African Languages and Societies Commons^™

The Witty And Hilarious Stories Of Shum Fre-Hans - ተረካብ ዘረባ ሽም ፍረሓንስ, Abraham Negash

Symposium on Eritrean Literature

Before the beginning of written literature, the stories told by people known for their wisdom and intellect in their villages were passed from generation to generation by word of mouth.

However, as time went by and the tellers of Eritrean folklore passed away and the rest of society became nonchalant, the meaning and pleasurable messages started to fade away from the memory of society. If those stories had been written down, they would have enriched and contributed immensely to the development of Eritrean language, culture, and literature.

Considering that a lot has been said and narrated in different regions on …

Challenges For Eritrean Literary Work: A Personal Experience - ብድሆታት ስነ ጽሑፍ ብትግርኛ፤ ርእሰ ተመክሮ, Eskias Ghebreyohannes

Symposium on Eritrean Literature

Abstract: Potential Eritrean writers in the diasporas face formidable technical and marketing challenges in bringing their literary works in Tigrigna to printing. The purpose of this presentation is to qualitatively discuss these challenges. I will touch upon the problems encountered in editing, publishing/printing, marketing and distributing the literary work.

Parental Care On Perspective Of Eritrean Customary Laws - ሕግታት እንዳባ ብዛዕባ ምእላይ ወላዲ, Mussie Tesfagiorgis Ph.D

Symposium on Eritrean Literature

ኣብ ምምዕባል ኣብ ዝርከቡ ሕብረተባት፡ ሕቶ ምእላይ ኣረጋውያን ወለዲ፡ ሓደ ካብቶም ቍባውን፡ ባህላውን ስነምግባራውን ብድሆታት እዩ። ኣብ ሕብረተሰባት ኤርትራ፡ ሕቶ ምእላይ ወለዲ፡ ናይ ነፍሲ ወከፍ ኣባል ስድራቤት ስነምግባራዊ ሓላፍነት ምዃኑ ከም ርዱእ ዝውሰድ እኳ እንተዀነ፡ ዳርጋ ኵሎም ሕግታት እንዳባ፡ ንኣተጋገብርኡ ብዝምልከት፡ ከም ኣካል ሕጊ ኣስፊሮሞ ይርከቡ፡፡ እዚ ጽሑፍ እዚ፡ ንምእላይ ወለዲ መንጽር ሕግታት እንዳባ ብዕሙቕ ዝበለ መንገዲ ዝድህስስ ክኸውን እዩ። መወከሲ እዚ ጽሑፍ እዚ እቶም ኣብ 1937 ክሳብ 1938 ተሓቲሞም ዝተዓቀቡ ሕግታት እንዳባ ኤርትራን፡ ገለ ብኣፈታሪኽ ዝተረኽቡ ሓበሬታትን ክኾኑ እዮም።

Coalitions Matter: Citizenship, Women, And Quota Adoption In Africa, Alice J. Kang, Aili Mari Tripp

Department of Political Science: Faculty Publications

We provide new theory and evidence of the role of domestic women’s coalitions in the adoption of gender quotas. Previous research has shown the importance of women’s movements to policy change. We show that specific types of mobilization, often multiethnic in character, are a more precise way of describing these influences. Using a new dataset of coalitions in 50 countries in Africa (1989–2014), we first examine where coalitions are likely to emerge. Controlling for factors that correlate with their formation, we find that when domestic women’s organizations form a coalition for quotas, governments are more likely to adopt them and …

The Relevance Of The Message To Time And Space: President Barack Hussein Obama Speaking, Michael A. Nkansah

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

This paper adopts the traditional perspective of rhetorical criticism by Aristotle to analyze the speech that is said to have made Barrack Hussein Obama, the President of United States of America. The traditional perspective has been used to explain advertisements, novels, films and for the most part speeches. Concepts that form the construct of the traditional criticism are used to describe, interpret, evaluate and make subtle judgments about the rhetorical artifact. In order to achieve this, Aristotle proposed three elements for rhetorical analysis of an individual’s performance to a target audience within a span of time: (i) the speaker or …

The "Independence" Of Ethiopia And Liberia, William Seger

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

This essay will examine the independence of Ethiopia and Liberia, two states frequently upheld as the only remaining independent African states during the colonial era. These two countries remained independent primarily because of the diplomatic regard that European nations held them, not because of military or geographic factors. The European view that these countries were legitimate players on the world stage was essential to avoiding outright conquest. However, these countries failed to achieve “real” independence. They had to sacrifice territory, succumb to European economic intrusion, and be placed in spheres of influence in order to remain “independent.” In fact, Liberia …

Ethics And The Policing Of African Americans And Those Of African Descent In America, Richard Brown, Abhijeet Shirsat

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

What role does ethics play in policing Black America? The criminal justice system has a race problem (Obama, 2017; Alexander, 2010). Data shows that racial disparities exist within corrections (Robertson, 2014). The numbers of minorities that are entangled within the courts, the number of arrests made by police and the numbers of unarmed blacks who have recently been killed by the police, support the notion that who have been given a pass by county prosecutors and states attorneys (Chaney & Robertson, 2015). Amadou Diallo, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, and John Crawford are just a few of the names …

Pop Music As E-Civism: Negotiating Change Through Subaltern Voices In Burkina Faso, Lassane Ouedraogo

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

In 2014, a popular revolution led by a group of underground pop musicians ousted a 27-year regime in Burkina Faso. In attempting to find meaning in how these musicians were able to mobilize millions of people across the country under the banner of Le Balai Citoyen (the Citizen Broom), I studied their works before the 2014 revolution. I found that pop music from Burkina Faso represents a subaltern discursive engagement voice whereby lyrics and video frames disseminate a counter-discourse and call for action against government malpractices. By examining the lyrics and video frames as a discursive voice in 40 YouTube …

Nothing Compares 2 U: The Performance Of Prince Through Cover Songs, Jacqueline Hudson

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

Prince was lauded as one of the greatest and most influential multi-hyphenate (singer-songwriter-producer-instrumentalist) in the music industry. He influenced many artists across different genres of music such as rock, funk and soul. Not only was his music timeless over the years as long as he began as a performer in the late seventies, his lyrics were thought-provoking, innovative and reflective of its time. Being a prolific songwriter, Prince wrote songs originally for other artists such as Stevie Nicks and The Bangles. Also, he obviously wrote songs for himself, but a few of these songs have been covered musically by other …

The Impact Of Ww Ii On African Nationalism And Decolonization, Jacob Louis Money

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

Who was the true victor that emerged from the Second World War? General consensus among academia is that the United States and USSR were the chief benefactors from the downfall of the Axis, as they became the foremost states among the global community, in part due to the regression of traditional powers such as Britain and France. However, Africa as a whole was profoundly changed by the war and the most destructive conflict in history propelled the continent along the path to self-determination. Without the contribution of Africa to the allied cause, both in manpower and material, the eventual triumph …

Firelie Báez: Road Map Of Symbols, Mariah Morales

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

The Dominican diaspora artist, Firelie Báez, is painting in the history of resilient Afro Caribbean women and making their acts of defiance more readily known through various works such as Bloodlines and Sans-Souci. Báez imbeds images in her artwork that follows the slavery movement from Africa to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, then ultimately to the rich cultural past of Louisiana. Báez’s work is a full on multi-sensory experience. She provokes different responses with her diverse styles of media. The artist’s subtle but powerful narrative found within her work promoted by her dynamic range of color selection, makes the viewer …

Haunted By Solitude: Isolation And Representation In Zanele Muholi’S Archive, Michelle M. Fikrig

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

This paper focuses on contemporary South African photographer Zanele Muholi’s (b. 1972) extensive photographic archival project, Faces and Phases, which documents South Africa’s black queer community. The series exists not only as a book published in 2014, but as an exhibition that has been shown globally. In the introduction to her book of the Faces and Phases series Muholi states her goal as “[articulating] the collective pain [black lesbians] as a community experience” (emphasis mine). Yet the series, composed of over two hundred black and white portraits, is made up of photographs of individual black lesbians. This paper explores …

A Life Elsewhere?: Afropolitanist Reading Of Race Struggle, Identity And Home In Chimamanda Adichie’S Americanah, Hammed Oluwadare Adejare

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

Globalization and global movements have had significant impacts on the kinds of literary works that have been produced by writers of African descent in the 21^st century. There is currently the pervading popularity of diasporic writing, a kind which has come to be associated with works produced by a community of immigrant writers, either with common ancestral homelands or shared immigration experiences. Many of these works have painted African immigrants as leaving their home countries because of desperate situations. Many have also presented the narratives of double- trouble for Africans who fled their homes only to be confronted with …

Translation And Botswana Literature In Setswana Language: A Postcolonial Criticism And Practice, Keith Phetlhe

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

The role of translation in the development and transformation of various aspects of both traditional and modern Botswana literature cannot be overlooked. This is not only because of its significance in defining and describing the different categories of the literature but also due to fact that translation has opened paths that make it possible to theorize and critique Setswana literature in the context of translation. Translation in Setswana literature applies to a vast volume of works encompassing the written and oral genres. This project aims to explore the perspectives and arguments that have been submitted by various translators and authors …

Accessibility Of Educational Materials For Undergraduates With Visual Impairments: An Ongoing Study, Oluwafisayo Ilemobola Oke

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

Persons with visual impairments in Nigeria are known for making demands for access to information that suit their reading interests (Adetoro 2014). The provision of such services is rendered by public libraries (Adetoro 2010; Atinmo 2007). However, public libraries are confronted with surmounting the challenge of high demands for alternative educational formats (Adetoro 2010). Much of the research that have been carried out relating to access of alternative educational materials have been focused on secondary school aged participants and older adults leaving out college age individuals. They also deployed quantitative methods of data collection which only show a numbered representation …

Iconoclasm In Ancient Egypt, Micaela Deogracias

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

Iconoclastic controversy in Egypt caused the destruction of thousands of pieces. Those impacted were nearly lost to history, if it were not for the inability to efficiently destroy all traces of a ruler. While iconoclasm affected a wide span of Egyptians, this study will focus on Pharaoh Akhenaten and his family (including Tutankhamen), Queen Hatshepsut, and Queen Hatshepsut’s son, Thutmose the Third. This study will explore cultural symbolism and focus on the mystery of missing crooks and flails in Egyptian statuary. Among the topics discussed in the symbolic portion of the study will include reasons for the symbols’ absences and …

Eclectic Architecture In A “Model Colony”: The Sacred Heart Cathedral In Lomé, Diana Kate Karsanow

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

In the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, while under the colonial rule of the German Empire, Togo was coined the “model colony.” This status was due largely to economic success and what has been referred to as a more peaceful colonial encounter. Some have argued the German administration’s ability to recognize cultural differences between themselves and the local people was successful in lieu of more rigid assimilation polices. German administrators did not overtly force their beliefs and social structure upon the local people of Togo, but instead, as I explore in this paper, creatively intertwined their own perspectives …

Mande Cultural Expression In The Work Of Female Potters, Amanda Johnson

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

For centuries, Mande women of West Africa have been creating ceramics through traditional methods passed down from one generation of women to the next. Mande ceramics, created by skilled female artists, function not only as a means of making money, but also represent broader Mande concepts of social organization and spirituality. The process by which ceramics are created and the forms of the vessels represent ideas of Mande culture, and show how Mande ideas have spread throughout West Africa and remained constant over time. The potters themselves, known as numumuso, use hand building techniques to create ceramic vessels from …

Performing Afro-Mexican Identity: The Racial Politics Of Negrito And Devil Dances, Alexus Chavana

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

In examining the racial dynamics of Mexico, one clearly notices relatively few Mexicans who identify as Black or Afro-Mexican. This paper is therefore concerned with the historical context that forged the racial atmosphere of Mexico today. Mexicans are discouraged to embrace la tercera raíz or the third root of Mexican heritage and identity stemming from Africa. The Mexico of today has been profoundly shaped by this African influence that dates back to the arrival of Cortés and the Spaniards. However important African identify is for understand boarder Mexico, most are reluctant to acknowledge this aspect of their heritage. After centuries …

Wrapped In Tradition: Ceremonial Skirts Of Kuba Women In The Western Congo Basin, Rachel Wilson

Africana Studies Student Research Conference (2013-2019)

The Kuba Kingdom resides in the central Kasai region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The numerous clans which make up the kingdom have become recognized around the world for their exceptional corpus of design patterns which adorn their embroidered ceremonial skirts. The decorated wrap-skirts of Kuba women are a social construct and have come to represent the communal artistry of the Kuba clans. The raffia cloths are woven by the men and decorated through the combined effort of several women. The effect of having the skirt decorated by multiple women is that each skirt has its own unique design …

Grabbing Back: An Analysis Of Womanism And Cinematic Representation In These Hands, Taija Walker

Scholarly Horizons: University of Minnesota, Morris Undergraduate Journal

Flora M’mbugu-Schelling’s 1992 documentary These Hands is a 45-minute film depicting the crushing and processing of rocks by women working at a site in Tanzania. Unlike a typical documentary, there are no interviews conducted nor narrator to provide context for the viewer, so the film is heavily reliant on visuals and diegetic sound in conveying information and themes to the audience. Although These Hands, lacking in plot and narration, seems like a simple film with little substance, it is clear that there is an underlying agenda and an extremely powerful message, both being womanist in nature, that M’mbugu-Schelling reveals …

I Am Not A Witch, William L. Blizek

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of I am not a Witch (2017), directed by Rungano Nyoni.

Luther's Understanding Of Grace And Its Implications For Administration Of The Lord's Supper In The Lutheran Church Of Christ In Nigeria (Lccn), Yelerubi Birgamus

Master of Theology Theses

This thesis will describe Luther’s understanding of grace and its centrality for the Lutheran understanding of the Lord’s Supper. The thesis will also describe and analyze theological and pastoral problems of withholding the sacraments to non-communicant members by the LCCN, which claims to follow after Luther’s teaching. This thesis is not anti-church discipline, but rather, will argue for a better form of church discipline than withholding the Lord’s Supper from the excluded members of the church. The thesis will also provide some suggestions for a better form of church discipline than withholding communion from excluded members of the church. This …

Y’En A Marre! Hip-Hop Culture And Social Mobilization In Post Colonial Senegal, Lucie Latuner

Anthropology Department Honors Papers

After over fifty years since decolonization, Senegal is seen as a success story in establishing democracy in sub-Saharan Africa. However, due to neocolonialism, Senegal is still far from independent, and its leaders are still working against the interests of their people. Emerging out of a history of anti-imperialist mobilization, young rappers continue a transnational struggle against imperialism in reference to the ideology of revolutionaries before them. These rappers and journalists, drawing on a sense of responsibility to a historical, multigenerational fight, unite to create the movement Y’en a Marre—a movement of civic mobilization to oppose their authoritarian government and fight …

Yurumein - Homeland Study Guide, Andrea E. Leland, Lauren Poluha

Documentary Study Guides

The Garifuna and Carib communities of St Vincent in the Caribbean collaborated with the documentary filmmaker Andrea E. Leland to produce Yurumein – Homeland: The Caribs of St Vincent, an exploration of the historical and spiritual significance of St Vincent and Baliceaux to Garifuna and Carib communities.

This film guide speaks about the history, culture, music, and food of the peoples that were displaced from their home and, through activities addressing the film's content, informs readers about the movement to bring Garifuna/Kalinago culture back to St Vincent and reconnect Garinagu to their homeland.

Through The Yoruba Lens: A Postcolonial Discourse Of Female Circumcision, Jennifer Quichocho

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Despite the Western media attention and the critique of female circumcision in sub-Saharan Africa, few studies consider the local populations' traditions, values, and ideologies. Through the Yoruba Lens: A Postcolonial Discourse of Female Circumcision investigates female circumcision practices from a philosophical, Yoruba traditionalist perspective. African philosophy and religion provides an ideological foundation and helps reveal the postcolonial and feminist theoretical framework that continues the academic debate. Framed by LeCompte and Schensul's notion that "ethnography emphasized discovery; it does not assume answers" (2010: 33), my research draws from literature reviews, quantitative data, and interviews. I will present and investigate three hypotheses …

Notes On Survival, Despite, Jason Harris

ETD Archive

In this collection of poems, the issue of damage-based thinking and desire-based thinking is being examined. It is being examined through the use of several different types of poetry techniques. Within the poems, the past, the present, and the future are examined and asks a larger question: How can we, as people take the daily violence that we encounter and find – and/or work our way to – joy.

Parenting Experiences Among Single Southern African Immigrant Mothers In Low Socioeconomic Neighborhoods, Winnie Mhlambi Fuzane

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Empirical studies have shown that single-parent families have been overrepresented in disadvantaged neighborhoods, and the children of these families are more exposed to factors that lead to aggressive behavior. Despite these studies, there is limited literature on the parenting of immigrant mothers that may prevent aggressive behaviors in children. Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the lived experiences of single Southern African immigrant mothers in low socioeconomic neighborhoods in California working and raising male children who do not exhibit aggressive behaviors in schools and in the community. Seligman's theory of positive psychology informed this study. Research …

Exploring Ethnic Diversity On Managerial Choices In Nigeria., Henry Odiri Imoni

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In Nigeria, most citizens between the ages of 20-60 believe that ethnicity is the leading cause of discrimination. The central problem addressed in this study was how ethnic diversity influenced managerial choices in Nigeria. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the role of ethnicity in managerial choices in a Nigerian federal traffic management agency to gain an understanding of how ethnicity influenced managers' recruitment, placement, and promotion of employees. Complexity theory and a consideration of African management practices constituted the conceptual framework. Participants were 11 managers who were recruited from a Nigerian government agency using a …

Very Long Engagements: The Persistent Authority Of Bridewealth In A Post-Apartheid South African Community, Michael W. Yarbrough

Publications and Research

This article examines the persistent authority of the customary practice for forming recognized marriages in many South African communities, centered on bridewealth and called “lobola.” Marriage rates have sharply fallen in South Africa, and many South Africans blame this on the difficulty of completing lobola amid intense economic strife. Using in-depth qualitative research from a village in KwaZulu-Natal, where lobola demands are the country’s highest and marriage rates its lowest, I argue that lobola’s authority survives because lay actors, and especially women, have innovated new repertoires of lobola behavior that allow them to pursue emerging needs and desires for marriage …