Walima invitation wording: 12 examples and what to include

The walima is the marriage feast, given after the nikah and traditionally hosted by the groom's family. It is a sunnah, it is the gathering most of the community comes to, and it is the invitation that most often goes out late because the nikah took all the attention. Here is how to word it, with twelve examples.

What a walima invitation needs to say

• The Bismillah, first, in Arabic.
• Who is hosting. The groom's parents in most families. If both families share the cost, name both.
• Whose walima it is. "the Walima of their son Yusuf and his bride Amira" tells guests who has been married, which matters when half of them missed the nikah.
• The day, date and times. Arrival time and the time food is served. Guests plan around dinner.
• The venue, with the postcode. On an invitation website the map and directions are one tap away.
• Seating. Whether ladies and gents are seated separately, and whether families sit together.
• Dress code and gifts. "Formal traditional attire" and "Your presence is the gift" are the usual lines.
• A reply-by date, two to three weeks before the walima, which is when the caterer wants numbers.
• A closing, usually a request for duas.

Formal walima invitation wording

1. The groom's family hosting

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Mr and Mrs Ansar Meah request the honour of your presence at the Walima of their son Yusuf and his bride Amira daughter of Mr and Mrs Nurul Islam

on Saturday, 30 October 2027 Guests to arrive by 6pm · Dinner served at 7pm Ariana Gardens, Ivy Barns Lane, Ingatestone CM4 0EW

We kindly request your duas

2. Both families hosting

The parents of the groom, Ansar Meah and Rahima Begum, and the parents of the bride, Nurul Islam and Asma Khatun, request the pleasure of your company at the Walima of their children Yusuf and Amira …

3. Walima the day after the nikah

Following the Nikah of Yusuf and Amira on Friday 29 October, Mr and Mrs Ansar Meah invite you to the Walima on Saturday 30 October 2027 at 6pm Ariana Gardens, Ingatestone

4. Walima some weeks after the nikah

By the grace of Allah, Yusuf and Amira were married on 29 October 2027. Ansar Meah and Rahima Begum request the honour of your presence at the Walima in celebration of their marriage on Saturday 20 November 2027 at 6pm …

5. The couple hosting their own walima

With gratitude to Allah and our families, Yusuf and Amira invite you to celebrate our marriage at our Walima …

Warmer walima invitation wording

6. Plain and friendly

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Yusuf and Amira are married, alhamdulillah, and we would love you to celebrate with us at the walima. Saturday 30 October 2027, from 6pm, dinner at 7pm Ariana Gardens, Ingatestone Please reply by 9 October so we can give the caterer numbers. Your duas are the best gift. Ansar Meah and Rahima Begum

7. For the whole community

The family of Ansar Meah warmly invites you and your family to the Walima of Yusuf and Amira. Ladies and gents will be seated in separate halls. Please let us know how many will be coming by 9 October, and keep the couple in your duas.

8. The short card

Walima of Yusuf & Amira Saturday 30 October 2027 · 6pm, dinner 7pm Ariana Gardens, Ingatestone Hosted by Ansar Meah & Rahima Begum Reply by 9 October · No boxed gifts, please

The practical lines

9. Seating

Ladies and gents will be seated separately. Family tables for the nikah party.

Open seating for families.

10. Food

Dinner will be served at 7pm. All food is halal. Please tell us about allergies when you reply.

Two sittings: 6pm and 8pm. Please tell us which you will attend.

11. Gifts

Your presence is the gift. Kindly, no boxed gifts please.

No gifts, only your duas.

12. Reply

To help us prepare, kindly confirm the number of adults and children attending by 9 October.

Wording a walima for hundreds of guests

The walima is where the guest list stops being a list and becomes a community. Three things help.

Say how many. Ask every household for the number of adults and children, not just yes or no. "Kindly confirm the number attending" is the line.

Give a reply-by date that the caterer can use. Two to three weeks before. Then chase; a fifth of households will miss it. Our guide on chasing RSVPs politely has the messages.

Send one link, not a picture. A card as a JPEG in a group chat cannot be read on a phone and cannot collect a number. A page with the details and a reply form can. See how to send a nikah or walima invitation by WhatsApp.

Walima and nikah on the same invitation

If the nikah and the walima are on the same evening, one invitation with both on the schedule is enough: "Nikah at 6pm, followed by the Walima dinner at 7pm". If the nikah is family only, send the walima invitation to everyone and give the nikah households a note on their link, or make the nikah its own invitation. Our nikah invitation wording guide covers both.

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With RSVP Websites, the walima page carries the Bismillah, the hosts, the venue with a map, the timings and a reply form that asks each household how many are coming and what they eat. Three hundred guests cost the same as thirty, and the list exports for the caterer whenever you need it.