Take My Heart, and This Wooden Spoon: The World's Courtship Rituals

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The timeless art of seduction can look vastly different from one culture to the next.

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Soon, people the world over will be silently judging their significant others by the size of their bouquet, box of chocolates, and bling. Ah, modern love—it all seems so trite when compared to the traditions of yore.

Before Beyoncé was telling us to put a ring on it and greeting cards were expressing our feelings for us, young lovers were vying for each other's attention with strange and fascinating courtship rituals. Parts of the globe still practice these endearing and bizarre customs, and below are some of the best of the bunch.

This post also appears on Flavorpill, an Atlantic partner site.

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