African Languages and Societies Commons^™

The Endurance Of West African Textiles Through The Ages, Sarah Isak-Goode

The Confluence

West Africans have a long history of creating distinctive textiles. Yet, they are frequently misunderstood. Though often bold, the patterns and colors used in textiles have a subtle meaning. Separately and together, many of these patterns and symbols represent an unspoken language among natives. Research from the pre-colonial era to the contemporary era has shown that these textiles have persisted because of the reverence West Africans hold for both their heritage and personal expression. Further research is recommended to gain understanding of these textiles, from both the past and the present, as well as the West Africans who have intently …

Presence Of The Past: The Translation Of Traditional Culture Into Contemporary Form Among The Igbo Peoples Of Southeastern Nigeria, Nelson Agalaba

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Architecture serves as the physical embodiment of a group’s cultural values, history, and social dynamics- or identity. The arrival of European colonialism and modernism brought about a paradigm shift, prioritizing a universal European aesthetic and “international style”, displacing indigenous architectural traditions and severing the deep connections between culture and the natural and built environments. The global south has experienced the brunt of this process, especially the African continent. For example, the Igbo peoples of southeastern Nigeria have lost nearly all examples of their building traditions and have been in a constant struggle to create an architecture that captures their rich …

In The Face Of God: Analyzing The Influence Of Religion On Social Dynamics And Cultural Preservation In Pniël, Joohee Na

South Africa: Multiculturalism and Human Rights

This research paper examines the role of religion in fostering community cohesion, cultural preservation, and governance in Pniël, a small South African town with deep historical and religious roots. Drawing on interviews with community members, it explores how religious practices and spaces function as mechanisms for maintaining collective identity, transmitting values across generations, and addressing social challenges like modernization and gentrification. The study highlights the interplay between tradition and change, emphasizing the importance of preserving religious heritage and cultural narratives in a secularizing world. It also discusses the implications of these findings for safeguarding the histories and identities of small …

Relational Leadership And Governing: Somali Clan Cultural Leadership, Farhia Abdi

The Journal of Social Encounters

This research is focused on exploring the distinction between theories of leadership and more contemporary visions of relational leading. In order to do so, the specific case of traditional clan structure seen in the Somali state will be examined, and parallels between the two will be drawn. This paper argues that the old Somali tradition shares much in common with current writing on relational leadership (Uhl-Bien, 2006) and, therefore, can expand our understanding and support for a form of leadership that transcends traditional, individualist, hierarchical leadership. This argument will be supported by a detailed investigation into clan politics, leadership, and …

Cultural Profile As Determinant Of Work Outcomes In A Collectivist Context, Edward Akoto, Emmanuel Owusu, Prince Gyimah, Augustine Acheampong, Veronica Adu-Brobbey

Journal of Global Awareness

Extant research evidence shows that interpersonal bonds—the bond to the immediate supervisor and work team—have an incremental predictive effect in western settings, neglecting emerging economic and cultural environments. This study, thus, examines the impact of cultural profiles on interpersonal bonds and related performance in an emerging market context. Specifically, the study examines the emergence of profiles based on micro-level psychological collectivism (individualism) and power distance orientations. The study further examines the effect of the emerged profiles on interpersonal bonds and the performance of activities related to the targets of the bonds. A survey questionnaire was used to collect data from …

Lo Afrocubano: Exploring Afro-Cuban Culture In Music, Literature, & Art, Pre- & Post-Cuban Revolution, Grace Maffucci

World Languages and Cultures Student Scholarship

Grace Maffucci ’22
Majors: Music Performance and Spanish
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Monica Simal, Foreign Language Studies

After the abolition of slavery in Cuba in 1886, Black Cubans struggled for equality and a place in a White-dominated society. The twentieth century brought about a deeper exploration of Afro-Cuban culture and identity through several forms of art. Despite the promise of racial equality guaranteed by Fidel Castro at the dawn of the Cuban Revolution, conversations about racial identity were silenced. This study delves into the music, literature, and art of twentieth century Afro-Cuban artists, notably poet Nicolás Guillén, painter Wilfredo Lam, and …

The African Experience And Heritage In The Caribbean And Brazil Project, Willie Mack

Open Educational Resources

This project will be a culmination of work that the student will do over the course of the semester. The first step is for the student to identify a country that they wish to examine. By the end of the semester, the student will be able describe, in a 5 – 8 page paper, the experience/heritage of Africans and African identity in that country. Alternatives to a paper submission are also accepted with consultation and approval from the instructor.

Determining Whether Female Circumcision Is A Human Rights Violation, Mahdiyyah Kasmani

Bridges: An Undergraduate Journal of Contemporary Connections

Female circumcision is a traditional practice commonly associated with culture, religion, or a mix of both. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the controversy surrounding female circumcision and determine whether this practice is justified or a violation of human rights. There are two main critiques of female circumcision as posed by the international community. The first critique is the health risks associated with the procedure and the second risk is the lack of consent within practicing communities. Due to these reasons, female circumcision is not only outlawed in most African countries with its disbandment supported by the African …

Revisiting "Home" In Ghanaian Poetry: Awoonor, Anyidoho And Adzei, Gabriel Edzordzi Agbozo

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

The idea of “home” is a significant occurrence in postcolonial literature, as it connects to other ideas as identity, nationhood, and culture. This paper discusses “home” in Ghanaian poetry focusing on three well-regarded poets: Kofi Awoonor, Kofi Anyidoho, and Mawuli Adzei. These poets come from the Ewe ethnic group, and engage with the Pan-African project in both their scholarly and creative expressions. Drawing on John Berger, Sara Dessen, and Ewe thought on the afterlife, this paper suggests two major types of “home” in the works of these three poets: the physical, and the metaphysical. Physical “home” refer to the Wheta …

The Power Of Narratives: Purple Hibiscus And Nigerian Culture, Danielle Cifonie

Augsburg Honors Review

In order to understand a nanative such as Purple Hibiscus to its fulI capacity, the relationship it has to the culture it comes from must be recognized. Narratives have the capacity to reflect the culture from which they are derived, as well as repair and transform that culture.

Imagining Intersectional Anti-Rape Messaging At An Organization In Cape Town, South Africa: Visible And Invisible Subjects, Maslen Bode Ward

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Less than one month ago, South Africa held the first ever Summit on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide to assess the most effective ways to approach solving the country’s high rates of gender-based violence. My study aims to consider anti-rape messaging and advocacy under an intersectional framework, using one organization in Cape Town as a case study. I examine how anti-rape messaging in South Africa has failed to consider intersectional identities in their imagined conceptions of survivors and perpetrators. I explore the potential for intersectional anti-rape messaging and the role of race, class, gender, culture, and language in the distribution, audience, …

Storytelling Through Movement: An Analysis Of The Connections Between Dance & Literature, Zoe Hester

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Movement and storytelling are the links between past and present; both dance and literature have the same artistic and primal origins. We began to dance to express and communicate, to worship and feel. We tell stories for the same reasons: to learn from the past and to be able to communicate in the present.

This work explores the many connections between literature and dance through examinations of six dance forms: Native American, Bharatanatyam, West African, Ballet, Modern, and Post-Modern dance.

Latinos And Afro-Latino Legacy In The United States: History, Culture, And Issues Of Identity, Refugio I. Rochin

Professional Agricultural Workers Journal

Introduction

Since my first visit to the campus in 1992, I have looked forward to this event. Tuskegee University is a world famous campus with many firsts in science and higher education. And it gives me great pleasure to speak about Latinos and Afro-Latinos.

My presentation has three objectives: first, to address the historical origins, and challenges facing U.S. Latinos; second, to expand on the national interest in U.S. Latinos and the surfacing issues of our relations with African-Americans, and, third, to advocate coalition building and suggest ways of working together.

I wish to begin by citing a few caveats …

The Experiences Of African-Born Women Faculty And Administrators At Colleges And Universities In The United States, Oyibo H. Afoaku

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to document the experiences of African-born women faculty and administrators at colleges and universities in the United States. The study explored the factors that motivated African-born women to immigrate to and extend their stay in the United States beyond completion of their education; factors they perceive as constraint on their quest for self-empowerment and identity as foreign students, college instructors, and/or administrators, and parents; and factors that have enabled them to adapt to their host culture and achieve their educational and professional goals even though they had to contend with multiple challenges associated with …

Education, Crystal C. Gray

Eddie Mabry Diversity Award

Education is a spoken word poem that explores many aspects of the African American struggle within (self-knowledge). It starts with an African American college student who is disappointed with the lack of courses about her culture. Most curricula in the United States tend to be from a Eurocentric perspective, leaving out a multitude of information about people of color. All groups of people of color have unique experiences, however, African Americans have the most known (or perhaps I should say, unknown) history. The standard explanation of their existence is often limited to the start of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, when …

Village Literacy: Adult Education In Northeastern Kenya, Jodi Heidorn

Senior Honors Theses

The underdevelopment of effective adult literacy programs in Northern Kenya is a problem that must be addressed to meet the needs of a changing generation of nomadic pastoralists. Existing programs must be reevaluated in order to increase their efficiency and incorporate the unique aspects of local cultures into their design. This paper explores the broadening definition of literacy and discusses how there are in fact multiple literacies in any given culture. Next, it examines the history of education in Kenya and the barriers that may be unique to adult literacy programs in Northern Kenya. Also, it examines how changes in …

Normes Endogènes : Pratiques Culturelles, Traduction Impossible, Rafaël Lucas

Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature

The words novel, drama and poetry can be translated because they refer to well-known specific concepts. Words referring to endogenous or indigenous forms and norms with cultural codes unknown to us cannot be translated. The translation of these words does not provide much information about them. The word koteba in bambara, a language spoken in Mali, means “a big snail”. The word hainteny (science of speech in Malagasy) refers to a specific type of popular oral poetry. What does the word concert-party (used in Nigeria, Ghana, Togo) or the Swahili word manganja mean? An analysis of these endogenous genres with …

The Garifuna Journey Study Guide, Andrea E. Leland, Kathy Berger

Documentary Study Guides

Garifuna tradition bearers, artists, and technicians collaborated with filmmakers Andrea E. Leland and Kathy Berger to produce The Garifuna Journey, a documentary focused on the story of resistance and continuity of culture. The National Garifuna Council of Belize also worked on the project with the goal of cultural retrieval, as little had been documented and collected for its own archives.

With direction from tradition bearers in Belize, video footage and audio taped oral histories were collected, transcribed, and returned to the Belize community. The documentary was produced from these materials, focused on the Garifuna experience in Belize.