Turning ‘Water Babies’ (Zaza Rano) into ‘Real Human Beings’ (Vrai Humains)
This article examines the protective measures and rites of blessing that residents of Diégo Suarez use to keep their babies safe from harm and incorporate them into their respective religious and ethnic communities. I argue that new mothers, and their ‘water babies,’ are ‘acquiring bones’ (establish...
| Published in: | Journal of religion in Africa |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
|
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Brill
2017
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| In: |
Journal of religion in Africa
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Malagasyans
/ Ancestor cult
/ Birth
/ Ritual
/ Soziale Platzierung
/ Religious community
/ Ethnic identity
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| RelBib Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy AG Religious life; material religion KBN Sub-Saharan Africa |
| Further subjects: | B
birth rituals
ancestors
African religions
identity
gender
Madagascar
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | This article examines the protective measures and rites of blessing that residents of Diégo Suarez use to keep their babies safe from harm and incorporate them into their respective religious and ethnic communities. I argue that new mothers, and their ‘water babies,’ are ‘acquiring bones’ (establishing themselves within the community) in ways that challenge the widely held perception that Malagasy practices around ancestors are primarily remembrance-oriented. By shifting our gaze away from death, and towards the family-specific ancestral practices around pregnancy and birth, we see that the process of ‘acquiring bones’ is as aspirational as it is retrospective. Moreover, securing one’s worth in society is not exclusively tied to adulthood activities or paternal ancestral lineages; instead it is a flexible process that begins in childhood when parents first instill in their children a sense of what it means to be a member of a particular family or religious community. |
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| ISSN: | 1570-0666 |
| Contains: | In: Journal of religion in Africa
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/15700666-12340104 |