Wedding Cake Traditions

Wedding cakes have different traditions and meanings all over the world. Some are still alive and happening in weddings today and some have gradually disappeared over time. Here are a few wedding cake traditions and their meanings today.

Originally, the wedding cake was made of small wheat cakes which were broken over the brides head. This was a symbol of good luck to the bride and was meant to bestow fertility on her. However this tradition is not practised anymore, which is very fortunate for the bride and her hairdo!

The cutting of the cake traditionally symbolizes the end of the wedding formalities, however, this used to just be done by the bride, as a symbol of her upcoming loss of virginity. However, over time, this tradition has gradually incorporated the groom also. The eating of the cake by the couple is meant to signify that the couple has made a promise to share the rest of their lives together.

All the single guests attending the wedding, pay attention to this next point! If an unmarried person sleeps with a piece of wedding cake under their pillow, they will dream of their future spouse that very night.

The top tier of the wedding cake should be an Irish whiskey cake which needs to be saved for the christening of your first child.

Early Celtic wedding traditions state that the cake was an important part of the wedding ceremony. Traditionally, a thin loaf was broken over the brides head at the end of the ceremony, in the hope that it would bring fertility. The wheat was the main symbol of fertility and guests would gather up any crumbs as good luck charms. Thankfully, this age old tradition is no longer alive today!

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