Culture+Africa

African Culture

<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; msoansilanguage: EN-US; msoasciithemefont: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: 'Times New Roman'; msobidilanguage: AR-SA; msobidithemefont: minor-bidi; msofareastfontfamily: Calibri; msofareastlanguage: EN-US; msofareastthemefont: minor-latin; msohansithemefont: minor-latin;"> Holidays  People in African celebrate many holidays. Some of their holidays are just like the ones we celebrate here in the United States. Others are unique and different from ours//.//Kwanzaa is a holiday thats is celebrated in honor of the Africans. We celebrate it in the United States. Kwanzaa lasts for a whole week and is celebreated to honor the culture, heritage, and traditions of the people in Africa. Celebrating Kwanzaa includes different activities such as lighting candles that are held in a kinara. December 26, 1996 was the first day of Kwanzaa. This holiday was created by Ron Karenge over 40 years ago and is still celebrated to this day. On March 21, Africans take pride in celebrating Human Rights Day. This holiday is celebrated because in 1960, 69 protestors were killed, mostly from being shot by police. They wanted to honor the human rights they have, so they created this holiday in memory of the terrible day of March 21, 1960. On April 27, freedom day is celebrated by many Africans. This holiday is celebrated because on this day in the year 1994, every adult african, no matter what race or gender they were, was alowed t vote for their president. They also celebrate holidays like Youth Day, Workers Day, Mandela Day and many others.

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History ​ The history of the Africans goes farther back then any other continent. People first started to settle and organize themselves in Africa over one million years ago. Just like the early colonists of America, the first 2000 people in Africa lived off of hand gathered plants and meat from the environment around them. Even though people have been living there for around two million years, it took them a while to create some of their tools that we have modified and sttill use today, like tools and fire. Many years ago, Africans were discriminated against worse then they are today. They were forced into slavery and weren't treated fairly. They had to use seperate bathrooms and drinking fountains then the white people did, and they had to eat at different resturaunts. The also had to sit in the back sections of the busses. As many people already know, the discrimination against the blacks started to change when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat for a white person. Many people starte d protesting and boycotting the busses. Now the Africans have the same rights as most other races in the world. [] []

Traditions

There are meny different types of tradioions in Africa. Some of their tradtitions are celebrating the holidays they have in Africa. Girls are taught how to act like a loyal wifee when they are young. Sometimes, they will be taught secret codes that are used by married women to communicate with each other so the husbands dont know what they are saying. The way a wedding ceremony is celebrated can vary depending on which part of Africa you are in. I some parts of Africa, one ceremony could go for as long as a few days. Sometimes, they have big ceremonies that involve multiple couples getting married at the same time. In other parts of Africa, the husband must offer cattle or sheep to the famimly of the wife. Men are able to be married to as many as 4 women in Somalia. For the women in Somalia, some aren't even bord when they are engaged to a man. Another tradition ofen followed in Africa is quilting. Some women make quilts thats are colorful, and some have different patterns and shapes. Quilting in Africa dated all the way back to the time when many African we held as slaves. Some plantations had small loom houses that the African slaves used. [] []