The World of Parenting: How Other Cultures Raise Babies

How you raise a baby depends a lot on where you live. What feels normal in one country is unusual somewhere else. A few examples from around the world.

The Netherlands: kraamzorg

In the Netherlands a maternity nurse comes to your home for the first days after birth. She checks on mother and baby and helps with feeding and bathing. Parents from other countries are often surprised it exists.

China and Japan: time to recover

In China many women traditionally spend the first month after birth resting at home, while family members cook and take care of them. It's called zuo yuezi, "sitting the month". In Japan some mothers go back to their own parents' home around the birth, a custom called satogaeri.

Mexico and the Andes: a cloth for everything

In Mexico many mothers carry their babies in a rebozo, a long woven shawl. In the Andes, in Peru and Bolivia, colourful woven cloths are used to carry babies on the back, at the market or out in the fields.

West Africa: on the back

In Ghana and Nigeria, among other countries, it's common to tie a baby onto your back with a length of cloth and carry on with your day.

Korea: the podaegi

In Korea parents traditionally use a podaegi: a wide panel with long straps that wraps around the baby and the parent.

What they have in common

The methods differ, but in many places babies spend much of the day close to an adult. Modern baby carriers build on those old traditions. The Solace Carrier is our version, with three carrying positions, from birth to about three years.