ABSTRACT
There is a ritual of birth that is specific to Islam, the 'aqiqa'. This ritual is a sacrifice made by parents on the seventh day after a child's birth, and it was observed scrupulously down to the beginning of the twentieth century. It is described in a number of important ancient Arabic sources, which this chapter examines. The ritual consists of a blending of three distinct rites: a blood sacrifice, a ceremony of name giving, and the shaving of the intrauterine hair. This ritual is based on a number of beliefs. First of all, there is the fear of demons that threaten the newborn child, who must be protected by its parents against evil. Second, the newborn does not belong at birth to the family group; it is through the ritual that he or she becomes a member of it. Third, it is through the bestowal of a name that the child receives its place in the umma.
