In the western world, white is the go-to color choice for anyone getting married in a dress. It’s hard to sort out clickbait from reliable sources when it comes to wedding history, but it seems clear that Victoria popularized the tradition, which may have been known to other European monarchs for generations beforehand.
An unattributed poem dating to the mid-nineteenth century captures a sense of what nearlyweds aspired to in English-speaking cultures of the day:
Married in white, you have chosen right
Married in grey, you will go far away
Married in black, you will wish yourself back
Married in red, you will wish yourself dead
Married in green, ashamed to be seen
Married in blue, you will always be true
Married in pearl, you will live in a whirl
Married in yellow, ashamed of your fellow
Married in brown, you will live in the town
Married in pink, your spirit will sink.
There’s plenty of other options for wedding colors beyond that poem. There’s a multicolored collection of wedding outfits at the Charleston Museum, dating from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries; that page also provides a different take on the symbolism of color:
In other cultures and in earlier times, colors were chosen for marriages based on their symbolic meanings. Green was often considered a symbol of fertility; blue was associated with the Virgin Mary and her innocence and motherhood. Red was worn in Eastern countries for weddings as a source of good luck. Yellow was the classic color of Hymen, the god of marriage for the Romans – who often wore a flame-yellow veil and saffron-colored shoes. In 18th century America, yellow was a popular wedding color, with blue second and lilac third. White and silver were in vogue for many 1750 British brides. And white has endured, symbolic of purity – impractical and thus even more special. It was often chosen to show off one’s wealth or royalty, as were the lengthy veils and elaborate styles of the dresses themselves.
Practicality is also an historic tradition: to one’s wedding, one might wear the finest clothing one owns, regardless of color.
White has become a classic, but it’s not the only option. If it speaks to you, wonderful! The image of a flowing white garment has strong wedding associations. If you’re thinking about something with a different style or palette, though, don’t shy away simply because it’s less common. This is your wedding, and you may have reasons that are more important to you than adhering to U.S. tradition. Maybe blue is what makes you feel true, and maybe not. What’s important is to be true to yourselves as you start in this new phase of life.