The Mascarene archipelago in the Indian Ocean consists of three islands: Reunion (Overseas French Department), Mauritius (sovereign) and Rodrigues (island with the status of an autonomous region of Mauritius). On the three islands, it is possible to identify a common core of cultural behavior associated with birth and childhood. What are these costumes? How do they change under the influence of contemporary Western society? The question of how to interpret fieldwork data obtained in a multicultural Creole society that evolves extremely fast is also discussed. What are the pitfalls of interpretation? How is tradition built?
Birth; childhood; tradition; Creole societies; anthropology