|
Festival
Foods Africa
Africa
derives its holiday and festival practices from many
different cultures. The original tribal cultures
and how they used the land have the most significant
impact, but many influences stem from European settlers
as well as Islam. Unlike India, where most of
the holidays have some Hindu origin, Africa’s holidays
are generally Muslim. In North Africa, a Moroccan
stew or tangine is made for the Muslim feast of Aid
el Kebir or Slaughter of the Lamb. This holiday
requires that families slaughter a lamb and donate
some of its meat to the needy, as well as, give charity
in general. Mrouzia tangine is made from raisins,
almonds, honey and spices. What is most notable
about this dish is that the sweetness and spice preserves
lamb for a month when many families will find themselves
with a large amount of lamb and no refrigeration or
freezing available. (Wolfert 1973).
In
Somalia, Eid al Fitr or the Feast of Breaking of the
Fast, a three day feast marking the end of Ramadan,
is commonly celebrated by gift giving, prayer, partying,
and socializing. A typical dish served at this
feast is Skudahkaris, a lamb and rice dish. While
there is also a significant Muslim population in Kenya,
the British colonists have had the most influence on
African culture in this eastern region. Christmas
has become widely celebrated, as well as, other Christian
holidays. Chapatis, a flat bread, and Nyama-choma,
a dish of roasted beef or goat are served at the Christmas
meal. Because Kenya is rich in livestock, chicken
dishes are not everyday fare and are usually reserved
for special guests. (Kittler 2000).
In
Nigeria, there are many traditions observed that came
from the indigenous tribal culture. For example,
the New Yam Festival or Iri-ji originates in the yam
harvest festival of the Igbo tribe. It also shares
the universality of the dead ancestor day. Newly
harvested yams are offered to gods and dead ancestors
before distributing them to villagers. This offering
is made by the eldest male of the community or the king,
who then gets to eat the first yam of the harvest. The
festival, in turn, gives thanks to the spirits and gods
who have helped them achieve a plentiful harvest, since
yams in this region are considered the link between
life and death. Ji-yam or the yam represents life
and survival. Futari, a squash and yam dish is
commonly served. Yams from the previous year are
also disposed of during this festival to make room for
the new crop yield (New Yam Festival 2002).
The
Yoruba people of Nigeria place great importance on Ikomo,
a baby naming ceremony. The baby’s aunt will place
a drop of honey, water, and salt on the baby’s tongue.
Honey symbolizes the hope for a good and sweet
life, water represents the hope that the child will
be as mighty as the ocean and salt is used as a reminder
that life isn’t always good (Nabwire and Montgomery
2001).
West
Africa has a Christian population that shares common
practices with the European settlers of the region.
Christmas is an important holiday in Burkina Faso
where one of the favorite foods of the season are Christmas
cookies made from groundnuts, which are similar to peanuts.
Good Friday is also important in West Africa and
is observed by fasting or abstaining from meat in remembrance
of the crucifixion of Christ.
|
The
most important festival in Ghana, also located in West
Africa, is called Homowo, which makes fun of hunger.
Being a third world country, this week-long festival
serves as a means to raise spirits in a country that
may not always have enough food to go around. For
this festival, people return to the homes of their fathers
to celebrate the reappearance of plenty after a time
of famine and to find suitable mates. Traditional
foods associated with this festival include milled corn
and assorted fish. Jolof rice, which is a staple
in West Africa, is also typical and symbolizes young
love. Jolof rice is sort of like an Asian fried
rice and can be made with onion, tomato, ginger, pepper,
vegetables, and meat. Most commonly is it made
with eggplant. For birthdays and weddings in Ghana,
togbei, literally sheep balls, are served. Togbei
are sweetened dough balls made from millet or wheat
flour and brightly colored with food dye before being
deep fried. (Addo 2002).
In
Swaziland, located within South Africa, the most important
holiday is Incwala or the Festival of the First Fruits
of the New Year and is celebrated in late December or
early January. Because this region is located
in the Southern hemisphere, fruits are ripening at this
time of year. This New Year’s festival is six
days long and filled with ceremony. The most important
ceremony of this festival is when the king bites and
spits out certain plants or fruits of the first harvest.
This tradition performed by the king gives permission
to the people to eat the crops of that year. In
fact, it is illegal for this ceremony to be performed
by anyone but the king (Swazi Culture 2002).
-
Elizabeth D'iAmico
Copyright© 2003-2006 DrewMCA, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Related
Links
Festival
Foods - Introduction
Festival
Foods - Religious
Influences, Middle East
Festival
Foods - India
Festival
Foods - Africa
Festival
Foods - Asia
Festival
Foods - Europe
Festival
Foods - Europe
Northern
Festival
Foods - South America
Festival
Foods - United States
|