"Wife Catching"
The practice of “Wife catching” is when the boy supposedly kidnaps the girl of his dreams at sunset with the help of close friends and keeps her at his family home for three days.It is believed that the more friends involved, the longer and happier time the couple will have together.
Even though the girl has agreed to the kidnapping, she puts up a struggle for theatrical purposes. After the three-day period, the couple is considered husband and wife and they return to the wife’s home to break the news to her family. In most cases the families have already agreed to the marriage so the wife catching is a ceremonial event.
©Kieron Nelson 2017 "Vanishing Cultures Photography" All rights reserved
