What are the Dominican Republic Wedding Traditions ? Christopher Columbus discovered Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic, on his route to America in 1492. Soon, the island became a crossroads linking Europe and America for the mercantile trade of the 1600s, but it also became an indispensable part of the slave market that delivered innumerable African captives to America.
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Dominican Republic Wedding Traditions
Over time a unique culture with rich folklore has developed. Today’s Dominican Republic culture is made up of a vibrant mix of communities and customs dating back hundreds of years.
With these beliefs, the Dominican women have faithfully embraced the following traditions.
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Gender traditions
From the moment of birth, boys and girls are treated unevenly in the Dominican Republic. Boys are permitted to run unclothed as youngsters, while girls must be clothed properly or they and their families will be subjected to civil reprimands.
Dominican misses must be attended at all times and tradition appoints that a girl who is polite and cooperative will improve her chances of a future good marriage. To that end, remaining a virgin unto matrimony is of absolute relevance to the code of conduct for women in Dominican society.
However, in the society of the Dominican Republic, being a mistress and having children outside of marriage is publicly allowed and custom directs that the man give up to his girlfriend the house in which they reside if the relationship ends. As in most Latino communities, Dominican ladies always yield to men, although a woman can hold the usual position as the head of the family if she is single.
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Dominican Republic Pop Culture
Playing music with the family is an essential part of the Dominican Republic Pop Culture . Mothers encourage kids to play the island’s three most famous instruments: (all displayed in the above picture).
Women also maintain dance rituals, performing the most famous dancing routine, the merengue dance, at gatherings, on social occasions, and mainly during the spring festival.
Concerning literature, Dominican gals are the defenders of a precious legacy of spoken storytelling. It has always gravitated to the women of the island to carry on folk tales, myths, species novels, and other social anecdotes.
In the 19th century, Spanish colonizers preceded rousseauistic European books to the Dominican Republic, yet because only a few women could read, traditional stories were the ones always recited distinctly, becoming part of the articulated custom of the community.
Hora Loca Dominican Republic
A tradition termed “La Hora Loca” or “The Crazy Hour,” if translated from Spanish, is a burgeoning trend in wedding receptions in many countries including the Dominican Republic. Arising in Venezuela, this folklore party has undertaken to expand to the US and other places.
Basically, la hora loca begins by dimming the lights, and then abruptly a riot of vitality, sounds-makers, confetti, shine, flashy feathered ballerinas matching those from Brazil’s festival, and musicians pervade the place to get the party started providing the guests with masks to inspire them to dance with them. Prices can range from $500 to $3,000.
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Art folklore
Dominican amber is deemed one of the most impressive excavated jewels in the Caribbean regions, so it came as no wonder that jewelry manufacturing with amber gemstones dotted with red, green, orange, blue, and purplish colors has become a common profession among many Dominican ladies.
Another handcrafted stone to the island is larimar, a large stone that comes in intense azure and green tones. Tour the local Dominican bazaars to view these individual artisan gems on display; And if you’re there around the holiday season, you can try on the showy costumes and traditional headpieces worn by the island’s gals.
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Dominican Christmas Traditions
Girls anxiously await the seasonal break to wear the traditional Dominican dresses that embrace both African and European fashion styles to sway to the music of inherent rhythms during the spring festival march. However, no celebration compares to that of New Year’s Eve.
Before the housewives serve their families a second hearty Christmas dinner, they mimic the Dominican Christmas Traditions of cleaning the house from top to bottom so that the people who live under their roof have a wealthy year.
Dominican women are also responsible for other Dominican Christmas Traditions such as demanding all family members to eat 12 grapes, one each time the clock strikes, so that the upcoming year will be sweet.
Women and family members dress in the traditional colors for good luck in the New Year:
- green to find money,
- red to express a bright future,
- yellow to promote work-life,
- and white to boost well-being.
Once the holiday clothes have been chosen, Dominican Christmas Traditions requires that women throw away their old brooms before midnight and buy new ones that will have to be kept outside until New Year’s Day.
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Dominican Republic Wedding Traditions
Each Dominican bride receives 13 coins, ceremoniously relinquished to her on a silver platter. A child begins the transfer from hand to hand, giving the tray to the priest, the groom, and then the bride to express their loyalty and confinement received from each other.
Another of the most prominent Dominican Republic Wedding Traditions is honoring the mother-in-law. The groom arrives with his mother at the church before anyone else can access it.
In addition to the Dominican wedding ceremony, the cultural gift traditions prevent women from bringing wedding presents to the ceremony or reception; Gifts must go to the bride’s house before the wedding day.
