We are often asked about the history of the wedding anniversary gift lists.

Although the anniversary gift lists on this website are based on the lists provided by the Chicago Public Library, the tradition of giving specific anniversary gifts based on the number of years a couple has been married dates back to the Middle Ages.

“The practice of observing the wedding anniversary, while primarily an excuse for gift-giving, probably has underlying it a belief in the correspondence of certain luck-bringing substances with a distinct number of years.” Source: Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend

“The passing of another year together marks a deepening of the couple’s commitment, an accumulation of time irreplaceable. To help in celebrating these occasions are special gifts, one assigned to each anniversary and each with its own material and symbolic value. In the United States, the wedding anniversary symbols begin simply, with paper and flowers, and gradually increase in substance and value. The order of gifts reflects the investment that the couple gives of themselves to each other. In Germany, by comparison, couples use a list of symbols that represent the progressive strengthening of the marriage relationship.”
Source: Gretchen Scoble and Ann Field, The Meaning of Wedding Anniversaries, page 7.

Source : http://marriage.about.com/od/anniversariescelebrations/a/annivhistory.htm

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