Child birth of Hani Women

Long time ago, Hani women gave birth to their children at home instead of going to a hospital. There were no professional midwives in villages. When a child was being delivered into the world, old women in the village or people who used to act as midwives would come to help with the baby delivery. When a child was just born, it was very good that the new baby cries immediately, if the baby didn’t cry, then the midwife would spank the baby to make him/her cry.

The first three voices the new born baby made had special meanings. The first voice was speaking to the heaven and earth that “I am born”, the second voice was speaking to the ancestors that “I am born”, and the third voice was speaking to the people in the village that “I am born”. After that, the midwife would pick up the baby and wrap with cloth, and spoke words of blessings to the new baby.

Naming the baby was also very important. If a name was not suitably given, the baby would cry without stopping, and could even be sick and die later. If a baby is not named yet, he wasn’t even considered as a human.