This is not what you want to see when you look out a window on your wedding night.
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Charivari (also known as shivaree) is probably the most annoying wedding-related tradition we've ever heard of. The word is defined as "a discordant mock serenade to newlyweds, made with pans, kettles, etc." [source: Dictionary]. Yes, it's as bad as it sounds, or it was, as this formally popular tradition (which hit its peak in the 19th century) has thankfully fallen out of favor.
On a couple's wedding night, a large gathering of friends, family members and other wedding guests would congregate outside the newlyweds' home and proceed to make as much obnoxious noise as possible. They'd bang on pots, sing out of tune and do whatever they could to disturb the couple.
It's bad enough to try to spoil someone's wedding night, but records indicate that the annoying noisemakers sometimes also became vandals. In one instance in 1910, a group of businessmen (associates of the bride's father) each insisted on kissing the bride; then the group demanded money before departing. Yet they still slashed the newlyweds' tires during their obnoxious serenade, forcing the couple to postpone their honeymoon [source: Star Tribune].
