Are money and gifts typically given to a bride or groom in a western marriage?
In a typical Western marriage, no gifts are exchanged between the bride’s family and the groom’s family. Both sides of the family will give gifts to the newly married couple – often money as well as household items to help them start their new life together. And there will be some small gifts given from the bride and groom to various members of their families, as a remembrance of the day. For instance, the bride might give personalized lace handkerchiefs to her mother and to the groom’s mother, and perhaps to grandmothers as well – as a gesture of thanks for all they did to raise both bride and groom, in preparing for the big day, and as kind of a souvenir of the day. A handkerchief is thought to be a good gift because the mothers and grandmothers may use it to wipe away their tears at the wedding. However, I do not believe that this happens at every Western style wedding.
