Rite of passage

A rite of passage is a ritual performed by people, either individually or as a social group. It marks the end of one phase of life, and the arrival of another.^[1]

All people in every society and culture experience rites of passage. They happen differently, for various reasons, and at special times, depending on what society or culture the person comes from. Rites of passage celebrate and protect the person or people who are changing. They signify the transformation from one social status (e.g. coming of age), place (e.g. crossing a national border), condition (e.g. recovering from sickness), time (e.g. celebrating the new year), to the next.^[2]

1. ↑ Eriksen 2010. Small places, large issues: an introduction to social and cultural anthropology'. London: Pluto Press, p67.
2. ↑ Hendry, 2008. An Introduction to Social Anthropology: sharing our worlds. (Palgrave Macmillan: Basingstoke), p77.