Have you ever wondered why there seems to be so many weddings in June? Our travel schedule seems to be full of weddings every weekend and our social media feed is flooded with images of friends and family celebrating all over the country. In Montana, June weddings can be absolutely magical, especially if we’ve had a rough long winter. The grass is green, the mountains look absolutely picturesque, however, we can still have those freak late snows or insane afternoon rainstorms that can alter your wedding plans in the blink of an eye. So if you’re a June bride, always always always have a backup plan. We once had a bride from Hawaii on June 30 who got to see snow on her wedding day. You just never know.
Back to why there are so many June weddings. One historical origin story was because the goddess Juno, Goddess of Love and Marriage ( which June is named after), was the protector of all women, especially in marriage. By getting married during this month, the marriage would be blessed with happiness forever. Another story was that a person's annual bath fell during May or June and so a bride would smell her best. Flowers were used to cover unpleasant body odors which is where some say the bridal bouquet made its debut. Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon were married in June. However their marriage was not a happy one but I certainly wouldn’t blame Juno or Katherine for that disaster.
Now we can’t forget the practicality of when couples were married either. By getting married during June, if the bride were to be pregnant soon after, she would still be able to assist with the harvest and then the following year be able to continue to assist with the planting of seed and the following harvest. Luckily we don’t have to worry about such crazy logistics of life. It was also believed that if a child was born in the spring, they had a better chance of survival. It works for nature so why not.
Do you have any origin stories about June weddings? We’d love to hear what else is out there!