Bachelor party
A stag night, also known as a stag weekend, stag do or stag party, a buck's night or bachelor party is a party held for the man who is to shortly enter marriage.
A stag night is usually planned by the groomsman, occasionally with the assistance of a bachelor party planning company.
The first references to Western stag nights in the Oxford English Dictionary date to the 19th century. Traditionally, stag nights involved a black tie banquet hosted by the father of the groom that included a toast in honour of the groom and bride. Since the 1980s, bachelor parties in the United States have involved vacationing to a foreign destination, or have featured female company such as strippers or topless waitresses.
History
The bachelor party dates back as early as the 5th century B.C. The ancient Spartans celebrated the groom's last night as a single man in which they held a dinner and made toasts on his behalf.In 1896, Herbert Barnum Seeley, a grandson of P. T. Barnum, threw a stag party for his brother at restaurant Sherry's in New York City. The party had a dancer, nicknamed "Little Egypt", who allegedly danced naked in desserts. The party was dissolved in the early morning by an officer. Afterwards, the Seeley family brought the police officer to the police board trial for "conduct unbecoming to an officer of the law." At that time, that incident brought the light to the "behind closed doors" matters with bachelor parties.
The term "bachelor", originally meaning "a young knight-in-training", was first mentioned in the 14th century to refer to an unmarried man in Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. In 1922, the term "bachelor party" was published in William Chambers's Journal of Literature, Science and Arts and was described as a "jolly old" party.
Variations
The equivalent event for the bride-to-be is known as a bachelorette party or hen night.Some also choose instead to hold a stag and doe party in Canada, or a hag party or hag do in the UK, in which both the bride and groom attend.
Germany
In Germany, this event is called Junggesellenabschied, which literally means "bachelor farewell". There is also a separate event that the couple celebrates together on the evening prior to their wedding, called Polterabend. At the Polterabend, the guests break old porcelain and earthenware to bring luck to the couple's marriage. The tradition is said to go back to pre-Christian times; by noisily breaking ceramics, evil spirits – especially spirits of envy – are supposed to be driven out. In the last couple of years, Anglo-style bachelor parties have become more and more popular among bachelors. In parts of northern Germany that lack a Carnival tradition, funny costuming has become a popular part of bachelor or bachelorette parties.Some parts of Germany have a related custom, in which a person who is not yet married by their 30th birthday, is made to dress up in an embarrassing fashion by their friends and to do silly tasks that most often include some kind of cleaning work.
France
In France and in many French-speaking regions such as Quebec, the bachelor party is called enterrement de vie de garçon, which literally means " burial of the life as a boy" or "burial/funeral of the life as a bachelor". For women it is enterrement de vie de jeune fille, translated as "burial/funeral of the life as a young girl/maiden". Bachelor parties were known as early as the 1830s, when in the Charpennes neighborhood of Lyon groups of young men would dine at the restaurant of La Mere Brigousse on her famous dish of enormous dumplings les tétons de Vénus.Israel
In Israel, the bachelors party is called מסיבת רווקים, literally meaning bachelor party. Such parties may feature heavy drinking and sometimes the presence of strippers, or else other recreational bonding activities undertaken together, such as paintball or an overseas trip lasting a few days.United Kingdom and Ireland
In the United Kingdom, it is now common for the party to last for more than one evening, hence the increasing prevalence of the phrase "stag weekend", or "stag do". A spin-off has been the growth of the stag weekend industry in the UK with various companies taking over the preparation of the event.In the UK, stag weekend trips are becoming mini-holidays with the groups taking part in various day-time activities as well as the expected night out on the town. They may involve travelling to another location in the UK or going abroad, with Kraków, Dublin, and Riga topping the list, followed by Prague, Amsterdam, Bratislava, and Budapest. Stag parties abroad have been known to involve visits to brothels and prostitutes.
United States
In the United States, Las Vegas is both a popular bachelor party destination and location for the wedding itself. Increasingly, "destination bachelor parties" are replacing standard nights out, with Americans traveling to Montreal, Miami, Quebec City or Mexico.Bachelor parties in the US stereotypically entail the mass consumption of alcohol, hiring a stripper, and general rowdiness to which the bride might not have a positive reaction; in fact, the defining feature of the bachelor party is that the fiancée is not present. Increasingly, bachelor parties have come to symbolize the last time when the groom is free of the influence of his new wife/partner. Pop out cakes are sometimes associated.
Canada
Canadian stag parties generally consist of a group of bachelors celebrating their singleness.South Africa
Bachelor parties in South Africa are expected to be a surprise, which is a unique regional variant. The party is planned without the groom's knowledge and is typically a couple days before the wedding. It often includes a traditional braai.Thailand
Bachelor parties in Thailand became increasingly popular after huge success of The Hangover 2 Movie which was filmed and based in Bangkok.According to GQ India, this multimillion-dollar bachelor party industry is being "fuelled by a steady stream of raging testosterone from India".