Glossary
Wedding words, explained
49 words you’ll hear at Kerala and Indian weddings, and what each one means.
A
- Ashtamangalyamഅഷ്ടമംഗല്യംKerala Hindu
- A tray of eight auspicious things, such as rice, a lamp, a mirror and flowers. You’ll see it carried in the ceremony and in the procession at Kerala Hindu weddings.See also: Thalappoli, Nilavilakku
B
- BaraatNorth Indian
- The groom’s procession to the wedding venue. Traditionally there’s music and dancing, and the groom rides in on a horse or arrives in a decorated car.
C
- Chenda melamചെണ്ടമേളംKerala
- A Kerala percussion group led by the chenda, a cylindrical drum played with sticks, with cymbals and wind instruments alongside. You’ll hear it at temple festivals and weddings.See also: Panchavadyam, Nadaswaram
- Chingamചിങ്ങംCalendar
- The first month of the Malayalam calendar, from mid-August to mid-September. It’s one of the most popular months for weddings in Kerala.See also: Kollavarsham, Karkidakam
D
- Destination weddingPlanning
- A wedding held away from the couple’s home town. Most guests travel to it and stay for several days of functions.
F
- Fusion weddingPlanning
- A wedding that mixes traditions from two cultures. You might have Western vows and a first dance alongside an Indian garland exchange, mehndi and a sadya.
H
- HaldiPan-Indian
- A pre-wedding ritual where family and friends rub turmeric paste on the couple. It’s done for blessings and for a glowing complexion.See also: Mehndi
K
- Kalyana mandapamKerala
- A wedding hall built for big ceremonies and feasts. They’re common all over South India.See also: Mandap (mandapam)
- KanyadanamPan-Indian
- The rite where the bride’s father places her hand in the groom’s. It’s a central moment in many Hindu weddings.
- Karkidakamകർക്കിടകംCalendar
- The last month of the Malayalam calendar, from mid-July to mid-August. Kerala Hindu families traditionally avoid it for weddings.See also: Chingam, Kollavarsham
- Kasavuകസവ്Kerala
- Kerala’s cream handloom cloth with a border of gold zari thread. Women wear it as a saree and men as a mundu, especially at weddings and festivals.See also: Mundu, Mundum neriyathum
- Kettuvallamകെട്ടുവള്ളംKerala
- A traditional Kerala rice barge with a curved roof of cane and thatch. These days they’re used as houseboats on the backwaters.
- Kollavarshamകൊല്ലവർഷംCalendar
- The Malayalam calendar. It’s a solar calendar, and its year starts with the month of Chingam in mid-August.See also: Chingam
L
- LagnamCalendar
- The zodiac sign rising on the eastern horizon at a given moment. The muhurtham for a wedding is often chosen to fall within a favourable lagnam.See also: Muhurtham (muhurat)
M
- Madhuram vekkalമധുരം വെക്കൽKerala Christian
- A Kerala Christian pre-wedding ceremony, usually the day before the wedding, where relatives feed the bride or groom sweets as a blessing.
- MahrKerala Muslim
- A gift from the groom to the bride, agreed as part of the nikah, the Islamic marriage contract.See also: Nikah
- Manasammathamമനസ്സമ്മതംKerala Christian
- The Kerala Christian betrothal. It’s held in church, and the couple formally give their consent to marry.
- Mandap (mandapam)Pan-Indian
- The platform with a canopy where a Hindu wedding ceremony takes place. It’s often open at the sides and decorated with flowers.
- Manthrakodiമന്ത്രകോടിKerala Christian
- The new saree that the priest blesses and the groom drapes over the bride during a Kerala Christian wedding.See also: Minnu
- MehndiPan-Indian
- Henna paste painted in patterns on the bride’s hands and feet before the wedding. The word also means the relaxed party where it’s put on.See also: Mylanchi, Haldi
- Melmunduമേൽമുണ്ട്Kerala
- An upper cloth draped over one shoulder and worn with the mundu.See also: Mundu
- Minnuമിന്ന്Kerala Christian
- The small gold pendant the groom ties around the bride’s neck at a Kerala Christian wedding. It usually has a cross on it.See also: Thali (thaali), Manthrakodi
- Muhurtham (muhurat)മുഹൂർത്തംमुहूर्तCalendar
- An auspicious time for a ceremony, worked out from the Hindu calendar using the tithi, the nakshatra and other factors. Kerala weddings are timed to the muhurtham.See also: Tithi, Nakshatra, Panchangam (panchang)
- Munduമുണ്ട്Kerala
- A white or cream cloth that men in Kerala wrap around the waist and tuck in. At weddings it’s the gold-bordered kasavu mundu.See also: Kasavu, Melmundu
- Mundum neriyathumമുണ്ടും നേര്യതുംKerala
- The traditional two-piece Kerala garment for women. There’s a lower cloth, the mundu, and an upper cloth, the neriyathu, draped over the blouse.See also: Kasavu
N
- NadaswaramKerala
- A long double-reed wind instrument from South India. It’s played at weddings and temple ceremonies, usually with the thavil drum.See also: Thavil, Chenda melam
- NakshatraCalendar
- One of the 27 lunar mansions, the parts of the sky used to say where the Moon is. Each one spans 13°20′, and some nakshatras are favoured for weddings.See also: Muhurtham (muhurat), Tithi
- NikahKerala Muslim
- The Islamic marriage contract, agreed in front of witnesses and an officiant. It’s the essential ceremony of a Muslim wedding.See also: Mahr, Walima
- Nilavilakkuനിലവിളക്ക്Kerala
- A tall brass oil lamp with one or more tiers of wicks. In Kerala it’s lit to open auspicious occasions, including weddings, housewarmings and public events.See also: Ashtamangalyam, Thalappoli
- NiraparaനിറപറKerala Hindu
- A wooden measure filled to the brim with paddy, rice still in its husk. At Kerala Hindu ceremonies it sits beside the lamp as a sign of prosperity.
O
- Oppanaഒപ്പനKerala Muslim
- A Malabar Muslim wedding song and dance, where women sing and clap around the bride.See also: Mylanchi
P
- Panchangam (panchang)Calendar
- The Hindu almanac. For each day it records five elements, which are the tithi, the weekday, the nakshatra, the yoga and the karana.See also: Tithi, Nakshatra, Muhurtham (muhurat)
- Panchavadyamപഞ്ചവാദ്യംKerala
- A Kerala temple orchestra of five instruments, four of them percussion and one wind. It’s often played for a grand arrival.See also: Chenda melam
- PandalPan-Indian
- A temporary canopy put up for a wedding or festival. It’s traditionally made of bamboo and woven coconut leaves, and the entrance is often decorated with flowers.
- PayasamപായസംKerala
- A sweet pudding of rice, lentils or vermicelli, cooked with milk or coconut milk and jaggery, an unrefined sugar. It’s the dessert at a sadya.See also: Sadya
- Pheras (saptapadi)North Indian
- The rounds a Hindu couple walk around the sacred fire, or the seven steps they take together. In many traditions these complete the marriage.
- PudavaപുടവKerala Hindu
- A new cloth the groom gives the bride at many Kerala Hindu weddings. The giving itself is called pudavakoda.See also: Thali (thaali)
R
- Rahu kalamCalendar
- A period of about ninety minutes each day that’s considered inauspicious for starting anything new, so people avoid it when they fix ceremony times.See also: Muhurtham (muhurat)
S
- Sadyaസദ്യKerala
- A traditional Kerala feast of twenty or more vegetarian dishes, served on a banana leaf in a set order. It ends with payasam.See also: Payasam
- SangeetNorth Indian
- The music and dance night before an Indian wedding. Both families perform dances they’ve prepared, and then everyone dances.
- Special Marriage Act, 1954Planning
- India’s civil marriage law, open to any two people regardless of religion or nationality. It requires notice to the local Marriage Officer and a 30-day notice period.
T
- Thalappoliതാലപ്പൊലിKerala Hindu
- A welcome where girls or women carry brass plates (thalams) with lit lamps, rice and flowers to receive the groom or a guest of honour.See also: Ashtamangalyam
- Thali (thaali)താലിKerala Hindu
- The sacred pendant the groom ties around the bride’s neck. The tying, called thalikettu, is the central moment of a Kerala Hindu wedding.See also: Minnu, Muhurtham (muhurat)
- Tharavaduതറവാട്Kerala
- An ancestral family home in Kerala, traditionally shared by the extended family. Families often use one for a small wedding.
- ThavilKerala
- A barrel-shaped South Indian drum that accompanies the nadaswaram at weddings and temple ceremonies.See also: Nadaswaram
- TithiCalendar
- A lunar day, one thirtieth of a lunar month. Each tithi is the time the Moon takes to gain 12° on the Sun, and weddings avoid certain tithis.See also: Nakshatra, Panchangam (panchang)
V
- Varmala (jaimala)North Indian
- The moment the bride and groom exchange flower garlands. It’s a joyful part of many Indian weddings.
W
- WalimaKerala Muslim
- The wedding feast hosted by the groom’s family after the nikah.See also: Nikah
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