Second describe topic is congratulatory money present. Congratulatory money means heartfelt gifts for weddings, births and other celebrations. It was originally used as a taken of gratitude and tip given to those who helped us during the celebration, which is a milestone in our lives. Now it is a custom for guests attending a wedding reception to wrap money in a gift bag to celebrate their marriage (Wedding Park Magazine, 2018). There are two manners about congratulatory money.
Price
First of all, guest must be putting in new bills. It is a basic manner. In general, people should put 30,000 yen in an envelope (Minnano Wedding, 2018). This includes food and presents. The amount of money you put in as age increases. Also, it is prohibited to putting an even number of money because it means it will be divided.
Envelope
There is also a rule in the envelope. There are various kinds of envelopes including weddings, funerals, adults’ ceremony and entrance ceremony. It chooses 'mizuhiki' envelopes at weddings. The word 'mizuhiki' means 'one-time celebration.' (Marry, 2018). Also, People write name on this envelope with a Fudepen rather than a normal pen.
There are many manners in each congratulatory money presents. Other countries such as Germany do not have a custom of celebrating, and in America, gifts are usually given. There are cases where cash is handed over, but compared to Japan, it is relatively low. There is also a custom in which bride and groom make present list of things and guests give it to them.
Dress code
Women basically wear dresses. It's against manners to wear the same white dress as the bride. Also, wearing only dark colors such as black is bad manners. There are rules in the case of Japanese dress. It's not different to wear a kimono. However, Unmarried women wear a “Furisode” and married women wear a plain kimono. Men usually wear black suits, white shirts and ties. Both male and female guests should not stand out more than the main character. Rules on clothes are not well known, so many people get embarrassed when they arrive at the venue. According to Kurashi Nisuta, 'I attended my first wedding ceremony a white jacket. I was worried about the eyes around me, but I didn't know the white jacket was bad, so I was embarrassed.' (KN, 2018).
However, Japanese weddings are declining in recent years. There is a problem that the number of people getting married is declining due to the declining birthrate and aging population, but the biggest cause is it increasing in the number of brides and grooms holding weddings abroad. According to Zexy, 10 percent of the groom and bridegrooms hold wedding ceremonies abroad (Zexy, 2018). According to Wedding Style, there are two reasons. First, there are many bride and groom who want to have a wedding that they cannot experience in Japan. Second, Japanese people are easy for go to abroad by globalization (WS, 2017). Also, 26 percent of the bride and groom have examined about getting married overseas. However, most people drop out because it takes the high cost (Zexy, 2018). There are no celebratory money present for wedding abroad, and guests must bear the transportation and accommodation expenses. Also, the rules and manners vary depending on the country and wedding styles, so the burden is great for guests.
Conclusion
This paper describes rules and manners of Japanese wedding. There are Temple type, Christian type and Public type in Japanese wedding. Also, there are specific manner for congratulatory money present and it has rules in dress codes. Not only the host, but guests should also follow the manners and rules and contribute to the memories of a lifetime.