Guide

Nikah invitation wording

The lines a nikah invitation carries, the order they go in, and four you can copy.

What a nikah invitation says

A nikah invitation is short and formal, and nearly every one follows the same order. The Bismillah comes first. Then whoever is inviting, which is usually both sets of parents, sometimes the couple themselves. Then the two names, with the parents' names beside them so that older guests can place the families. Then the word for the occasion, the date in both the Gregorian and the Hijri calendar, the time, the venue, and a closing dua. Inshallah sits near the date, because the date is in God's hands.

The walima is the groom's family's feast after the nikah. Some families put it on the same card as a second function; many send it separately. If it is on the same card, it gets its own date, time and venue, never a vague "to follow".

How the names are written

The groom's name comes first on most cards, the bride's on some, and both orders are correct; what matters is that the two families are treated alike. Parents are written as "Janab" and "Begum", or "Mr. and Mrs." where the family prefers English, and a late parent is honoured with "the late" before the name rather than left out. If the couple are inviting, their parents are still named, in the line "with the blessings of our parents". Titles like Hafiz, Dr. or Advocate go before the name, once, and are not repeated in the WhatsApp message.

Wording you can copy

Small things that matter

• The Bismillah is the first line, always, on its own.
• Give the parents' names. Guests over fifty read those before the couple's.
• Both calendars. The Hijri date is not decoration for many families; it is the date. It follows the sighting of the moon, so print the expected date and let the family confirm it as the day nears; and avoid the days of Ramadan, when few families hold a nikah.
• If men and women are seated separately or arrive at different times, say so plainly on the card, not in a follow-up message.
• Do not ask guests whether they will come. In India an invitation is a request for presence, and "RSVP" reads as a form.
• The verse most couples choose is Surah Ar-Rum 30:21, "And among His signs is that He created for you spouses from among yourselves". Our Muslim cards carry it in ten languages.

The card that fits

Mehraab has the Bismillah, both calendars and the verse built in, and its doors open on the names. Sitara and Chiraghaan carry the same wording in a different room.

Make it with Mehraab See it first

More guides: Walima invitation wording, Mangni invitation wording, Hindu wedding invitation wording in English, South Indian wedding invitation wording, Engagement invitation wording, A digital wedding invitation in India: how it works.