cortejo

Cortejo is a Spanish noun with several related meanings. It most commonly refers to the act of courting or wooing someone with romantic interest. It can also denote a ceremonial or formal procession and the group of people, vehicles, or ornaments accompanying a person or event, such as a bride and groom’s processional or a funeral procession.

In the romantic sense, cortejo involves behaviors intended to propose marriage or cultivate a relationship, such as verbal courtship, gifts, gestures, and social rituals. Practices vary widely across cultures and historical periods, with different norms regarding propriety, communication, and duration. In literary and historical contexts, cortejo is often described as a staged display of affection and social legitimacy.

As a broader term, cortejo also describes an entourage or retinue accompanying a person of status or importance, for example a royal cortejo, an academic cortejo, or a cortejo fúnebre at a funeral. In ceremonial contexts, the cortejo may include attendants, guards, musicians, and vehicles, coordinated to reflect status and tradition.

Etymology: the word derives from cortejar, meaning to court, which in turn traces to corte, the court, or the formal space and company associated with a person of standing.