Nigerian wedding traditions

Nigeria has more than 250 ethnic groups. Wedding traditions vary sharply. The three largest groups most often seen in North American diaspora weddings:

• Yoruba — southwestern Nigeria. An elaborate introduction, juju and Afrobeat, and aso-ebi, matching family attire.
• Igbo — southeastern Nigeria. Igba Nkwu, the wine-carrying, is the traditional marriage rite. Kola nut rituals matter.
• Hausa-Fulani — northern Nigeria. Predominantly Muslim. Weddings blend Nigerian customs with an Islamic ceremony.

Efik, Ibibio, Ijaw, Tiv, and many other groups have their own practices. Ask which group's traditions this couple is following.

Most Nigerian-American weddings include two ceremonies, both treated as essential:

1. Traditional ceremony — ethnic-specific rituals, often on one day.
2. Western white wedding — church or civil, often on another day.

Different outfits, sometimes different guest lists, sometimes different venues.

• Introduction ceremony — 120 min. The groom's family officially requests the bride. Gifts, negotiation, the Igbo kola nut when that is the tradition, and music. It may be weeks before the wedding, the day before, or the morning of.
• Traditional attire — Yoruba iro, buba, and gele for the bride, agbada for the groom. Igbo colors, George fabric, and coral beads. Hausa dress and henna.
• Aso-ebi. Family cloth. Extended family and close friends wear coordinated fabric, so sections of the crowd match.
• Bride price.Historically the groom's family paid the bride's family. Modern families treat the negotiation as symbolic, as an actual exchange, or they skip it. Ask how this family frames it before you photograph the moment as a transaction.

• Live bands playing Afrobeat, juju, highlife, and gospel.
• A DJ blending Nigerian, African, Caribbean, and American music.
• An MC who runs the day with storytelling and the crowd.
• Money spraying. Guests throw or place money on the couple as they dance.
• A long reception, often past midnight.

• North American communities in Houston, Atlanta, the DC-Baltimore area, New York, Chicago, and Toronto keep active wedding traditions.
• The UK Nigerian community has its own layered practice, including London-specific habits.
• Generation. First-generation weddings tend to follow traditional practice more closely. Later generations adapt more freely.

• Traditional ceremony. Full-length outfits before it starts, the introduction, the gifts, the kola nut if it is included, family in aso-ebi, and the gele.
• Money spraying. A fast shutter for bills in the air, guests placing money, the couple still dancing, and the floor covered in notes.
• The rest of the day. Wide frames. The room is visually dense. A second and third shooter help. Coverage days of 12 hours or more are normal.