| Aspect | Detail | Place/District |
| Childbirth Practices | | |
| Mother’s Housing | Typically in a separate room, usually on the lower storey, for protection from cold and wind. | (General) |
| ‘Gobad’ | The mother may be lodged in a cattle manor. | Tribal areas |
| Midwives | Professional midwives are uncommon; experienced village women of any caste assist. | (General) |
| Umbilical Cord Cutting | Cut by the midwife while holding a silver rupee coin or a silver ornament. | (General) |
| Post-Delivery | Both the infant and the mother undergo a purifying bath. | (General) |
| ‘Sootak’ | The initial period following birth, lasting twenty days (or ten days in some cases), during which the family observes certain taboos. | (General) |
| Post-Birth Rituals | | |
| ‘Ghutti’ | The infant’s first feeding, usually administered by the father, a Brahmin, or a Lama; believed to ensure the child imbibes positive qualities. | (General) |
| Naming Ceremony | The family priest ascertains the first letter of the child’s name from their horoscope. | (General) |
| Naming Conventions (Lower Castes) | Boys are often named after their birth day or month (e.g., ‘Manglu’ from Mangal/Tuesday, ‘Budhias’ from Budh/Wednesday). | (General, lower castes) |
| Common Suffixes | Ram, Lal, Das, Chand, Singh. | (General) |
| Surname Adoption | Lower castes adopt high-caste surnames to uplift social standing, but retain original caste for government benefits. | (General) |
| First Hair Cutting (‘Jatloo’) | Takes place in the third, fifth, or seventh year after birth; holds great religious significance. | (General) |
| Hair Offering | Customarily offered at a goddess shrine, a Shiva temple, the ‘Kulja’ shrine, or a holy river for blessings. | (General) |
| Hair Preservation | Sometimes, clippings are preserved with cow dung, milk, and two coins for later offering. | (General) |
| Pregnancy Customs/Taboos | | |
| Husband’s Actions | Refrains from killing animals with his own hands (though he may consume meat). | (General) |
| Woman’s Restrictions | Advised to avoid places on fire, streams, forests, or unfrequented areas; must avoid seeing a deceased person’s face. | (General) |
| Ritual Omissions | Knots usually tied during religious ceremonies are omitted if the woman is pregnant. | (General) |
| Ornament Melting | Her old ornaments are not melted to form new ones. | (General) |
| Eclipse Prohibition | Prohibited from observing solar or lunar eclipses. | (General) |
| Gender Preference | | |
| Girl Child Birth | Generally not celebrated with the same exuberance as that of a boy. | (General) |
| Respect for Girls | Accorded high respect; special ‘pooja’ offered during Navratras; gifts presented during festivals and fairs. | (General) |
| Son’s Birth | A momentous occasion. | Himachali villages |
| Announcement | Announced by distributing ‘Yura’ (sugar lumps or parched grains) among friends and relatives. | (General) |
| Celebrations | Lamps are lit, and women from the neighborhood sing ‘Sohar Badhaiyan’ (songs of joy). | (General) |
| Mother’s Treatment | Treated with great reverence; all visiting women are offered sweets and money. | (General) |
| Father’s Congratulations | Relatives and friends offer ‘turf leaves’ with one rupee; father keeps leaves and returns double the amount (‘Budhap’). | (General) |
| ‘Shukud’ | Wealthy families bring palanquins of gods into their homes and host feasts with rich food and liquor for villagers; may involve goat sacrifice. | Kinnaur |
