The world is made up of six continents and over 200 countries. Obviously, each one has its own culture and, with it, its particular customs. Some are very common and practiced by several nations, but others seem strange to those who are not used to living in close proximity.
Below, we have brought a list of 17 curious traditions and customs around the world. Some have even been abolished or modified, but most are still present in the daily life of these countries. But, remember that none should be seen as wrong or strange, just different from our own.
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Baby throwing in India
In the Solapur region of India, parents gather each year to throw their babies off a 50-foot tower. But calm down, they are trimmed by a trampoline that awaits them, downstairs! The belief is that the practice provides long life and health to children.
It is practiced by couples blessed with a child after a vow at the Sri Santeswar temple in the state of Karnataka. Held in December under tight security.
Fattening girls in Mauritania
Mothers in Mauritania, one of the African countries, start to fatten their daughters when they reach five years old. According to custom, chubby women are better catches and find husbands more easily.
Lotus feet in China
Chanzú was a custom banned in 1949, but it still leaves traces among Chinese women. The word means “bound feet” and the custom has been followed for over a thousand years. Simply put, it was a question of containing the growth of the feet with bandages so that they would fit in little shoes measuring about 7.5 cm.
But, this containment was not so simple. Feet were fractured as they grew, something that could go horribly wrong with gangrene and infection. Today, women in Yan'an Province still atrophy their feet by wearing small shoes. The smaller the feet get, the higher the status.
Vodka and the Russians
That Russia is one of the biggest consumers of vodka in the world, that everyone knows. But, there are some curiosities about the customs related to the drink. You cannot, for example, return a glass to the table after a toast, unless it is empty and placed with the bottom up.
If you are late for a dinner, you need to drink a full glass of vodka until you catch up with the people who arrived on time. You shouldn't offer a toast with an empty glass either, otherwise you'll have to drink the whole bottle.
Initiation of the Sateré-Mawé
Being stung by an insect hurts, doesn't it? Imagine putting his hand for ten minutes in a glove infested with tucandeira ants with nature's most painful stings! This is the initiation ritual of the Sateré-Mawé tribe in the Amazon, repeated for several months so that boys become men.
Ants are placed in gloves while they are asleep, and of course, when they wake up, they are quite irritated. The poor Indian's hand must face this wrath for ten minutes while he dances to distract himself from the pain. The ritual, as stated, is repeated 20 times until he proves himself to be a warrior.
Jumping Babies in Spain
In Castrillo de Murcia, Spain, adult men dressed as devils jump over babies lying on the ground to protect them from evil spirits.
Sharp teeth in Bali
It is one of the biggest Hindu ceremonies and marks the transition from puberty to adulthood. Men and women go through it before or during marriage. Executed by straightening the teeth, it leaves them all similar to the canine. According to belief, the celebration protects people from all evils.
England cheese race
In England, The Cooper’s Hill Cheese Rolling and Wake or Cheese Race takes place. In it, people need to chase a cheese down the hill and whoever gets there first wins.
austrian krampus
On December 5th, the streets of Austria are filled with people characterized as krampus, the devil who punishes disobedient children before Santa Claus arrives.
Spits in the Masai Tribe
This tribe found in Tanzania and Kenya has the habit of greeting each other with spit, in a kind of greeting. Also, when a baby is born, the tribesmen “baptize” the newborn with a few spit.
Ah, another fact involving the Masai people is the fact that they survive on a diet of only 300 calories a day.
Myanmar giraffe women
You may have seen images of Asian women carrying huge hoops around their necks. Called “giraffe women”, the girls of the Karen Baan tribe in Myanmar elongate their own necks with iron hoops and make them more than 30cm long.
The more hoops and the longer the neck, for them, the better. Women believe that, in this way, they become more beautiful.
asian pagmamano
A very common habit in Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia to respect elders. The gesture consists of bowing down to an elder and pressing his (or her) hand to your forehead. It's like a kind of blessing and the habit is passed down through generations.
It is still common to add the particles “po” and “opo” to sentences, indicating that you are calling an elderly person sir or madam.
Bayanihan
Have you ever imagined going out there, carrying a house on your back? That's what Filipinos in some rural areas do! They move an entire house to a new location to prevent it from being flooded or just to change neighborhoods!
Eskimo customs
Some habits, very common for the Eskimos, may seem strange to our eyes, but they all have some justification (at least for them). One of them was the habit of, upon the arrival of a visitor, the host offering his wife as a treat.
The intention, according to traditions, was to propagate the diversification of the tribe due to isolation. The wife, of course, had the right to refuse, so the husband gave the visitor a gift as a way of pleasing him.
Another custom involved elders. Among the Kutchin, who inhabit Alaska, the elderly asked the younger ones to kill them when they no longer felt useful. It was a survival strategy for the tribe. The young people obeyed and, a year later, the tribe promoted a celebration in honor of the deceased.
iranian taarof
Better known as an “invitation or courtesy request”, the Taarof consists of a gesture of respect that, no matter how good the intentions, it is understood that it must be rejected. Like this? Let's try to explain with examples. Let's say a rich buyer goes to buy the product from a store.
The shopkeeper, in a gesture of respect, refuses payment. But the buyer does not accept it immediately and leaves the store without paying. For him, the correct thing is to pay for the purchase, so he insists until the seller accepts to receive for his own product sold. The same works with social invites. An invitation to visit the home, even an emphatic one, is just a formality.
Delay as good manners
In England if you are late for an appointment you are being very rude. But, this is not the case for countries like Chile, Ecuador and, of course, Brazil. In the first two, if an appointment is scheduled for 8 pm, the ideal is to arrive at least 15 minutes late. Otherwise, it can catch the host off guard and indicate that they are anxious.
The New Zealand Haka
The tradition inherited by the Maori people involves threatening facial expressions, howls, grunts and loud chants pounding the chest. This is all to show a threat to your opponent. Watch a rugby game to see what it's like.