The term “bachelor” was first used to describe an unmarried man in The Canterbury Tales back in the 14th Century.
In a lot of cases today, Stag Dos or bachelor parties are even more important than the marriage itself. The tradition of celebrating the last night of singledom has gained even more traction with the surfacing of event companies dedicated to the cause.
While the popularity of these bachelor or stag parties is immense in english-speaking countries, other cultures are not far behind. Read on to find out how different cultures celebrate the last fling before the ring:
The Spartans
Ancient Spartans are often credited with starting the tradition of celebrating the last night of bachelorhood. Since as early as the 5th Century, Spartan soldiers would celebrate the groom’s last night as a single man by holding a dinner party in their friend’s honour.
The parties would include a generous spread of their most loved meals, along with a series of toasts made in the honour of the groom.
The Germans
In the German language, a bachelor party is called Junggesellenabschied, which literally translates to “farewell to bachelorhood”. Staying true to the German spirit, the event involved binge drinking of beers, along with mild humiliation and funny costuming of the groom.
In addition to that, the Germans have another pre-wedding tradition that involves both the bride and the groom. Usually held the night before the wedding, Polterabend involves breaking of porcelain earthenware to bring luck to the couple’s married life.
The Fins
The Finnish people have their own way of celebrating the end of bachelorhood which involves some heavy drinking (of course!) and doing something extraordinary. In most cases, the extraordinary tasks are decided by the friends of the groom and are extremely foolish. These dares usually make up for some pretty embarrassing stories that are later shared with the rest of the family.
The British
British call the celebration a stag party, and it is an enormously popular tradition in the British culture. The party is usually organised by the best man of the groom. Since it is such a big deal in their culture, the stag party business in the country is on experiencing an all-time high in terms of demand. Involving pub crawls, strippers, all-night parties, the British take the celebration of singledom very seriously.
In fact, it is common for “stag groups” to fly to foreign destinations for the celebration, where they can let go of all kind of inhibitions and do things that the bride-to-be may not find so pleasant.
The USA
Almost everyone knows about the popularity of bachelor parties in the US. After the huge success of Hollywood film series The Hangover, we all have a pretty good idea of what goes down in an American bachelor party.
For those of you that don’t, American bachelor parties are very similar to the British stag dos. Made famous by the Hollywood film series mentioned earlier, the sin city of Las Vegas is by far, the most popular choice for bachelor groups. After all, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.
Conclusion
In every culture, there are certain wedding traditions that simply cannot be ignored. While stag or bachelor parties were always a part of this list, Hollywood movies have fortified their importance further.
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