Just to add to your fascinating collection of old customs: In Norway, decorated birches are still sold (the days before) the last Sunday before lent, Fastelavn. The custom is a fertility rite probably dating back to heathen times. Young, unmarried girls used to be birched on Fastelavn to guarantee a rich and fertile life. I don't know to what extent the birches are still used for they real purpose, but they were still in (very symbolic) use when I was a boy.

Great article. I had to crawl through a gauntlet made up of my invited friends who held a wooden spoon. It was passed forward as I crawled through.

B

50% off AND a paddling - what a great way to celebrate a birthday. I can't imagine why more restaurants aren't offering this deal.

Great little article, Janine.

Fascinating stuff, Janine, and well researched. Unfortunately, I was the recipient of 'the bumps' as a child and have always envied my American contemporaries.

Thank you for a very learned and elegantly written account of this fascinating tradition. It's interesting that it's seen in so many cultures. I favour the 'repeat of the doctor's first spank of life' theory. That restaurant sounds fun!! Good place for a birthday date!

Birthday bumps I definitely remember. Fascinating article. I had no idea a good smack was so central to so many cultures.

it sounds like the origins of this custom are shrouded in the mist of history. When I was growing up, it was something always TALKED about, but I can't remember it ever being done. perhaps that's because it should be reserved for adults! Great article.

I do like the connection between the birth swat and BDay spanks, but I suspect it is happenstance. There were always teachers in schools who delivered spanks. I do not remember having any though, and being relieved not to have to be spanked in public.
I enjoyed your well researched article.
A pleasure,
IC

I remember, years ago, giving a night before spanking to a girlfriend, so that she would be a "good girl" on her birthday.

My 6th grade teacher told me of working in another school before she came to mine. The principal there was obviously a spanko, ewven though the word hadn't been coined then. He would paddle a student for any excuse. One thing that would always get a student a paddling was if they were in school on their birthday.

As a first grader, I remember our teacher giving birthday spanks to kids in class. She was a young and very pretty woman. She would place her armless chair in front of her desk and sit facing the class. She would then take the birthday boy or girl over her lap and administer the spanks lightly with her hand while the class counted.

Naturally, it was all in good fun and was followed up by a little party where everyone had cake or cup cakes supplied by the kid's mother.

My birthday was in February and I was looking forward to my turn only to be disappointed when this teacher left school during the Christmas break. Seems she had been engaged and had gotten married and moved away. Her replacement didn't believe in wasting class time with such foolishness. Just as well, I suppose; since she was a rather crabby old woman anyway!

My second grade teacher Mrs Jedd gave OTK birthday spanking. They were fun and harmless. When we found out it was her birthday we little second graders bugged her all day to let us spank her. Finally when the bell rang for us to be dismissed for the day someone asked her again and in reply she just smiled and turned her back to us. 20 little second grader hands all went for her bottom at once. I hate to think what would have happened to her in this day and age. She let us give her a couple of whacks at least those of us who weren't being crowded out LOL.

Very well done, in the USA, the bday spanking theme is kept alive in the Midwest, South and West, more of a small town tradition where people know everyone from the area. I recall a birthday spanking given to cute college girl at her softball game, she admitted is was embarrassing but she loved it. I tend to think the spankees like the attention, great article. Thanks.

I certainly learned a lot I didn't know about the birthday spanking. When I was a kid, my parents gave us girls an over the knee birthday spanking until we turned around 13. It is very interesting to read about all the other countries' traditions. I miss the traditions of childhood. Thanks for the very interesting article.

Very informative article. Can remember some "in fun" b-day spankings in school while growing up. Now well removed from school days, I continue to keep the tradition alive with the love of my life.....a bit harsher than those school sessions, but still very much in fun....

I can imagine that all American spankos LOVE getting older which only brings them more spanks! A wonderfully researched and informative article Janine which incorporated the traditions of many cultures. I saw an article on TV ages back about an Ethiopian tribe, called the Hamar. A tribal ritual is for female siblings - of a young man coming of age - to volunteer to be whipped with sticks across their backs by the tribesmen, leaving them scarred for life. The greater the scarring the greater the respect they get in later life. Here is a link to an article if anyone is interested:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/tribe/tribes/hamar/.

It's funny, I read so many articles on celebratory practices for birthday events and each time I learn something new. I did know teachers who doled out birthday spankings, for their students each year. Usually they were teachers much loved by the community who carried on the activity in the spirit of fun and frovolity. Over the years I saw that practice shrivel to just about nothing. Great article Janine.

Janine, I enjoyed reading your well-researched and informative article on birthday spankings. I have memories of occassional birthday spankings delivered at friends' homes when I attended their birthday parties as a child. There was no question that the birthday spanking caused the room to fall silent even though the spankings were nothing more than nominal. I'm sure that only a small percentage of the attendees were spankos in the making, but a fellow child receiving a spanking--even a very light one--captured everyone else's attention.

This was excellent research and informative data on such a splendid topic. It is disappointing that such an enjoyable tradition has so diminished here in the states. Boo Hoo I say! I am most certainly in favor of carrying on such wonderful traditions.
Not so sure the bumps method has appeal but nothing better than having a young and tender bottom (female for me as I am male) laying sunny side up…for some celebration spanks! Nothing wrong with a public spanking as well…why not let everyone celebrate in the joyous occasion.
Bring back the tradition! Let the spanks continue. Great job Janie. It’s not too often on this site that one gets some education on such an enjoyable topic as spankings. Thanks for sharing your vast knowledge on the topic.

We did this when I was growing up, but it was just little light swats, not a real spanking. On my last birthday, the five-year-old I babysit asked if she could give me a birthday spanking, so I assume her family practices the tradition. Those were the hardest swats I had ever gotten for a birthday, but I just let her give me ten.

When my son turned 16, his karate instructor had all the students form a double line according to rank and swat him with their folded karate belts as he ran down the center. I have a picture of him with a great big grim on his face.

I'm making a note of that restaurant's name and planning a birthday trip.

Hey Janine, great article. Looks like alot of research went into writing this article. I have seen a few of the traditions you talked about on other places on the net. I think I have read about the German tradition. I had no idea about Eisenhower. I have never heard of the birthday bumps either so I learned something new there as well. Great article.

Thank you for a good and interesting article - even on youtube you can find some videos of recent years showing this practice.

Well, to answer barretthunter's question, Dwight Eisenhower left the presidency (January 1961) at the age of seventy, so his 75th birthday would've been after his political career was over.

In the third grade, I got birthday swats from a classmate of my choosing--of course, being that age I chose another boy, although there was a cute girl I should've chosen, who I liked quite a bit (but not romantically as an eight-year-old). I blew that opportunity!

I do remember once, in my early twenties, substitute teaching for physical education (for my high school football coach, in fact) and giving elementary school kids who had birthdays mild slaps while bent over my knee, after the female gym teacher had done likewise to them. (I'd had the opportunity once earlier but bypassed it.) Occasionally, as a young adult working at a summer camp, I gave a few little girls playful birthday swats--they always seemed to enjoy the attention.

Sadly, most of these happy, harmless birthday activities probably wouldn't be allowed these days--but I still enjoyed reading about birthday-spanking traditions.

The first birthday (actually the day after) I had when my current wife was my girlfriend, she playfully gave me a fairly smart smacking over my satiny briefs, catching me squatting down to adjust my small television (on an overturned milk crate)--I stayed in place for all of the spanks due, and I was impressed with her enthusiasm. (She didn't know of my kink at the time.)

As Mary Hopkin once sang, "Those were the days, my friend..." --C.K.

I gave my first "real" (meaning: first one with whom I experienced mutually enjoyable sex) girlfriend a rather mild bare bottom spanking for her twenty first birthday. She suddenly broke up with me the very next morning and refused to even talk to me for a long time after that. So giving somebody one is not necessarily always a good idea.