Email Enquiry: Wedding Ang Pows & Guo Da Li

from garynchristine.com

One of my readers has this enquiry:

"Hi, I'm actually a future mother-in-law who is absolutely blur about Chinese Customs. My daughter will be getting married next year and we'll be given tables by her future Father-in-law (he's paying).

Do we keep all the wedding dinner's Ang Pows that our guests give us? (It is my intention to let my daughter and Son-in-law have them in the end.) Thanks for your advise.

Also, what is Guo Da Li for?"

"Hi Val,

Thank you for your email.

I feel that in the past, the bride's family will keep all the ang pow money that her family members and relatives give. However, in this new generation, mother-in-laws like you are more understanding about the financial state of their daughters.

In a wedding, I believe you agree with me a lot of money is spent. Sometimes, the newly-wed couples spent all their savings just to get married. Thus, there will be some caring mothers like you who will give the daughters the collected ang pow money.

I feel that there is no one rule that says you can't do that.

It is the money you have collected and you have the choice to give to your child. The money will come in handy to help them pay for any outstanding expenditure that they may have.

For more posts on Chinese customs, you can go to this link "Chinese wedding customs".

For Guo Da Li, it is a also known as bethrodal. It is whereby the groom will deliver gifts to the bride's house a few days before the wedding day.

There will be an exchange of gifts between 2 families.

The gifts include "Si Dian Jin" (4 pieces of gold jewelry for the bride from the mother-in-law), canned pork legs etc.

For more, you can click on this post on bethrodal and my "Guo Da Li".