[00:00:00] Hello everyone! This is Austin Bellino, the host of the educational podcast Culture To Grow, where you get to travel the world and learn about different cultures from the comfort of your home, maybe your car, or if you're half asleep, you're bad.
Hello everyone, this is your host Austin Bellino and I am thrilled to have you join me on this new adventure. But before we begin this episode, I would like to wish a very happy birthday to my incredible sister, so join me in sending warm birthday wishes to her. Her birthday got me thinking about the wonderful ways birthdays are celebrated in different corners of the world.
In the United States, birthdays are more than just a date on the calendar. They're a celebration of individuality.
[00:01:00] A couple of traditions in my family starts with giving the birthday star a chance to pick their favorite meal for dinner. But the choices don't stop there. Oh no. The spotlight shines even brighter as the birthday person gets to select their dream cake. My ultimate favorites would be an ice cream cake or rainbow confetti cake.
Now, I would like to introduce some of my guests who will be sharing their own unique cultures with all of you. Joining us today, are guests from Somalia, China, Vietnam, Sudan, and Japan.
Let the celebration begin. First stop, Somalia.
Hello, my name is Abdullahi. I'm from Somaliland, northern of Somalia. Something interesting about birthday culture is there are two habitats Somalis have, one that we share with the Islamic world, and one that we don't. The practice of sacrificing for the newborn is one that we share with the Islamic world. Therefore, A sheep, goat, cow, or camel gets slaughtered in order to give the new baby born a name.
[00:02:00] But Somalis have a unique ceremony that begins 40 days after the baby is born. They call it Afartan bax. For the infant, a celebration is planned family are invited. If the new baby is a boy, a guy from the family or friends elevates him to the top at the conclusion of celebration. Since this man embodies the attribute of generosity, gentleman characteristic, so that when the baby grows up, he will be like this man.
Hello, everyone. My name is Hannah. I'm from China. There is the most popular birthday tradition in China. We will eat an egg on the birthday morning. Usually boiled egg and also we eat noodles called Changshou Mian. They usually make it very long so it means you will live longer.
Also, my mom made a special birthday tradition for me I think it was special because I had never seen any other kid do the same thing at that moment So my mom took me to the photo studio to take a picture of me every year on my birthday.
[00:03:00] You know when I was a kid the camera and the smartphone was not popular so I think it was pretty cool to get a picture in this photo studio.
I'd like to share some information about the birthday culture in Vietnam. I think we do have some things special about the birth. So the parent will pick a healthy teenager, maybe between seven years old to 16 years old. And yeah, and then that teenager will carry the baby on his or her back and. They go around the neighbors and give them candies and ask them to bless the baby for health and a good life. So, like, if, they can distribute all the, the candy, which is like a good sign.
Hello, I am Ahmed from Sudan, and this is an interesting birthday tradition in my country.
[00:04:00] Seven days after a couple are blessed with a baby, they organize a special event, a family reunion, party, if you may. And it's called Al Simaya which comes from the naming.
Another name for it is Al Aqiqah. So why is it called Al Simaya? Because during this party, the baby's name is announced. So we announce the baby's name seven days after the baby is born. And usually we sacrifice or slaughter sheep, and it's a sunnah, which means that it's not obligatory, but the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, used to do it, and so we do as well. And of course, the sacrificed sheep are cooked and presented to the guests of the event.
[00:05:00] We don't have a birthday song in Japanese that we sing on a birthday, so we usually sing Happy Birthday to you in English because we didn't have a custom of celebrating a birthday long time ago in Japan.
And that brings us to the end of our journey. As we've heard from our guests, birthdays hold more than just cake and candles. They're windows into the values and customs that shape our lives.
So as we blow out the candles on this episode, let's remember that birthdays, though celebrated differently, all share a universal theme, the embrace of joy, connection, and the passing of time. So I wish that your birthdays are filled with love, laughter, and a touch of the cultural magic.
[00:06:00] Take care, and bye bye!