Coming of age
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Coming of age is a young person's formal transition from adolescence to adulthood. The age at which this transition takes places varies in society, as does the nature of the transition. It can be a simple legal convention or can be part of a ritualistic cycle, similar to those once practiced by many societies. In the past, and in some societies today, such a change is associated with the age of sexual maturity (mid-adolescence) while modern legal conventions are more commonly a point in late adolescence or early adulthood (most commonly 18 and 21). In either case, many cultures retain ceremonies to confirm the coming of age, and significant benefits come with the change. (See also rite of passage.)
The term coming of age is also used in reference to different media such as stories, movies, etc. that have a young character or characters who, by the end of the story, have matured in some way, usually through the acceptance of responsibility,or by learning a lesson of some kind.
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Religious coming of age
Buddhism
Monastic
Lay
Christianity
- Confirmation
- In some Christian traditions, generally Catholic and Anglican, Confirmation is the ritual by which a young person becomes an official member of the Church. This sometimes includes the bestowal of a 'Confirmation name,' generally the name of a saint, which is often worn as a second middle name. Confirmation also bestows the right to receive Holy Communion with the body of believers.
- Age of accountability
- This is the age at which a child is old enough to understand the moral consequences of his or her actions and can be held accountable for sins. It is also called the 'age of reason.' Though it does not correspond to a particular age for every person, due to differences in personal and psychological maturation, it is sometimes set down arbitrarily as 12. A child who has passed the age of accountability is said to know the difference between right and wrong and to be capable of obeying the moral laws of God. Some Christian traditions believe that the age of accountability is the end of a period of early grace (prevenient grace, in Wesleyan traditions) which covers over the sins of those not capable of knowing the moral consequences of their actions. (Those persons who, due to disabled mental or emotional development, will never reach a sufficient level of abstract reason, are covered by this grace for life and are sometimes known as 'the innocents.') In Christian traditions which practice Believer's Baptism (baptism by voluntary decision, as opposed to baptism in early infancy), the ritual can be carried out after the age of accountability has arrived. Some traditions withhold the rite of Holy Communion from those not yet at the age of accountability, on the grounds that children do not understand what the ritual means. Full membership in the Church, if not bestowed at birth, often must wait until the age of accountability and frequently is granted only after a period of preparation known as catechesis.
Greek polytheism
Hinduism
Judaism
Within Judaism there is the well-known ceremony of Bar mitzvah for a boy when he turns thirteen years old and becomes recognized as a "man". For a girl at twelve years of age she becomes a "woman". In Judaism it is recognized that girls mature slightly ahead of boys. Judaism recognizes that these ages coincide with puberty, which in past times made them eligible for marriage.
The coming of age ceremony called a bar mitzvah ("son of the commandment" in Aramaic) is held on the Saturday (Shabbat) after a Jewish boy's thirteenth birthday. A similar ceremony called a bat mitzvah (or bas mitzvah) is held on the Saturday closest to a Jewish girl's twelfth birthday. However, the female coming of age ceremony is not as commonly practiced as the bar mitzvah. The bat mitzvah is recognised mostly by Reform Judaism, Conservative Judaism, and Modern Orthodox Judaism. Haredi Judaism and Hasidic Judaism only celebrate bar mitzvahs.
Islam
Secular national traditions
Australia, NZ, etc.
In Australia, New Zealand and numerous other countries, a party known as the Twenty First has long celebrated the coming of age. On their 21st birthdays, young people and their families and friends traditionally gather together for social parties where gifts are presented to the birthday boy or girl. The practice is gradually waning, primarily because the legal age of maturity has been reduced to 18, so by 21 they have already had the privileges of adulthood (the right to drink, smoke and vote) for three years. The most significant coming-of-age event in the lives of many Australians is getting their driver's license. The minimum age varies from state-to-state, but the license is used as identification and proof-of-age that is often necessary to access the privileges of adulthood.
Hispanic
In traditional Hispanic cultures there is a tradition very similar to that of the Bat Mitzvah in the Jewish faith. The Quinceañera (Fifteenth Birthday) for young Latin women is a rite of passage signifying that she has reached the age of adulthood. The event is marked by a large celebration and a event called the candle lighting ceremony which acts as a more spiritual mark to their achievement. This tradition is based on societal views of youth as well as faith.
Spain
While in recent history of Spain the Quinceañera ceremony is not known, there was a civilian coming of age bound to the compulsory military service during the 20th century. The quintos were the boys of the village that reached the age of eligibility for military service (18 years), thus forming the quinta of year, say, 1969. In rural Spain, the mili was the first and sometimes the only experience of life away from family. In the days before their departure, the quintos knocked every door to ask for food and drink. With the proceedings, they held a common festive meal and may paint some graffiti "Vivan los quintos del <year>" as a memorial of their leaving their youth. Years later, the quintos of the same year could still hold yearly meals to remember times past.
By the end of the 20th century, the rural exodus, the diffusion of city customs and the loss of prestige of military service changed the relevance of quintos parties. In some places, the party included the village girls of the same age, thus detaching from military service. In others, the tradition was simply lost.
Japan
Japan, since 1948, has held an annual ceremony called the Coming-of-Age Day (成人の日; seijin no hi), the second Monday of January, for those becoming 20 years old in the new calendar year. Until 1999, the day was held on January 15. The day is a national holiday, and local governments generally hold some sort of ceremony. Women often wear furisode, a traditional Japanese formal kimono with long sleeves. Men usually wear suits, though some wear traditional Japanese clothes. At this age, the right to smoke, drink, and vote is granted . It was known as genpuku (see the section below) among samurai in the past.
Genpuku
In Japan, Genpuku (元服) was a celebration that showed a samurai was considered to be an adult. The age of gempuku varied from 12 to 18.
Upon reaching this age, men usually changed their names from their birth names to adult names, changed their hair styles to an adult style by shaving the forelocks, received their first swords, and began to be treated as adults. They separated from their mothers or governesses, and they became able to take on the dominant role in shudo (male-male love) relationships. Some were even given a territory to rule. No samurai was allowed to marry before genpuku, though they could be engaged. There was no genpuku or equivalent ceremony for women. On rare occasions, genpuku was held for someone younger than 12 for the purpose of marriage. Marriage at this age was for political purposes.
The samurai would bring the younglings to a river after they were ready to begin their ceremony. They would place the child into the river and make them stay there for days. In 3 days the samurai would return to the river to alert the child that they are now free of the river. They would then take the child to the great mountain tops, where the child would live off of the land for 2 years, until the Empress saw fit for his return. Then the use of Bamboo training Katatanas were used to show the child's strength and cunning. If the tribe thought the child was well enough to become a samurai then he became one.
Alternate spellings include gempuku, gembuku, genbuku, gembaku, and genbaku.
See also: Seijin Shiki
Papua New Guinea
Kovave is a ceremony to initiate Papua New Guinea boys into adult society. It involves dressing up in a conical hat which has long strands of leaves hanging from the edge, down to below the waist. The effect is both humourous and frightening. The name Kovave is also used to describe the head-dress.
Samoa
In 1928, Margaret Mead published a book called Coming of Age in Samoa. It not only launched her career as an anthropologist but remains a classic in its field.
Pygmies
In the rite of initiation of Baka Pygmies, the Spirit of the Forest kills ritually the boys to propitiate their rebirth as men. In order to understand deeply the meaning of the rite, the Italian anthropologist Mauro Campagnoli took part into this secret rite of men's initiation, becoming a member of a baka patrilinear clan and so completing his trans-cultural coming of age.
Professional initiatory rituals
Academic Initiations
English public school
University
In many universities of Europe, first year students are made to undergo tests or humiliation before being accepted as students. Perhaps the oldest of these is "Raisin Monday" at St Andrews University. It is still practiced. A senior student would take a new student, a "bejant" or "bejantine" under his wing and show them round the university. In gratitude, the bejant would give the senior student a pound of raisins. In turn this led to bejants being given receipts in Latin. If a bejant failed to produce the receipt, he could be thrown into a fountain. The word bejant derives from "bec jaune" (a yellow beak, or fledgling).
Fraternities and sororities
Printing industry
Among apprentices, the step from apprentice to journeyman was often marked by some ceremonial humiliation. Among printers this lasted until the twentieth century. The unfortunate young man would be "banged out" by being covered in offal.
Films
For a list of films that deal with the coming-of-age of a character, see Category:Coming-of-age films.
