The birthmark on my bum

by - June 08, 2011

Believe it or not, Asian babies are born with blue bums. I didn't realise this was uncommon knowledge until I compared birthmarks and other genetic anomalies with seven caucasian freaks (hello no ear lobes, hello hammer toes). Great dinner conversation. My birthmark is a Mongolian Blue Spot that never faded. It's a blue-grey spot on my bum about the size of a 20 cent piece in the shape of a triangle. There is no way to take a classy photo of my butt so I won't.


This is a photo of a 6 month old Taiwanese girl who is suffering the indignity of having her little bum plastered on Wikipedia. While the Mongolian Blue Spot is meant to fade completely within a few years, a little stayed behind at the top of my right buttock.

I'm not entirely sure why the blue bum syndrome was named after Mongolians when it is found on East Asians, Native Amercians, Polynesians and East Africans. The German physician, Erwin Balz, who named the condition was looking after the Imperial family in Japan - perhaps he thought all Japanese looked Mongolian. Unlike Aussies who think all Asians look Japanese.

You May Also Like

0 comments