
Learning about the pregnancy and childbirth beliefs from cultures around the world is nothing short of fascinating, don't you think? Whether you follow them or not, we have our "standard" ones in the U.S. -- don't tell people you're pregnant until after the first trimester, for one -- so don't you ever wonder what other unwritten protocols mamas-to-be follow? There are some truly unbelievable ones out there!
Here are 25 pregnancy beliefs from around the world.
(Note: Everyone from these cultures doesn't necessarily adhere to these beliefs.)
Image via Gary Waters/Ikon Images/Corbis
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Pregnancy in Turkey
1epSos.de/Flickr
Women in Turkey are encouraged not to look at bears, monkeys, and camels while pregnant.
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Pregnancy in Japan
2David Blaikie/Flickr
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Pregnancy in China
3Homespothq/Flickr
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Pregnancy in the Orthodox Jewish Culture
4Janine/Flickr
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Pregnancy in the Hispanic/Latino Culture
5James Bowe/Flickr
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Pregnancy in Jamaica
6DrGBB/Flickr
To prepare for birth in the Jamaican culture, some believe that an open Bible needs to be present in the room where the mother is going to give birth.
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Pregnancy in Korea
7linasmith/Flickr
In the Korean culture, there is an order of people that women must tell they are pregnant. She must tell the mother-in-law first. Then she tells her husband and then her own mother.
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Pregnancy in Bali
8Noah Sussman/Flickr
Balinese mamas-to-be avoid eating octopus, as it is believed that doing so brings difficult deliveries.
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Pregnancy in Guatemala
9waferboard/Flickr
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Pregnancy in the Inuit Culture
10ewan traveler/Flickr
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Pregnancy in the Irish Culture
11Emmit Tullos/Flickr
Pregnant women were once advised not to enter graveyards in Ireland. If they did, their child would starve and be weak. Also, if a woman twisted her foot on a grave, her baby was thought to be born with a clubfoot.
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Pregnancy in the Italian Culture
12efleming/Flickr
Some Italians believe that once a woman begins telling people she is pregnant, she must tell everyone else right away. It's thought that if she doesn't, the baby will never speak, or won't speak for a very long time!
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Pregnancy in Russia
13Matt Dutile/Corbis
In Russia, people used to believe that childbirth would be easy if both the woman and her husband revealed the names of all of their previous lovers.
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Pregnancy in Portugal
14epSos.de/Flickr
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Pregnancy in the UK
15Nikki Gomez/Flickr
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Pregnancy in the Orkney Islands
16Kyle Marsh/Flickr
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Pregnancy in Mongolia
17jaaron/Flickr
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Pregnancy in Kenya
18FRANK HUSTER/Aurora Photos/Corbis
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Pregnancy in Germany
19Ocean/Corbis
In Germany, the government offices keep a list of "accepted names" that parents must adhere to when registering the name of their child. Parents must give a compelling reason if they want to give their child an unusual name. The government policy is intended to stop potential ridicule of a child with a name that's too different.
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Pregnancy in Malta
20Juliana Wiklund/Johnér Images/Corbis
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Pregnancy in Brazil
21Black Photo Studio/Flickr
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Pregnancy in Sri Lanka
22Steve Snodgrass/Flickr
Some mamas-to-be in Sri Lanka are forbidden from eating mangos, vinegar, and pineapple during the first three months of their pregnancy out of fear of miscarriage.
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Pregnancy in India
23Dieter Heinemann/Westend61/Corbis
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Pregnancy in Cuba
24Julian Rupp/Corbis
In Cuba, pregnant women won't let anyone they don't know or trust touch their pregnant belly.
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Pregnancy in Switzerland
25HBSS/Corbis