and the newly weds move in to their house.

 

The Bride will not eat from her husband’s family until she first eats food sent from her parents.

Read more about  Traditional Uganda Marriage here.
 

Photos are courtesy of Google.co.uk

Thank you for visiting. Please leave me a comment.

If you have bridal photos to share from your place, send it to me via email and I'll share it here and give you credit. I love romance and swooning over bride photos is my hobby.

Love
Stella

******

Flirty & Feisty Romance 

Our promise...is to deliver an intensely emotional experience you'll never forget.

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#Brides From #Africa #GambianBride #West AfricanBride

Welcome to Brides From Africa

On Brides From Africa this week, I have brought you Brides From The Gambia in west Africa.

The Gambia has a special place in my heart because I spent my holiday in Banjul in 1997 and I fell in love with the small tourist country that has a short strip of coastline bordered by the Atlantic Ocean.

The Wollof traditional marriage begins with 'Guru nuyo' – Cola nut.

The groom's family sends 'guru nuyo' or cola nuts to the bride-to-be’s parent to make known their intention to marry their daughter.

If the cola nuts are accepted, real dialogue starts. The bride-to-be's mother will distribute the cola nuts to friends and relatives. Representatives from the groom's family will meet the bride's family to decide on the dowry known as “waarugal' and a date will then be fixed for the traditional marriage.

In the 'taaka ak jeebale' marriage ceremony of the Wollof people, preparation for the wedding might commence three to four days before the actual date.

For The wedding ceremony, the male elders of the bride and groom as well as relatives and friends gather at the mosque or any other designated place.

The bride and groom sit on mats facing each other. The head of the delegation of the groom's family would come with cola nuts and the money: Dalasi 4.25 to tie the knot.

The head of the delegation from the groom's family will reveal their mission - which is to pluck the 'rose flower' in that compound - to the gathered crowd. 

And in reply, the head of delegation from the bride's family will ask the crowd if there is anyone who objects to the wedding.

A grandfather or first cousin of the bride might jokingly say that he is against the marriage because the bridegroom snatched his bride from him. He would then ask to be compensated with money. After some jokes, the delegation would accept for the marriage to carry on.

The Imam or his deputy will then lead the prayers mentioning the name of the couple to be joined together. The money sealing the marriage (D4.25) as well as the 'juur' would be handed over to the delegation of the bride's family.  The cola nuts would then be shared among everyone present.

On wedding day, the bride might either spend the day with her aunt or stay at home where there will be drumming, dancing and lots of food to eat. At night, before the bride is taken to her husband's house, she is given a traditional bath.

Taking a bride to her husband's house is known as 'jeebale' in Wollof. But before the 'jeebale' the bride's mother would display the trousseau and kitchen utensils she bought for the bride. 

Just before the traditional bath, the bride would change her outfit and wear something she would not mind giving away. Some elderly women would lead her to the bathroom where one of her female cousins would be waiting for her. As soon as the bride gets undressed, her cousin would come and take away her clothes and keep them for herself.

During the bath, the bride will sit on a mortar and a gourd will be used to pour water into her hands. She would in turn use that water to rub her body and repeat certain words after the woman at the bath. This ceremonial bath should not be witnessed by a woman who had never gone through it. After the bath, the chief bridesmaid will also go through the same ceremony.

At the courtyard and in the presence of the two families, the bride and her bridesmaid will sit on a mat facing the east to listen to the advice from the elders on how to treat her husband and in-laws and encourage her to emulate the good example of her mother.

Read more about Mandinka and Wollof Traditional Marriage here.
 

Thank you for visiting. Please leave me a comment.

If you have bridal photos to share from your place, send it to me via email and I'll share it here and give you credit. I love romance and swooning over bride photos is my hobby.

Love
Stella

******

Flirty & Feisty Romance 

Our promise...is to deliver an intensely emotional experience you'll never forget.

Website

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Okada Books.com

Smashwords

Follow us on Twitter

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