It seems to be every woman’s dream to have the perfect wedding, and central to the ceremony would be an eye-catching wedding dress that would not be complete without a veil. As we shall see, the veil has a long and varied history that is still shrouded in mystery.
Just as civilization has moved from east to west, the origins of the bridal veil can also be traced to the near east, where the veils served the practical purpose of protecting the bride from burning sun and dust in the Middle Eastern desert. In those early days, there was also the very real possibility of women being kidnapped or snatched because of their beauty – just as Abraham feared in the Bible – it was, therefore, prudent for a woman to wear a veil in order to protect both herself and her husband from harm.
As the veils crossed over into Europe, it maintained some of its old functions while acquiring other practical or symbolic functions. One trait, that marriages in the East and those in the West had in common, was that they were negotiated or arranged by the parents or the father. The lucky couple would often meet for the very first time on their wedding day. It is, therefore, easy to see how the notion that it was bad luck for the groom to see the bride before wedding could have come about. And so we find that in ancient Greece and again in Rome the veil was worn to protect against ill luck or to drive away evil spirits or evil eyes harboring evil designs.
Though Europe and Middle East were often at odds, cultural exchange continued unabated, and the rise of Islam strengthened Arab influence in Europe. Europe’s crusading armies also brought back Arab culture from the east as part of their war booty. It was in those days that the veil became an article of fashion, and perhaps was even worn to entice men. But just as veils tend to consecrate objects and spaces – such as the legal “corporate veil” or the veils worn by Muslim women and Christian nuns -, the bridal veil also came to symbolize such virtues as chastity and modesty.
Weddings or marriages have always been thought of as religious enterprises, but as the West moved through the “renaissance” and the “age of reason” they tended to drop, more or less, the traditional religious significance associated with the bridal veil – though shades of these still linger – but much symbolism has been retained but with different meanings. For example, the lifting of the veil still symbolizes the taking of possession of the bride by the groom just as the girl is “given away” by her father or another relative. But even this may be under threat as some brides now prefer to lift their own veils as a sign of equality with the men.
In the present era, as social and kinship ties have tended to weaken as people become more individualistic; the bridal veil seems to be rapidly losing its significance. Everybody now seems to be more concerned with its fashionable aspects.
