I was born and raised in germany and my parents are from poland and croatia. I never visited poland for my family since I never got to know them but I‘ve been to poland for school trips before. My croatian parr of the family lives in serbia and some other balkan countries, so I thought I had serbian heritage until I became a teenager. Now I’m in my early twenties and I feel like I belong nowhere. I only speak german, English and a crumble of spanish. I don’t know what my culture is or where I belong. I still can’t believe I thought I had serbian heritage for most of my life. I don’t know where to start. I don’t want to claim a culture that isn’t mine but I wanna learn and be part of something. I have turkish friends who know so many cultural beliefs, dishes and dances. I only know christmas. I can barely recognize the sound of the languages between other slavic languages. How do I begin learning? Unfortunately I can’t speak to my elder relatives about this anymore. I wish I was more curious about this as a child.

I have the impression that africans and asians people don't like to cuddle when they are in a relationship (i'm euroepan)

I would like to know what meaning a hug means to you? The hug is reserved for what occasion? Do you do it often? If you haven't hugged for several weeks or months, do you miss it? Is hugging something frowned upon in your culture (can you tell me your culture)? Is this something you secretly want to do? Is this something that both men and women don't like? How do you express your affection for your partner? If your partner hugs you, how do you feel? Embarrassment, boredom, disgust, nothing? How do you keep couples from cuddling?
I've noticed this in all Africans people I meet for a while, and it's something I don't understand, and would really like to understand. I want to understand how it is possible to love differently. It's very far from my culture and it seems very complicated to understand for me.

Hi everyone

My name is Malak. I'm a 20-year-old Egyptian girl, and I'm a beginner in learning English. I'm studying English translation and I want to become a simultaneous interpreter one day.

That's why I wanted to join this space and interact with you — to learn more about your culture, your thoughts, and how you express yourselves.

I'd love to get to know you better!

Just thinking about the time I travelled to Marrakech and I was walking through Jemaa el-Fnaa. I had vendors literally grab my hand and pull me towards their stalls and someone tried to start painting Henna on me while I was walking

I had never come across that before and it felt quite intense because I’m used to a lot more personal space as a tourist. Not that I'm saying it's bad or good, but it was just a very different way of selling and it caught me off guard

It reminded me how much the definition of “normal” changes depending on where you are

What’s one cultural difference you experienced while travelling that surprised you?

The Cultural Pivot: Exploring the Societal Fallout of Rapid Gender Normalization

Over the past few decades, society has undergone a massive, institutional shift regarding transgender normalization. What was once viewed by the public and mainstream media as a fringe phenomenon or a cultural anomaly is now heavily promoted across education, healthcare, and corporate policy. This rapid, top-down transformation has not come without significant friction, raising critical questions about its long-term impact on foundational social structures.

The swift institutionalization of these new norms has created several distinct areas of societal strain:

• Erosion of Shared Realities: The traditional, biologically-rooted definition of sex has been replaced by a fluid concept of gender identity. Critics argue this undermines language and objective biological reality, creating a fractured social consensus.
• The Redefinition of Safe Spaces: The integration of gender identity into law and policy has directly impacted sex-segregated spaces, particularly women's sports, locker rooms, and shelters. This shift has sparked intense debate over fairness, safety, and the erasure of sex-based protections for women.
• Institutional Strain: Major medical, psychological, and educational systems have rapidly adopted affirmative models. Many argue this swift pivot stifles necessary scientific debate, penalizes dissenting professional opinions, and impacts youth development before long-term data is fully understood.
• Social Polarization: Rather than fostering unity, the aggressive enforcement of these new cultural standards by corporations and governing bodies has alienated large segments of the population. This has deepened political divides and intensified the ongoing culture wars.

Ultimately, the transition from old cultural paradigms to modern gender theory represents a fundamental rewriting of societal rules. The speed and rigidity of this shift have left society grappling with deep institutional instability and fragmented social cohesion.

I've linked my original post for an interview opportunity, if anyone is interested please reach out!

Thumbs up to all of you to have the courage to speak with people you don't know

We speak languages, English, American, Arabic, Urabic, Russian, Bosniac, Persian, Portuguese, Japanese, Italian, German, Yurobic, & 1000s of other languages as human beings. Where come from doesn't make us any less as human. We are all the people's of where that we come from. We have cultures, histories, fashions, foods, & our origins of our countries. It doesn't make us less than us, but what the selfish of the people's who make our suffering. Those who would exploit us for their own well-being. WE ARE HUMAN! Why should we let the governments of our own countries separate us? We all care about our families, those that we want to love better than the suffering we all have endured. The injustices we have lived though. But we also have to strengthen them, show them accountability, consequences, otherwise we have failed them as parents. To continue the cycle of hate that we were taught as children... We ALL DESERVE BETTER. Children as a whole are kind to those who are different, they are special, beautiful... They are INNOCENT! And we should fight to preserve that innocence to make a better world...

I place great importance on culture, the arts, and other elements that, while not immediately useful in life, are nonetheless essential.

In recent years, I’ve been concerned about the downsizing of the humanities and the increasing priority given to efficiency and growth. In my country, opportunities to engage with culture and the arts are limited to a certain segment of the population, and the importance placed on these areas is low.

Are there similar discussions taking place in your country regarding this issue?

After secondary school, Musonda gained formal work experience with several Zambian companies, including Dayo, ZESCO, and Quick Save. He found traditional employment unfulfilling and sought greater autonomy. In 2024, he enrolled at the Zambia University of Technology (ZUT) in a four-year Bachelor’s degree program in Cyber Security, where he is currently in his third year.

Entrepreneurial Ventures

During his first year at university, Musonda initially balanced academics successfully. In the second semester, he developed an interest in music, recording tracks on his HP Pavilion G7 laptop. He pursued music professionally for approximately six months but discontinued due to demanding academic schedules. Facing discouragement, he persisted by self-teaching web development through YouTube tutorials and ChatGPT.

His first major digital project was Zodepay, envisioned as a platform to facilitate easier financial transactions and communication for users. Development was interrupted when his laptop was stolen, resulting in the loss of unsaved project documents with no cloud backup. To generate capital while continuing his studies, Musonda rented an apartment (with bedding support from his mother) and offered bedspace rentals to fellow students. He later expanded into small collateral-based lending, which provided additional income and practical experience in client interaction and financial management.

Launch of Major Events and Rebranding

In early 2026, Musonda conceived the idea of hosting a house party. With parental encouragement, he collaborated with associates Nathan and Barnabas Phiri to secure a venue. A group was formed to gauge interest, attracting 170 potential attendees within one day. Recognizing that his initial budget was insufficient, Musonda scaled the concept into a larger ticketed event featuring artists and a bigger venue, following advice from his collaborators.

After three days of deliberation and consultation with his parents, he secured approximately 30,000 Zambian kwacha in family support. The event took place on May 31, 2026, and was considered a success.

On June 1, 2026, the company rebranded from Zod to Blackout. The same day, Musonda publicly addressed internal challenges involving a former associate who had allegedly signed unauthorized contracts using the previous company name (Zod), misrepresented ownership, and organized events without approval. This led to public confusion, reputational strain, and the cancellation of an unauthorized event. Musonda severed ties with the individual, issued formal warnings, and stated that the company had since completed formal legal registration and adopted stricter transparency protocols. Official announcements are now limited to verified Blackout channels on Facebook, Instagram, and Reddit.

Personal Life

Musonda credits his family for strong support throughout his journey. He is the son of supportive parents and has siblings including sisters Veronica, Faith, and Jacqueline, and brother Josaya. He maintains a relationship with his partner and continues to balance his studies with leadership of Blackout Entertainment.

Blackout has positioned itself as a growing player in Zambia’s events and branding sector, with an emphasis on memorable experiences and social impact initiatives.

hey, i'm kolaskka, and i'm collecting stories and information about languages and cultures. if you'd like to, you can take part in my survey here!
i'm planning to share your answers on tiktok first, and then i'd like to create a podcast on spotify based on them. thank you sooo much in advance🥹

I’m really drawn to Indian culture and absolutely love traditional Indian clothing. I recently saw this gorgeous wine red outfit and it completely caught my eye! However, as someone of Afro-Cuban heritage, I want to make sure I’m being respectful. Would it be considered appropriate and appreciative for me to wear this style, or could it be seen as offensive? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Okay, so I have a side character for a fantsy story I'm creating, and the culture she's from is supposed to be lightly inspired by Inuit culture. I'm trying to figure out how to write her as transgender in a respectful way.

I don't know a lot about specific groups within the category of "Inuit," so bear with me here and please feel free to educate me if needed.

My character is transgender, she was born with a male body. Based on the research (google searches and articles mostly) I've done so far, I know that there is the idea of the soul name, where a child is named after a deceased relative and it is thought of as that the relative's soul? traits? personality? are passed on to the child through the name. I think it'd be cool to include in her backstory that she was named after a female relative, and the soul of that relative didn't want to be in a male body, so it made my character really sick and when the community's elders were trying to figure out why she was sick, she said something that indicated she didn't feel like a boy (also, I would probably have this take place when she was a pre-teen).

Then, once people started thinking of her as a girl, she would recover from her illness. She would keep the same name of course, and would now be considered a girl.

Is this a respectful way for me to write this character? Keep in mind, I don't think I will have her culture literally be an Inuit culture, but it will be lightly inspired (Inuit names, similar social customs, same physical features as many Inuit, etc.)

Also, I think Inuit people have multiple names along with their soul name? I will need to figure out some more names for her, and get a better understanding of how names work in Inuit cultures. I'm planning for her soul name to be Qimmiq (pretty sure it means dog) by the way.

Any advice, critiques, information, or resources would be much appreciated! I'm a white American so I don't have any experience with Inuit cultures, or very many other groups that are often marginalized or underrepresented. I totally recognize that I'm very uneducated on this topic, which is why I thought I should throw my questions out into the void of Reddit in case anyone with more expertise has some guidance.