factors affecting kinship ties in traditional african society

Girls, in distinction to boys, seldom have time to play games.21, Among the Bemba people of Northern Zambia, marriage is matrilocal. 2. 3. Dishonoring or insulting God. Removal of teeth. Would provide medical care e.g. - The naming of the child takes place some days after birth. GAZETTE: How have ancestors . - Marriage extended relationship and therefore enlarged kinship ties. attack by wild animals. During initiation the initiates are given special instructions that prepare them for future life. They also play the role of priests and pray for people. East Lansing, Michigan State University, 1980, Unpublished M. A. Thesis. Professor of Sociology, Bridgewater College. 5. Often only Kings, chiefs and men who had wealth could afford it. Before initiation, one is viewed as a child no matter the age. It is also a way of showing respect to God for the gift of the children. Ch. It shows an act of bravery and hardship one I s to meet in life. Changes that have affected land ownership - Today its a requirement by the government that one must possess a land title deed. - Rainmakers are special people who have the ability to make rain. In view of the poor development of social security systems outside the family, hardly anyone would wish to escape the power of kinship ties. The midwife advises on post-natal care of the mother and the baby. Through supernatural powers iii. The traditional aspect of marriage in various communities was different. The traditional African family is a very broad concept which has challenging variations across the continent. Economic hardships many people are not able to raise money to pay dowry. Second, the continued Eurocentric descriptions and characterization of the African traditional family as some what depraved lead to the use of such terms as bride price, avoidance social taboos, segregated relationships, lack of love and tenderness in African marriages and families. 2) Some students also consult them to succeed in exams and career. They can foretell the future e.g. Current notions of kinship still owe a great deal to ideas about the physiological connections between kin. 2 William J. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1983. Land ownership: The ancestral land is communally owned and nobody is allowed to sell it. Such influences as end of intra and inter-tribal warfare with the coming of European colonialism, the Western money economy, industrialization, migration, and urbanization have certainly transformed the traditional African family from what it was 50 to 100 years ago. Through the kinship system, people learn the importance of sharing what they have with others. It is kinship, which controls social relationship between people in a given community: it governs marital customs and regulations, it determines the behavior of individuals towards another. Asante, Molefi Kete., Afrocentricity; The Theory of Social Change, Buffalo: Amulefi Publishing Company, 1980. The degree of relatedness of carer to the child, socio-economic status of fostering households, gender and age were identified as factors contributing to the well-being of children in kinship care. 2. Among the Chewa of Eastern Zambia, the custom of man living with his wifes parents temporarily or permanently was known as Ukamwini.23. INITIATION - This is the second major important stage in ones life. 5 It comes unannounced. In a typical traditional African society, the family comprised of a number of individuals, ranging from grandparents,aunts,uncles, father, mother, children etc sometimes the "sahwira" is also regarded as part of that family in some sense. Explaining Caribbean Family Patterns. 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. The mid wife checks any abnormalities on the babies at the correct time. Kinship ties are strong bonds that exist among community members. Introduction The primary objective of this paper is to define the African traditional religious system as the basis of understanding Christian spiritual warfare within an African context. iii. Almost 30% of all single-parent families headed by women are officially poor. Patterns of Personality in Africa, in Responses to Change: Society, Culture and Personality. In fact cases where the father-in-law has to issue orders are perhaps such a minority that it is ironical that they are used to characterize the whole social interaction. 5) Modern science and technology also discourage people from believing mysterical powers. - The government and churches have built homes for them - They are given food etc. Department of Sociology - In most communities the child and the mother are kept in seclusion for a number of days, depending on the sex of the baby. People of the same age set consider themselves as brothers and sisters. These institutions are a cultural universal i.e. Everyone has an obligation to marry or get married. Clitoridectomy Female circumcision. 4. - In some communities e.g. - Kinship ties also provide security to all concerned. 2. - It also regulates marriage relations, before marriage one has to find the back ground of the other. - An orphan is a child whose both parents are dead. Mbiri Ya Achewa, 195? iv. How the widows and orphans are supported - Church members offer them guidance and counseling (giving them hope) - They are prayed for. Life is seen to begin from the time of conception since unborn children are taken as part of the community. iv. ii. - Playing football - Wresting - Beer drinking - Wedding ceremonies - Riddles - Folktales - Tongue twisters Today several changes have affected leisure activities. Importance of Naming 1. This difficulty in generalization bone of diversity was already apparent to many early scholars of the African traditional family like Mair(1) and Goode(2). - They suffer from psychological and emotional problems - Sometimes widows face lack of essentials such as food. Edited by G.A. 5. Factors contributing to harmony and Mutual Responsibility in African Traditional Societies In traditional African Society, every individual is related to all. Adams, Bert N., The Family: A Sociological Interpretation, 4th Edition, New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers, 1986. For example, all weapons and iron implements are removed from the house of an expectant mother. Challenges facing herbalists 1. There has been a lot of interference from Christian religious beliefs. During initiation the young adults are taught matters relating to sex and adulthood. 6. [.] vi. Elders iv. However, it is not a form of payment as is mistaken by others. (New York: J.B. Lippincott Company, 1961) p.68, 23 Lucy P. Mair, African Marriage and Social Change, in Survey of African Marriage and Family Life. iii. The father knows that his children are not his ultimate responsibility but his sisters children. In the late and early 19th century, a detailed study conducted among the Baganda found that, Polygyny, the type of marriage in which the husband has plural wives, is not only the preferred but the dominant form of marriage for the Baganda.8 Commoners had two or three, chiefs had dozens, and the Kings had hundreds of wives. (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1969) p.33 Lucy P. Mair, African Marriage and Social Change, in Survey of African Marriage and Family Life, Edited by Arthur Phillips, (London: Oxford University Press, 1953). Girls take care of the babies and fetch firewood. They act as judges in certain circumstances. These three types of kinship are: Consanguineal: This kinship is based on bloodor birth: the relationship between parents and children as well as siblings, says the Sociology Group. He has no rights on his paternal clan. 48 R. A. LeVine, Patterns of Personality in Africa, in Responses to Change: Socety, Culture and Personality. People who have gone to school see the aged as old fashioned (generation gap) 6. In fact a woman was part of the property of the man. 2. 2. - Generosity. - Widows and orphans feel dehumanized. - Thankfulness. D. at Michigan State University in Sociology in 1987. This has been due to western culture, industrialization, urbanization Christianity, limited time and economic constraints. 8. ii. There are several forms of Initiation; these include:- i. Circumcision ii. Maintaining ties of kinship is the way to the security of the Muslim nation. 2. It marks change from childhood to adulthood. 3. The youth are ritually introduced to the communal living. Some of the issues that were the products of the Eurocentrically biased judgements include the following two. How the of rites passage inculcate moral values In the traditional African communities, people learn the moral values through every days activities and through education provided. 25 likes 25,448 views. Those who had not been initiated were not allowed to own property. Kinship refers to the relationships between people. ii. They include;- 1. 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. - Kinship defines and enforces duties and responsibilities of individuals. Circumcision is carried out at times in hospitals for health reasons. The developments in science and technology. In rural areas, the family typically . g. The body is carefully placed in the grave facing an appropriate direction according to the customs of the people. The introduction of formal education Formal education has weakened the role of parents and grandparents. Those who are lazy are ridiculed. They lead people to communal prayer in time of crisis. WIDOWS AND ORPHANS - A widow is a woman whose husband is dead. Those related by blood have common ancestors. 8. 10. - There is individual ownership of property. For example, in debt and marriage obligations. This is brought by the following factors:- 1. Permissiveness in the society has eroded . If one fails to show respect to such seniors. The Baganda people of Uganda provide the best illustration.7. Urbanization: Those who move away from home to towns in search of Jobs are drawn from their ancestral homes. Others bury the dead with property with a belief that they would continue to use them in the next world. It varies from culture to culture, from society to society. In the African understanding, it is believed that there is no natural death. The tie reduces cases of incest. 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. - Some people acquire wealth through dishonest means e.g. Mothers and children would die at childbirth to cases where there is no skilled mid-wife. in the garden or when one is building a new house. The Baganda use classificatory system of kinship terminology which seems common to virtually all the Bantu peoples of Central and Southern Africa. There are also cases of inter-tribal marriages. - People write wills to share or decide who should inherit their property. One could also die due to breaking a taboo in such instances elders would identify the offender and perform an act of cleansing. Priests/prophets v. Blacksmiths The religious specialists acquire their skills through:- i. Inheritance from a relative ii. 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. Death must have a cause. Indeed this sense of kinship binds together the entire life of the "tribe . The degree of relatedness to the caregiver and socio-economic status of the fostering household were the strongest determinants of the well-being of children in kinship care. (Eds.) They are experts in particular religious fields. Children could be named after their dead relatives. - They could also observe the weather conduction and interpret the movement of clouds and wind. 6. All rights reserved. But it makes it difficult to keep track of our kin. The . The paternal grandfather recites many names of the clans dead ancestors. In some communities, a pregnant women returns to her parents when the time for giving birth draws near. - They are kept company. Kinship is a cultural system. The kin group is also a source of emotional and spiritual belonging. ii. Changes that have affected ownership of property and wealth - Women and children are allowed to own property. iii. These carried with them all the heavy social obligations demanded of a mother or father, daughter or son. Some reflect the condition of weather or season at the time of birth. Kinship is the relationship, including social relationship, that exists between two or more individuals, and kinship has a major influence on political, and economic systems in many different regions from around the world. One-parent families headed by a woman for any reason are much poorer ($30,296 in 2008 median annual income) than those headed by a man ($44,358). DEATH RITES When a person dies, members of the family gather at the home of the deceased and leave their everyday commitments for a while. The houses of grandparents form their sleeping places. It is also a symbolic act of breaking the bride completely from the state of unmarried life once dowry is paid she becomes full and mature person. iii. However, the role of these traditional religious leaders has been greatly affected by influence of Christianity, western culture and formal education. People who have become educated consider the shaving of the hair unnecessary. Significance of dowry payment The custom of paying personal gifts to the brides people is practiced all over Africa sometimes referred to as Bride wealth or Bride price. Less traditional family structures in sitcoms gained popularity in the 1980s with shows such as Diff'rent Strokes (a widowed man with two adopted African American sons) and One Day at a Time (a divorced woman with two teenage daughters). DeVos, New York: D. Van Nostrand Co., 1976. Chewa of Eastern Zambia, the custom of man living with his wifes parents temporarily permanently! 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