Traditions: Why Do Filipinos Celebrate 7th Birthday?

Tutubi's oldest surviving picture is that of his first birthday, when he's about to put his finger on the birthday cake. It's the only extant reminder of the usually significant birthday celebrated by Filipinos. It was only a simple birthday party, as Tutubi was told, the fourth child of seven siblings in Paete, Laguna.

After his first birthday, no records nor recollection of succeeding birthdays as they were not rich to celebrate each and every birthday of the seven children. Tutubi got used to be greeted by his parents a happy birthday and he didn't expect a lavish celebration.

This simplicity in life made Tutubi what he is today: simple and budget-conscious.

As Tutubi is also celebrating his second lease in life, seven years after he survived a killer beach in Palawan (the tragedy that changed his life, when one of his friends did not make it, making this day his 7th death anniversary, it took Tutubi a year to write the gripping narrative on this blog)

Why did Tutubi post this Filipino tradition of celebrating a child's seventh birthday? Why is it significant for Pinoys?

Here's a list of possible answers and reasons why (since there isn't any reliable source of information) Filipinos make the 7th birthday important to celebrate, much like the first, the 18th (debut for girls to womanhood) and 21st (for boys to manhood):

1. Seven is a lucky number as in Lucky 7? So the Chinese celebrate the 8th birthday?

2. Seven years is the time when a baby is "no longer a baby" and passes to boyhood/girlhood? Same way a girl becomes a woman on her 18th birthday and a boy becomes a man on his 21st birthday

3. Seven years of age is a milestone when we enter the elementary grades. But with K+12, there's the mandatory kindergarten so this should be lowered to 6? :P

4. It's a tradition even during the Spanish times though there's no authoritative source for this one when the tradition started and where it began

5. It's based on the Bible; the biblical tradition that the number seven signifies completeness or perfection. You know there were seven days of creation (Genesis), the seven cattle in the dreams of the Pharaoh, the seven branches of the menorah (the lamp stand inside the tabernacle), the seven plaids of Samson's locks, seven devils of Mary Magdalene, seven deadly sins, the Pentecost as seven times seven days after Passover, even the seventy elders of Israel, Israelites exile for 70 years in Babylon, and the seventy times seven you need to forgive people who trespassed against you.

No actual reason but Filipinos celebrate the traditional seventh birthday without knowing the real reason and true meaning and significance of the event.

Did you celebrate your seventh birthday? If you have children, do you intend to celebrate your child's seventh birthday?

Let's just guess Filipinos will just say, birthdays are fun. Wala naman mawawala sa 'yo. (nothing to lose)

Actually there is, as effort, time and money is to be spent, but the good memories will remain and worth the investment.