This may seem to the bridal pair to be a very personal moment, and something to either savour privately, or shout out to the roof-tops! However there are specific traditions linked to the announcing of the engagement.
This news should be shared first with the bride’s parents, who would be expecting it since the groom-to-be will hopefully have made his intentions known to them at an earlier date. It used to be imperative that a man ask permission of a woman’s father, or his blessing, in order to marry her. Nowadays the formal ‘asking for a woman’s hand’ is not necessary. The groom’s parents are next to be notified. However this announcement could be done at some event where both sets of parents are together so they both hear it at the same time.
It is a good idea to have one’s bridal party planned already by this point, so that as family and friends are made aware of the upcoming nuptials, they can be immediately asked to fulfill a particular role. This can avoid speculation and disappointment among friends and family.
The announcement can then be published in a local newspaper if one so desires. Usually it is the bride’s parents who plan, word, and pay for this, although the bridal couple could do it themselves. The announcement can take most any form to suit the bridal couple’s own personalities, but the more traditional engagement announcement begins with the name of the bride’s parents and the area in which they live, who have the pleasure of announcing the engagement of their daughter, her name and position in the family; to the groom-to-be, his name and position in his family; followed by the groom’s parents name and area of abode.
