Birth is the first moment of a person's life, so it inevitably involves the person's entire family and sometimes even the whole community. The old Romanian tales say that once you are born, there's a book that starts to be written in the heavens, the "Book of Fate", that comprises your name and your future, be it good or bad. That way, we live "as it was written".

There's a series of rituals and traditions performed by the child's mother, in order to keep the evil forces away from the newborn baby. For example, before birth, if the future mother sees someone ugly, she must remember that she's pregnant, or else the child will look like the ugly man or woman.

Also, the future mother must not steal anything, because the stolen object will appear on the body of the newborn baby as a sign. The mother mustn't get scared by anything, because she might get ill and if she's craving for something, she must get it, specially when it comes to food. If she doesn't get what she's craving for, the child will bear the mark of her need, so if the woman would like to eat an apple, the child will bear the sign of that fruit.

Among these habits, there's also one that requires the pregnant woman to tell everyone that she bears a child, or else the baby will be born mute. In case the woman risks losing the baby, elderly women from the village light and smoke a foxes' nostrils, in order to allow the pregnancy to settle. An evil spirit, that has a bad influence on birth giving is Samca, also called Avestita, Satan's Wing or Spurcata.

In Bucovina, this evil spirit is supposed to have 19 to 24 names and as many evil charms. The creature shows itself to pregnant women, specially when they're going into labour and it frightens and tortures them. To protect women from evil, the prayer of Archangel Michael must be written on a tiny book, serving as an amulet after birth. Tradition claims that an old man, close to his last years must write this book, never a young man or woman, or a wife, because the evil spirit will haunt the writer.

When the time of birth is near, an older woman from the neighbours is called and she starts to heat water, while men leave the room and a red string is attached to the upper side of the door. The string is tied to the newborn baby's hand later on, to keep evil charms away. The mother must not face the door with her feet, because that’s the way the dead are carried when they leave the house in their coffin.

After birth, the mother must not eat for a couple of hours, but when that period is over she'll be given sour milk and be dressed in wool, as part of a Moldavian tradition. Legend has it that in the first three days following birth it's not safe to let the baby sleep in the same bed as his mother does, because she won't be able to watch him all the time and the newborn could be killed or stolen by evil spirits, while she sleeps.

Pages: Page 1 Page 2 Page 3

Spread the word about Romania! Share this article and let others know about the experiences Romania has to offer.

Subscribe to Newsletter: