Preferential Treatment to Pregnant Women and Puerpera

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The birth of a new life is a happy event for a family; therefore, all ethnic groups in Xinjiang are particularly concerned about the health of the pregnant women. Once a woman gets pregnant, the whole family will be immersed in joy and the pregnant woman will be taken good care of. She shall be not allowedto do heavy work and is asked to pay attention to nutrition and rest. There were so many taboos about pregnant women in the past, such as a pregnant woman shall not be left alone at home at night to avoid scare; eating camel meat shall be avoided or the pregnancy would be extended; eating rabbit meat shall be avoided to prevent the birth of a hare-lipped baby; sweeping shall be not done from the door to the room to prevent influencing the fetus’s breech; pregnant women are not allowed to spin or cable for fear that fetus’s umbilical cord goes around the neck. In the past, the puerpera was delivered by a midwife or the aged in the house. When the woman was about to give birth, men including her husband could not go in. After the child was born, good news was announced to relatives, friends and neighbors. According to the Uygur traditional habits, the children who announced the good news would receive some gifts. In ancient times, the Uygur had a convention of not asking the gender of the child directly, but asking whether it is a wolf or a fox(wolf refers to the boy and fox refers to the girl), which still remains in the folk nowadays.

The Uygur attach great importance to the nutrition and rest of the puerpera. Generally speaking, the puerpera will rest for 40 days and there hasthe custom of eating the head and foot of the sheep. Uygur babies will be put into the cradle shortly after their birth and will grow up in the cradle. Uygur and Mongolian people always hang a red cloth or a rope braided by splendic achnatherum on the door to show that there is a puerpera in the house and do not come in or go out at random.

Before being in labor, the Mongolian women often drink butter; while after delivery, they drink warm milk, milk tea or salt water. During lying-in, they eat fresh lamb and drink mutton soup for nourishing and recuperation.

The first child of a Uygur woman is often delivered at her parents’ home.

After 40 days of lying-in at the wife’s parents’ home, her husband will come to pick up his wife with some gifts. Before one month to give birth, the Uygurpregnant women will be brought back to her parents’ family. The wife’s side will call on about 10 neighbors and friends and bring some naan, rice, mutton tallow, milk, and sugar to the husband’s home. The husband’s side will invite a few older women from the neighbors and make “Ak ash”(Light Sticky Rice)with what the wife’s side has brought to entertain the guests, and ask them to do “Duwa”(prayer and blessing) for the pregnant women, pray for god bless for a safe production and health of both mother and children. The mother of the pregnant women sends good clothes for her daughter and the mother-ir-law also give her daughter-in-law some dress materials. Then, the pregnant woman’s family will pick her up and let her rest for delivery.

In ancient times with relatively backward medical conditions and in poor rural areas with inferior medical conditions, childbirth not only marks a new life coming to earth, but also means danger may occur at any time. The Uygur proverb,”Childbirth is a fight”was produced under this background. In the past, before the childbirth, the Uygur will hold a ceremony to wish a smooth delivery.A day before the ceremony, the house has to be cleaned. Some areasuse “Adirasman”(grass avoiding evil spirits) to fume the room prepared fordelivery. The pregnant woman has to take a shower, comb her hair and put on clean clothes. The midwife, several old and fecund women, and one or two Buwis (women who engage in religious activities) are invited to the ceremony at the very day. Some places also ask an elderly woman to hold eggs in her hand to lead the pregnant woman to the mill to jump over the water tank with the eggs in her hand being dropped into the water at the time. This behavior is mainly to make the pregnant women have a smooth childbirth just like the flow of water in the sink. Nowadays, due to the improvement of living standards and medical conditions, the Uygur women go to the hospital to deliver, and some of these traditions have also gradually changed.