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Caribbean Folklore
Many elements of Caribbean folklore (the orally transmitted beliefs, myths, tales, and practices of a group of people) are African in origin, given that slaves brought from Africa's West (or Gold) Coast made up a large majority of those brought to the region. Characters Very popular in terms of Caribbean story-telling, and a direct transfer from West Africa to the Caribbean are the Anancy Stories (Nancy Stories) told throughout the region. ''Ananse'' is the Asante word for spider. The trickster Anancy (also known as Ananci, Ananse, Anansi, Ananci Krokoko, and Brer Nancy), with his quick-witted intelligence and his knack for surviving the odds, often through trickery, is the most popular of this genre of African-Caribbean folk-tale characters, although there are other West African influences in folk story characters, including the hare (chief character in the Yoruba folktales) and the tortoise, which features in the stories of the Ibo people. In addition to these stories, Af ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slavery
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perform some form of work while also having their location or residence dictated by the enslaver. Many historical cases of enslavement occurred as a result of breaking the law, becoming indebted, or suffering a military defeat; other forms of slavery were instituted along demographic lines such as race. Slaves may be kept in bondage for life or for a fixed period of time, after which they would be granted freedom. Although slavery is usually involuntary and involves coercion, there are also cases where people voluntarily enter into slavery to pay a debt or earn money due to poverty. In the course of human history, slavery was a typical feature of civilization, and was legal in most societies, but it is now outlawed in most countries of the w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mami Wata
Mami Wata (Mammy Water), or La Sirene, is a water spirit venerated in West, Central, and Southern Africa and in the African diaspora in the Americas. Mami Wata spirits are usually female but are sometimes male., p. 1. Attributes Appearance The appearance of her hair ranges from straight, curly to wooly black and combed straight back.Van Stipriaan 325.Bastian, Misty L"Nwaanyi Mara Mma: Mami Wata, the More Than Beautiful Woman" Department of Anthropology, Franklin & Marshall College. Most scholarly sources suggest the name "Mami Wata" is a pidgin English derivation of "Mother Water", reflecting the goddess's title ("mother of water" or "grandmother of water") in the Agni language of Côte d'Ivoire, although this etymology has been disputed by Africanist writers in favor of various non-English etymologies, for example, the suggestion of a linguistic derivation from ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian, such as the Egyptian terms "''Mami''" or "''Mama''", meaning "truth" "''Uati''" ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Folklore By Country
Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging from traditional building styles common to the group. Folklore also includes customary lore, taking actions for folk beliefs, the forms and rituals of celebrations such as Christmas and weddings, folk dances and initiation rites. Each one of these, either singly or in combination, is considered a folklore artifact or traditional cultural expression. Just as essential as the form, folklore also encompasses the transmission of these artifacts from one region to another or from one generation to the next. Folklore is not something one can typically gain in a formal school curriculum or study in the fine arts. Instead, these traditions are passed along informally from one individual to another either through verbal instruction or demonstration ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
