subs. phr. (old Scots’).—See quot. 1897.

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  1822.  SCOTT, The Fortunes of Nigel, xxvii. We’ll have a’ to pay … a sort of PENNY-WEDDING it will prove, where all men contribute to the young folk’s maintenance.

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  1897.  BREWER, Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, s.v. PENNY-WEDDING. Wedding banquets in Scotland, to which a number of persons were invited, each of whom paid a small sum of money not exceeding a shilling. After defraying the expenses of the feast, the residue went to the newly-married pair, to aid in furnishing their house. Abolished in 1645.

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