Abstract:By studying the differences between Chinese and American wedding customs and the cultures it reflects, we can find that there are still many problems caused by cultural differences in cross-cultural communication. The difference in wedding customs is a specific example of the cultural differences between those two countries. For example, the different geographical environments form different cultures, different religious beliefs and ethics, values and outlook on people’s life. It can create different wedding customs. So, in this paper, we study the differences between Chinese and American wedding customs. Under the integration of various cultures, the cultures are getting merged. For example, the white wedding dresses in America nowadays appear in Chinese weddings, so the integration of Chinese and American cultures has opened up a wide road for intercultural communication. This paper aims to reflect the integration of Chinese and American cultures in modern times and the complement of advantages and disadvantages through the cultural differences between Chinese and American wedding customs.

Key words: Chinese and American weddings; Wedding customs; cultural differences; cultural integration

Contents

Abstract

中文摘要

Introduction-1

I.- Comparison of Traditional Wedding Ceremony between China and America-3

A.-Wedding Ceremony-3

B.-Wedding Dress-4

C.-Wedding Place and Wedding Banquet-5

II.-Differences between Chinese and American Weddings from the Perspective of Culture and Etiquette-7

A.-Chinese Culture-7

B.-American Culture-8

C.-Differences between Chinese and American Etiquette-8

III. Comparison of Customs between Chinese and American Weddings-10

A.-Geographic and Historical Reasons-10

B.-Religious and Moral Differences-11

Conclusion-12

Bibliography-13

Acknowledgements-14