The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices.
Malay mothers’ postpartum experiences often include a period of confinement, similar to other Asian parallel practices of “doing the month”. This confinement period comprise of a set of beliefs, rules, and practices based on traditional eastern medicinal knowledge. Cultural practices of postpa...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Proceeding Paper |
| Language: | English English |
| Published: |
2019
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/2/ecICOSSH2019p%20%281%29.pdf http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/8/The%20fading%20birth%20practice_ICOSSH2019.pdf |
| _version_ | 1848788353770586112 |
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| author | Syed Hussien, Sh Fatimah Alzahrah |
| author_facet | Syed Hussien, Sh Fatimah Alzahrah |
| author_sort | Syed Hussien, Sh Fatimah Alzahrah |
| building | IIUM Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Malay mothers’ postpartum experiences often include a period of confinement, similar
to other Asian parallel practices of “doing the month”. This confinement period
comprise of a set of beliefs, rules, and practices based on traditional eastern medicinal
knowledge. Cultural practices of postpartum confinement, or berpantang, among urban
mothers in Malaysia is competing with modern western medicine in the contemporary
setting. The data for this presentation is from a phenomenological study utilising twelve
open-ended interviews of couples and two focus group discussions with mothers on
their experience of berpantang. Even though it is still widely performed, the elements
within berpantang are handpicked by these mothers. According to these mothers, the
traditional practices are thought to be inadequate or inferior when compared to the
authority of western biomedicine. In events where medical practitioners give opposing
advice, all mothers chose to adhere to, and accept biomedicine’s explanations and
justifications over the traditional practice. The former cultural figure head, the bidan
(midwife), is no longer a part of the birthing process in these urban settings. Urban
mothers today rely on or refer to their maternal mothers for knowledge and guidance
on berpantang. Urban mothers who practise berpantang describe the main reason for
their practise was to maintain familial peace. This paper seeks to highlight social and
cultural implications this hegemony has particularly on challenging the continuity in the
chain of traditional knowledge. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T17:39:29Z |
| format | Proceeding Paper |
| id | iium-76869 |
| institution | International Islamic University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T17:39:29Z |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | iium-768692019-12-31T03:30:06Z http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/ The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices. Syed Hussien, Sh Fatimah Alzahrah H Social Sciences (General) HQ The family. Marriage. Woman Malay mothers’ postpartum experiences often include a period of confinement, similar to other Asian parallel practices of “doing the month”. This confinement period comprise of a set of beliefs, rules, and practices based on traditional eastern medicinal knowledge. Cultural practices of postpartum confinement, or berpantang, among urban mothers in Malaysia is competing with modern western medicine in the contemporary setting. The data for this presentation is from a phenomenological study utilising twelve open-ended interviews of couples and two focus group discussions with mothers on their experience of berpantang. Even though it is still widely performed, the elements within berpantang are handpicked by these mothers. According to these mothers, the traditional practices are thought to be inadequate or inferior when compared to the authority of western biomedicine. In events where medical practitioners give opposing advice, all mothers chose to adhere to, and accept biomedicine’s explanations and justifications over the traditional practice. The former cultural figure head, the bidan (midwife), is no longer a part of the birthing process in these urban settings. Urban mothers today rely on or refer to their maternal mothers for knowledge and guidance on berpantang. Urban mothers who practise berpantang describe the main reason for their practise was to maintain familial peace. This paper seeks to highlight social and cultural implications this hegemony has particularly on challenging the continuity in the chain of traditional knowledge. 2019-10-09 Proceeding Paper PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/2/ecICOSSH2019p%20%281%29.pdf application/pdf en http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/8/The%20fading%20birth%20practice_ICOSSH2019.pdf Syed Hussien, Sh Fatimah Alzahrah (2019) The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices. In: International Conference on Social Sciences and Humanities 2019, Grand Milenium Hall ParkCity Everly Hotel Bintulu Sarawak Malaysia. (Unpublished) |
| spellingShingle | H Social Sciences (General) HQ The family. Marriage. Woman Syed Hussien, Sh Fatimah Alzahrah The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices. |
| title | The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices. |
| title_full | The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices. |
| title_fullStr | The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices. |
| title_full_unstemmed | The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices. |
| title_short | The fading birth practice: urban Malay mothers in Malaysia negotiating confinement practices. |
| title_sort | fading birth practice: urban malay mothers in malaysia negotiating confinement practices. |
| topic | H Social Sciences (General) HQ The family. Marriage. Woman |
| url | http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/2/ecICOSSH2019p%20%281%29.pdf http://irep.iium.edu.my/76869/8/The%20fading%20birth%20practice_ICOSSH2019.pdf |