This Is How Newborns Are Celebrated in the Arab Culture
Picture by Holly Pickett, NPRBy: Haneen Abu Al Neel/Arab America Contributing Writer
While varied in cultural traditions, almost all people in the Arab World and elsewhere can’t hold back celebrations for newborn babies. Today’s traditional ceremonies are rooted in religious beliefs, and in some cases, they have even become integrated with cultural practices. The values reflected in newborns’ celebrations are ones of generosity, kindness, gratefulness, and above all, loving and living life to the fullest.
Like many other occasions, newborn celebrations in the Arab world revolve around food and dance. Because we love to spice everything up, we have different names for the same celebration across the Arab world.
Our children in the Arab world are so ambitious that they achieve their first milestone at just seven days old!
The celebration of newborns in Egypt is called the Sebou’, which is the Arabic word for “week.” This naming is not a coincidence, as the Sebou’ is celebrated on the seventh day of a baby’s life. Although this reasoning doesn’t hold much relevance today, it was once a major concern among Arab families. Prior to the boom in technological and medical advances of today, a newborn baby’s immune system would have to fend for itself to ensure survival. Proving weaker than most common diseases, the infant mortality rate was at 20% during the 1950s and only saw a sharp decrease in 1978. Our children in the Arab world are so ambitious that they achieve their first milestone at just seven days old! Most parents ensure this as a theme for the rest of their children’s lives.
In the Levant, primarily Palestine and Jordan, the celebration is named after a folkloric dish called Qidra. Although it is not exclusively for newborn celebrations, Qidra (or Kidra) is often reserved for special occasions. The beloved dish is often present when there is access to meat, denoting the limited access at the time of its popularity, and large crowds to consume. Other than newborn celebrations, Qidra can be found during Eid, graduations, and Ramadan. Always finding an excuse for a social gathering, the limitations of Qidra do not stand a chance. If the ingredients are unavailable for a big Qidra pot, Mughli is the next best thing.
Mughli is spiced rice powder with water and is best served when the crowds are tired of dancing. If all other recipes fail, you will find bowls of roasted cashews, pistachios, almonds, peanuts, and fruit on the corner tables around the house. The mixed nuts and fruit bowls are best served when the post-dancing awkward silence in the salon prevails, along with a pot of hot tea with mint.
Unlike Sebou’ and Qidra, Aqiqah does not come with a fixed timeline.
A celebration of many colloquial names, Islam has unified the newborn festivities’ title to be Aqiqah. Unlike Sebou’ and Qidra, Aqiqah does not come with a fixed timeline. It can be celebrated between one week after the child is born until before they reach puberty. But similar to these other traditions, Aqiqah centers its theme around sharing the blessing of a child by asking Muslims to sacrifice a sheep or a goat. One-third of the feast is often dedicated to the needy, and the remaining part is shared amongst relatives and friends. For other families who can afford it, the weight of the child is donated in gold or silver to bless the child. If a middle-class family desires to donate, but cannot afford a child’s weight in gold or silver, the weight of the baby’s hair after the first haircut would also suffice.
The celebration is often the first time the baby is seen publicly by friends and distant relatives. It is also when the name of the child is officially announced. More importantly, it is when all the guests bless the child and give the parents nkoot, or gift. This gift serves as a motion to acknowledge the happiness this child brings, and to wish the child the best. It is customary for close family members to buy small jewelry of gold or silver for the child’s first earring if a girl. If the child is a boy, the gift tends to be money towards outfits or toys. Regardless of what the gift of choice is, one must not dare walk empty-handed into one of these celebrations. The culture of gift-giving across the Arab world is fascinating and deserving of exploration in its own blog post.
Aside from magnificent quantities of food, large and vibrant social gatherings, newborn celebration traditions are really about thanking God for the blessing of a healthy child. It is also about community, belonging, and family. Sadly, the newborn celebratory tradition is now battling for survival in the face of commercialization, later marriage age, a youth bulge, inflation, and a growing poverty rate. While this might signal the nearing end of one tradition, it might be the morphism of another innovative one soon. So, while not every Arab you meet can recite the same experience at their Sebou’, Mughli, Aqiqah, or Qidra, we all agree that you should put attending one of these celebrations on your “Must Do” list the next time you visit the Arab world.