WELCOMING THE NEWBORN: THE MODERNITY OF SOME VIETNAMESE RITUALS

Abstract

Taking into account the differences between the Occidental and the Oriental civilizations with regard to the way they conceptualize the relationships between the constitutive elements of culture, the present study observed the Asian cultural processes and identification construction between man-woman, adult-child, and hierarchy-subordination. The Asian population is now bordering modernity due to the globalization of the cultural references. This article is based on clinicalanthropological observation, which shows that some rituals to welcome the Vietnamese newborn endure at the present time. The article describes and explains the traditional meaning of some of these rituals: the attachment of the wrist; the drawing of the eyebrow; the massage; the naming process; the newborn’s entrance into his/her new home; the first month and the first year parties, showing some changes within the new context.