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Andy'sWedding Guide

Thanks to Sharon C., mother of the bride,
for suggesting this page.

Where do we get the name “bridegroom”?   It sounds like stable duty! 

The definitions of Groom are 1. A person employed to take care of horses or a stable. 2. A bridegroom. (A man who is about to be married or has recently been married.) 3. One of several officers in an English royal household. 4. Archaic a. A man. b. A male servant. 

"Groom" (usage #1 and #4 above) at first meant "young man" or "male servant." But because young male servants were likely to be put to work taking care of horses, the meaning of "groom" shifted over the years to mean a male servant caring for horses, and then, by extension, his duties. "Grooming" eventually broadened beyond horses to apply to any sort of hygiene or preparation, and even widened to other uses, such as "grooming" a candidate for office.  

But that's not the same "groom" as in "bridegroom" (usage #2 above). 

The word "bride" has meant "woman about to be married, or just married" ever since it was first borrowed into Old English (as "bryd") from the Germanic languages back around 1000 A.D. 

The adjective "bridal," did not originally just mean "pertaining to a bride or wedding," as it does today.   The "bride-ale" was the wedding feast (Old English "brydealu"), named for the vast quantities of ale served.

The original form of "bridegroom" was "brydguma," combining "bryd" (bride) with the Old English word "guma," which meant "man," and which was a completely different word than "groom."  

Over the years, people stopped using "guma" by itself, but were still using the term "brydguma." Eventually people began substituting the more familiar "groom" for the by-now obsolete "guma," and "brydguma" became "bridegroom."  
 

Where does the phrase "Tie the Knot" come from? 

In ancient times the marriage ceremony in many parts of the world consisted only of a priest or the family patriarch knotting together the garments of the bride and the groom to symbolize a permanent union. The practice, still a custom in some countries today, is the basis for the universal saying to tie the knot, meaning to get married, for which tying the knot has been a symbol in England since at least 1275.  

The Greeks followed the custom of untying the knot to declare a marriage. Brides used the Herculean knot, a representation of the snakes entwined on the rod of Mercury, to fasten their woolen girdles. Only the bridegroom was allowed to untie this knot, praying as he did so that the gods would make his marriage as fruitful as that of Hercules - that is, very fruitful indeed, for Hercules once married the 50 daughters of Thestius, all of whom gave birth to his children on the same night. This alas was not one of the legendary 12 labors of Hercules.

Andy's Encyclopedia of Men's Clothes contains complete information
on every article of men's clothing:

Forty-Nine chapters on what to look for in quality features, tips on fit, fabric, styles,
how to look your best, and garment history.  

PLUS there are chapters on fabrics, clothing care, foreign size conversions and grooming.
 

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