Chinese Wedding
Traditions & Rites
Your definitive guide to Chinese wedding customs across Singapore's major dialect groups — from Guo Da Li (过大礼) and Si Dian Jin (四点金) to the auspicious tea ceremony.
Hokkien Traditions
The largest dialect group in Singapore. Hokkien customs place heavy emphasis on sweetness, prosperity, and blessings for future generations.
🏮 Guo Da Li (过大礼) — Groom's Betrothal Gifts
- Betrothal Baskets: 2 or 4 multi-tier traditional baskets carrying auspicious gifts.
- Suckling Pig / Roasted Pork: Symbolizing the bride's purity and marital bliss.
- Pin Jin (聘金): Auspicious cash gift wrapped in red packets (even numbers like $888 or $1,888).
- Sugar Canes (甘蔗): Essential Hokkien symbol representing a sweet, thriving marriage from root to tip.
- Traditional Cakes (米香): Puffed rice biscuits signifying "Eat rice biscuits, marry a good husband" (呷米香，嫁好尪).
- Dragon & Phoenix Candles: 2 pairs (Groom keeps Dragon, Bride receives Phoenix).
🧧 Hui Li (回礼) — Bride's Return Gifts
- Returning half of the groom's gifts, portion of the roasted pork (center part), and Pin Jin portion.
- 2 bottles of orange syrup or honey symbolizing sweet return blessings.
- A pair of trousers, belt, and wallet with auspicious coin for the groom.
Teochew Traditions
The second-largest dialect group in Singapore, renowned for their intricate gold jewellery tradition (Si Dian Jin) and celebratory confections.
✨ Si Dian Jin (四点金) — Four Pieces of Gold
A mandatory Teochew tradition presented by the Groom's mother to the Bride, symbolizing welcoming her into the family with utmost wealth and honor.
- Gold Necklace (项链): Complete unity and harmony.
- Gold Ring (戒指): Eternal love and commitment.
- Gold Bangle/Bracelet (手镯): Blessed hands and enduring fortune.
- Gold Earrings (耳环): Attentive and harmonious family relations.
🍬 Traditional Teochew Candies & Pastries
- Lao Hua & Lao Gao (劳花与劳糕): Sesame and peanut brittle candies wishing the couple sweet, sticky romance.
- Wax Gourds & Dragon Candies: Traditional auspicious candies presented in even pairs.
- Mandarin Oranges: Symbol of good luck (Da Ji 大吉).
Cantonese & Hakka
Rich in ceremonial flair, dramatic roasted pig presentations, Dragon-Phoenix bangles, and elaborate tea ceremonies.
🐉 Dragon & Phoenix Bangles (龙凤镯)
- Heavy pure gold bangles embossed with the Dragon (Groom) and Phoenix (Bride).
- Bestowed by parents and senior elders during the customary tea ceremony.
- Stacked on both wrists as a badge of honor and marital prosperity.
🍖 Whole Roasted Suckling Pig & Wedding Pastries
- Whole Roasted Pig (烧猪): Groom presents a whole golden roasted pig; head and tail are kept intact.
- Tai Thong Cake (嫁女饼): Red bean paste, lotus seed, and winter melon Chinese flaky cakes distributed to relatives.
- Traditional Wine: 2 bottles of premium Chinese brandy or Western wine.
Hainanese Traditions
Close-knit and deeply customary, emphasizing abundance with fresh coconuts, Hainanese steamed cakes, and ancestral reverence.
🥥 Auspicious Coconut & Betrothal Rites
- Fresh Coconuts (椰子): Signifying "Grandfather and Son" (Ye Zi 爷子), symbolizing fruitful offspring and family lineage.
- Hainanese Yi Bua (薏粑): Traditional steamed glutinous rice cake stuffed with coconut shreds, peanuts, and sesame seeds.
- Auspicious Dried Seafood: Dried scallops, abalone, and sea cucumber representing luxury and culinary abundance.
☕ Hainanese Customary Tea Service
- Customary tea brewed with sweet red dates, dried longans, and lotus seeds.
- Strict serving order from paternal grandparents, maternal grandparents, parents, to elder aunts and uncles.
Key Ceremonies Every Singapore Couple Performs
Guo Da Li (过大礼)
The formal betrothal ceremony where the groom and a married female elder deliver betrothal baskets, Pin Jin, and customary gifts to the bride's home on an auspicious date.
An Chuang (安床)
The blessing and setting up of the bridal matrimonial bed by a "Good Fortune Lady" (好命婆), adorned with red bedding, 8-treasure box (dried longans, red dates, lotus seeds, peanuts), and a young boy rolling across the bed.
Shang Tou (梳头)
Hair combing ceremony symbolizing adulthood and passage into marriage. Performed by parents using a wooden comb reciting the four traditional blessings (一梳梳到尾, 二梳白发齐眉...).
Tea Ceremony (敬茶)
The most important emotional ceremony where the bride and groom kneel and serve sweet tea to parents and elders to show gratitude, receiving blessings, gold jewellery, and red packets (Ang Baos).
Singapore Wedding Ang Bao (Red Packet) Rates
Planning your wedding or attending a banquet? Check our comprehensive 2026 Singapore hotel banquet rates per table and guest ang bao recommendations.