Kenya's Folklore
|
|
||
|
THE COUNTRY AND THE PEOPLE The beautiful land of Kenya is located on the Eastern side of Africa. The topology of Kenya is divided to 7 regions: The Coastal Strip, the Nyika and Tana Plains, the Eastern plateau, the Northern Plains, the Highlands, the Rift Valley, and the Western Plateau. Kenya was colonized by the British and gained her independence from Britain in 1963. The people of Kenya are as diverse as the land itself. Before colonization, there were only three major ethno-linguistic groups which migrated from different areas; The Bantu community which originated from western Cameroon, the Nilotic group which originated from the central Nile in modern Sudan and, the Cushitic group which originated from Ethiopian highlands and Somalia. Currently, there are more than 44 dialects in Kenya due to migration and intermarriages. The official language is English while the national language is Swahili. THE FOLKLORE Noyes (2005) describes folklore as a word that defies definition, folklore is a moving target because it changes iits meaning. In addition, African folklore is hard to define due to the imposition of ‘Western categories on non-Western phenomenon’ (p. 4). However, lack of specifity can lead to a problem in generalization, which faces scholars of Kenyan culture (Alembi, 2000). Hence for the purpose of this study, folklore will be defined as any performance that is used in rites of passage, teaching, entertainment, or any performance that is used in the maintenance of the holistic order within the community, such as performances by traditional healers or other religious leaders.
Through folklore, one can be able to know the religious and worldview concepts that Kenyan communities rarely state explicitly (Ocholla-Ayayo, 1979). The study of folklore can thus be a useful way of gaining insight on community values lklore, one can be able to know the religious and worldview concepts that Kenyan communities rarely state explicitly (Ocholla-Ayayo, 1979). The study of folklore can thus be a useful way of gaining insight on community values. For example, words spoken by elders, religious leaders and political leaders can provide knowledge of attitude that is not overtly stated. Among the Mbeere community, Gorfain and Glazier (1976, 938) give an example of how a man would act if he disproved the outcome in a legal case. The man would pick up a clod of soil, smash it against a rock uttering a curse, ‘let them be like women’.
Traditionally, the main form of folklore was narration. Story telling brought people together and they could be transported to another time and place. In folklores that did not require a lot of movement, older adults (mainly grandmothers) would gather children around and have them sit in a circle near the fireplace. The adult then proceeded to entertain the children with folklore that would help pass time. Due to time pressures and modernization, this is a practice that is slowly dying.
Apart from escape, folklore serves a different purposes in the Kenyan communities. Folklore is also used to teach and to entertain. Sayings, proverbs, and metaphors are popular folklore that continue to be used in day to day communication to not only teach young people but also to communicate on issues that the speakers feel should not be directly addressed. In addition, folklore can be used as fun ways of remembering information. (King’ei 2001) observes that most Swahili poems which are lengthy include repetition, rhymes and alliteration to aid in recall. In addition, most Swahili poems are recited in a song format for recall. Different kinds of folklore were not only a form of entertainment but also a learning process.
Complied by Hilda Wambui Gitau |
||
|
http://www.gmi.org/images/WLMS-Kenya-Language.jpg The study of folklore in Kenya is a challenge because of the the numerous tribes in Kenya and the diverse definitions of folklore. |
||
