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Handfasting is a traditional European ceremony of (temporary or permanent) betrothal or wedding....

Handfasting is a traditional European ceremony of (temporary or permanent) betrothal or wedding. The term is derived from the verb to handfast, used in Middle to Early Modern English for the making of a contract of marriage. The term is originally a loan from Old Norse hand-festa "to strike a bargain by joining hands". The Council of Trent changed Roman Catholic marriage laws to require the presence of a priest. This change did not extend to the regions affected by the Protestant Reformation, and in Scotland, marriage by consent remained in effect. By the 18th century, the Kirk of Scotland no longer recognized marriages formed by mutual consent and subsequent sexual intercourse, even though the Scottish civil authorities did. This situation persisted until 1940, when Scottish marriage laws were reformed. In the 18th century, well after the term handfasting had passed out of usage, there arose a popular myth that it referred to a sort of "trial marriage". A.E. Anton, in Handfasting' in Scotland (1958) finds that the first reference to such a "trial marriage" is by Thomas Pennant in his 1790 Tour in Scotland. This report had been taken at face value throughout the 19th century, and