Research Paper On Maasai Culture

In the book Facing the Lion, Lekuton is a young Maasai boy who finds himself forced to go to school by Kenyan government officials. He eventually learns to live in two cultures even though they were vastly different and a bit conflicting. Even with all of Lekuton’s life experiences, he can still consider himself a part of the Maasai culture. The evidence that I found in this book to back this up include: ‘Growing up, I had a lot of interaction with wild animals - elephants, rhinos, cape buffalo, hyenas.’ (Pg. 9), ‘The missionaries really did tell me, “Remove those clothes! The beads you’re wearing! It’s not right!” And at school that’s what I did. But when I got home, I wore my traditional clothes and lived the way my family lives. And I still

The Kenyan feminist and environmental activist, Wangari Maathai, explores the legacy of colonialism and oppression in her native country through her moving 2006 memoir, Unbowed. Maathai explains that over the course of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Africa experienced a massive influx of white settlers. In an effort to solidify control over recently acquired colonies, many European powers had encouraged large numbers of their ethnically white citizens to make a new home on the African continent. As a result, thousands of native Africans were displaced. Maathai’s ancestors, the Kikuyu and Maasai peoples were among them. The majority of these forced dislocations took

Maasai have a relatively complex culture and traditions. In fact, for many years they were

Chickasaw tribe has a rich tradition steeped in the arts, housing, food , language and society

During the study, the renowned anthropologist uses the local lingua franca “Neo-Melanesian” to collect his data from the Imbonggu villages. At first, the Wormsley finds himself as an object of competition as different communities wanted to stay with him. The men thought that Wormsley had come to collect the "head tax”, one of the renowned colonial payments that were subjected to men based on the number of women. In these communities, the author observes the culture of both men and women to collect his data. He notes how men are engaged in war, religion and politics (Wormsley, 1993). Women, on the other

Stories that have been passed on for decades by Indigenous people have many cultural values and meanings that can help teach and guide others. In his book Earth Elder Stories: The Pinayzitt Path, Alexander Wolfe’s includes three stories “The Sound of Dancing,” “The Orphan Children,” and “Grandfather Buffalo,” that reveal important Anishinaabe cultural values. In the story “The Sound of Dance,” the value of family sacrifice is shown as a strong Anishinaabe cultural value. In the story “The Orphan Children,” Wolfe expresses the importance of orally transmitted knowledge as a core Anishinaabe cultural value. Then in “Grandfather Bear,” the keeper of knowledge emphasizes the importance of the connection to the past, especially within family relations in Anishinaabe culture. There are many cultural values that can be found in these three stories told my Alexander Wolfe. Family sacrifice is one of many values shown throughout these stories, specifically in the story “The Sound of Dancing”.

While reading both ethnographies “The Hadza: Hunter-Gather of Tanzania” and “From Mukogodo to Maasai” it is easy to spot out differences and similarities between both these simple, yet complex, societies. People tend to believe that indigenous populations are always very similar, as I once did, but I would say while reading these ethnographies I found more differences between these communities and cultures than I did similarities. For my essay I am going to compare both the Mukogodo’s culture and life before and after the transition to Maasai to the life and culture of that of the Hadza. I am going to focus specifically on the similarities and differences between labor and labor

Commonly referred to as Bushmen by the general public and thought of as being harsh wild people that live in the “unlivable” Kalahari Desert. The Ju /’hoansi tribe native to the southern African desert, located along the border of Namibia and Botswana, have been misunderstood and stereotyped for a long time. This is until a man by the name of Richard B. Lee came along and wrote an ethnography about the local systems of the Ju and completely changed how an outsider might view this rural tribe, along with being a fine example of proper long-term field research in social anthropology. This highly regarded book on the Ju /’hoansi is titled “The Dobe Ju /’hoansi.” Although Lee states in the

The Makah tribe is a very interesting tribe. They hunted, farmed, and enjoyed life! Even though a lot of times they didn’t want to work they did for their people in their tribe.

Chapter one, “Fieldwork among the Maisin”, describes how anthropologist John Barker, author of Ancestral Lines, goes to Uiaku New Guinea to study the Maisin people. His specific goals were to study how a people can maintain a cultural identify in a modernizing world and how they can live without destroying their environment. Barker first arrived in New Guinea in 1982 where he examined “how the Maisin make a living, organize social interactions, conceptualize the spiritual world, and meet the opportunities and tragedies of life” (Barker 2016:2). He studied the tapa cloth, a fabric made from bark, that the Maisin use as a connection to their ancestral past and to help define their culture. Barker discovered that the Maisin have faith in traditional methods and do what they can to preserve that lifestyle. Barker‘s work went

The Maasai are a pastoralist tribe living in Kenya and Northern Tanzania. Much of their land falls within the Great Rift Valley. The main source of their livelihood remains livestock, consisting of cattle, sheep, and goats. Traditionally, Maasai do not feed on game meat as this is associated with the hunters-gathers (Dorobo people). They have relied on their livestock, mainly cows, for most of their nutritional needs. Milk, meat, and blood constitute the basic components of the Maasai diet.

Deep in the Mukogodo forest located in west central Kenya is where you will find the last of the Mukogodo people. Throughout history there have been significant changes for the Mukogodo people as they try to transition their culture and ethnicity to be Maasai. Before the transition in the early 1920’s to Maasai, Mukogodos were foraging, bee keeping people with their language, Yaaku, and lived in rock caves. Now they are pastoralists who speak only Maa, and no longer live in caves. Sadly even after all the changes they have made, Mukogodos are still not accepted as Maasai and are viewed as the bottom rung of the regional hierarchy.

The Maasai are thought of as the general cattle herders of Africa, are nomadic and pastoralists. However, due to the increase of the population in the culture, the loss of land has had an effect on the cattle raising of their lifestyle, shown in a decline over the years (Ndaskoi). Still, Cattle, and traditional values are held in high regards with the Maasai.

Contrasting the great expanses of Africa to India, one is immediately struck by the emptiness of the former or perhaps the emptiness of the latter. Yet, it is within these sparsely populated settings that some of the greatest injustices and threats to the local communities are presented. Land tenure statuses are greatly contested. The studies – particularly in Kenya and Tanzania look specifically at the Maasai – but more than that – there is a need to juxtapose their story among a larger story of land rights to all groups and the power dynamics and policies that have defined them.

Once there was a great Native Indian tribe named Impauwaka, known for their gift of the most fertile land of the Earth. They were lead by a strong, brave, yet quiet leader named Big Tree Warrior, whose ancestors led their civilization to beautiful land countless moons ago. Young children cleaned fresh vegetables by wide open fields of golden grains. Fathers hunted at dusk on the distant planes, when the buffalo were lulled into peaceful rest by the glorious sunset. Every piece of the buffalo was used to please the Earth. Mothers fixed hide into cloaks for each member of the village. Sons took hatches to the trees, bringing back enough wood for the evening fire. Daughters wove baskets and prepared food for