A rare wedding in a mountainous district of Nghe An
(Baonghean.vn) - Although the groom and bride were not present, the wedding still took place joyfully according to the customs of the native Thai people.
The wedding just took place at Mr. Loc Van Hoc's house, Nam Son village, Chi Khe commune (Con Cuong). Mr. Hoc's daughter, Ms. Loc Thi Diem Quynh, and the groom, Lu Van Quy, were not present at this happy occasion. However, the local customs were still held normally without causing any surprise to the wedding attendees.
From 4am, a 60kg pig was slaughtered by the village men to prepare the feast. Quynh’s younger brother who is working far away also returned to join the fun. The bride’s relatives from Ky Son district also came to attend the wedding. The family and relatives of the bride and groom became the main characters of the fun that lasted all day in the cozy stilt house.
Talking via Messenger, Mr. Lu Van Quy said that both he and Ms. Loc Thi Diem Quynh were busy working far away, did not ask for leave from the company so they could not attend their own wedding. But this was just a "small wedding" - part of the marriage customs of the indigenous Thai people. According to custom, small weddings in some cases do not necessarily require the presence of the bride and groom because they will have a main wedding scheduled for early next year (2024).
“Small weddings” (dong koi) are quite popular inmarriage customsof the Thai people in Con Cuong district, Tuong Duong (Nghe An). After the engagement, the two families of the groom and the bride will set a date for a "small wedding". The party will be held at the bride's family, but the groom's family must bring a pig and wine. The bride's family can add more food depending on the number of guests the family invites.
The groom's parents and the matchmakers are the representatives of the groom's family. The groom's family may also invite some of their relatives to accompany the delegation as a kind of introduction. Perhaps that is why the absence of the groom and bride is acceptable.
Mr. Le Hoang - a Thai musician from Yen Khe commune (Con Cuong), who is also a researcher of indigenous culture, said that the "small wedding" custom of the Thai people is equivalent to the engagement ceremony in Kinh people's weddings. This is the occasion for the matchmakers and the groom to officially introduce themselves and the couple to be recognized by both families as the bride and groom.
At the small wedding, the groom will bow to the elders of the bride’s family to acknowledge them as his parents and consider him as his own son. In some places, the groom’s family will also welcome the bride and her family to visit their home. The bride will have a “going-home” ceremony at the groom’s house.
According to Mr. Le Hoang, the absence of both the bride and groom in a small wedding like the one in Nam Son village is rare. The absence of the two main characters of the party also causes people to skip some rituals such as the groom bowing to the elders of the bride's family as parents. This ritual will be performed when the main wedding is held.