【英语趣味课堂】印度尼西亚婚礼-Indonesian Wedding

Sunny: So, Isthma, can you tell me about the wedding ceremonies in Indonesia?

Isthma: The wedding ceremonies in Indonesia are pretty large, but it depends on the family as well, and the couple. We usually have it in halls, but also, some people have it in mosques¹, where they usually do the officials, the first stage first. And usually, it doesn't cost a lot of money, I think, because you already have the hallways and the mosques. Or usually, people have it in their homes, so it's very convenient.

 

Sunny: So, what age is like the average age for getting married?

 

Isthma: The average age for getting married for a woman is probably around 24 until 27, and for guys, for men, it's usually 27 until 30, early 30s, yeah. So, pretty young, I guess, compared to other countries.

 

Sunny: Who pays for the wedding?

 

Isthma: I think both sides pay for the wedding, but I think the groom² would pay a higher percentage of it. It also depends on their compromise³. I think they have the compromise of, or decide like which they have to pay or, you know, the girl's side have to pay. So, I think it would be their own decision.

 

Sunny: And how about the typical gifts you get from a wedding?

 

Isthma: The typical gifts would be money. We usually have a big box at the reception, before you come in, and it would be in envelopes, of course. That's usually it, yeah. But from the groom, maybe they do provide, like they give beds or, as you said, refrigerator or any other households.

 

Sunny: How about the women? Usually, do women work when they get married, or are they usually housewives?

 

Isthma: Again, it depends on the couple. But usually, women are housewives, because they have to take care of their husband, and they have to be at home when their husband comes home. Usually, after a few years, if they do have a child, of course, the wife would have to stay home and take care of the child or the baby.

 

Sunny: How about the divorce⁴ rate? Is divorce common?

 

Isthma: Divorces⁵ are uncommon⁶ in Indonesia, just because the majority of Indonesians are Muslims, and we don't - it's frowned⁷ upon in Indonesia. So I think that's another reason why the percentage is really low for divorces, yeah.

 

Sunny: Is there anything unique about the Indonesia wedding?

 

Isthma: I think one unique thing - well, I think there are a lot of unique things in Indonesia; I think for every culture - we have our own traditional clothes that we have to wear. So every culture in every island maybe they have like their own special clothes that they need to wear, and it's very different from each island, yeah.

 

Sunny: Okay, thank you.

 

Isthma: Thank you.

 

重点词汇：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the lesson

early 30s

 

They get married in their early 30s.

 

People in their early thirties are about 30-33 years old. Mid⁸ thirties would be 34-36, and late thirties 37-39. Notice the following:

 

I got married in my early 40s.

My parents married in their early 20s.

compromise

 

Both sides pay, depending on the compromise.

 

Compromise often occurs in business or politics when people or groups with different demands reach an agreement. For example, Group A wants 20%, Group B offers 10%, so they compromise on 15%. Notice the following:

 

Let's meet and discuss a compromise.

After a long meeting, the two sides finally reached a compromise.

bride's side

 

The couple decides if the bride's side pays.

 

A bride is a woman getting married. The' bride's side' is her family and friends. Notice the following:

 

In the US, the bride's side usually pays for the wedding.

Hi. Are you on the bride's side or the groom's?

majority

 

The majority are Muslims.

 

In informal usage⁹, 'majority' is similar in meaning to 'most'. Notice the following:

 

In the US, the majority of high school students have part-time jobs.

In the US, most high school students have part-time jobs.

traditional clothes

 

Every culture has its own traditional clothes.

 

Traditional clothes were or have been a part of the country's culture for a long time. Notice the following:

 

Traditional clothes in Japan would include the Kimono.

America is a young country, so an example of traditional clothes would be, Levis if course!

1 mosques   

清真寺； 伊斯兰教寺院，清真寺； 清真寺，伊斯兰教寺院( mosque的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why make us believe that this tunnel runs underneath the mosques? 为什么要让我们相信这条隧洞是在清真寺下？
• The city's three biggest mosques, long fallen into disrepair, have been renovated. 城里最大的三座清真寺，过去年久失修，现在已经修复。

2 groom   

vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁

参考例句：

• His father was a groom.他父亲曾是个马夫。
• George was already being groomed for the top job.为承担这份高级工作，乔治已在接受专门的培训。

3 compromise   

n.妥协；妥协方案；vt.损害；vi.妥协，让步

参考例句：

• The spokesman made it clear that no compromise was yet in sight.发言人表明，目前还不会妥协。
• The probable outcome of the talks is a compromise.会谈的结果很可能是妥协。

4 divorce   

n.离婚；分离；vi.离婚；vt.离婚；脱离

参考例句：

• Did he divorce his wife or did she divorce him?是他要和妻子离婚，还是妻子要和他离婚？
• None of us like the divorce of word and deed.我们都不喜欢言行不一。

5 divorces   

n.离婚( divorce的名词复数 )；分离v.与…离婚( divorce的第三人称单数 )；分离；与（某人）离婚，判（某人）离婚

参考例句：

• "As for Bettie's marriages and divorces,'said Shen-ming, "I've talked with him about them. 慎明道：“关于Bertie结婚离婚的事，我也和他谈过。 来自汉英文学 - 围城
• He's getting married again, after two divorces, so he obviously hasn't profited by his experiences. 他两次离婚之后又结婚，显然没有吸取以往的教训。 来自辞典例句

6 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。

7 frowned   

皱眉( frown的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She frowned in puzzlement. 她迷惑地蹙着眉。
• The mother frowned when her son failed in his exam. 儿子考试不及格时，母亲皱着眉。

8 mid   

adj.中央的，中间的

参考例句：

• Our mid-term exam is pending.我们就要期中考试了。
• He switched over to teaching in mid-career.他在而立之年转入教学工作。

9 usage   

n.惯用法，使用，用法

参考例句：

• I am clear about the usage of this word at last.这个词的用法我算是弄明白了。
• The usage is now firmly established.这种用法现已得到确认。