Rites Associated With the Wedding Garments and Traditions Of Tlemcen: A Bride's Bath
Issue 54
Sabah Hamza
The wedding bath is one of the main rituals in an integral part of the wedding ceremony in Algerian traditions. Baths are taken two days before the wedding, and after wedding.
In Western Algeria, the Tlemcenian bride is distinguished by her trousseau (her clothes and jewellery), which has a long history and which she wears on every occasion, including the day of the wedding bath. I attempted to study the customs and traditions of Tlemcenian society in order to identify the type of clothing, toiletries and tools that the bride takes to her pre-wedding bath and her first bath after the wedding in addition to food and drinks.
For women, baths serve the function of cafés. Women enjoy their freedom and spontaneity at the baths, and they are the site of many ceremonies and celebrations that are an integral part of the region’s authenticity and identity. The baths in the city of Tlemcen play this role. They have retained their cultural, health-related and spiritual heritage because they provide a place for people to interact. They have always provided entertainment and opportunities to develop beauty skills and to learn to use traditional cosmetics to nurture the body with cleanliness and purity.