Married when the year is new, he’ll be loving, kind and true.
When February birds do mate, you wed not dread your fate.
If you wed when March winds blow, joy and sorrow both you’ll know.
Marry in April when you can, joy for Maiden and for Man.
Marry in the month of May, and you’ll surely rue the day.
Marry when June roses grow, over land and sea you’ll go.
Those who in July do wed, must labor for their daily bread.
Whoever wed in August be, many a change is sure to see.
Marry in September’s shrine, your living will be rich and fine.
If in October you do marry, love will come but riches tarry.
If you wed in bleak November, only joys will come, remember.
When December snows fall fast, marry and true love will last.
–Anonymous
Historically, June has always been the most popular month for weddings. There are many ideas of why this month is so popular…
- The month of June derives its name from Juno, the Roman goddess of marriage. It was thought that couples who married in June would be blessed with prosperity and happiness.
- During medieval times a person’s annual bath (yes, you read that right — just one really thorough bath per year!) usually fell in May or June, meaning that June brides still smelled relatively fresh. The brides would have smelled more pleasant then than before but just to be safe, brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide their body odor. Hence the custom of carrying a bouquet when walking down the aisle!
- On a practical note, others chose June in order to time conception so births wouldn’t interfere with harvest work.
- Also, ancient tradition promoted it would be most unlucky to marry in the month of May because in Roman times the Feast of the Dead and the Festival of the Goddess of Chastity both occurred in May. (I doubt that husbands would be too inclined to want their new partners mourning lost loves on their honeymoon!)
The 1948 movie “June Bride,” starring Bette Davis and Robert Montgomery, reinforced the connection of weddings and the month of June.
The 1954 musical “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” continued to reinforce this tradition with the song “June Bride.”
“Oh, they say when you marry in June you’re a bride all your life,
and the bridegroom who marries in June gets a sweet-heart for a wife.
Winter weddings can be gay like a Christmas holiday,
but the JUNE BRIDE hears the song of a spring that lasts all summer long.
By the light of the silvery moon, home you ride side by side
with the echo of Mendelssohn’s tune in your hearts as you ride.
For they say when you marry in June you will always be a bride.”
– “June Bride” from the movie “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”
Congratulations to those of you getting married in June . . . you will always be a bride!
I was wondering about this very topic myself the other day, and you’ll be pleased to know your result was the first that came up for “what is the significance of being a June bride” on Google.
However, I need to make one small correction: Per the IRS, it doesn’t matter when you were married during the year. A couple can get married on Dec. 31 and file that year’s taxes as a married couple a few months later. Source: http://www.irs.gov/publications/p17/ch02.html#en_US_2014_publink1000170745
I’ve been analyzing a Japanese manga where the term “June Bride” came up (in the English translation), but I did not understand the relevance of the term in the story and blew it off without looking it up since the use of the term and in-story context was minimal.
While randomly Googling, I found out that a separate Japanese anime also referenced this term and realized there may be some significance behind the term in that manga I mentioned earlier, so I decided to look it up and came here.
Now I have a little more appreciation for the term and the context it was used for within that manga. Interesting. Thank you for this article.
Is this a good or bad: “Whoever wed in August be, many a change is sure to see.”
What are the implications for change in this Irish wedding tradition?