Many cultures and traditions that we are not even aware of are still being continued by some communities even after hundreds and thousands of years. Whether in remote parts of Africa or in the heart of Europe, these interesting cultures and traditions still find a way to survive.
So much so that; Some cultural traditions of tribes that never step out of the Amazon jungle and the traditions of individuals living in the middle of Spain sometimes manage to surprise us equally. In this content, we take a closer look at the strange cultures and traditions that persist in many corners of the world.
9 strange cultures and traditions that strangely still exist:
- The living dead, Indonesia
- Jump over babies festival, Spain
- Throwing broken plates at houses, Denmark
- Men carrying their pregnant wives over burning coals, China
- Challenging the bullet ant, Brazil
- Dancing with the dead, Madagascar
- Tribe eating the ashes of loved ones, Venezuela/Brazil
- FGM, Africa/Indonesia/Yemen
- Famous neck rings, Thailand
Indonesia’s undead, South Sulawesi / Indonesia
A group of people in Indonesia’s South Sulawesi region continues the centuries-old culture of living with the dead. On the basis of this culture, which made a lot of noise in the national press for a while, there is life after death. People in this region first place their deceased relatives in temporary coffins and continue to offer them the things they loved while alive. These people, who are called Torajan because of the region they live in, mummify their deceased relatives and live with them until they save money for a real burial or there are conditions for a real burial. According to the belief of the Torajans, the death of a person is not something to be mourned, but rather something to be celebrated, because according to the Torajans, real life begins after death.
Festival where men dress up as “devils” and jump over babies, Castrillo de Murcia / Spain
You’ve all heard of the Hıdırellez culture, which is quite common in our country. A religious festival similar to Hıdırellez is organized in a region of Spain. In this festival, called El Colacho, held in the Castrilla de Murcia region, instead of jumping over the fire, babies who are 1 year old are jumped over. In this annual festival, men disguised as devils jump over babies scattered on the streets by their families. Babies, who are then blessed with holy water by the priests, are purified from the real sin that is found in every newborn person according to the Christian belief.
Throwing broken crockery at loved ones’ homes, Denmark
Have you ever thought of throwing broken crockery at your loved ones’ homes for good luck? This culture, which is difficult to even bring to mind, is still maintained in many European countries, especially Denmark. The Danes, who collect all kinds of porcelain dinnerware broken in their homes throughout the year, throw these broken porcelain into the houses of their loved ones on the night of December 31st. Of course, there is also a large group of people who leave their broken plates only at the door in order not to damage the house of their relatives.
Men carrying their pregnant wives over burning coals, China
If you ask us, the tradition of carrying the pregnant wife, born of a little too much empathy, on hot coals is still carried on in some parts of China today. The main purpose of this tradition is to examine that men will experience certain difficulties when their wives are pregnant. It is believed that if the man successfully completes this ritual, the woman will have a problem-free pregnancy and give birth to a healthy baby. Although walking on hot coals will not have a positive effect on pregnancy, it should not be forgotten that this is a purely spiritual ritual.
Challenging bullet ants in the Amazon jungle, Brazil
Brazil’s huge Amazon jungle is home to many tribes that still have little contact with the modern world. The cultures of these tribes contain some traditions that require enduring incredible suffering. The Satere Mawe tribe living in Brazil still continues their tradition of challenging bullet ants, one of the most painful rituals known. Within the scope of this ritual, tribal men who have reached the age of 13 wear gloves filled with bullet ants for 10 minutes to prove themselves and perform their tribal dances, and each man repeats this ritual 19 times.
The shamans of the tribe, on the other hand, milk the bullet ants with their venom to prepare these special gloves and knock the ants unconscious for a while. Then the ants are placed on special gloves with their stings inside. Considering that the bite of a bullet ant is 30 times stronger than a normal bee, it is difficult to imagine the pain suffered by a man from the Satere Mawe tribe for 190 minutes.
Dancing with the dead every 7 years, Madagascar
The dance with the dead, which is a product of a culture that comes from the belief that real life begins after death, is still continued by the Malagasy tribe living in Madagascar. In this festival, called Famadihana, held every 7 years, people take their deceased ancestors from their graves and wrap their remains in clean sheets. After the clean sheet is wrapped, the tribesmen carry their ancestors back to their graves by dancing to live music. Meanwhile, tribe members also seek advice from their ancestors for the world of the living.
Tribe eating the ashes of deceased loved ones, Venezuela/Brazil
Burying the dead is a grave sin for the Yanomami tribe, which spans the Amazon jungle in Brazil and parts of Venezuela. According to the belief of this tribe, their remains must be completely erased from the face of the earth in order for the deceased to begin their afterlife. For this reason, the tribe members who cremate their dead eat the remaining ashes by sharing among themselves. In this way, the souls of the deceased unite with the souls of the tribe members and find peace.
Horrible tradition of female genital mutilation, Indonesia/Yemen/Africa
The tradition of female genital mutilation, pursued by many health organizations, especially the World Health Organization, is still being carried out in more than 27 countries in Africa, as well as in countries such as Indonesia and Yemen. Women who are victims of this tradition, which dates back to Ancient Egypt and Greece, face serious health problems. According to UNICEF’s 2016 report, there are more than 200 million women in these countries, whose external genitalia have been removed. It is thought that this tradition, whose traces can be found in Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs from 1991-1786 BC, became popular and spread in the Meroe Civilization, located on the border of Sudan and Africa, between 800 BC and 350 BC.
Neck rings resulting from an interesting sense of beauty, Mae Hong Son/Thailand
Known as one of the biggest crushes for beauty, neck rings still exist in Thailand’s Mae Hong Son region. For this tribe, which defines themselves as the Kayan people, a long neck is a must for beauty. This culture, which brings with it very serious health problems, is started to be practiced when the girls of the Kayan tribe are 2 years old. Children who start to wear these bright rings on their necks at the age of 2, have more than 10 neck rings when they reach the age of 12. As women in the Kayan tribe get older, the number of rings increases, reaching up to 20. This tradition, which was first introduced to western culture by Marco Polo, was opened to tourists after 1984 with the permission of the Thai government.
We’ve come to the end of our list of 10 weird cultures you won’t believe exist. Which culture or tradition on the list surprised you the most? Do not forget to share the cultures and traditions that seem strange to you in the comments section.
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