Wedding anniversary
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A wedding anniversary is an anniversary which falls on the month and day a particular wedding took place, and which recurs every subsequent year. Married persons who regard the day of their marriage as important may mark the occasion in some special way.
Broader groups in society, especially the families (including children) of such a couple, may help to celebrate such events; this is particularly common on the 40th, 50th, and 60th anniversaries.
Retailers (especially jewellers), have encouraged gift-giving on these occasions, and have often suggested a hierarchy of types of gifts to reflect the importance of longer years of marriage (and perhaps of greater ability to purchase more expensive gifts).[citation needed]
[edit] Traditional gifts
Etiquette in Society, in Business, in Politics and at Home by Emily Post, published in 1922, contained suggestions for wedding anniversary gifts for 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 50 and 75 years.[1] Wedding anniversary gift suggestions for other years were added in later editions and publications;[citation needed] they now comprise what is referred to as the "traditional" list. Generally speaking the longer the period, the more precious and/or durable the material associated with it.
- 1 year is a paper anniversary
- 2 years is a cotton anniversary
- 3 years is a leather anniversary
- 4 years is a linen anniversary
- 5 years is a wood anniversary
- 6 years is an iron anniversary
- 7 years is a wool anniversary
- 8 years is a bronze anniversary
- 9 years is a copper anniversary
- 10 years is a tin (or aluminium) anniversary
- 11 years is a steel anniversary
- 12 years is a silk anniversary
- 13 years is a lace anniversary
- 14 years is an ivory anniversary
- 15 years is a crystal anniversary
- 17 years is a turquoise anniversary
- 20 years is a china (porcelain) anniversary
- 25 years is a Silver Jubilee or silver wedding anniversary
- 30 years is a pearl anniversary
- 35 years is a coral (or jade) anniversary
- 40 years is a ruby anniversary
- 45 years is a sapphire anniversary
- 50 years is a Golden Jubilee - not to be confused with the 'golden birthday' (not at a fixed age)
- 55 years is an emerald anniversary
- 60 years is a Diamond Jubilee
- 65 years is a blue sapphire anniversary
- 70 years is a Platinum Jubilee.
- 75 years is a diamond wedding anniversary
- 80 years is an oak wedding anniversary
There are variations in some national traditions.[citation needed]
Furthermore, there exist rather confusingly only partially overlapping, partially contradictory lists of anniversary gifts (such as wedding stones), separate from the 'traditional' names.[citation needed]
