Jonkonnu: The Dance Of Christmas
North Carolinians often associate Christmas time with pine trees, presents, and Santa Claus, but never stop to think about how other Christian cultures such as the African American ones in New Bern,Jamaica, and the Caribbean celebrate this time of year.The contrast between the African-American celebrations called Jonkonnu, and American Christmas celebrations is profound. The Jonkonnu celebrations occur in tightly knitted communities that use music,dance, and songs to express their appreciation of one another instead of the tradition of gift-giving. Jonkonnu is an African-American Christmas celebration, which takes place in New Bern, but originated in Jamaica, and the Caribbean.
Jonkonnu can be traced back
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According to Lasseter, eventually slaves from different areas met with each other, and spread their culture amongst themselves and the whites. This caused a large pool of cultural practices to mix together and create what is now known as Jonkonnu(Mims). There are a few theories on where its name derives. The first and most accepted is based off of the tale of a man named John Canoe(Mims). “There is a bit of controversy as to the source of the name of the festival. While some believe that the origin of the name is unknown, others contend that the name and principal character are honourable memorials to John Conny, an active, successful black merchant near Axim along the Guinea Coast around 1720”. John Conny was an important historical person. He worked for the …show more content…
The day begins with the official announcement of Jonkonnu by the Town Crier, which is followed by revelers dancing for people on their doorstep to collect donations.(Mims). The Town Crier usually yells a chant such as “John Canoe is Coming John Canoe is coming!”(Mims). According to Mckown, Participants in the celebrations, dress in their best clothing, or in a costume. Typical costumes include horse heads,horned masks, and tails which are usually made of cloth,wood,colorful rags and leather(Mckown). The most important figure known as the Rag Man, is covered head to toe in colorful rags and is often danced around once the celebration begins; however, the Rag Man’s importance pales in comparison to his significance during the era of slavery(Mims). The Rag Man essentially had the social hierarchy of a white man during the short period in which he was allowed to shake his slave master’s hand(Mims). This was unheard of the rest of the year and anything of this sort would be devastating to the owner’s reputation among other whites(Mims). The celebration begins with people dressed up in their costumes dancing to music and the beat of the drums. Children dance to the chant “Funga alafia, ashay ashay! Funga alafia, ashay ashay!” which roughly translates to “I welcome you into my heart”(Mims). The festivities spread throughout the town and can be heard from any corner of Tryon
Source 1 displays the aspects of the Indigenous culture and spirituality during the festive season. It acknowledges the native Indigenous Aboriginals of Australia; specifically their land, sea, and their inhabitants. This source is almost a manual, giving instructions to what is to be done, being a step by step process in acknowledging “the light Jesus brought into the world”. “The light”, as Jesus is described, is a symbol of Truth and Righteousness, opposite to Darkness as that of Hell and Evil. The ceremony starts with a spiritual act of a coolamon being placed with stones every week, including the act of placing
Question 1: In what ways does Source 1 incorporate elements of spirituality and religion in the Murri people’s preparation for Christmas.
Human needs are similar- health, physical appearance, human body and economic resources to meet these needs. Nacirema culture bears some semblance to more civilized culture. While reading this article it seems most of the practices are similar with modern culture. A major difference is the magic, ritual and the crude method of doing things. One of the cultural practices that stood out for me is the “holy-mouth-men” ritual, which seems like what a dentist will do. I also find interesting the diagnostic ability of the diviner.
There are quite a number of people who believe that Jehovah's Witnesses are prudish for their differences in their morals and standards. For example, many find it difficult to believe that they do not celebrate Christmas or birthdays, or any other festive holiday. Many don't understand what's so wrong about standing for O Canada or singing anthems for any other country. The fact of the matter is, there are quite a number of festive holidays that people around the world celebrate that they may or may not know have pagan backgrounds, or are quite obviously based on its influences. To Jehovah's witnesses, it is very important to stay away from such kinds of celebrations because they feel that it's a necessity to worship God with their whole soul and in the way he wants them to. This would not be possible while participating in celebrations that have paganism as its origin.
Mardi Gras: Mardi Gras mean the ‘Fat Tuesday’. This festival marks the end of the carnival and the beginning of Lent period. The annual celebration starts in 1870. Some colorful dresses, ornaments, toys and the peoples are the main
Christmas is a holiday filled with tradition, family, and happiness, but what most people don’t know is that Christmas is celebrated all over the world, not just the United States. Latin American countries are especially passionate about Christmas. The way Hispanic people celebrate changes throughout each country. Each one has its own unique Christmas culture. In this essay I am going to write about some of these different countries, and tell how each one is similar and different in showing their Christmas spirit.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a story we are all familiar with, it captures a moment in time of blatant prejudices and inequality that spanned years from when it was written in 1939 to when it was released as a movie in 1964. However endearing the story may be, it is a testament to what conditions were socially accepted as normal during that time period. Originally written by Montgomery Ward to sell appliances, this story has an explicit lens of bigotry, inequality, and the importance of conforming to society.
Christmas is a holiday celebrated by most of the world. Christianity is very popular in the US and Hispanic cultures. In the US, Christmas is celebrated with going to Church on Christmas Eve, spending time with their families, and many other things. People also reenact the nativity scene, sing Christmas carols, and do
“Rituals and Traditions; It Takes a Tribe,” written by David Berreby and “Indians: Textualism, Morality, and the Problem of History” written by Jane Tompkins, both exemplify a typical controversial topic in the United States of America today. The US prides there self on the basis of freedom, and how Americans are made up of individuals with backgrounds from all around the world. Many consider the US to be a “melting pot”, a society where cultures are just blended together and not recognized fully on their own, where as others consider the US to be a “salad bowl”, where people of international cultures hold fast to their traditions and practices and coexist with the cultures around them. Both authors of the readings propose that generally speaking,
"Molly Ockett Days Festival Beginning to Truly Honor Native Namesake." Indian Country Today Media Network.com. Gale Courey Toensing, 3 Dec. 2013. Web. 08 May 2014.
The men of the tribe then join in the preparations for the dance by construct sweat lodges, which are used in the ceremony. They also collect other necessities, which are needed for the dance. The first day before the Sun Dance is a very significant day. In the early morning hours a group of men “known for their eminence in their tribe were chosen to look for a (cottonwood) tree with a fork in the top” (“Dance”). Along with this select group went a chosen woman.
When you mention Alaska and the Arctic Circle, one envisions igloos, dog sleds, and invariably, Eskimos. However, little do most know, that what most refer to as Eskimos is actually a generalization representing three distinct groups. In order to understand the societies that live in this region and acknowledge their cultural differences we must explore the different groups that inhabit this region of which there are two: the Inuit, and the Yupik.
Mardi Gras is celebrated once a year prior to Lent beginning. In the early 1700’s , French Colonist brought Mardi Gras to America. It flourished in New Orleans, as well as other Southern states. Mardi Gras is classified as a legal holiday in the state of Florida and Alabama, as well as 8 counties throughout Louisiana. Numerous well to do families would leave their rural estates to spend their winter months in New Orleans. During this time the families would throw extravagant parties and masked balls. In 1781, the first Mardi Gras celebration addressed problems that arose from slaves wearing mask. The United States gained power over Louisiana and in 1806 the city council made the decision to ban mask from being worn. However, in the mid 1820’s the ban was lifted and costumes and mask could now be worn. The first Mardi Gras parade took place in 1837 and became an yearly tradition. Mardi Gras is a never ending party. It is well known for its vibrant parades. The colors are : Gold, Purple, and Green. Gold symbolizes “Power”, Green signifies “Faith” and Purple stands for “Justice” People travel from all over to get in on the fun, from the huge parades to the explosion of lights, the...
ChristmasThe year's most celebrated holiday is celebrated on December 25th, both in homes and churches worldwide. The meaning for Christmas is to recognize Christ's birth, of which the exact date is not known. During the fourth century the Bishop of Rome set December 25th as Christ's birth date. Some authorities claim that the choice of December 25th was made because it coincided with Chanukah, Mithraic's feast of the sun god, and the people of northern Europe's winter solstice feast. The winter solstice is the time of year in the Northern Hemisphere when the noon sun appears to be farthest south. (All About American Holidays, 1962 Encyclopedia Encarta, 1998)The Saturnalia was celebrated for seven days, during the period of time when the winter solstice occurred.
People have celebrated a mid-winter festival since pre-historic times. They marked the beginning of longer hours of daylight with fires and ritual offerings. The Roman festival of Saturnalia -- a time for feasting and gambling -- lasted for weeks in December. Germanic tribes of Northern Europe also celebrated mid-winter with feasting, drinking and religious rituals.