The zaffa: A Middle Eastern wedding march
The zaffa: A Middle Eastern wedding march
An insight into a Middle Eastern wedding ceremony, its origins, and what it's like to perform one
Welcome to the last edition of Humber Views! This afternoon we’re bringing you a piece on a Middle Eastern wedding ceremony called the zaffa. It is the first event that takes place, setting the tone for the rest of the night. Members of Dabke Inc., a zaffa group based in the GTA, take us through its origins and share what it’s like to be a zaffa performer.
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— Hadeel Al-Sayyed
The zaffa ceremony is the life of a Middle Eastern wedding.
There are hundreds of wedding traditions and customs across the world that express joy and celebration in their own unique ways. In the Middle East and North Africa weddings begin with a zaffa which is a music and dance group that leads a wedding march from the bride's home all the way to the venue.
During the march they sing folklore songs, they dance, clap, and they play on bendir drums, darbukas, bagpipes, and horns. The zaffa is a rowdy and loud event to get the crowd riled up and get the party started.
In Ontario, there are a handful of Middle Eastern dance groups that offer zaffa services, one of them being Dabke Inc. Today Dabke Inc. guides us through the evolution of the zaffa in the Middle East and North Africa and what it feels like to perform one.
▶️ Watch the video above
About the author
Hadeel Al-Sayyed is a journalism student at Humber College and a video producer for Process Logic. After graduating, she aims to become a documentary filmmaker. She has a keen interest in geo-political affairs and Middle Eastern history and uses her videography skills to tell stories.