...RITES OF PASSAGE..

Events during a family's history such as births, weddings, circumcisions, even funerals were also celebrated or commemorated (remembered as an important event) by Muslims of the Middle Ages. Each culture that became part of the World of Islam added their traditional celebrations and mixed them with Islam. Weddings, for example, were celebrated in different ways across the world of Islam, but there were similarities. Reading from the Qur'an was always done. Henna (dyeing of the hands) was a common Muslim and Indian ceremony.
Lives were also influenced by the culture and class into which the child was born. For example, wealthier families would celebrate differently than poor families. A Muslim living in Turkey would have a very different life from a Muslim living in Arabia or Persia. And a woman would have a very different life from a man. Such are the influences of culture, class, and gender during the Middle Ages.
But yet Islam had a tremendous unifying effect across the whole of the Islamic World from India to Spain and beyond.

BIRTH.. A baby was usually born in the family's home with the help of a midwife (woman who helps deliver babies). In some cities there were hospitals that women could go.
Families usually preferred to have a male child. This is because the sons would stay with the family and take care of the parents. Daughters usually left home to move in with the husband's family. So the birth of a son, especially, was cause for a great celebration.

- CIRCUMCISION...

Circumcision was practiced in most Muslim cultures. Circumcision was common in the Middle East before Islam from the time of Abraham.
Muslim boys were circumcised between the ages 2-14 by special surgeons. The circumcision ceremony introduced the child to his religious society as a new member and was part of a transition to manhood.
Circumcisions were generally celebrated by the family and whole community. Boys got presents. There was a big feast in the village with musicians and entertainment.
[Note: Circumcision is not required nor mentioned in the Qur'an, but Muslims generally follow this tradition which Arabs and Jews followed, at least since the time of Abraham.

-BECOMING AN ADULT In most cultures, when children reached puberty they were treated like adults and were given adult responsibilities. Women could marry and many did at an early age. Men usually married a few years later. Both the young men and women (even at the ages of twelve or thirteen) would be expected to work. In fact, they may have been working much earlier! Boys were often trained in a job that their family members followed. For example, the son of a farmer would most likely be a farmer. The son of a merchant would be trained to become a merchant. Young men would be expected to join in combat if needed. There was no idea of "being a teenager" - a time of freedom from hard work and serious responsibilities, like there is today in the United States. If the child had learned the Qur'an (usually by the age of ten) and knew the rituals, they would be allowed to go to the mosque like their fathers and mothers.

.'