Given the multi-cultural society that we have, there are certain to be weddings being arranged, bridal dresses being designed, and wedding cakes being created where the bride and the groom are from two different cultural backgrounds.
That can apply to each of their nationalities, their respective religions, both their ethnic backgrounds and indeed all three.
What it could also mean is that the bride and groom both speak perfect English because they were born and raised in Australia, however, they may have family and those whom they wish to invite as guests who do not.
In addition, it could be that they are going to invite family and friends who live overseas and for whom English is not their first language and possibly a language that they do not speak at all.
This can occur in all kinds of circumstances and may apply to the groom’s family, the bride’s family, or both of their families.
The most complicated of these is where the bride’s family speak a specific language and the groom’s family speaks a different language.
What we now have is a situation that means that three different languages apply to their wedding day namely English, and then whichever two languages are spoken by the bride’s and the groom’s respective families and guest list.
Admittedly, this is rare, but we are sure could occur increasingly. More certain are we that many weddings take place that should, and need to be, bilingual with English and one other language. The question is “How?”, and below are the answers.
Consultation Is The Key
The first step is to consult with both your family groups to ascertain to what degree language differences need to be addressed.
You might find that one family has enough English speakers that they are happy for the other’s language to be used. Also, find out if any family members are fluent in English and would be willing to translate for others throughout the day.
Bilingual Wedding Invitations
This is one of the easier steps to take because you simply have invitations printed in both English and the other language.
One important step is to get someone fluent in both languages to proofread both versions to ensure there are no basic spelling or grammar errors.
Bilingual Wedding Website
We recommend having a wedding website whether all your guests speak English or not as they are a fantastic way to provide your guests with all the information they need about your wedding, such as directions, wedding gift list, dates, times, etc.
As for those who do not speak English, you can have pages on your website duplicated and then translated so that they also can read and understand all your wedding day information.
Bilingual Wedding Ceremony
This could be done in several ways. You could conduct the ceremony in English and have someone translate it as it proceeds. You could have a ceremony in English, and then another ceremony in a second language.
What could be the most fun of all, especially if both your and your future spouse’s cultures have different wedding ceremonies and customs, is to get married using each one, and effectively get married twice.
Bilingual Signage
At both the location of your wedding ceremony and the reception you should have signage that is written in both languages.
This includes the seating chart and the welcome signs. If your wedding has a programme with an order of ceremonies, this should also have bilingual text.
Hire A Translator Or Translation Audio System
If your budget allows for this, and if you have a large number of guests who understand very little English, you could choose one of these two options.
The first is to hire someone who is fluent in both languages and who can translate vocally what is being said throughout the ceremony to your guests.
Alternatively, you could go all out and hire a translator and audio system which would provide wireless earpieces for those who need the translation.
Your translator would speak into a headset as they translate the wedding service with the audio being transmitted to those wearing the earpieces.
