Tag Archives: birthday

Debut (18th Birthday)

Nationality: Filipino American
Age: 23
Occupation: Student
Residence: Cerritos, CA

Text 

“When I turned 18, I had a debut. It is basically a Filipino coming-of-age celebration. It’s like a quinceañera but at 18. For Filipinos, it’s a big deal. Turning 18 means you’re entering adulthood, so you’re presented to your family and community with all the grace and glamor of a princess. 

The most memorable part of my debut was the 18 roses and 18 candles.

The 18 Roses are dances. 18 men, usually dads, cousins, and guy friends, each danced with me one by one. They handed me a rose and sometimes say a short message. It can get pretty emotional.

The 18 Candles are when 18 girls or women light a candle and give a short speech about me. Some speeches were funny, and others were mini love letters from my closest friends. It was a way of seeing myself through the eyes of people who had known me my whole life, and it really stuck with me. 

I didn’t grow up in the Philippines, but doing the debut made me feel connected to that part of me.”

Context 

The informant is a second-generation daughter who celebrated her debut at age 18 with a full program including traditional elements like 18 Roses and 18 Candles. She emphasized that while she was raised in the United States, the debut helped her feel connected to her Filipino heritage. 

My interpretation 

The debut functions as a coming-of-age rite that is both performative and symbolic. In folkloristic terms, it marks a liminal moment, a passage from girlhood into adult social identity that is celebrated through structured ritual acts. 

The debut reinforces intergenerational values, especially within diasporic settings where tradition must be actively chosen and adapted. The event also serves as a space of collective storytelling as speeches and dances become public affirmations of the debutante’s identity, relationships, and future. Through these performances, the community participates in shaping the celebrant’s transition, offering both affirmation and expectation.

Happy Birthday sung in three languages

Nationality: Taiwanese-American
Age: 20
Occupation: Animation student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA / Queens, NY
Language: English

Text:

JC: “Okay, so um… for context, well you know this but my parents were originally from Taiwan, but my dad grew up in Costa Rica, so he’s picked up an understanding of Spanish. And in my family, we had this big group of like… in a lot of holiday celebrations, so like New Years or in the summer, we all tend to gather around and like, celebrate a specific holiday. And as a tradition we sing happy birthday first in English, ’cause everyone understands it, and then in Chinese to kind of like.. just for all the grandparents to understand, for them to join in, and for.. all of the like, Taiwanese people around. And then for the Costa Rican side, we end up singing it in Spanish.”

Context:

Informant JC is part of a multi-cultural and multi-lingual family. He added, “I always thought that was very interesting, like my family dynamic. I’m primarily Taiwanese-American, but we still ended up incorporating like a lot of Costa Rican cultural bits. There’s like, having Costa Rican food on the side, or being more open to Costa Rican culture. I also feel like because we’ve all like, grown up in America, like my parents moved when they were very young, and my relatives came in more progressively, and they’ve had to assimilate to American culture. A lot of what we end up doing feels very American.”

Analysis:

Happy Birthday songs are ritualized celebrations of the human life cycle, commemorating the completion of an approximate solar year since a person’s birth. They provide an opportunity for one’s community to get together and reaffirm their bonds with a person.

JC’s multilingual birthday ritual is especially significant in light of broader political changes. From 1949 to 2007, Costa Rica had diplomatic relations with Taiwan. After nearly 60 years, Costa Rica decided to break off this relationship in favor of establishing ties with China. Despite these shifting political alliances, JC’s family birthday ritual demonstrates that community bonds extend beyond the borders and interests of the nation-state.

Miyeok-guk (미역국), Seaweed Soup

Text:
Miyeok-guk is a seaweed soup often with beef or mussels, simmered in sesame oil and broth. It is commonly eaten as postpartum recovery food for mothers or birthday soup.

Context:
The informant states that they ate this soup every year on their birthday back in Korea. The first time they ate it as a child, their parents did not explain anything but instead just told them it is a birthday thing. Despite seaweed being a very common food in Korean dishes, they know it is unique because their family usually don’t eat seaweed soup for breakfast.

Analysis:
For mothers, eating miyeok-guk is both a health practice and a rite of passage into motherhood. It is used at the threshold of life stages, particularly childbirth, which is a highly vulnerable and transformative period in many cultures.
As a commemorative food, it is not as a celebration of self, but as a gesture of gratitude to one’s mother. Miyeok-guk is a symbolic reenactment of birth—a sensory and emotional link to one’s origin.

First Bite of Cake

Text: “A tradition that I have within my family is that every time it is our birthday when we’re ready to have a birthday cake and we cut that first slice, the first slice is always for the person whose birthday it is. And on top of that not only just the first slice but the first bite. So once all of the slices are passed out the birthday person has to take the first bite of that first slice that was cut in order for the tradition to continue on. I’m not sure where this tradition came from but it’s something I noticed early on in life that we always do as a family and so it’s just so ingrained in my brain that without a question when I am celebrating someone’s birthday I expect the same tradition to be upheld.”

Context: The informant, a law school student, described a family birthday tradition where, once the birthday cake is cut, the first slice and the first bite are always given to the person whose birthday it is. This custom has been a part of their family celebrations for as long as they can remember. Although the informant isn’t sure of the origin of this tradition, it has become deeply ingrained in their life. The informant now expects this same tradition to be upheld whenever they are part of any birthday celebration, highlighting its importance in their personal experience.

Analysis: This birthday tradition is a great example of how even small rituals can carry a lot of meaning. The first slice and bite of the birthday cake being reserved for the birthday person isn’t just a gesture — it’s a symbolic way of honoring that individual and making them the focus of the celebration. By doing this, the family reaffirms the specialness of the occasion and the person whose birthday it is.

Even though the informant doesn’t know where the tradition came from, it’s clear that over time it has become a core part of their family culture. The fact that they expect this ritual to be upheld when celebrating anyone’s birthday shows how powerful traditions can be in shaping expectations. This can also show how rituals spread over time, not just within a family, but through shared experiences and a sense of what “should” happen. When we participate in traditions like this, we contribute to their continuity, and they often become ingrained enough that we expect them to be maintained in future celebrations — even when we’re outside our family. It’s a reminder that rituals aren’t static. They evolve and get passed on, building connections across different celebrations and groups.

Informant Info

Race/Ethnicity: White

Age: 23

Occupation: Student

Residence: Oak Park, CA

Date of Performance: April 22, 2025

Primary Language: English

Other Language(s): N/A

Relationship: Brother

Brasilian Birthday

AGE: 20 

Date of performance: 04/29/2025

Occupation: Student 

Primary Language: English 

Title-   Brasilian Birthday Traditions

Context- M shares a part of her familial heritage that influences how she celebrates birthdays in her family. M says, “I LOVE the brasilian happy birthday song, it’s awesome. It’s a tradition during birthdays to always have brigadeiro made, which is like a chocolate truffle ball made of milk, cocoa powder and butter that’s covered in sprinkles.”

Analysis- M shares a variation of the typical birthday most people imagine. Instead of the classic ‘Happy Birthday’ ballad followed by a whole cake, M celebrates her birthday the Brazilian way—singing the ‘brasilian happy birthday song’ and sharing many brigadeiro. An iconic element of folklore is observing how certain elements of a tradition, such as a birthday, are kept throughout the world but slightly adapted to the certain region/people. The way people can share similar customs but make it their own based on their unique traditions is a trait of folklore, which can be seen in M’s Brasilian birthday tradition.