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In ancient Ghana the Soninke people made a great impact on their society because they shared their beliefs and brought unity to the empire. A way that they Soninke people did this was by believing that every living and nonliving object had a meaning to it (¨Soninke¨). For example, one may think that a pine needle represents stabbing someone because of it’s pointy shape. Another example may be a feather floating in the air that might mean being free and peaceful. The Soninke people also created unity because they thought something was either good or evil (¨Soninke¨). This method kept all the Soninke people on the same page and didn’t question each other. Going back to the pine needle situation, the Soninke people may think it’s evil because
it may represent stabbing which is very evil. On the other hand, a feather floating in the air would be considered good because it might have represented freedom and peace. Finally, the Soninke people brought unity to the kingdom of Ghana because they all believed in one god (¨Soninke¨). They all have the same beliefs, tradition, and ethics that make all the Soninke people work as a whole. If this didn’t happen, there would be chaos across Ghana and nobody would agree. The Soninke people made an enormous impact on the kingdom of Ghana because they were able to create unity throughout the kingdom.
The rituals and traditions of the Indians evince their beliefs in spirits and afterlife. Indians believed that there would be a better life for them after they die, because many of them did not see a way out, but people were still fighting for their lives.
The display of Benin art in museum and galleries reflect the attitudes and perceptions of Europeans towards non-western artefacts, especially African. Thus as European attitudes change towards non-western art since the discovery of Benin art in 1897, Benin art has been revaluated and re-categorised.
Africa is filled with several hundred distinct tribes that all bear themselves in a different fashion, depending on each other, or even fighting each to get what they want. This exchange between the many tribes has resulted in a rich history of conflict, economic development, and culture. One small example of the possible hundreds of tribes is the Mossi tribe, who reside right at the border of sub- Saharan Africa, in Burkina Faso and also the second largest ethnic group in Cote D'ivoire . While a relatively small tribe compared to the likes of the Zulus or the Dinka, their tribe is made up of roughly 3.5 million people, which is still quite a large number.The Mossi are neighboring the people of the Dogon, Kurumba, Gourmantche,Gurunsi, Bisa,Dagomba, and Sisala tribes. The Mossi have an official language called More, pronounced Moray, that is spoken by the them and most of the population of Burkina Faso, as well as about 60,000 people in Togo and Mali. Like many African languages, More uses pitch to distinguish the meaning of words and phrases. Their political was very closely connected with their religion, so as the Muslim religion began to spread throughout Africa, they resisted conversion to the religion even as most of the tribes around them accepted the religion. This may be why there are some Muslim influences within Mossi society. As Africa was being colonized by Europeans, the Mossi were one of the last tribes to be colonized, and when French colonists conquered them in 1896-97, taxes were imposed that impelled many of the Mossi to move to Cote D'ivoire to earn money. While they did not leave their families behind, many Mossi men went south to Cote D'ivoire in between crop-growing seasons and would return with the money th...
Brief History From the 1500s to the 1700s, African blacks, mainly from the area of West Africa (today's Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Dahomey, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, and Gabon) were shipped as slaves to North America, Brazil, and the West Indies. For them, local and tribal differences, and even varying cultural backgrounds, soon melded into one common concern: the suffering they all endured. Music, songs, and dances as well as traditional food, helped not only to uplift them but also quite unintentionally added immeasurably to the culture around them. In the approximately 300 years that blacks have made their homes in North America, the West Indies, and Brazil, their highly honed art of the cuisine so treasured and carefully transmitted to their daughters has become part of the great culinary classics of these lands. But seldom are the African blacks given that recognition.
Since thought was first invoked in the minds of our ancestors, we as a species have had conflicting viewpoints from one group to the next. Through genealogy, locale, and cultural upbringing, our perceptions have been honed to coincide with those around us. As a species we tend to familiarize ourselves with our surroundings, forming into similar thinking groups whose views and concepts mimic each others. It is this constant movement to like-wise thinking that creates our sense of self, giving meaning to our existence and purpose to our lives.
Western attitudes to African people and culture have always affected how their art was appreciated and this has also coloured the response to the art from Benin.
The Olaundah Equiano narrative is a view of servitude from a former captive himself. He begins his story in Africa from the land of Esska, his native homeland. He describes his tribe and all the many traditions they practiced as a way of living. Equiano was not originally born into servitude but a free male, son of a chief. Equiano’s life in Africa was common among the many members of his tribe. He was strongly attached to his mother and clenched to her as much as possible. His father obtained many slaves himself, but treated them like an equal part of the family. Equiano lived a common life in African society, until one day his destiny took an unexpected turn for the worst and life would never be the same.
West African Kingdoms It is generally accepted by scholars and scientists today that Africa is the original home of man. One of the most tragic misconceptions of historical thought has been the belief that Black Africa had no history before European colonization. Whites foster the image of Africa as a barbarous and savage continent torn by tribal warfare for centuries. It was a common assumption of nineteenth-century European and American Whites - promoted by the deliberate cultivation of pseudoscientific racism - that Africans were inferior to Whites and were devoid of any trace of civilization or culture.
Gender is social construct used as a method of distinction among both living and non-living things. In many societies, gender is used metaphorically to categorize and explain all facets of human culture the phenomena of nature. This essay will examine the imagery of the male “creator” and the female “vessel” in both contemporary and ancient African culture as a method of understanding nature, technology, and religion. First the binary of creator and vessel will be examined in ancient Egyptian religious ideology on human creation as well as the Egyptian’s connection to the fertility and rebirth of Nile River’s flooding. Next this essay will look at contemporary African culture and the continued use of the vessel/creator binary in the practice of iron ore smelting technology.
There is a diversity of tribes that the human society was once uninformed of its existence. Until the 1970, mankind was unaware of the Korowai society existence. The Korowai also known as Kolufu are from the southwestern part of the western part of New Guinea. The Korowai tribe follows a common language, economic system, and an exceptional lifestyle. They practice ritual cannibalism and have incredible architecture knowledge. In the verge of extinction the Korowai continue to practice their unique culture which makes them different from other societies.
physically related, and also in many other forms related to the Samburu and Turkana. The
Centered along the Malian-Mauritanian frontier the empire of Ghana, one of Africa’s first empires, was prospering. As Ghana continued to reign over western Africa another empire was beginning to emerge. Under the leadership of Sundjata Keita the Malinke Empire, otherwise known as the empire of Mali, was being formed around the upper area of the Niger River. When the empire of Ghana was overtaken by Muslim Almoravids during the 11th century, the Malinke Empire was more than ready to take it’s place.
?Any work of art owes its existence to the people and culture from which it has emerged. It has a functional and historical relationship with that culture.? Michael W. Conner, PhD#
Yoruba is one of many tribes located in Africa and is one of the largest ethno- linguistic groups. Majority of the native people of Yoruba are a part of Southwestern Nigeria and Benin. However, a great percentage of Yoruba is populated by modern day Nigeria. Moreover, the Yoruba culture was an oral tradition, and majority of the people were native speakers of the Yoruba language. The native name of the Yoruba language is ‘Ede Yoruba’. The language originated through the Yoruba people because they were believed to be descendants of Oduduwa. Oduduwa, was the son of a powerful God named Oludumare. And the Yoruba people referred to themselves as ‘Omo Oduduwa’ meaning Oduduwa’s children. The Yoruba language is the pride of the Yoruba people and over 22 million people speak it. The Yoruba language had been spoken within other languages in neighboring countries such as Benin and Togo. Other traces of the Yoruba language has been spoken in Sierra Leone, where it’s referred to as “Oku” and Cuba known as “Nago”.
Ghana: The Gold Coast of Africa The Gold Coast, now known as Ghana, is one of many civilizations of Africa. It was a British Colony until March 6, 1957, when it became independent as the State of Ghana. In 1471, the Portuguese invaded this area and became involved in gold trade, giving the region the name, The Gold Coast.