BRIDAINE, .TACQUES, a French home-missionary preacher, 1701-67. Though a strict Roman Catholic in principle, he frequently advocated the cause of the Protestants with great boldness, and displayed personal kindness to many who were suffering per secution. He made more than 250 journeys in all parts of France, and became univer sally popular. His sermons and spiritual songs, or hymns, have been printed.
The word bride (the radical signification of which is thought by sonic to be " appropriated," "owned ") is common to all the Gothic languages, and also to Welsh (Ger. bract, Welsh prtod), and signifies betrothed or newly married. Alone, the word denotes the newly married woman; with the addition of the syllable groom (a corruption of genus = .Lat. home, a man), it denotes the newly married man (Ang. Sax. bm'ydgu,na, Ger. brautigam). In Welsh, priod-fab (betrothed youth) is bridegroom, and (betrothed maid) is bride. Bride is the root of a variety of terms connected
with marriage, as bride-favors, bride-cake, etc. Bridal is for (Ang. Sax. bryd eale), the marriage-feast. Bridemaids, or attendants on brides, appear to have been in use among the Anglo-Saxons, and are mentioned in early accounts of marriage cere monies. A part of their duty consisted in dressing and undressing the bride. Bride maids, as mere ceremonious attendants at marriages, are still in use in England. The husband had an analogous body of attendants, called bridegroom-men; but they have disappeared in modern usage, and their only representative is one confidential friend in attendance. Iu Scotland, this personage is called the best man. One of his duties is to pull off the bridegroom's right-hand glove, while one of the bridemaids does the same service for the bride, when the pair are requested to join hands.