中国人和外国人介绍中国婚礼习俗英语对话Since ancient times, marriage has been regardedas most blessed events in the life of a Chinesepassi ng the imperialexamination and the birth of one's c hildren. one of the three the other firvo are Marriage was solemnized with lots of interesting customs performed to this.Day.It was very important to follow a basic princip le ofthe "Three Letters and Six Etiquettes" in the past. Evennow some customs are still followed.The "Three Letters" include the Betrothal letter, Gift Letter and Wedding Letter.The Betrothal Letter is the formal document of the engagement,a must i n a marriage. Next,is the Gift Letter,which would b e given to the identified girl's family.Within the letter will be a list of thetypes and quantity of gifts designated for the wedding.Once both parties accept the marriage,the Wedding Letter is prepared and presented to the bride's family on the day o f the wedding and is a documentthat confirmed and commemorated the formal acceptance of the bride into thebridegroom's family, with some adaptations of course.Proposal: If an unmarried boy's parents identifya girlas their future daughter in law, they will then locate a matchmaker. The matchmaker will formally present his or her client's request to theidentified girl's parents.Birthday matching: If the potential bride's paren ts do not object to the marriage, the matchmaker w ill then ask for the girl's birthday and birth- hour to assure the compatibility of the potential bride and bridegroom. If the couple's birthdays and birth-hours do not conflict according to astrology，the marriage will continue onto the next stage. If thereis any sign of astrological conflict, which meant the marriage will bring disasters upon both families，the proposed marriage is immediately quashed.Presenting betrothal gifts: Once both birthdays m atched，bridegroom's family will then arrange for t he matchmaker to present betrothal gifts,including th e betrothal letter,to the bride's family.Presenting w edding gifts: After the betrothal letterand betrothal gifts are accepted,the bridegroom'sfamily will later formally send wedding gifts tothebr ide's ually,gifts may include tea,lotus seeds , longan,red beans,green beans，red dates oranges，pomegranate and other delicacies,depending on local customs and familywealth.Picking a wedding date: An astrologist or astrol ogy book,will be consulted to select an auspicious date to hold the wedding ceremony.Wedding ceremony: Before the wedding,a“good luck woman" who has a nice family will arra nge the bridal bed and scatter symbolic fruits on thebed.Nobody is allowed totouch the bed until thecoupl e enters the bridal chamberafter the weddingceremony, except Children who are invitedonto the bed to bles s the couple with ually thebride's dowry shall be sent to the bridegroom's family by the day before the wedding day. Sometimes,the dowry will be brought by the bride's estorts. Q traditional dowry normally consists of valuable items such as j ewellery embroidered beddings,kitchen utensils and fur niture. The type of thedowry is constantlychanging except for the basic，symbolic items. For examplein 1980sa sewing machine, a bicycle,and a recorder were mustsA marriage. Now , they are,totally out of fashion.Unlike Western tra dition,the colour red dominates traditional Chinese w eddings. Chinese people tend to use or wear,red to add a joyful atmosphere to such a festive occasio n.At dawn on the wedding day, the bride puts on new dothes, wears a pair of red shoes and waits for the so called "good luck woman" to dress her hair in the style of a married woman. Her head would be covered with a red silk veil with tassels or bead strings that hang from thephoenix crown. She waits for her future husband to escort her hom e, with married women talking around herabout how t o be a good wife.On the other handThen the bridegroom sets out t o receive his bride. Usually a crowd of friends es corts the bridegroom and musicians play joyful tunes during the entire trip.The most interesting part of the reception really takes place at the doorstep of the bride's resid ence which is heavily guarded by the bridesmaid or the bride's sisters. It is customary for the bridesmaid to give the bridegroom a difficult time before he is allowed to enter. Usually wisdom courage and his friends will help the bridegroom to succeedin his "trial".However, there is one more situation he has to negotiate with the bridesmaid and sisters of the bride to distribute among them red packets containing money-in order to take his bride home.Beforethe bride departs to the bridegroom's home,the“good luck woman" will lead her to the sedan chai r.On her way to the chair, one of hersisters will shield her with a red parasol while another sister will throw rice at the sedan chair.At the back of the sedan hang a sieve and metallic mirror that are believed to protect the bride from evil. The bride has to cry to show that she does not want toleave her parents.Then firecrackers will be set off to drive away evil spirits as the bride sits into the sedan ch air. All alongthe way people make great efforts to avoid any inauspicious influence. For instance thesedan chair is heavily curtained to prevent the bride from seeing an unlucky sight(e. g. a widow, a well or even a cat). When the parading troop arrives at the bridegroom's firecrackers will be set off to hail the bride's arrival. Before the sedan chair a red mat is placed so that the bride will not touch the bare earth. By the threshold a flaming stove and saddle will be set up and the bride is required to sidestep or step over them to avoid evils.The bride and bridegroom are then led to an al tar, where the couple kowtows to Heaven and Earth the family ancestors and parents successively. They then Afterwards, a grand feast is held for relatives and those who helped with the wedding. The newlyweds will resumedrinking wedding wine. Generally they are required to cross their arms to sip wine. They also will toast their guests. Guests voice their good wishes for the couple.After night falls, the teasing games start. Usua lly all young men can participate except for the bride's married brothers-in laws. These funny and silly games help ease the tension since in ancient times the newlyweds never met each othebefore the wedding!Most of the games require the shy couple to ad like wife and husband.The festive atmospherealso promotes closeness among all the family members and the community beyond. There also will be other activitiesconducted by the bridegroom's mother after the roaring laughter fades into the darkness.Traditionally the newlyweds are to return to visit the bride's parentsone or three days after the wedding. They will be hailed with a banquet and it is the bridegroom's turn to suffer the well intentioned teasing of the bride's relatives and friends.Traditional marriage customs,lost their popularity due tothecollapse of the feudal arranged marriage andit s complexity. However, traditional marriage canstill be seen in the countryside,despite innovations. Now, traditional marriage customs are being revived in some places and they are attracting many prospective couples.。