Have you ever stopped for a moment and wondered “what if” – I remember the coordinator in Semey, Kazakhstan telling Larry – what if your grandparents had chosen Kazakhstan over the USA to immigrate to – you would be here – just like me. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if we lived in Kazakhstan and were raising our children there – I know our life would be much different than it is today and started researching some of the rich history and traditions of Kazakhstan – specifically about raising children in Kazakhstan and some of the “history” behind it……

When a child is born – we give him or her a name – in Kazakhstan they believe that a person’s name foretells and determines their future. I have learned that many of the children are named after famous ancestors (Shanibek, Abylai, Abai, Ybrai or Shoken). There are also what they call “wishing names” – like Myzhasar which means they wish you to live long and to be wealthy– along with Zhuzbai and Toksanbai.

They also spoke about a time in the Nomad years when babies died – due to medical conditions along with tough life conditions. Since their belief was that evil forces and spirits were the cause of this – some chose a funny or “strange” name to distract the spirit and have them think of the name versus the child. Sometimes even the meaning of the name “wished” the child to live Tursyn (may he live) and Toktasyn (may he stay). Some girl’s names were even given to wish their next child to be a boy – Ultuar and Ulbolsyn (translates in to may she be followed by a boy).

And do you know the tradition to place a new one safely into their cradle? You should find the oldest woman in the village who has many children. This symbolizes your wish for your child to grow up healthy, live a long life and have many children and grandchildren. In years past – she cited sacred words and whispered the name of the baby 3 times in their ear.

They even have a ceremony for when the child starts walking! It is called Tusau kesu – cutting the thread ceremony. A black and white thread is tied around the baby’s legs – you face the child towards their mother and let them do their first steps. You then wish the family good luck! The white symbolizes a hope for success for the baby’s future activities. And the black and white together brings honesty into your child’s life.

Hope you enjoyed a little history behind some of the traditions for our children and their birth country.

If you’d like to read more about names – try
http://baby-names.adoption.com/ or http://kazakhadoptivefamilies.com/names.html

Along with an article for things to consider while naming your child:
http://library.adoption.com/Blended-Families/Considerations-for-Naming-Your-Trans-Racially-or-Inter-Culturally-Adopted-Child/article/510/1.html