Humanist celebrant

A humanist celebrant or humanist officiant is a person who performs secular humanist celebrancy services for weddings, funerals, child namings, coming of age ceremonies and other rituals. Some humanist celebrants are accredited by humanist organisations, such as the British Humanist Association (BHA), Humanist Society Scotland (HSS), and the Humanist Association of Canada (HAC).

The British Humanist Association pioneered the practice of offering humanist ceremonies, and today organises a network of celebrants or officiants across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A similar network exists in Scotland, where, following a June 2005 ruling by the Registrar General, celebrants of the Humanist Society of Scotland are permitted to conduct legal wedding ceremonies. Scotland is one of only seven countries in the world where Humanist wedding ceremonies are legal, the others being Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Ireland and some parts of the US. In England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, the current legal position is that a humanist wedding or partnership ceremony must be supplemented by obtaining a civil marriage or partnership certificate through a Register Office. In December 2014 it was reported that the Prime Minister's Office was blocking the implementation of a change to give legal force to humanist weddings in England and Wales.

Non-religious funerals are legal within the UK. Humanist celebrants are familiar with the procedures of cremation and burial, and are trained and experienced in devising and conducting suitable ceremonies. The British Humanist Association has in the past described officiants as follows:

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