Maid Of Honour Speech – The New Addition To The Wedding Speeches

Posted by Kadin . Cabellon on June 7, 2010

Only during the modern ages was the maid of honour speech integrated into the other three customary wedding speeches. Because of its short history, there are no rigid rules and no traditional structure to be followed in creating and delivering this speech. Nevertheless, there are components that must not be missing so as to make this speech a very meaningful one for the bride and the groom and for the rest of the audience.

The opening – The opening line for this speech can be anything – serious, entertaining, funny or formal. You can crack a joke, tease the couple gently or present a witty reference if you like. No matter how you choose to open your speech, this should be followed with a brief introduction about yourself. A lot of your listerners may not know you, for their sake and for yours, introduce yourself. To do this, you will have to tell them your name and explain how you are related to the couple. After the short introduction, thank the bride for choosing you as her maid of honour.

The main content of the maid of honour speech – Maids of honour usually dedicate their speech to the bride. In fact, except for the introduction and some brief reference about the groom and the wedding, the entire of the speech talks of nothing else but the bride. It shares some meaningful insights about the bride’s character, her attitude, and her relationship with people, especially his groom. However, in the recent years, many maids of honour have veered towards describing the couple as friends observe them.

It is also in the main body of the speech that anecdotes, usually funny, are mentioned as well. A quick advice on choosing anecdotes – pick stories that are tasteful. Avoid choosing those that talk about experiences that are best left unsaid.

The body of the speech is also the appropriate section for talking about the significance of the occasion to the lives of the couple. After a lengthy description of the couple, this speech discusses the importance of the ceremony with a touch of personal view.

The conclusion – After a few short anecdotes come the conclusion of the speech. Although there is no general rule on how to end the speech, most maids of honour end their speech it with an encouraging message to the newlyweds. These can also end with best wishes for a happy life together that are condensed into a poetic but short line. These sort of inspire the couple to look forward to a wonderful future together. This part can be customized however depending on what you, as the maid of honour, think appropriate.

The ending toast – After the final remarks come a toast that is offered by the maid of honour on behalf of the bride. In this section, the speaker can insert a funny one liner, a famous quote, a short poem or a witty reference to marriage, married life and the future.

Although the maid of honour speech could be funny, most happens to be sentimental. It remembers the past and looks forward to a very bright and happy future for the couple.

The maid of honour speech still lacks the conventions common to other wedding speeches. Nonetheless, there are some things that are best observed to make this speech not only meaningful to the newlyweds but also memorable for everyone at the wedding party. For more information on writing and presenting this speech, check out some of the resources in my website.