Culture plays a decisive role in coloring the psychopathology of various psychiatric disorders. However, some psychiatric syndromes are limited to certain specific cultures. These disorders are called culture specific or culture bound syndrome. The last two decades have witnessed an increased interest in the cross cultural study of psychiatric disorders. Culture-bound syndrome is a broad rubric that encompasses certain behavioral, affective and cognitive manifestations seen in specific cultures. These manifestations are deviant from the usual behavior of the individuals of that culture and are a reason for distress/discomfort. This entitles these manifestations for a proper labeling and subsequent management. However, the available information and literature on these conditions suggest that at least some of them are/have been more widely prevalent than being considered. These conditions could be relabeled as functional somatic syndromes.

Keywords: Culture; Culture Bound Syndrome.