dancing
Nubian Singing and Dancing
In traditional Nubian culture, an important aspect of wedding celebrations was the singing and dancing performed as part of the lengthy ceremonies. Those traditions have been fading, however, as the ways of Old Nubia—before the closing of the Aswan High Dam—increasingly become a remote memory. But at least one group of Nubian performers in Cairo […]
Healing Dances of the G/wi
A Botswana newspaper published an interesting piece last week about the dances enjoyed by the G/wi and the changes they are making in their traditions. The article updates the information provided by the standard ethnography of the people, George B. Silberbauer’s 1981 book Hunter & Habitat in the Central Kalahari Desert. In order to understand […]
The Rejuvenation of Tahitian Dance
Puritanical religious authorities tried to stamp out traditional Tahitian dancing in an earlier era, but according to one website devoted to the subject, ori Tahiti, Tahitian dance, is making a strong comeback. It is, as the website says, “a typical expression of the Polynesian soul.” The website, TahitiDanceOnline.com, published a post on December 23, 2015, […]
A Birhor Celebration
The Chief Minister of India’s Jharkhand state celebrated the 91st birthday of a prominent leader of his political party, the BJP, by calling attention to the needs of the Birhor people.
A Dance that Promotes Zapotec Values
David Bacon considers the Zapotec “Dance of the Feather” to be “one of the world’s most beautiful dances.” In an article republished last week from his earlier piece in the publication Contexts from the American Sociological Association, Bacon argues that the unique dance represents the history and culture of the Zapotec of Oaxaca’s Central Valley. […]
Paliyan and Kadar Dances
Every year on August 9, people in many countries organize events to celebrate the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. Ekta Parishad, an organization in India’s Tamil Nadu state, convened a celebration in the city of Madurai on Monday the 10th that included Paliyan and Kadar people from the Anaimalai Hills of Tamil Nadu and […]
Searching for Life in the Kalahari
Opaletswe, a young San man, tells Daniel Koehler at New Xade that even though he is poor, “when you dance, you feel like you are very rich.” Koehler has posted three new entries to his blog about the G/wi and the G//ana people living in New Xade, the resettlement community in western Botswana where he […]
A Visitor on Ifaluk
The best news about the really isolated peaceful societies is that they are still remote, still quiet, and still able to persist in their ways, despite intrusions of the modern world. So a blog report by a visitor to Ifaluk Island is welcome due to the way it confirms that the people there thrive, their […]
Fipa Vitality
Last Friday, AllAfrica.com, an important source of news about Africa, carried a story about the cultural diversity of the Rukwa Region of Tanzania, particularly the Fipa people—or Wafipa, as they are also called. An article by Willis (1989a) indicated that finger millet (Eleusine coracana) was the primary staple crop of the Fipa, but according to […]
Dance Performances Relieve Social Stresses [journal article review]
Los Angeles style gangs are forming in the Zapotec community of Yalálag and the local villagers are trying to cope by performing stylized dances at religious celebrations. In a journal article last year, Adriana Cruz-Manjarrez analyzes the way the danzas chuscas, the local dance performances held during annual religious festivities, satirize a wide range of […]
