Need a bilingual English/Italian wedding celebrant in the UK?
(Disponibile anche in italiano qui)
When I first became an accredited wedding celebrant with Humanists UK back in 2016 my main aim was to lead ceremonies in the UK in the English language. But having a home in Puglia in the South of Italy I also marketed myself for weddings in Italy as well. I soon got bookings from English-speaking clients for venues all over Italy and this has been a regular part of my celebrancy work ever since.
Then in 2021 I was approached by a lovely couple about whether I could lead a bilingual English/Italian wedding in the UK. He was English and she was Italian, and they were looking for a ceremony that could bridge the language divide between their two families. Although I lived in Italy for fifteen years and spoke Italian, I was nervous about the idea at first, but when I met them we clicked instantly. Writing their ceremony I soon realised that although not very fluent in Italian I was able to produce a ceremony that worked well in both languages because I had plenty of time to prepare.
I now have lots of experience of bilingual ceremonies
The ceremony itself was a huge success and I was especially touched by the feedback from the Italians who attended, many of whom were genuinely delighted that the couple had gone to such an effort to make them feel included. I found too that there is something incredibly rewarding about leading a ceremony where two cultures come together and leave with a more or less common understanding of what’s happened.
Since then, I’ve led several other weddings in the UK for English/Italian couples with similarly heart-warming results. To my surprise I’ve also been asked to lead bilingual ceremonies for Italian couples living in the UK. My initial thought was “why would two Italians want a non-native Italian speaker to lead their wedding?”
However, having now met quite a few Italian couples living and working in the UK I understand that if they have made the decision to have the ceremony in the UK it also means they are committed to a life here. Having a first language English speaker lead their ceremony sends a courteous but clear message to their families that the UK and not Italy is now their home.
Bilingual ceremonies can be even more exciting and dramatic
Since that first bilingual wedding in 2021 I’ve learnt that this type of ceremony is not just a matter of writing one paragraph in English and then repeating it in Italian, but that there are lots of techniques for producing a ceremony which is exciting and dramatic. For example, not everything needs to be translated – some things are better left to the imagination. One really practical tip is to plan and write the ceremony in one language and agree this with the couple before adding the second language. Otherwise you can end up with two ceremonies in two languages which increasingly diverge from one another and make the process twice as difficult!
If you’d like to discuss having a bilingual wedding which truly reflects your culture and aspirations then send me an email, DM me or fill out my contact form!
