Monthly Archives: April 2012

Munlie Men

Nationality: European, Lebanese
Age: 56
Occupation: Children's Book Writer
Residence: Brea, California
Performance Date: 8 April 2012
Primary Language: English

After discussing a few traditions on Easter Day, this informant told me about her own holiday tradition that she started with her family. A few years ago, this informant found a recipe to make Munlie bread men in a magazine.  

This is the recipe for making a sweet German bread that is shaped into “little men” which is what Munlie or Mannlein is translated into in German. The informant discovered that these “little men” were a German Christmas Eve custom. Children would decorate this bread into little shapes and leave the bread out for Santa, the German version of cookies and milk.

There is actually also a German Children’s song “Das bucklige Männlein”, which translates to “The Hunchbacked Little Man” and this is why the bread men are twisted into outrageous looking shapes. After finding this recipe, my informant started sharing it with her family and now they make them every Christmas without fail. Every Christmas Eve, they make the bread and then Christmas morning, they shape and eat the bread.

This recipe consists of ingredients like lemon peel, honey and anise seed, which gives it the signature sweet flavor. And then to make a Munlie, there are much more specific directions, which were found with the recipe.

“To shape each munlie, start by cutting 3/4-inch notches on opposite sides of the log about 1 1/2 inches from an end (this marks the shoulders). Twist 1 1/2-inch section over 1 full turn to define the head. If desired, pinch and slightly pull the tip to make a pointed cap. To create arms (step 2), make slighty slanting cuts on opposite sides of the log starting about 3 1/2 inches below shoulders and cutting up about 2 3/4 inches (leave about 1/2 to 1 inch across center for chest). For legs, cut from end opposite head, making a slash through middle of the log and up about half of its length. To animate each little man, pull and twist the arms and legs into active positions, making at least 5 twists in each limb (step 3). Keep the limbs well separated for good definition of activity. Space the prancing munlies about 2 inches apart on the baking pan.”

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1216/is_v173/ai_3538967/

I believe this custom emphasizes the idea of family during a holiday. This is a recipe that allows the children to join in and make the food with their parents and then use their creativity to decorate it after. As with many holidays, Christmas time holds so many unique traditions and just like people make  Gingerbread men and leave cookies and milk out for Santa, this is the German way of celebrating the festivities.

 

Elbow Tag

Nationality: African American
Age: 7
Occupation: 2nd grader
Residence: los angeles
Performance Date: 4/16/12
Primary Language: English

Elbow tag is a variation of tag that Lizzy learned from her older sister. It combines a few different versions of tag. It is similar to hide-and-go-seek-tag in that the kids who are not “it” start by hiding. Although, they can move from their hiding spots. It gets its name from the rule that the only way to get people “it” is to tag them elbow-to-elbow. Lizzy could not tell us why they changed the rule to just elbows beyond “it’s cheating.” It could be because it would be harder to accidentally shove someone too hard, or to lessen the spread of germs. Maybe it is to make sure there is no mistaking if someone was tagged or not, or simply as a variation to liven up the game. Lizzy said she played this at home, not school. Tag is a game for children of all ages, so it would work well in a neighborhood with kids of varying ages. It also can be played with no equipment and varying numbers.

Origins of the Messiah: Incarnation of Osiris (Messiah Myth)

Nationality: Caucasian/Jewish
Age: 25
Occupation: Mentor
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: 04/8/12
Primary Language: English
Language: Spanish and Danish

(Background description) Horus was the falcon-headed god of Egyptian legend. Pharoah was the earthly incarnation of the Horus.

His story begins with his parents Osiris and Isis.

Osiris, Isis, and their brother Seth were all gods. And Osiris was god of vegetation, Isis the goddess of fertility and Seth the god of the desert. Osiris was a “living god”, like Horus he was embodied as the pharaoh. When he became pharaoh, he took Isis to be his queen. Seth became jealous and murdered Osiris. I believe he cut Osiris’ body into pieces and scattered them throughout Egypt. When Isis heard, she took the form of a bird and searched until she found all the parts of his body. After um reassembling Osiris’ body, she beat her wings and breathed life back into him. Thereafter, Osiris was god of the afterlife.

To avenge his father, Horus fought Seth. After battling for 80 years, Horus was judged victorious by the gods, but he had lost his eye in the battle. The eye was found and returned to him. As a gesture of respect, he presented the eye to his father, Osiris. The Eye of Horus or “udjat” represents the combination of a human eye, with the cheek markings of a falcon. It was considered a powerful symbol for imparting protection and life.

It was performed during a dinner outing at an authentic Mexican restaurant after I had taken the MCAT (Medical School Admissions Test). The informant and I were talking about our college experiences, and he mentioned that one of his roommates was deeply pious and knew everything about being Jewish including their folklore. He recited  it in English, but indicated that it could have been spoken in another language that he could not remember. He seemed to like this interpretation of the Messiah myth, because of the many variations, he believed that it was one of the few that seem very unconventional.

For the informant, this version of the Osiris myth represents one of the older explanations for a messiah while being more explicitly rooted in astronomical data. He performs it simply for comparing explanations for a savior between religions. It serves some importance to him, because of the implications it has on the weight individuals with faith put in their saviors while ignoring the similar practices of ancient cultures.

Limitations include that the informant could not remember all the details about this variation of the Messiah myth, and could not provide it in the language that it was originally spoken. He also did not remember the original language.

There seems to be multiple variations of this myth which could differ depending on the culture and/or religion. No one really knows where the Osiris myth originated. Although, it may fall back to the very remote past (~1st C. BC) based on astronomical findings. The story of Osiris appears to have been spread according to a mythological description of the life of Osiris, describing his death and rebirth. Personally, it is somewhat unusual to have a godly event, such as the death and rebirth of Osiris, to take place in world that seems more like a fantasy and fictional. This could partly be due to the belief that Osiris is intended to be a fictional figure given that this story was derived from astronomical interpretation (e.g. star constellations). After reading other variations, I was able to find geologic data from Egypt that provides an entirely different interpretation. I came across a variation which referenced an Egyptian variation of the Messiah myth. In this variation, Osiris had undergone a second death after his wife Isis gathered the remnants of his body, which was contingent on geographic data. The latter can be found in “Osiris”, Man, Myth & Magic, S.G.F Brandon, Vol.5 pp. 2088, BPC Publishing. This could be indicative of a non-fictional human being with divine powers. Despite the variations in explaining what occurred in the Osiris myth, I noticed that together these variations sought to instill a high moral code upon society, a sense of good and evil, and an inclination towards love and admiration. The geologic interpretation did follow a similar philosophy as the astronomical one, in which there existed a spiritual element that is resurrected from the body, which allows one to exist in a higher spiritual realm.


Norwegian Nursery Rhyme

Nationality: Caucasian
Age: ~70
Occupation: Painting Teacher
Residence: Altadena, CA
Performance Date: April 8, 2012
Primary Language: English

The informant related an activity she did with her children.

When I was a real little girl, My grandpa used to put me on his foot like this and hold my hand. [She crosses her legs at the knee and holds her hands at about knee level as though holding the hands of a toddler.] He was Norwegian and he would sing: “Ah ria ria runken. Hasta netta blunken” [phonetic transcription] [She mimes bouncing the child every other syllable.] I have know idea what it means.

I find it interesting that the informant remembers and passes on this piece of folklore despite not knowing even what it means because, even though she does not speak Norwegian, she is sentimentally attached to the rhyme.

Orchestra Joke: Oboes

Nationality: Caucasian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student (Oboe Performance, Music Composition)
Residence: Mount Vernon, Washington
Performance Date: April 2012
Primary Language: English

Q: How do you get two oboes to play in tune?

A: Shoot one.

My informant told me that this joke is so widespread that she’s heard it multiple times, and she thinks she first learned it in elementary school in a children’s orchestra she was in. Oboes are notoriously difficult to play in tune, so the implication in this joke is that it is impossible for two oboes to play in the same key. As an oboe performance major, my informant says that this stereotype has some truth to it–it can take a few tries to play notes correctly.

This joke is an example of blason populaire. It would need to be explained to someone who isn’t part of an orchestra, since the joke relies on the stereotype that oboes never play in tune.