I have been born into a beautiful culture rich with family values and old traditions. My (Australian) friends have always been fascinated by my life and the way we do things, but for me, smashing plates and big fat Greek weddings has always been the norm. What i have recently realised is that I follow these traditions and honor our family values without truly understanding them.
I’m afraid that the traditions that our yaiya’s and papous fight so hard to continue will be lost if the younger generation do not embrace them. I also believe that the younger generations will loose the appreciation of these traditions if they do not understand the history or relevance of these traditions.
My sister is about to get married and so we (the entire family) are planning a big fat Greek wedding. In an effort to help my sister, i tried to find a book on Greek weddings but not even amazon.com had anything helpful. There are a few websites around like greekbridal.com but i still have so many questions that need answering.
So this blog is my attempt not only to help my sister with her wedding plans but to also help young Greek-Australians understand the history and relevance of traditions so that we may continue them in the future.


4 comments
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November 27, 2007 at 3:18 am
Vikki
You’re doing a great job! Keep it going. I just stumbled across your link this blog on facebook.
Have you seen the book, A Guide to Greek Traditions and Customs in America by Marilyn Rouvelas (Author), Estella Pucher (Author)
I realize it has to do with traditions and customs in “America” but I don’t imagine they would be that much different in Australia. I’ve heard it is an excellent book although I haven’t had the chance to read it myself.
December 12, 2007 at 10:35 pm
Sia
Thanks for your comment Vikki!
Father Nicholas reccomended the same book to me. I have ordered it and im waiting for it in the mail. I don’t think that you can get the book anywhere in Austrlalia. Maybe i should sell it from my blog lol…
June 14, 2008 at 3:25 am
Alexandros
Hello Aspasia!
Congratulations for your blog and keep on doing the good work.
I hope that your sister had a nice wedding and that she lives now a joyous and interesting life.
As an idea, I like it, that someone is collecting information and histories about the Greek weddings. Collections and documentations are always useful to people that are interested in the respective subject and to historians of the future.
But if you are doing that, because you want to save them, then I am afraid to tell you that nobody can save a dying custom. On the other hand, a custom that lives, an alive tradition does not need any help. For its life is not a decision of the participants that concerns the custom itself, but it is a form of expression to them. And as we all know, the several human expressions are common and everlasting whereas the forms of them change over the time. They live and die as we do.
A brief internet search in a greek bookstore some minutes ago gave me a list of some books related to your subject. Try in the category “Λαογραφία, ήθη και έθιμα”. I think that visiting some bookstores in Greece would be more fruitful, as internet services are not very spread there.
Best Regards
Alexandros
October 29, 2010 at 2:13 pm
George P.
Great website, keep up the good work. I love how you are saving these traditions.