The Bamileke is a tribe whose native ancestral area is in the western highlands of Cameroon’s West Province, west of the Noun River and southeast of the Bamboutos Mountains and in the Moungo region of the Littoral, Southwest, and Centre Provinces. Though, greater part of them is from the West region, it is estimated that over the 1/3 of Bamileke are from the English speaking regions, the majority of which are from the North-West region. They are a part of the Bantu ethnic groups. Each of their sub- group is being governed by a chief or fon. They all have the same ancestors and share the same history, culture and languages. They speak a number of related languages from the Bantoid branch of the Niger-Congo language family. These languages are…READ MORE
The Zande or Azande people are a tribe that lives primarily in the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in southwestern Sudan, and in the southeastern Central African Republic. They speak Zanda language which is also called Pazande.
The Congolese Azande lives in Orientale Province, specifically along the Uele River; and the Central African Azande live in the districts of Rafaï, Zémio, and Obo.
Most Azande practiced an African traditional religion. Their traditional beliefs were around magic and witchcraft. Among the Azande, it is believed that READ MORE
Fulani Women
Fulani is an ethnic group in West Africa. They move over vast areas and come across many cultures. The Fulani are called Peul in Wolof, Fula in Bambara, Felaata in Kanuri, and Fulani in Hausa.
It is believed that the Fulani originated from the Arabian Peninsula and later migrated south-west to Senegambia. From Senegambia, they moved eastward, crossing several Sahel and Sudan zones.
The Nigeria Fulani are part of these immigrants, ethnic population having common occupational and biogenetic characteristics. They are Light-skinned READ MORE
HOMOWO HARVEST FESTIVAL
Homowo harvest festival is a festival celebrated by the Ga people from Ghana. It is a long Ghanaian tradition normally held from August to September of each year. It is about the migration of Ga people and the success they made in agriculture. It is a very important festival to farmers in Ghana.
Based on Ga oral history, it is said that many years ago when there was no adequate rainfall and the irrigation systems got dried, there was a deadly famine in the land of the Ga people. When it finally started raining, the harvested food for that period was very much that people were so happy and had a feast of celebration to ridicule hunger. This is how the word “HOMOWO” came about, “meaning making fun of hunger”.
This festival is aimed to eliminate hunger and the…READ MORE
THE MAASAI PEOPLE
The Maasai people are said to have originated from the lower Nile valley north of Lake Turkana (North-West Kenya) in fifteenth century. Their territory covered almost all of the Great Rift Valley and adjacent lands from Mount Marsabit in the north to Dodoma in the south.
The Maasai are also located in Northern Tanzania, they were displaced from the lands between Mount Meru and Mount Kilimanjaro, and most of the highlands near Ngorongoro. More lands were taken to create wildlife reserves and national parks like Amboseli, Nairobi National Park, Masai Mara, Samburu, Lake Nakuru, and Tsavo (all in Kenya). Others are Manyara, Ngorongoro, Tarangire and Serengeti (all in Tanzania).
The Maasai have twelve sub divisional tribes which….READ MORE
KIKUYU ETHNIC GROUP OF KENYA
The ancestors of the Kikuyu can be said to have come from the region of the Nyambene Hills to the northeast of Mount Kenya (Kirinyaga), which was the original homeland of all the central Kenya’s Bantu-speaking people. The kikuyus are believed to have arrived in the hills as early as the 1200s. Their place of origin is a subject matter to a lot speculations: One theory argues that they came from Axum (Ethiopia), migrating when the Aksumite ( or Axumite) Empire fell. While another theory states that they originated from the mythical ‘Shungwaya’, presumably in Somalia. This is also believed to be the origin of the nine tribes of the coastal Mijikenda. The main theory posits that they came from the west, having split from the……READ MORE
MENDE PEOPLE
The Mende people are a large group who live predominantly in Sierra Leone, West Africa. They are one of the two largest and most dominant ethnic groups in Sierra Leone. They make up about 30% of Sierra Leone’s total population. They are mostly farmers and hunters.
The Mendes are divided into two groups: The Halemo, who are members of the hale or secret societies and The Kpowa, who are people who have not been initiated into the hale. The Mende believes that all human and scientific power is passed down through the secret societies.
Mende language is spoken amongst the Mende people and other Sierra Leonean ethnic groups as a regional lingua franca in southern Sierra Leone …..READ MORE
Ibrhiam Njoya was the 17th king of the Bamum people of Western Cameroon. He was the son of the slain king Nsangu (hn-SAH-hn-goo) of Bamum people. Njoya’s mother, Njapdunke, initially acted as regent until he reached maturity. His official rule was further delayed because his father’s head was held by their adversary. By tradition the head or skull of an ancestor is of ceremonial importance to the Bamum. He was the king of Bamum from 1889 until his death in 1933.
He was an intelligent and intuitive man. During his reign as king, he surrounded himself with like minded intellectuals and innovators that shared the same vision. He inven..READ MORE
BLACK NATIONALITIES CONFERENCE AND OSUN-OSOGBO FESTIVAL
A Global Conference of Black Nationalities will be hosted on August 23, 2010 in Osogbo, Capital of Osun State, South West Nigeria. The Legendary Osun-Osogbo festival will also be holding about the same time in August. The Osun Osogbo Festival is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
According to the Osun State Commissioner for Tourism and Culture, participants from all over the world will have the opportunity of….READ MORE
SOUTH AFRICAN TOURISM
Ukhalamba Drakensberg Park which can be translated in English to mean ‘barier of spears’, while Drakensberg means ‘dragon mountains’. First impression confirms it all, and the Dragon’s breath re-energize the body and soul.
In the words of UNESCO ‘the park has exceptional natural beauty in its soaring basaltic buttresses, incisive dramatic cutbacks, and golden sandstone ramparts’. This site has been chosen as one of…READ MORE
Palm Trees
The Palm Tree is a money making tree in the culture of the Sub-Saharan Africans. There is no part of the palm tree that is not useful for consumption and also as a means of providing for the family.
Considering a family in a remote village in West African: the father is a palm wine tapper, the mother deals in the business of palm oil production (from the seeds of the palm tree), and the remains of the palm tree in use for the following: roofing, making of broom, fuel for cooking est. There is not part of the palm tree that is wasted.
The following products can be gotten from the palm tree: oil, palm wood, raffia wood, ivory nuts, palm syrup, rattan cane, and carnauba wax. The palm tree is one of the most economically important plants of the Sub-Saharan Africans, in the African… READ MORE
The Oromo (“The Powerful”) are an ethnic group found in Ethiopia, northern Kenya and Somalia.
They are assumed to be the single largest ethnic group in Ethiopia. Their speak Oromo language (also called Afaan Oromoo and Oromiffa), which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family.
The Oromo are found predominantly in Ethiopia but are spread from as far as northern Ethiopia (southern Tigray Region) to northern Kenya, even as far south as….READ MORE
The Ashanti are Twi speaking people of Ghana. The area is densely forested and mountainous. The majority of the Ashanti reside in the Ashanti Region, one of the administrative regions of the country. Kumasi, the capital of the current Ashanti region, has also been the historic capital of the Ashanti Kingdom. Currently, the Ashanti region of Ghana has a large population making it Ghana’s most populous administrative district. READ MORE
The Republic of South Africa is located at the southern part of Africa. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe; to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland; while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South African territory. The country is rich in cultures, languages, mineral resources and wild life.
South Africa has eleven official languages which are Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Sotho, Swazi, Tswana, Tsonga, Venda, Xhosa and Zulu.
Many white South Africans also speak other European languages like Portuguese, German, and Greek, while some Asians and Indians there, speak South…..READ MORE
Fela Ransome-Kuti was born in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria. His mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti was an activist in the anti-colonial movement and his father, Reverend Israel Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, an Anglican priest and school principal, was the first president of the Nigerian Union of Teachers.
In 1958, Fela was sent to study medicine in London but decided to study music instead at the Trinity College of Music. While there he formed the band Koola Lobitos, playing a style of music that he called Afrobeat. It is a fusion of African jazz and….READ MORE
SANGO (The god of thunder and lightning)
In Yorùbá religion, Sàngó is one of the most popular “Orisha”. He was a strong ruler and a notable magician. Sango was the third king of the Oyo Kingdom. He succeeded Ajaka, son of Oranmiyan who appears to have been a weak ruler. His symbol is a double-headed axe, which represents swift and balanced justice. He is the owner of Bata ( double-headed drums), as well as the Arts of Music, Dance and Entertainment in Yoruba Culture. In the Lukumí (“Olokun mi” which means “my dear one”) religion of the Caribbean, Sango is considered the center point of the religion as he represents the Oyo people of West….READ MORE
Edward Blyden was born on 3rd of August, 1832, in St. Thomas, Virgin Island. He early wanted to become a priest. In May 1850, he applied to be admitted into a theological college in the United States of America but his application was turned down because of his RACE. In January 1851 he emigrated to Liberia an African country. He continued his formal education at Alexander High School, Monrovia, whose principal he was appointed in 1858.
In 1862 he was appointed professor of classics at the newly opened Liberia College, a position he held until 1871. Although Blyden was self-taught beyond high school, he became an able and versatile linguist, classicist, theologian, historian, and sociologist. From 1864 to 1866, in addition to his professorial duties, Blyden acted as secretary of state of Liberia. READ MORE
