African music has always been a type of music that has stood out from others. Their strong use of percussion and maintaining traditional music makes their music very unique. However things have changed a lot now a days. Today in much of African music you can see the influences of various countries evident within their work. They now use instruments like the piano and guitar.
They have created a strong economy through farming, trading, and art production. Their outstanding and unique artistic traditions include woodcarving, sculpture, metal work, textiles, and beadwork. Although I’m Nigerian there is much that I have to learn myself when it comes to the culture. I will be taking an in-depth look on the Yoruba’s history, cultural values, some important rituals and practices, religion and belief’s, and the role of gender. In the 4th century BC, Yoruba people we not initially known as Yoruba although they have common sentiments and share a common ethnicity and language group.
As well as many other religions/likewise, traditional religions belong to those, whom practicing and celebrating life-cycle rituals play an essential role throughout the one’s life. In Africa; for example, the most popular yet well-known rituals such as, birth, coming of age, marriage, and death in general concepts are reasonably extensive between each other. First, the native African civilizations and their pattern of performing life-cycle practices are frequently initiated as some type of contributions to the familial/ancestral spirits. These offered gifts are a combination of food such as pumpkins, honey, and yams, with different beverages; for example, water or something stronger left at the worship places “… taken out and poured over the ancestral, burial ground” (Sinaiko, xli). Therefore, birth as a first ritual plays an important part, and shortly after birth, it is crucial to name a newborn baby.
The African tradition of decorating the body both enhances one’s beauty and gives a person a higher status in their tribe” (African). Although African body art and scarification fuels many prejudices about the African people from the outside world, body art has existed as an important aspect of African history that allows self-expression in various tribes because forms of body decoration have existed for over five thousand years. Body art has existed as an important aspect of African history because of the many styles of body decoration that exist. Africans use scarification, body paint, mud coloring, body piercing, and lip disks to embellish their bodies. Scarification, also known as “The Proud Mark”, describes the art where a person marks his or her skin in decorative patterns.
Long fingernails, may be difficult to keep clean. Do not wear false fingernails. False and acrylic nails should not be worn while handling food since they can be difficult to keep clean and can break off into food. Some jurisdictions allow single-use gloves to be worn over false nails. Check your local requirements.
In conclusion, The development of early african societies has been based off of commonalities as well differences in their functions. Due to their similar aspects, their cultures have been able to blend and build off of one another, helping completely different cultural groups to resemble one another on several levels. Apart from this, their differences have helped to distinct each from the other and have in return, caused an increase of development in some communities/ cultures more than
The Dominican citizens and their customs became a mix of Africans, Tainos, and Europeans. There are many animals and fruit in the country of Africa. My Dad used to have a part of an African fruit to show me and teach me. It was a purple nut. Africans are very proud of their culture.
They damage the gastrointestinal tract, heart and liver. There is no known antidote for African rue poisoning, but treatment recommendations include rest, clean water and high quality feed. (Wargo) The African rue is native to Africa and southern Asia. I haven't found definite answers to validate if these plants cause problems in their native lands. I would think some of the health risk involved with this plant will be the same in its native land.
They used cacao beans as currency. Cacao beans were treated as a delicacy in the Aztec Empire as they used it to make chocolate. This currency was often used in local markets where they could buy tools, clothes, and jewelry. Caravans of merchants also used this type of currency as they would trade rarer items such as jewelry, rubber, cotton, and animal skins [5]. Since the Aztecs did not have wagons or any other types of vehicles, they had no way of transporting goods.
According to an online article by Mother Jones Magazine, most southern states have high African American incarceration rates even though the overall populations of blacks were low (States and Black Incarceration in America. Web. http://www.gibbsmagazine.com/blacks_in_prisons.htm). In a society that is so abundant with knowledge, it is devastating to see a culture remarkably rich with history, be succumbed by such preventable predicaments. All of these circumstances together have had a foothold on the African American culture.