What’s the Difference Between a Humanist and a Celebrant

When planning a wedding, funeral, or naming ceremony, you may come across terms like celebrant and humanist. While they’re often used interchangeably, they’re not quite the same. Understanding the difference can help you choose the right person to lead your special occasion.

What Is a Celebrant?

A celebrant is a trained professional who creates and delivers personalized ceremonies for important life events. They can perform weddings, funerals, baby namings, vow renewals, and more. Celebrants are not tied to any single belief system, which means they can create ceremonies that are religious, non-religious, spiritual, cultural, or a mix of all of the above.

The key aspect of a celebrant’s role is flexibility. They work closely with families or couples to create a unique, meaningful ceremony that reflects individual beliefs, traditions, and personalities. Whether you're looking for a traditional tone, something humorous and heartfelt, or a completely custom event, a celebrant can make it happen.

What Is a Humanist?

A humanist, in this context, is a celebrant who follows the principles of humanism,a non-religious worldview based on reason, empathy, and respect for human beings. Humanist celebrants offer strictly non-religious ceremonies. They do not include prayers, hymns, or religious language in their services.

Humanist celebrants are usually trained and accredited by organizations like Humanists UK or Humanist Society Scotland. Their ceremonies focus on the lives, stories, and values of the individuals involved, celebrating people without reference to faith or religious belief.

So, What’s the Difference?

The main difference lies in belief and structure:

· A celebrant can design a ceremony to fit any belief system—religious, spiritual, secular, or blended.

· A humanist celebrant will only conduct non-religious ceremonies, in line with humanist values.

If you want a completely secular ceremony, a humanist celebrant could be a great fit. If you’d like to include cultural rituals, spiritual elements, or a blend of beliefs, a more general celebrant might offer more flexibility.

Both humanist and celebrant-led ceremonies are deeply personal, thoughtful, and unique. Choosing between them comes down to the kind of tone and content you want for your occasion. Either way, you’ll have someone dedicated to creating a ceremony that’s true to your values and memorable for everyone involved.