Gimimas ir krikštynos

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Gimimas; Gimtuvės; Moterys; Vaikai; Krikštynos; Krikštas; Apeigos; Krikštatėviai; Šeimos; Bendruomenės; Papročiai; Tradicijos; Šiaurės Lietuva; Etnografija; Tyrimai; Birth; Women; Children; Christening; Rites; Godparents; Families; Communities; Customs; Traditions; Northern Lithuania; Ethnography; Research.

ENChronologically the analysis covers a period of the break-up of traditional society and is concentrated on the years 1920-1940 with a small excursus into earlier times. While analyzing the birth and christening in northern Lithuania, an ideal model of community created through the customs in the end of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century came to light. The life in a closed local community caused a close mutual obligation between an individual and community, formed by the experience and needs of everyday life. Interrelations were maintained by means of standard regulation. So an individual who by his or her way of life or behaviour in one or another way broke the communal norms was as if pushed out from the village community life of full value. The analysis gives us the basis to say that the community did not tolerate such persons: 1) a childless and/or unmarried woman as she hadn't fulfilled her biological and social function; 2) an unmarried woman having a child because she had broken up the norms of morality; 3) an illegitimate child the birth of whom had caused his or her social status exceptionality; 4) a woman who helped "to get rid" of a child as she had made an attempt on somebody's life; 5) a given again the breast child as threatening other members of the community; 6) individuals having physical or spiritual disability who were not able to join fully the communal life. However, a person who found himself or herself behind the tolerance limits of the village community was not fully ignored. There was left a place for sympathy. They most often remained in that community. Through relations with an individual it was tried to ensure the existence of the community as the whole, and in critical cases it let each member to hope for collective support, help and protection.The pregnant woman and the one who had just given birth to a child needed that especially. And a yet not christened child. The village community tolerated and stimulated the moral way of life. Generally accepted and full of value life of a woman was understood only when a matured girl got married and had physically and spiritually healthy children, christened them in time and prepared them properly for the future life. The christening of a child was not only the legal and spiritual legalization of man's existence but also the protection of the community. The godparents became the second parents of a child and got special empowering. So the efforts of the community to keep an ideal model of child's birth and development was maintained and formed through the customs of birth and christening that in their turn corrected the communal life itself. [From the publication]

• Etnologija / Ethnology
• Sociologija / Sociology