How do you say cheers at a Scottish wedding?

Slàinte mhath (SLAHN-juh vah), meaning "Good health." The toast to the couple is "To the bride and groom!" (to the bride and groom), which means "The toast, usually before the ceilidh starts."

Who gives speeches at a Scottish wedding?

Father of the bride, groom, best man, in the British order, with the maid of honor and bride increasingly joining. The best man's speech is the comic high point and often includes a toast in Scots or Gaelic. A piper may play the couple in and out, and the piper is sometimes toasted with a dram.

Western Europe · English and Scottish Gaelic

Scottish Wedding Toasts: Cheers, Speeches, and Customs

Speeches first, then a ceilidh, where everyone dances whether they know the steps or not.

Raise a glass

Slàinte mhath

SLAHN-juh vah · Good health

To the couple

To the bride and groom!

to the bride and groom · The toast, usually before the ceilidh starts

Who speaks, and when

Father of the bride, groom, best man, in the British order, with the maid of honor and bride increasingly joining.
The best man's speech is the comic high point and often includes a toast in Scots or Gaelic.
A piper may play the couple in and out, and the piper is sometimes toasted with a dram.

How long

Three to five minutes each, after the meal. Then the band starts and nobody speaks again until the last dance.

What you’ll see

The ceilidh: a band calls the steps to dances like the Gay Gordons and Strip the Willow, and every guest is expected on the floor.
A quaich, a shallow two-handled silver cup, is shared by the couple during the ceremony, often with whisky.
Kilts for the groom and groomsmen, usually in a family tartan, and a sgian-dubh, a small knife, in the sock.
The 'wedding scramble': the bride's father throws coins for children to gather as the couple leaves.
A dram of whisky is the toast at many tables, with 'slàinte mhath' and the reply 'slàinte.'

If you’re the guest from somewhere else

Join the ceilidh. The caller teaches each dance, and not knowing it is the normal condition.
If you are asked to toast, a dram in hand and 'slàinte mhath' is the form.
Bring layers. Scottish wedding venues are often castles, barns, and marquees, and the weather is the weather.

A toast you could give

Short, warm, specific to the couple, and ending on the phrase. Swap in your own names and your own detail; the shape is what matters.

Fiona taught me the Gay Gordons at her own hen do and I have the bruises to prove it. Callum, you are marrying the best dancer in the room and the worst loser. To the bride and groom. Slàinte mhath!

Speaking at a Scottish wedding?

Whatever the tradition, the speech that lands has the same bones: one story, a turn, a word to the partner, a toast. The guides have it for every role, and the free check reads your draft and tells you how it lands.

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