5 Weird and Fun Sock Traditions from Across the World

Socks can add a fun pop of color and variety to your wardrobe, all while helping to keep your feet protected and dry throughout the day. Yet, how much do you really know about this fun article of clothing? To help catch you up, here are five traditions around the world you likely never knew about socks.  

The Danish Wedding Tradition

Part of Danish wedding's ceremony includes a session of cutting off the groom's socks at the toe part. After the bridal dance, the male guests will circle the groom and slowly get closer and closer to him closing the circle. When the groom is completely encircled, the men will lift him up, grab a pair of scissors and cut his socks. This originates from medieval times where people only had one pair of socks. Once the groom was married they would cut the tips of his socks so that if he were to try to sleep with another woman, this woman would know that he was already a married man. Another reasoning for this tradition is that the bride will have to prove that she can sew.

The Ontario Sock Dance

There is a tradition among the population of North-eastern Ontario that punishes older brothers or sisters that have been beaten to the altar by a younger sibling. The ritual is carried out on the younger sibling's wedding day. At a specified time, the older sibling is called to the center of the stage and asked to remove his or her shoes and pull up his or her pant legs. The younger sibling or another member of the family then dresses the offender in a pair of multicoloured knee-high socks that are made specifically for the event by another family member. The socks are often also decorated with bells, ribbons, feathers and similar items designed to make them as funny as possible.

The older sibling then gets up and dances alone to a piece of music with a strong beat, during which time the guests surround the dancer, cheering, teasing and sometimes throwing money and change. Other guests sometimes join in for a few steps. At the end of the ritual, the money on the floor is collected and given to the newlyweds. The older sibling takes off the socks and keeps them as a souvenir.

BIRTHDAY SOCK TRADITION IN GERMANY

On the 25th Birthday, if a man is still unmarried the whole town will know about it thanks to a German tradition that has been going on for years. A garland of socks called Sockenkranz is strung outside the home and around the birthday boy’s property, so everyone can see that a member of the household has turned 25. Socks are filled with straws and waste paper, and hung up on a line. As he walks towards his house where the party usually takes place he has to down an alcoholic drink every few meters. This sock garland stays for several weeks. Hanging up the garland and taking it down are accompanied by parties, and drinking alcohol is an important part of that. This tradition is widespread in Lower Saxony and North-Rhine Westphalia.

EQUINOX SPRING SOCKS BURNING  

The concept of burning socks while drinking beer on the equinox began many years ago when Capt. Bob Turner, who managed the Annapolis Yacht Yard at the time, dropped his socks in a paint-roller tray, sprinkled them with lighter fluid and put a fire to the mess.

Other sailors embraced the event, ceremoniously stripping off socks and burning them because once boating season starts, nobody wears socks. Well, they don’t wear socks unless the temperature drops below 30 degrees Fahrenheit and winds increase to 17 knots. But, at all other times, sailors must wear boat shoes and socks.

CHRISTMAS SOCK STORY

What’s behind the holiday tradition of hanging socks on the fireplace?

The most popular story about why socks are hung at Christmas goes something like this:  A recently widowed man and father of three girls was having a tough time making ends meet. Even though his daughters were beautiful, he worried that their poor status would make it impossible for them to marry.

St. Nicholas was wandering through the town where the man lived and heard villagers discussing that family’s plight. He wanted to help but knew  the man would refuse any kind of charity directly. Instead, one night, he slid down the chimney of the family’s house and filled the girls’ recently laundered stockings, which happened to be drying by the fire, with gold coins. And then he disappeared. The girls awoke in the morning, overjoyed upon discovering the gold coins. Because of St. Nick’s generosity, the daughters were now eligible to wed and their father could rest easy.

There is one more tradition that is making waves among Indian men i.e. Funky Socks tradition. New age Indian men are making style statement of their own with funky, theme-based socks.

 Now that you know all of these awesome traditions about socks, you may be in the mood to buy more fun and exciting socks to add to your collection. At SockSoho, you can find premium quality, antibacterial and 100% cotton quirky theme-based socks.