1. Tausug Wedding(Traditional and Modern)

2. Three types of Tausug Marriage

Arranged marriage (pagpangasawa) 3. Abduction (pagsaggau) 4. Elopement (pagdakup)

5. Arranged Marriages Graduation from Islamic school.Ability to read the Qur'an is highly valued in marriageable girls. 6. Arranged Marriage

Considered most ideal(legally proper,least violent, more prestigious) but the most time consuming and expensive marriage for the tausugs. 7. The decision of the parents is done with the consent of the male. 8. Islamic Marriage ritual is framed as a contract bet. The groom and the bride's father. 9. After the parents of the male and the male have chosen a female, the parents of the male, together with close relatives,gather(isun) to the female's house to ask for the hand of the girl in behalf of the male. Then, the two parties will decide for the brideswealth (ungsud). 10. An arranged marriage can also proceed through the institution of "surrendering to the parents of the woman" (maglillah pa maas sing babai).

11. Marriage by Abduction and Elopement Man with kalis (kris). While guns have replaced swords as practical weapons, bladed weapons still have importance as symbols of masculinity and bravery. 12.

a quick, relatively inexpensive, highly individual strategy for a young man to get the girl he desires who might otherwise not be available. 13. In spite of their seriousness, abductions are a game, and appeal to young men precisely because of the risk. 14. In Tausug belief an abduction is due to the desire of the boy, while an elopement implies desire on the part of the girl. 15. Most girls would rather be abducted than admit to elopement. 16. There is also a symbolic form of elopement called "going home to obtain a husband" (muuy magbana) in which a woman presents herself to the man or his parents announcing her desire to marry him.

Marriage by Abduction and Elopement 17. The Wedding 18. The Wedding

The length of the "engagement" is greatly variable. 19. In some cases, usually second marriage, the formal marriage ceremony may proceed a few days later. 20. It is longest when the girl is under age and has not yet menstruated 21. Although it is possible to "marry in a handkerchief" (kawin ha saputangan) in which the ceremony with the underage girl proceeds, the boy goes to live with his parents-in-law but does not have intercourse with the girl until she has come of age. 22. During the engagement period, the man may render, although not obligatory, services to his brides parents in the form of performing household chores.

23. The Wedding

The formal marriage ceremony takes place at the house of the woman, and is framed according to Islamic law as a sacred contract between the young man and the girl's father. The marriage festivities involve a large number of kith and kin from both sides and are generally an all-day affair.

24. The Wedding

On the day prior to the wedding, the groom's side delivers the entire bridewealth; any deviation from the formal demands is grounds to break off the engagement.

25. The Wedding

Preparations for the marriage begin very early the next morning in both houses. Kinsmen, friends, and guests of the couple will gather during the morning at the respective houses. A cow or water buffalo will usually be slaughtered; there will be xylophone or gong music performed by professional musicians, with considerable merrymaking, conversation, and eating. A feast is prepared, consisting of curried meat, rice, fruits, sweets and coffee. Men and women, of course, eat separately. Guests include not only the immediate kinsmen and neighbors of the couple, but also distant political or military allies.

26. The Wedding 27. The Wedding

In the late afternoon the groom is carried on the shoulders of his friends, or rides by horse, to the house of the girl in a large procession consisting of all the guests who had previously assembled at his house, amid raucous yelling and shooting of guns. The marriage ceremony, consisting of prayers and ritual in both Arabic and Tausug, takes place later in the afternoon. The girl is secluded while the ritual is conducted between the young man and the girl's father. Following the ceremony, the groom is led to the bride where he symbolically touches her on the forehead. Later, during the feast entertainment the newly married couple will sit together stone-faced with no expression of emotion.

28. The Wedding 29.

Informant: Al-Ahmar Kasim 30. Source: http://shoeboxfame.multiply.com/photos/album/13/Traditional_Tausug_Wedding_Ceremony 31. http://www.zawaj.com/weddingways/tausag/tausag4.html