Majority of women today give birth in hospitals. It cements the relationship between the two families through the exchange of gifts. 5. If he did, it would be like selling her. - In some communities such a girl would be stabbed by an arrow and killed while in others she would be married to an old man. v. They are taught secrets of the society. N.S.S.F. Some scholars have suggested that this arrangement might be fraught with potential social problems and conflict.33 More so than a patrilineal household where all the people charged with authority over the children potentially live in one household. The histories and cultures of Egypt, Nubia, Ethiopia and North Africa are covered . Thesis. As the African society has not been static, changes in the traditional family patterns will be briefly alluded to. 9 J.A. Even traditionally, ordinary citizens could not achieve marrying more than one wife. 3. By Timothy T. Schwartz, PhD. 6. This article looks at the societies and cultures of sub-Saharan Africa in pre-modern history. Prayers are offered also during time of calamities. to find out if they are related. Lecture: Nexus kinship and blood has a taste if age-old ideologies. - The wife or orphans sometimes get mistreated. 8. - Virginity is highly valued and girls who are not found virgin are ridiculed. It is believed that after death one continues to live in the spirit world and therefore the dead relatives are to be given descent burial so that they cannot harm the living. vi. - When the baby arrives, the sex of the baby is announced by ululations. In male-speaking terms, fathers sisters daughters (cross-cousins) are called cousins. Children among the matrilineal peoples are brought up in a similar traditional extended family village social environment. When a girl is getting married her mothers brother must be consulted. The developments in science and technology. Religion: Africans now get identified with new groupings e.g. Stern norms/ values which promote individualism. Edited by G.A. - They would stay overnight and the following day they would go to bathe in the river with cold water. Other significant strengths are that the traditional African family increased group cohesion in an otherwise harsh physical and social environment. Importance of Kinship - Kinship system defines how members relate to one another i.e. Still, traditional families such as those in Family Ties and The Cosby Show dominated the ratings. They act as intermediaries between God and human beings. v. The land was believed to belong to the ancestors and nobody was allowed to sell or lease it out without the consent of the other members of the family. Severing the ties of kinship is among the body sins and it is among the major sins. Kinship System in African Communities. Problems that the elderly face today 1. 8. Yet others could also die due to old age. IV, pp.66-87. During seclusion there is sex education, which is meant for girls and boys for marriage. Payment of dowry shows how the bridegroom values the wife. It could also help in paying of the dowry. They are experts in particular religious fields. During initiation the initiates are given special instructions that prepare them for future life. - Wealth is no longer determined in terms of the number of wives or children. Changes that have affected ownership of property and wealth - Women and children are allowed to own property. The clan is linked by four factors. - They are concerned with maintenance of law and order in the community. - Marriage brings completeness in a person. Price, Thomas., A Short English-Nyanja Vocabulary. 6. Makini. First, there is the local unit of matrilocal marriage .. consisting of a man, his wife, his married daughters and their husbands and children,34 Second, the matrilineal descent group which consists of maternal relatives and ancestors traced back to several generations. 7. The purpose of sex is purely for procreation hence this discouraged sex before marriage. - They could also observe the weather conduction and interpret the movement of clouds and wind. iii. 7) Many of the traditional medicine men are not willing to divulge information to others (a lot of secrecy surrounding traditional medicine) 8) Those who are educated also do not believe in the powers of diviners and mediums. They are senior members of the community. | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples 3. Barnes, Marriage in a Changing Society: a Study in Structural Change among the Fort Jameson Ngoni, The Rhodes-Livingstone Papers, (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1951, 1970). - People tend to be individualized. 6. 4. Some of the major issues raised will include polygamy, tribe, clan, the extended family, bride price and the raising of children. Adams, Bert N., The Family: A Sociological Interpretation, 4th Edition, New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers, 1986. - Patriotism. 8. There are serious cases of misuse of leisure in the form of; - Watching and reading pornographic literature. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1956, 1966, 1971. Living with new parents means no particular change in status; the biological parents do not forget their off spring and are always present for any ceremonies involving their children.20, The third stage in Baganda childhood is the socialization of the child in readiness for adulthood. 2 William J. In rural areas, the family typically . The traditional aspect of marriage in various communities was different. - A child who remained an orphan was easily adopted into another family. - Gambling. (1) According to the Dictionary of Anthropology, "Kinship system includes socially recognized relationships based on supposed as well as actual genealogical ties.". - Prayers are also offered to God for protection. A community has distinct beliefs, customs and cultural practices. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1983. v. Marking of the body (scarification) - During initiation, the initiates are removed from the rest of the community. - With the introduction of money economy it is possible to sell land. Polygyny was widely practiced in Africa and it often formed the backbone of the traditional African family patterns. 4. What are the 6 kinship systems? Death always strikes unexpectedly. - In most communities the child and the mother are kept in seclusion for a number of days, depending on the sex of the baby. They lead people to communal prayer in time of crisis. 3. Thorne, Barrie., and Yalom, Marilyn., (Eds.) Yet, equal opportunities is, perhaps, the essential defining element of an inclusive Each stage has its own features, some of which are perhaps peculiar to the Baganda customs and system of socialization in their traditional family pattern. - Purification rites are performed for the mother and the child to make the child pure. 6. The author obtained his B.A in Sociology and Psychology at University of Zambia in 1976, M.A, Ph. - Courage. The clan assumes control of inheritance; the wishes of the dead person may or may not be honored. - It is against Christian teaching on circumcision because God instructed Abraham to circumcise male descendants - It lowers the dignity of the individual (dehumanizing) - One can contract dangerous diseases such as HIV and AIDS. White, C.M.N., Tradition and Change in Luvale Marriage, The Rhodes-Livingstone Papers, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1962, 1969. - Honesty. Courage is usually praised. Today the dead can be buried in cemeteries in towns. The education provided is a lifelong process. 2. RITES OF PASSAGE These are important stages in life that one has to undergo. 4. The verb kulobola is very specific meaning the valuables that are given partially or in full to the girls people to legitimate or seal the marriage. - They give direction on funeral ceremonies and advise on what should be done about the ceremony. In some communities as soon as a woman realizes she is expecting, she and the husband completely stops having sexual intercourse until after birth. 28-39. food, beer drinking. 2. - They help the priests to performing certain rituals such as sacrifices. Pregnant women are not allowed to handle certain types of tools. 6. The male head has control over children produced by the children of the group. As Eaton et al (2003) found in South Africa, for young people struggling for daily survival, protection from possible future illness may be a lower priority than meeting immediate economic needs. - Taking of dangerous drugs. Women were not allowed to own property. 4. fellow Christians. 1. They are free most of them and can get time for the younger generation. They act as counselors and guide the people on all issues of life. It varies from culture to culture, from society to society. 3) They are fortunetellers and palm readers. 7. - They act as a court of law to errant members of the society. The Baganda use classificatory system of kinship terminology which seems common to virtually all the Bantu peoples of Central and Southern Africa. Many wives 3. In difficult times such as during famine, those who have share what they have with their relatives. - Life is also seen as communal. They can also reveal-hidden information e.g. Kinship ties definition: Kinship is the relationship between members of the same family. Changes that have affected land ownership - Today its a requirement by the government that one must possess a land title deed. Edited by Arthur Phillips, London: Oxford University Press, 1953. NAMING Nearly all-African names have a meaning. Polygyny though set the tone and often determined the strength of the society and pattern of social organization of the traditional African family. Herbalists find it difficult to carry out research due to financial constraints. As such disputes over land ownership were rare, this is because:- i. But this is not an independent nuclear family unit. People like politicians and students consult medicine men to succeed in the careers. 6. Initiation 3. Anthropologist Robin Fox says that the study of kinship is the study of what humans do with these basic facts of life - mating, gestation, parenthood, socialization, siblingship etc. Some herbalists have been legalized by the government and have opened clinics e.g. First, the strengths, durability, and resilience of the African traditional family were never dwelt on explicitly and at length. Dr. Mwizenge S. Tembo The name gives the child identity. - They preside over important occasions such as initiation, planting and marriage. 5. Some communities have abandoned initiation rites like among the luo; removal of six lower teeth is a practice of the past. 6. At times force could be applied to get a reluctant young girl marry the partner. CONTINUITY AND CHANGE IN AFRICAN UNDERSTANDING Today many people talk of the way things were sometimes back many factors have affected the African culture. DeVos, (New York: D. Van Nostrand Co., 1976), 49 Stuart Queen, Robert W. Habenstein, and John B. Adams, The Polygynous Baganda Family, in The Family in Various Cultures. The subject of traditional family patterns in Africa is so broad that it cannot be adequately addressed in one chapter. 4) Some people who falsely claim to be diviners today simply exploit the ignorance of the people. But typically news, information, and gossip flow readily through the network, with some individuals acting as "kin . in the garden or when one is building a new house. x. © 2023 Tutorke Limited. - Presents are given to the baby and mother as a sign of good will. 5. Your husband or wife, mother-in-law, father-in-law, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law are all kinsmen related to you through marriage. Marriage involves much more than just the bride.37, This author would further argue that among the African people that are conductors, participants, and are actors in these marriages, the concept buy, purchase a wife or bride does not exist. Asante, Molefi Kete., Afrocentricity; The Theory of Social Change, Buffalo: Amulefi Publishing Company, 1980. 2. BIRTH Pregnancy - This is the first stage in the life of a person. Some names are given in the remembrance of the departed relatives. There were clear guidelines, rules and regulations on the use and ownership of land. Changing attitudes towards marriage 1. it governs behavior towards each other - Kinship binds together the entire life of a community, the departed and those yet to be born. Magic, sorcery and witchcraft. i. Meanwhile the man and her married sister do not live in one locality, as they must maintain their marriages. The cultural and physical diversity added with the dramatic social changes of the last three decades on the continent makes the family pattern situation so variegated as to defy any sweeping generalizations. iv. These include birth, initiation, marriage and death. 16. - Some pieces of land are being regarded as public land. There is wailing in the house to show how the fellow was dear to them. v. Others would also be killed for crimes such as murder. Africa's traditional religion is based on the Ubuntu philosophy, which is a Zulu word for human-ness, and was developed over many centuries in traditional African culture. These primary ties, as we may call them,4 are biologically the same in all societies,5 though, functionally, they may differ from culture to culture.6 But kinship ties do not rest within the reproductive family. People in the traditional African communities were afraid of acquiring property unlawfully for fear of curse. - The introduction of money economy has reduced the value of land. The youth are taught to be courageous in order to be able to face challenges in life e.g. It gives the mans family time to prepare for the dowry payment. These variations are caused by differences in tribal customs or culture according geography, history, religion, external influence of colonialism, inter migration, political and economic structures and influences. There are societies where prayers are made to the mother and the child. 5. vii. The study of African societies has become an established area of scholarship, with sophisticated analyses that are far from earlier works . Boys herd goats, cows, and livestock. - When a woman learns that she is pregnant, she becomes very happy and she becomes a special person in the community and receives special treatment. Urbanization: Those who move away from home to towns in search of Jobs are drawn from their ancestral homes. 4. There are two main types of leisure: (1) Passive leisure: This is where there is minimal use of physical energy. Th importance whice h UNICEF attaches to the family is also based on the Conventio onn the Eliminatio onf - Life also progress from one stage to another. Therefore, they try to restrict the kinship ties. iii. 2. - A lot of bleeding can lead to the death of an individual. A woman inherits her maternal grandmother or sisters. a. However, children are never kissed kissing is not known to the Baganda and the close intimacy of the mother-child relationship as found in America, for example, is not present. Others bury the dead with property with a belief that they would continue to use them in the next world. Why the practice female circumcision is dying out. Urbanization: Where people of different cultures interact with one another. - They are given financial assistance. Names are also given in honor of ancestors. Wealth was seen in terms of: 1. MARRIAGE This is the third rite that an individual is expected to go through in life. It symbolizes the union between the living and the dead. b) Outline the role of priests in Traditional African communities. The naming ceremony is very important early in the childs life. They also perform light duties for relatives. That is one cannot escape it 2 It brings impurity to the family and thus several rites are observed after death 3 It deprives the family and the community of the individual. According to Mair, .the polygynous joint family, consisting of a man, his wives, and their children, is the ideal for most Africans.5 Studies conducted from the 1930s to 1950s indicate that polygyny was common virtually in all regions of Africa.6, In spite of the perversity of polygyny, there was evidence that it was on the decline. These views were expressed before 1930s and as late as 1960s. In a more obvious way, this Eurocentrism36 did not treat polygamy, the African marriages and the extended family and any others of its eccentricities (regarded as such because they were different from European customs) as social phenomena that was legitimate and workable in its own African social circumstances and environment. These rules would differ from one community to another. Boys will live with the brothers of their father and until marriage, girls live in the home of a married elder brother or with the brother of the father. Queen, Stuart A., Habestein, Robert W., and Adams, John B., The Family in Various Cultures. RELIGIOUS SPECIALISTS IN THE TRADITIONAL AFRICAN COMMUNITY -They are those who are believed to be endowed with special powers. Elizabeth Colson, Marriage and the Family among the Plateau Tonga of Northern Rhodesia. 4. ii. Establishing that traditional Kenyan culture and custom was supportive of high fertility in no way establishes how strongly held are these practices today or how quickly they may change as the socioeconomic basis of the real day-to-day society changes. The blood the binds the initiates and ancestors. 18. a) State five changes that have taken place in property ownership today. iii. They also lead the community in offering sacrifices to God. 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