Unity (wedding) sand ceremony description and origin

Unity or wedding sand ceremony in the recent year became more and more popular among couples planning their wedding, however not all of our new clients are acquainted with it, so we decided to summarise the process and origin of this unique ceremony.

Basically it symbolises the same as the wedding candle ceremony, which was popular in the previous decade: your common life after the wedding. With the spreading of outdoor weddings couples just had to find a “wind-safe” solution instead of lighting candles.

The origins of the unity sand ceremony are debatable. Most of the information sources mention native Americans of Hawaii as the very first ones in the World involving this beautiful ceremony in their weddings. It sounds credible, if we think of the wonderful sandy beaches of Hawaii. As per these sources, the Hawaiian used seashells and beach sand during this ceremony.

For the unity sand ceremony you will need three bottles. Two (smaller) ones with sand (of different colours) in it and a (bigger) one in the middle. 21st century couples rather use decoration sand instead of natural sand. The sands symbolise the bride and the groom. Nowadays wedding celebrants propose to use different colours, in most cases white for the bride and black for the groom, but of course You can choose colours matching the colour theme of your wedding decoration. Or if You are coming from a beach- or river-side location, You can use the sands of your home-towns (after drying them well).

Unity sand ceremony usually takes place after the change of the rings, first kiss and signatures, but timing is flexible, of course. The wedding celebrant introduces the symbolism of the ceremony and then ask the bride and the groom to take their “own” bottles and pour layers of different colours in the middle bottle symbolising their common life together.

It’s not rare that the celebrant also has an own bottle of sand. In this case he/she pours a thicker layer to serve as a basis of a good marriage like his/her words and good wishes told during the ceremony. For example it's a nice gesture to use an extra bottle to have 3 colours of sand: red, white and green like in the flag of Hungary.

As you can see wedding sand ceremony can be personalised as per your wishes and origins. The middle bottle can stand on the shelf of your common home, and whenever you look at it, you will remember one of the most important day of your life: your wedding day; and you will remember the tie you knot with your other half.