Marry on Tuesday - It's a Good Day for a Wedding

by Jennifer Cram - Brisbane Marriage Celebrant  © 16 July 2019  | Days of the Week |

The old wedding  rhyme (one of many wedding superstitions for which there is absolutely no evidence) goes
But if you look at older beliefs and traditions, and delve into the history of why we call Tuesday, Tuesday,  there are lots more interesting reasons for choosing to marry on a Tuesday!

Why we call it Tuesday

The Babylonians knew of only five planets, so they named five days after them, and tagged the other two days after the Sun and the Moon. The Romans adopted the practice when they standardised on a seven day week (used to be 8 days in the Roman week, how confusing was that) and designated Sunday and Monday as the first two days of the week.

The Romans, taking their lead from the Babylonians, named what we call Tuesday for the planet and the god, Mars. Tuesday was called Dies Martis (or Mars' Day) and Romance languages such as Spanish, French, and Italian reflect this in what they call Tuesday (martes, mardi, martedi)- so how did we English-speakers get Tuesday? History again - our English names for days of the week have been influenced by Germanic and Norse myths and the Anglo-Saxon roots of our language. When Germanic and Norse people adapted the Roman system by identifying the Roman gods with their own deities, Mars, god of war, morphed into the Norse god Tyr, the one-handed god of the sword. Hence (in Norwegian) Tirsdag, Tuesday.

Because it was the day of Mars, ancient Romans avoided getting married on Tuesdays. For a long time, in Norse tradition, Tuesday was considered the best day to start a war!

Some fun reasons for getting married on Tuesday

The Romans believed that, because Mars is both driven and enthusiastic, and, as well as being god of war, he was an agricultural guardian. Nowadays we might see him as some sort of environmental warrior, but in Roman tradition virility as a kind of life force was an essential characteristic of Mars. As an agricultural guardian, he directs his energies toward creating conditions that allow crops to grow. Being focused on growth, on feeding the relationship,  together with having a huge drive to make your marriage a success can only be a plus. In Jewish tradition, Tuesday is believed to be 'good for Heaven and good for the creations'

Benefits of having your wedding on a Tuesday

Being a weekday, a Tuesday is good for

• Lower venue costs
• Supplier discounts
• Limiting the size of your guest list
• Weddings with short planning time
• Almost guaranteeing availability of the venue if you've got your heart set on a very popular one
  

You can make marrying on a Tuesday a lot easier if you

• Check whether it is a public holiday either where you are getting married or where your guests are traveling from. This is less likely than a Monday, but Tuesday public holidays do happen
  
• Send out your save the dates as early as possible
• Make sure you mention that your wedding is on a Tuesday (as well as the date)
• Tell your nearest and dearest by you've picked that particular Tuesday (and why you really do want them at your wedding
• Be prepared for people declining - and don't take it personally

Thanks for reading!