The Role of Bengali Wedding Songs in Strengthening Community Bonds: A Case Study of Rural Festivities in Ishwardi, Pabna, Bangladesh
Abstract
Bengali wedding songs, also known as Biyer Geet, are an essential component of Bengali culture, combining social values, tradition, and emotion. In order to preserve Bengali heritage, this study investigates the songs' cultural significance, historical significance, and evolution. Using a combination of primary and secondary research, the study looks at how wedding songs are used in different pre-wedding and wedding ceremonies like bidai, mehendi, barojatra, and gaye holud. A sense of continuity and community is fostered by these songs, which reflect religious values, social unity, respect for women, and familial ties. The study also looks into how modernization, globalization, and urbanization have affected how these songs are performed and passed down, emphasizing the distinctions between wedding traditions in rural and urban areas. The findings emphasize how these songs adapt to changing times while maintaining their cultural essence, thus continuing to play a crucial role in the emotional and social fabric of Bengali weddings. The study contributes to the ongoing conversation about cultural preservation in the face of modern influences.
References
Alam, A. M.-u., Islam, S., & Islam Khan, M. E. (2024). Exploring Sensuousness in Sukanta Bhattacharya. Ideas, 10, 21-34.
Alam, S., Basu, D., & Gorai, S. (2021). Traditional Knowledge of Agriculture in Bengali Folk Songs. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, 346-352.
Banerjee, S. (2017). Marginalization of Women's Popular Culture in nineteenth Century Bengal. Recasting Women, 127-177.
Biswas, C. (2018). Changes and modification of traditional ways of communication: A anthropological study on song and dance of 'urban Oraon' at the district of north 24 Parganas in West Bengal, India. Journal of Historical Archaeology and Anthropological Science, 730-734.
Borah, M. (2019). A Comparative Study of The Baul Songs in Bengal and the Deh Bichar Song in Assam. JETIR, 712-722.
Burke, P. (1978). Popular Culture in Early Modern Europe. Ashgate Publishing, 237-240.
Chakraborty, S. (2017). The Abject Female: Exploring Contested Womenhood in Select Bengali Folk Ritual Stories and Rhymes (the Bratas). Archiv orientální, 19-45.
Charles, W. (1956). Dictionary of Anthropology. 217.
Das, S. K. (2003). Bengali Diasporic Culture a Study of Film Adoption of Jhumpa Lahiri‘s The Namesake. The Criterion, 4(2).
Ghosh, P. (2000). The story of a storyteller's scroll. The University of Chicago press, 166-184.
Karim, R. (2020). Evolution and assessment of South Asian folk music: A study of social and religious perspective. British Journal of Arts and Humanities, 60-73.
Kathryn, A. (1991). North Indian Weddings: Speech Events Reflecting and Reinforcing Women's Roles. The fifth annual international conference on pragmatics and language learning parasession on language and gender, 1-18.
Lamb, S. (1997). The beggared mother: Older women's narrative in West Bengal. Oral Tradition, 54-75.
Mridha, A. H. (2023). Factors influencing Folk Music in Bangladesh: An overview. Open Journal of Social Science, 342-365.
Mridha, A. H., & Begum, M. (2023). Continuum of Folk to Pop Music in Bangladesh a Simple Analysis. Issues in Social Science, 8-28.
Mukherjee, T., & Zakaria, S. (2020). “Ramayan Gaan" or Singing the Ramayan in West Bengal, Assam, and Bangladesh. Asian Theatre Journal, 89-106.
Narayan, K. (1997). Singing From Separation Women's Voice in and About Kangra Folksongs. Oral Tradition, 23-53.
Rauf, A. (2023). The songs of boat race in Hajo area: A socio culture study. In B. Das, 75 years of Indian independence (pp. 41-48). Guwahati: B.D prakash.
Urban, H. B. (2023). Song of Ecstasy: Mystics, Ministrels, and Merchants in Colonial Bengal. Journal of the American Oriental society, 493-519.
Copyright (c) 2025 Abul Hossain, Humayun Kabir, Md Rabbi Islam Rasel

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
ISSN 

