Cigars when a new baby is born-origins?

[Guinastasia]

Where and when did the custom of passing out cigars when a new baby is born originate?

[Kimstu]

It’s a mystery.

Whether it’s a wedding, a birth, a successful business deal, or a sports victory, cigars are often smoked. […]

The exact origin for the modern tradition of smoking cigars at celebrations remains somewhat uncertain. […]

The most common type of celebration in which cigars are passed out is the birth of a child. Cigars with labels reading “It’s a Boy” and “It’s a Girl” are common. Cigars are also frequently smoked at weddings and are occasionally seen when a successful business deal closes or when a favorite sports team wins. In one tradition, a cigar is purchased for luck and kept until a stated goal is achieved; the cigar is then smoked in order to celebrate the success. In this tradition, the cigar not only serves as a means of celebration, but also a reward that may encourage someone to work towards a goal.

Some sources vaguely attempt to connect it with the American Indian custom of the “potlatch” and the use of tobacco in American Indian cultures, but that gets a :dubious: from me.

[mangeorge]

A phallus?

[Exapno_Mapcase]

Try these two previous threads:

Why do new fathers give out cigars?

giving out cigars after your baby is born

Our guesses are a lot better.

[mangeorge]

@Exapno Mapcase

Try these two previous threads:

Why do new fathers give out cigars?

giving out cigars after your baby is born

Our guesses are a lot better.

Better than whose? :dubious:
Around here I’ve noticed that the custom seems to falling from favor. Not a bad thing, imo.

[samclem]

Using an admittedly US-biased Historic Newspaper Database, the idea of passing out cigars, as well as sundry other items, only seems to appear in the late 1890’s-very early 1900’s. The earliest story I could find in connection with the birth of a child is 1920.

[Exapno_Mapcase]

@mangeorge

Better than whose? :dubious:

Than the one Kimstu quoted.

[GreedySmurf]

@mangeorge

Around here I’ve noticed that the custom seems to falling from favor. Not a bad thing, imo.

I would presume that the decline in numbers of people who smoke have something to do with this. I can count on one hand the number of friends who smoke.

[AskNott]

@GreedySmurf

I would presume that the decline in numbers of people who smoke have something to do with this. I can count on one hand the number of friends who smoke.

I agree with that. Even among cigarette smokers, a cigar’s aggressive taste and aroma is a shock. :eek: Also, many workplaces don’t allow smoking, so gents can’t share the celebration with the new papa.