Chuppah

Chuppa at a synagogue in Toronto, Canada

A chuppah (Hebrew: חֻפָּה, romanized: ḥuppā, lit. 'canopy, covering', Yiddish: חֻפָּה, romanized: khupe~khipe)^[a] is a canopy under which a Jewish couple stand during their wedding ceremony. It consists of a cloth or sheet, sometimes a tallit, stretched or supported over four poles, or sometimes manually held up by attendants to the ceremony. A chuppah symbolizes the home that the couple will build together.

In a more general sense, chuppah refers to the method by which nessuin, the second stage of a Jewish wedding, is accomplished. According to some opinions, it is accomplished by the couple standing under the canopy along with the rabbi who weds them; however, there are other views.^[1]^[2]

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^ Kaplan, Rabbi Aryeh (1983). Made in Heaven, A Jewish Wedding Guide. New York / Jerusalem: Moznaim Publishers., Chapter 18
^ Aside from Chuppah, it can also be accomplished by consummation; however, this is discouraged (Kaplan, Ibid.).

[Kaplan18-2] Kaplan, Rabbi Aryeh (1983). Made in Heaven, A Jewish Wedding Guide. New York / Jerusalem: Moznaim Publishers., Chapter 18

[3] Aside from Chuppah, it can also be accomplished by consummation; however, this is discouraged (Kaplan, Ibid.).

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