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A white dress, veil, something borrowed, old, new and blue - these are all the pieces essential to a traditional western wedding gown. And as with every tradition, there's an explanation for every detail in the wedding ceremony. And though we are all used to see white tones on a wedding dress, you don't have to look very far for an entirely different approach to the bride's attire. And as the cultures and wedding ceremony traditions vary from country to country, so does the unique dresses. Some brides adorn themselves in colorful wedding dresses, others paint their hands and faces by local customs, and some hide their faces completely behind layers of jewelry or veils.

Not everybody upholds these wedding traditions of course, and not everybody chooses the classical wedding dress color, and many people wear what they want for their Big Day, but this list compiled by Bored Panda provides a fascinating insight into the different ways that different people can celebrate the same occasion. Who knows, maybe you'll find some inspiration!

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#1

Indian Wedding

Indian Wedding

In Indian culture, pink or red wedding dresses are often the garment of choice for brides. Married woman in the north of the country can often be identified by a red dot in the middle of their forehead.

rani_in_silk Report

#2

Kazakhstani Bride

Kazakhstani Bride

In a traditional Kazakh wedding, brides typically wear a headdress known as a "Saukele" as well as a facial veil. The Saukele is usually prepared long before the girls reach the age of marriage.

kazak.ts.cn Report

#3

Nigerian Bride

Nigerian Bride

Nigeria is a big country with around 250 ethnic groups and over 500 languages. Wedding ceremonies therefore change according to region, religion and ethnic background. However, Nigerian brides often wear brightly colored wedding clothes. They also often wear a Nigerian head tie called a Gele.

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#4

Hutsuls Wedding In Ukrainian Carpathians

Hutsuls Wedding In Ukrainian Carpathians

The Hutsuls are an ethno-cultural group of Ukrainians who have lived for centuries in the Carpathian mountains. The traditional wedding clothes are very colorful and the weddings themselves are very lively and full of dancing, games and jokes.

Natalia Kabliuk Report

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#5

Traditional Wedding In Ghana

Traditional Wedding In Ghana

Traditional weddings in Ghana are often very colorful, and each family has its own cloth pattern that features on the bride and groom's wedding outfits.

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#6

Japanese Wedding

Japanese Wedding

For a traditional Japanese wedding, the bride often wears a pure white kimono for the formal ceremony, which symbolizes purity and maidenhood. After the ceremony the bride may then change into a red kimono to symbolize good luck.

Lan Phan Report

#7

Scottish Wedding

Scottish Wedding

Men in Scotland traditionally wear the kilt of his clan for his wedding. After the ceremony, the bride wears a shawl emblazoned with her new husband's clan colors to signify her transition into his family.

im_jessica_oh Report

#8

Mongolian Bride

Mongolian Bride

In a traditional Mongolian wedding ceremony, the bride and the groom each wear what's known as a Deel. A Deel is a form of patterned clothing that's been worn for centuries by Mongols and other nomadic tribes in Central Asia.

agenciazvezdenpraznik.blogspot.com Report

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#9

Romanian Bride From Oas Region

Romanian Bride From Oas Region

Weddings in Oas are an important event in the north-west part of Transylvania. The wedding is organized by the parents as well as the bride-and-groom-to-be and various different rituals are involved including the preparation of the dowry and the costumes, choosing the godparents, and preparing the wedding flag.

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#10

Chinese Wedding

Chinese Wedding

In China the colour red is considered to symbolize good luck. The colour is also believed to keep away evil spirits. It's therefore no surprise that traditional Chinese wedding outfits almost always feature the colour red.

bridaltrendasia.com Report

#11

Yakan Bride

Yakan Bride

The Yakan are an ethno-linguistic group that mostly inhabit the island of Basilan in the Philippines. Traditional weddings usually consist of two ceremonies, an Islamic one and an older, pre-Islamic ritual. The weddings are arranged by the parents and both the bride and groom wear face paint for the ceremony.

Hermes Singson Report

#12

Bride In Gora Region Between Kosovo And Macedonia

Bride In Gora Region Between Kosovo And Macedonia

The Gorani people are Muslims by faith, but their traditions and customs contain various pagan elements. The bride is carried on a white horse covered with a scarf and a specially decorated umbrella during wedding festivities, and she accompanies her family to the neighbour's house of her husband-to-be.

Faton Ademi Report

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Yvonne Bernal
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

She looks just like a carefully crafted porcelain doll. How stunning.

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#13

Indonesian Wedding

Indonesian Wedding

Indonesia has over 17,000 islands and so weddings here vary greatly depending on where people live and which of the 300+ ethnic groups they belong to.

Fitrian Afifah Yurma Report

#14

Traditional Wedding Costumes And Bridal Crown From Norway

Traditional Wedding Costumes And Bridal Crown From Norway

In Norway, the traditional wedding costume is called a Bunad. It can also be worn for other occasions such as christening parties.

bunadstua.com Report

#15

Matyo Bride From Hungary

Matyo Bride From Hungary

In traditional Hungarian weddings, a brides attire usually includes an embroidered dress with floral patterns and three bright colors. She often wears many underskirts as well as an elaborate head-dress with wheat woven into it.

vilagbiztonsag.hu Report

#16

Traditional Peruvian Bride In Sacred Valley Near Cuzco, Peru

Traditional Peruvian Bride In Sacred Valley Near Cuzco, Peru

Traditional Andean wedding outfits are often bright and include woven cloaks and hats adorned with tassels and reflective material. A special skirt and poncho is made for the bride and groom's wedding day.

Jacek Kadaj Report

#17

Traditional Wedding Costumes In Veliky Novgorod, Russia

Traditional Wedding Costumes In Veliky Novgorod, Russia

Russia has over 185 different ethnic groups, and many of these have their own separate wedding traditions. However, many Russian weddings last for at least two days and some go on for as long as a week.

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#18

Hamar Woman In Traditional Dress

Hamar Woman In Traditional Dress

The Hamar people come from Ethiopia. Unmarried women wear large collars made of red, green, and black coloured beads, and married women wear two distinct metals collars. First wives also wear a leather band with a large visible disk attached.

imgur.com Report

#19

Korean Traditional Royal Wedding Costumes

Korean Traditional Royal Wedding Costumes

The Korean national costume is called the Hanbok, and a variation of this can be worn at traditional weddings. According to ancient tradition in, the groom should carry his wife around the table on his back. This is so the bride knows that her husband is reliable.

hellosonia Report

#20

Malay Wedding

Malay Wedding

Most weddings in Malaysia are held according to the Muslim tradition. Brides often wear wedding dresses that include colors such as purple, violet, and cream.

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Melia Janssen
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There is a big Malay population in Singapore too. And yes, we wear this too.

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#21

Balinese Wedding, Indonesia

Balinese Wedding, Indonesia

Traditional Balinese wedding clothes are often vivid and richly decorated. The bride and the groom often wear crowns of gold on their heads during the ceremony.

Pramana Santika Report

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#22

Weddings In Jakarta, Indonesia

Weddings In Jakarta, Indonesia

As in other parts of Indonesia, traditional wedding attire in Jakarta includes plenty of gold, intricate patterns, striking colors and ornate head wear.

paultenyom Report

#23

Uzbek Bride Wearing Traditional Clothes

Uzbek Bride Wearing Traditional Clothes

In traditional Uzbek weddings (Nikokh-Tui), the bride wears a colorful outfit hand embroidered with intricate patterns. The wedding ceremony plays an essential role in Uzbek life.

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#24

Afghani Jewish Bride

Afghani Jewish Bride

Jews are believed to have resided in Afghanistan for nearly 1,500 years. Now however there is only one Jew remaining in the country (Zablon Simintov, who was born in Herat in 1959). Traditional wedding ceremonies saw the brides covered with a veil and garments, and she also wore henna on her hands and feet and sequins on her forehead.

eshkolhakofer.blogspot.nl Report

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faiq_sawiz
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

All brides in the country wear traditional cloths as this. They are so fancy and skillfully made

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#25

Turkmen Bride

Turkmen Bride

In Turkmenistan, the traditional wedding ceremony sees the bride dressed up in a red dress made from silk homemade fabric studded with silver or gilded pendants.

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#26

Palembang Wedding, Indonesia

Palembang Wedding, Indonesia

Palembang is the second-largest city on Sumatra island in Indonesia. In traditional weddings brides wear what's called an Aesan Gede, which is a rich and striking costume that evokes the grandeur of the Srivijaya empire.

lord.over.all Report

#27

Sami Wedding

Sami Wedding

The Sami are the indigenous people living in the far north of Europe. The area is called Sápmi and it stretches across parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Kola Peninsula. Their traditional dresses explain a lot about the wearer. For example, single people wear belts with circular buttons, while square buttons mean a person is married.

brie1511 Report

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Krista Mikkonen
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The color and style of the dress and clothes depends a lot what area you are from. Nowadays younger generation have brought more variation with colours etc. Its not always this same style :)

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#28

Polish Wedding From The Lowicz Area

Polish Wedding From The Lowicz Area

A Polish bride will traditionally wear a white dress and a full veil (welon). The groom will often wear a buttonhole flower to match his bride's bouquet. If you notice a bride subtly moving a part of her wedding dress to cover the top of the groom's shoe, she may be following a traditional belief that this will give her a position of dominance in the relationship.

slavorum.org Report

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Joanna Tur
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

i'm polish and i've never seen anything like that...traditional clothing is rather rare this days....

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#29

Maasai Wedding In Kenya

Maasai Wedding In Kenya

In a Maasai wedding, the bride is required to wear a bold and colorful necklace made of beads and shells. On the night of the wedding, a party called the "kupamba" takes place. During this party, the bride is allowed to take off her veil and show her hairstyle and jewels.

Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher Report

#30

Bedouin Wedding Veil In Israel

Bedouin Wedding Veil In Israel

In traditional Bedouin wedding ceremonies, Bedouin brides often wear a heavy and ornate face veil comprised of various jewelry.

corporatefineart.com Report

#31

Javanese Wedding

Javanese Wedding

Traditional Javanese wedding outfits generally include a sarong, a high-collared shirt, a jacket and a blangkon (a traditional Javanese headdress) for the groom, and a sarong, a kebaya (long-sleeved blouse), and a selendang for the bride. The woman's hair is often put in a flat bun called a Sanggul.

sugiklegowo Report

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#32

Traditional Bride Costume From Schaumburg-lippe, Germany

Traditional Bride Costume From Schaumburg-lippe, Germany

In Germany, traditional bridal headdresses vary from region to region. In the Black Forest valley, the headdress is large and decorated with hundreds of beads and glass balls, while in Buckenburg the emphasis is more on flowers than beads.

Beatrijs Sterk Report

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Kiki Nowski
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I guess these are all rather VERY traditional - really, never seen anyone wear such a Tracht at his/her wedding

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#33

Yemenite Jewish Bride

Yemenite Jewish Bride

In a traditional Yemenite Jewish wedding, the bride wears jewelry and an elaborate headdress decorated with flowers and leaves. These are believed to ward off evil. Gold threads are also woven into the fabric of her clothes and wedding celebrations traditionally last seven days.

yemenite-art.com Report

#34

Traditional Bride In Ribnovo Region In Southwest Bulgaria

Traditional Bride In Ribnovo Region In Southwest Bulgaria

The wedding customs in Bulgaria's Ribnovo region are influenced by Islamic traditions. Festivities last for five days and include lots of singing and dancing. On the second day the bride's face is painted white and adorned with sequins.

dailymail.co.uk Report

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gafcheto91 avatar
Desislava Baranova
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Lol i am bulgarian and i have never seen wedding in Ribnovo. Usually bulgarian weddings are with white nice dress, elegant suit... like in the movies haha. This should be some really small region..

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Angy Push
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Uhm, I, too am bulgarian and haven't seen such wedding attire, but this is about traditional dresses and ours aren't white at all. Learn a little history maybe?

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Александра Рангелова
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Please, be kind and show this picture, which is a good example of traditional wedding outfit and which is more accurate and presents larger territory, than in Ribnovo. Thank you! 1433767498...bb0818.jpg 1433767498-5791296bb0818.jpg

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Nadezhda Nikolova
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Actually this is traditional wedding costume in a very small region in Bulgaria. Although we have 7 ethnological regions, the weddiing attire from area to area, even in the same region, is very difficult. From the very dark colours in Shumen region to the multicoloured in Yambol, from the mainly red in Sofia, to mainly white in Varna, it is impossible to show all traditional attire of Bulgaria. We have mixtures of many cultures passed through Bulgaria, which we have adapted here. However, nowadays the weddings with traditional attire is very rare. We use the widely spread idea of white dress and few inherited from abroad traditions as well.

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Plamena Toneva
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

None of you really got that the post doesn't represent the traditions of the whole country, but just the different small ethnic groups.

elinaboeva avatar
Elina Boeva
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is rare and extremely interesting ritual, but shoul't be called traditional for the Bulgarians. Rather, it is specific for a very small group of people in a small region....

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Katerina Kopanarova
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Looking at the dresses of the two other ladies next to the bride I started suspecting that this is a traditional wedding outfit of those Bulgarians who have accepted Islam for their religion (the official religion in Bulgaria is Orthodox Christianity). An indeed I did a little research and it tuned out that in Ribnovo the population consists only by those people. So this is not the common accepted traditional Bulgarian wedding dress but actually the author of the article doesn't claim that - it is correctly pointed that this is the costume only in Ribnovo. Anyway I really hoped to see some pictures of other Bulgarian traditional weeding costumes because they are really beautiful and interesting so I think that they deserve to have a place in this article.

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Radoslava Vasileva
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This does not represent Bulgaria's traditional costume. This is a very small region and a very closed society you're presenting here. Anyone interested can invest some time into researching the actual bulgarian traditional costume, it's called носия (nosia). The bulgarian woman, if you believe the songs, has a clean oval face, a headpiece depending on the region, a shirt and a dress on top. Sometimes she has a skirt instead and a vest. Sometimes she has an apron, sometimes she has a belt. It's very simple when you think about it, but the magic comes with the rich and colorful embroidery on the clothes. It's beautiful. This over here is slightly unnerving.

alamkara avatar
Fanny Horn
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It doesn't say it represent a Bulgarian traditional costume (no such thing btw, all regions are different). It specifically says Ribnovo region.

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Ivan Marinov
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

People, "I am Bulgarian and" or "I am Bulgarian, but" are not valid arguments proving you are not ignorant of the history, ethnology or ethnography of your country.

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Lyone Fein
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Many of the comments in this section coming from non-Muslim or non-Turkish Bulgarians sound like this::: If I was a white American, and someone took a photo of a black American wedding, and then I started complaining about the fact that "Americans" don't dress like that or look like that or act like that and anyway black people have only been here for a few hundred years so they aren't real Americans and most American weddings just don't look like that.....blah blah blah. The fact is, that the people in these pictures ARE Bulgarians, and they are part of your culture. And 500 years is a very long time to be in a country. The Muslim region is part of your country. It is part of Bulgaria, and this tradition is one of Bulgaria's traditions. The costumes worn in these pictures are some of Bulgaria's national costumes.........just like Black Americans ARE Americans.

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Mariya Todorova
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Really good point, Lyone. I am Bulgarian and I am really ashamed by the hatred my fellow Bulgarian express here. Unfortunately, this is quite a good representation of general sentiments in Bulgaria. :(

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Eva Marinova
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That is traditionally worn by a very small community, around 100 ppl are using this as a wedding dress , . Bulgaria is and has aways been a christian country, Bulgaria had been under turkish york for over 5 centuries but through out this thime the bulgarians have kept their beliefs in God and Jesus Crist , the Muslim religion was never ever part of the bulgarian traditions ! During the york the turkish soldiers were killing pregnant women, stilling the yang boys etc .. Some will say (me to) that the turks did a genocide .. Some ppl converted to islam so they will save their babys , weman and children .. So now in Bulgaria there are Muslim community but Bulgaria as a cuntry , nation and religious beliefs is christian ! The traditional bulgarian wedding dress has nothing to do with this !!!

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Fanny Horn
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Calm down, fellow Bulgarians, it doesn't say it's traditional for Bulgaria as whole (no such thing exists btw), it specifically says Ribnovo region exclusively. And it's very sad seeing so many of you deny that you countrymen are just as Bulgarian as you just because they're pomaks. They're Bulgarian and their traditions only enrich our cultural landscape. It's embarrassing to see you reject it with such fervour.

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Diyana Ruseva
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yeaah, bulgarian here too-never seen this (and really happy about that fact 'cause it looks terribly creepy).

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Adiana Negrea
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You bulgarians are very hard headed (as i can see from your comments). It doesn't say that is a bulgarian wedding, but that is from the Ribnovo Region. The comments like "Lol I am bulgarian", only proves one more time your ignorance. Instead of writing that, write Ribnovo wedding on google, at least that, if you don't like books. You should be grateful for learning something new about your tradition!!!

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Глория Георгиева
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Guys you are in big mistake for Bulgaria. The showed picture is not a traditional bulgarian wedding!! (yes it may be spotted in a bulgarian region with some islamic traditions but this is NOT a bulgarian tradition!!!!

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Gaby Orihuela-Tan
Community Member
7 years ago

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You are a total loser! Why are you fighting it so hard? It is in Bulgaria right? Then it is a Bulgarian tradition. It doesn't matter from what region or how many ppl live in it. IT IS STILL I'M BULGARIA. Your ppl are very tasteless to dress so if is not this is something ugly the same hahahaha

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Veronica Sonmark
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Bonus lesson: Bulgarians are the touchiest about a minority group in their country getting the spotlight.

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Maya Roussanova
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I am Bulgarian too and this is not tradition for Bulgaria at all.This might be partial true for that small small region, but not for Bulgaria!!! If you write that something is traditional for a country don't use some region to be example of a whole. Because this is not correct.Thank you!!!

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Elena Koleva
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's weird when the bride looks like that and the groom is simply in a suit...this make it creapy

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Eng Christina Georgieva
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm bulgarian and this one is NOT a bulgarian wedding!!!! Here you can see what is a Bulgarian Wedding with traditional costume. 8c522af237...4c3a90.jpg 8c522af237ece5d9d4a6aa572fc49001-5791cb84c3a90.jpg

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Aleksandra Mincheva
Community Member
7 years ago

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I'm bulgarian and this is not a traditional bulgarian bride.

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Mindaugas Černiauskas
Community Member
7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Before getting your national feelings hurt, read the damn description - where does it say that these pictures represent the whole of Bulgaria's traditions? It is clearly stated that it is from some region which happens to be in the country.

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Mira Atanasova
Community Member
7 years ago

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lol no no no this is not Bulgarian. Do your reserch first !

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#35

Bride In Eritrea

Bride In Eritrea

The Rashaida are a Muslim tribe populating Eritrea and northeast Sudan. When a Rashaida woman is to be married, she stays in seclusion until her wedding, and the Rashaida only marry their own. A Rashaida bridal veil contains rows of metallic thread embroidery and pearls which are geometrically arranged.

Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher Report

#36

Avar Bride Wearing Traditional Costume

Avar Bride Wearing Traditional Costume

The Avar are a Caucasus native ethnic group living in the Russian republic of Dagestan. Much like their wedding outfits, their traditional wedding ceremonies are also quite elaborate and are generally accompanied by folk dances and music.

thelovelyplanet Report

#37

Tibetan Brides

Tibetan Brides

For a traditional Tibetan wedding, the bride wears a white, woollen wedding dress which may be layered with brightly coloured aprons and robes. Often there are so many layers that it can sometimes be difficult to see the bride underneath!

traditions.cultural-china.com Report

#38

Kinnauri Bride

Kinnauri Bride

The Kinnauri people come from Kinnaur district in Himachal Pradesh, India. In traditional Kinnauri weddings, the bride wear a heavy layer of gold and silver ornaments and a handmade garland made from dry fruits. The bride also wears a hand woven dress with a brightly embroidered hand woven shawl to cover the shoulders.

sharad hitesh negi Report