Category Archives: Rituals, festivals, holidays

Kenyan Independence Day

Nationality: Kenyan
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Kenya
Performance Date: April 25, 2016
Primary Language: English

Description: Usually for independence day the president goes and gives a speech about how the country has been in the past few years and where we’re trying to go. It’s an olympic stadium. It’s got like a track and everything. I don’t usually go. I’d say mostly people with low wages go to it more. Most people just watch it on TV. There’s not any specific clothes you need to wear. There aren’t special foods to eat like there are in the States. We don’t really shoot off fireworks either. People celebrate independence day like with their family. You pretty much just stay home. Well, I mean, it differs from person to person.

2. He knows this because it’s celebrated every year and he participates by watching it on TV and spending time with family.

3. I walked into his dorm and asked him if he could tell me about Kenyan holidays. He told me about this one.

4. Because Kenya is a new country, it doesn’t have as much folklore as perhaps older countries. The majority of folklore I got from my friend was about the older traditions of the 42 tribes. Still, this provides insight into the social class system and practices of the modern Kenyan people.

Kenyan Funerals

Nationality: Kenyan
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Kenya
Performance Date: April 25, 2016
Primary Language: English

Description: “Since there are 42 tribes in old traditions. I’m in from four different tribes. Luya Kikuyu, Luo and Messai. For traditions we adhere to the Luo traditions the most. But even still it’s not, we’re kinda moving away from that. It’s kind of more for the older people.  After the person is taken to the funeral home, they’re brought back to the family home and put in a room, like where people are. If they had family near by. And then there’s a process of two or three days until the burial which normally happens close to the family home. There’s a burial site which is usually right near the home where the whole family is buried. The burial site is close to where you live as opposed to you being close to the burial site. It’s better to be buried with your family but if not that’s ok. But like in the city and like where I live people are buried in the cemetery. So there’s that difference compared like to my grandma’s place. There’s usually a service where they service food before the burial service and then everyone gathers around. A few people say a few speeches about the person. And then, after that the actual burial happens. They throw in roses at the coffin as it goes down there. Once it goes all the way down people will throw soil like take handfuls of soil and toss it in. If there’s enough time everyone will throw soil in but most of the time there’s not enough time so it’s usually just the main family characters, people that were close to the person. And then after that there’s also food is served. Traditional foods are like beef stew, mazen beans, rice, mashed potatoes, things like that.”

2. He knows about these customs because his grandmother told him. He’s been to some funerals but nothing exactly like this one.

3. I walked into his room and asked if he could tell me about Kenyan folklore. This was one that he told me.

4. Because Kenya is so new, It’s adopting the Western traditional methods of funerals. That’s why he’s only been to contemporary funerals. Still, there are not too many differences between his way of funerals and the Western way. We carry a lot of the same traditions and ideas.

Kenyan Christmas

Nationality: Kenyan
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: April 25, 2016
Primary Language: English

Description: “We celebrate Christmas with a Christmas tree. It depends where Christmas is for us, but we usually just go to grandparents house. As a family we all celebrate Christmas in the family home. And then go to church. It’s just a service. We talk about Christmas. They give the Christmas story. We don’t do a candlelight service though.”

2. My friend has heard of these things because he has experienced them first hand.

3. I walked into his dorm room and asked him if he could tell me the way that Kenyans celebrate Christmas.

4. I realized afterward that this may have been a bit of a stupid question. Christmas isn’t exactly a Kenyan holiday. The main reason that they probably celebrate it is because they’re trying to conform to the growing global western culture. However, it still speaks a lot about where they are at in their lives as a culture. The fact that they are moving toward the globalized western perspective is definitely notable. In fact, it’s even worth saying that they’re moving away from their traditional and historic culture as well. These are ideas and beliefs that have been grounded within thousands upon thousands of years of thought and are now beginning to drain away.

 

The Bride Price

Nationality: Nigerian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: April 25, 2016
Primary Language: English

Description: “Basically the bride price is just like, it’s part of marriage culture and tradition in Nigeria where the person who’s proposing would pay the woman’s family just with money. That way they’d have the right to marry that woman. In some places it’s very very expensive. Some places it’s cheap. Some places don’t even have it at all. I remember when my dad was marrying my mom was getting married to my dad he had to pay a bride price but it was a minimal minimal price just cause like her family is like the Bride Price shouldn’t be put in place to just like restrict you from marrying our daughter. People still do the bride price though. It’s very prevalent. That’s just one thing.”

2. My friend experienced this from the retelling of how his parents became engaged.

3. I walked into his dorm and he was just about to go to sleep. His roommate had fallen asleep and I asked him if I could grab some quick folklore from him before he crashed. He said sure.

4. This perspective is interesting because it’s from the outside looking in. My friend is even closer than a second hand account because he experiences the people who practiced this tradition on a daily basis. He views the way they act and talk and think, and all these things change his perspective on the cultural practice. He spoke frequently how it was stupid and it’s progressive and good to get away from it. However, it’s very possible that if his father had paid a huge price for his mother he may have considered it to be some sort of honor.

IBO Fest

Nationality: Nigerian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: April 25, 2016
Primary Language: English

Description: “IBO fest happens every year. Every August. Every second week in August. The cultural association will like rent a festival space. People are selling food. People are giving away food. There’s live music. Choreographed dances, masquerade shows. It’s the biggest collection of IBOS in the area and around the state. It’s fun. The food is overpriced but it’s good. It’s just good to see everybody. There’s always jollof rice. There’s plain rice with tomato soup. Chicken, meat pies, fried fish, fufu, mashed yams you eat with your hands, Nigerian biscuit.”

2. My informant knew of this tradition because he had been to one first hand.

3. I walked into his dorm and he was just about to go to sleep. His roommate had fallen asleep and I asked him if I could grab some quick folklore from him before he crashed. He said sure.

4. This is an interesting piece because it’s very Nigerian but is happening in America. It’s this entire subculture of people who have their own folklore and jokes and riddles. They’re not entirely Nigerian and they’re not entirely American. Even so, it’s hard to say who exactly is American. We all bring our culture to this place, and that’s what IBO fest does. Except it’s arguable that this isn’t even Nigerian. It’s some new mixture and combination that results in its own identity.