Mourning in silence: cultural practices and the negotiation of Hlamzuih (infant death) in Mizo society

Infant death often occupies an ambiguous position within cultural systems of mourning and ritual recognition. In Mizo society, the classification of hlamzuih refers to infants who die within the first three months of life and whose deaths are treated differently from those of older children and adults in customary funeral practices. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in urban and rural communities across Mizoram, Northeast India, this study examines the cultural meanings and contemporary interpretations of hlamzuih. Data were collected through interviews with community leaders, church representatives, scholars, and bereaved parents, as well as through participant observation of funerary practices. The findings show that hlamzuih historically reflected both cultural beliefs about infancy and practical considerations related to rituals such as thlaichhiah. In contemporary contexts, however, the practice has become a site of negotiation among community institutions, religious teachings, and families’ changing understandings of grief, personhood, and social belonging.