A wedding cake is a must at Japanese weddings, symbolizing the sharing of the couple's happiness with everyone.

▲ At Japanese weddings, there is always a wedding cake.

Reported and photographed by reporter Huang Shiyuan / Japan

In Western-style romantic weddings, essential elements include a white wedding dress, a church, and a wedding cake. Japan, which once fully embraced Western culture, has seen church-style weddings become as common as traditional Shinto-style ceremonies. If you have the chance to attend a Japanese friend’s wedding, you’ll definitely notice that there’s a wedding cake served during the banquet, and alsothe “wedding cake cutting ceremony” and the “FIRST BITE.”.

The wedding cake cutting ceremony signifies the couple cutting the cake together. After the “cutting ritual,” the bride and groom slice the cake and distribute it to all the guests at the banquet. This represents “sharing the couple’s happiness with everyone” and also symbolizes “the couple’s journey forward together from this day onward.”


▲ After the cutting ceremony, the bride and groom slice the cake and share it with all the guests at the banquet, symbolizing “sharing the couple’s happiness with everyone.”

The FIRST BITE ceremony follows the cake cutting. “BITE” means “to bite” in English, so the bride and groom feed each other cake. When the groom feeds the bride, it represents “I will never let you go hungry for the rest of your life”; when the bride feeds the groom, it symbolizes “I will always prepare delicious meals for you.” It is said that whoever does the feeding better will hold the upper hand in their future married life. In Hiroshima, the feeding utensils are particularly unique, using various sizes of rice paddles or okonomiyaki turners—local specialty items.


▲ When the bride feeds the groom, it symbolizes “I will always prepare delicious meals for you.” In Hiroshima, rice paddles are used to feed the cake.

Additionally, at Japanese banquets, there is always a candle-lighting ceremony. The way it’s carried out may vary slightly, but mainly because the candles at Japanese weddings symbolize a “warm family.” The number of candles lit represents the number of blessings the couple will receive, so the activity of the newlyweds walking around the tables lighting candles is very popular at Japanese weddings. As for blowing out the candles, it symbolizes “placing hopes in them to make wishes come true.”


▲ %In Japanese wedding ceremonies, it symbolizes “a warm family,” and the number of candles lit represents the number of blessings received.