The number of cows in a bride’s dowry is just a straightforward proxy for wealth, and that’s pretty universal. Sure, in some cultures they use the number of co

The number of cows in a bride’s dowry is just a straightforward proxy for wealth, and that’s pretty universal. Sure, in some cultures they use the number of cows as the reference point, in others they use the jewelry worn or the car driven by the individual. I know that some people compete in who can afford to spend the most money on their wedding too. All of these are literally just another way of quantifying wealth through displays of it (regardless of whether it is real wealth or they just decided to spend all their savings on a $100k wedding). And I dont see how this is somehow unique to the US at all.