Important customs and traditions in Lebanon

[LuisV]

Hello, Here again.

I would like to know about important customs and traditions in Lebanon.

Regards to you.

[GeaGea SkyWalkeR]

Every sunday, A lebanese family will cook a BBQ to feed 500 people when all they are feeding is 15.


GSW

[El]

LuisV you should come to lebanon to know what the traditions are.You got to feel it yourself.We can talk about our tradition for hours and days, but once you live it, i'm sure you will never want to go back to mexico.

[caramel]

well traditions :D That's a thread I like! Those will be mainly general traditions we're exposing. You still have to keep in mind that you'll find additional different traditions in different villages.
small girls do ballet, small boys do judo.
first born boys are named after their grandfather
food is very important: Maamoul on easter, turkey on christmas, Buche de noel as well, "meghle" whenever a child is born, "Snayniyyeh" whenever he has his first tooth, "ame7" and "atayef" on the 4th of december, "Kellaj" on Ramadan in addition to an entire menu specialised for the "iftar", etc...
- We have a "mezza" (variety of lebanese dishes) that obliges you to sit for lunch for at least 2 hours.
- we have a game "Kbeich" (two men arm-wrestling)and usually the one who beats the other will be known for his streingh)
- Whenever two people marry each other, the entire guests should go to the couple's future home, to put a dow (however we spell it) on the door, filling it with coins so that they could have a prosper life.
- During a wedding, the female relatives of the bride usually helps her dress and her biggest sister is her bride's maid.

that's all I don't really feel like thinking about other stuff.. but I'll add some other stuff soon

[El]

Eres siempre agradable al pais de los Cedars.
te aseguro que que te daran la bienvenida como ti estar en tu propio hogar.
:-)
take good care.

[mephisto794]

ewwwwwwwww traditions!
I will try to be brief on this, and summarize it in one word: CONVIVIALITY.

Well, conviviality is something you meet in the aspect of everyday's life: neighborhood, work...

the main positive reflections of the conviviality are the visibile in the high "pleasure" in living and famous partying mood.

On the other side, this reflects badly on the punctuality side of the lebanese. We're on the opposite side of the line from the punctual "english-time".

[someone]

-Boys go to church on Sundays to meet new girls there (We cant generalise but ...)
-If you meet a neighboor on the lift for example while going back home you have to invite him to your house.. If you dont you are disrespecting him.
-The conspiracy theory in Lebanon is a real tradition !!Everybody is allying against the lebanese people and everyone understands the whole political game!! ;).
-Eating and Eating and Eating.. We live to eat..Check the 2nd post, very true..
-If you are on a table and there's no more food (maybe because everybody is double full and they ate like pigs) it will be a big shame..!!

[lebanese_a]

I don't know if that only a Lebanese tradition but everytime I visit someone at the hospital, there is 10 people in the room 2 are seated in 2 chair, one is in the bed, One is sitting at the little "daraj" that gets you to the bed, and 6 are standing leaving a couch empty!!
Whenever someone new enters the room they all invite him to sit but he declines and invite someone else to sit (usualy the biggest), this person replies: "Noo I have been sitting all day" and the conversation moves on leaving the chair empty!!!

And there is the food tradition (lebanese "will cook a BBQ to feed 500 people when all they are feeding is 15.")

this one is also true: "-The conspiracy theory in Lebanon is a real tradition !!Everybody is allying against the lebanese people and everyone understands the whole political game!! ;)."

[caramel]

yeah and one more thing (happened to me again today): everyone wants to get the bill and a bit or arguing goes on before that a person agrees or before that everyone agrees to split the bill

[fetikelmetssalet]

What about all the Lebanese traditional expressions,that we say automatically,without even meaning it sometimes.(It is from our traditions)

-If someone told U that he missed You U automatically say "ne7na bel aktar"
-If a visitours want to leave the reply is "khalik ba3dak wassil" "teb2o 3idouwa"
-Some terms every adolescent hated to hear "nefra7 mennak/ik" "ne2cha3lak 3arouss/3ariss" "3e2bel far7etoun". These terms have no specific occasions and are thrown anytime: after a coffee is drank & put back on the table, on bthday, on graduation...

- When you are a kid U hear "3e2bel ch7edetoun", when U graduate U hear "inchallah 3e2bel far7etoun" when U marry "3e2bel el wled" when U get the children mother relatives will say "yo2borne tali3 la 2emmo" & father relatives "leik chou byechba7 bayyo" & the cycle will go again & again.
-some terms lebanese use but has no meaning or if translated to other language will sound so weird & FUNNY "chou fi ma fi" "keloun adrab men ba3ed" "yo2bourne rabbak" "to2bourne" "toli3 dine" "2arit tafye" "yel3an el se3a" .....

we should not forget the most popular Lebanese Expression from tourassna "CHOU. KIFAK, CA VA???"

"SALBEH EH? "