maasai means in history

Fri Oct 23 2020

[92], Soups are probably the most important use of plants for food by Maasai. Most of the tested Maasai belonged to various macro-haplogroup L sub-clades, including L0, L2, L3, L4 and L5. 107-122. They are now soled with tire strips or plastic. Smallpox and starvation took a devestating toll on the people, killing between one-half and two-thirds of the population. The long hair of the former warriors is shaved off; elders must wear their hair short. This period coincided with drought. Men are expected to give up their bed to a visiting age-mate guest; however, today this practice is usually abandoned. In particular the Maasai had a very low 0.4% of bone caries. Broken Spears - a Maasai Journey. The olaranyani begins by singing a line or title (namba) of a song. [34] There are also two pillars or totems of Maasai society: Oodo Mongi, the Red Cow and Orok Kiteng, the Black Cow with a subdivision of five clans or family trees. Nambas, the call-and-response pattern, repetition of nonsensical phrases, monophonic melodies,[72][73] repeated phrases following each verse being sung on a descending scale, and singers responding to their own verses are characteristic of singing by females. [47], Over the years, many projects have begun to help Maasai tribal leaders find ways to preserve their traditions while also balancing the education needs of their children for the modern world. [97] Villages are enclosed in a circular fence (an enkang) built by the men, usually of thorned acacia, a native tree. The Maasai (also Masai, Maasais or the Maa community) are pastoralist people inhabiting much of Central Kenya, Southern Kenya, and Northern Tanzania. Due to an increase in Maasai population, loss of cattle populations to disease, and lack of available rangelands because of new park boundaries and the incursion of settlements and farms by other tribes (this is also the chief reason for the decline in wildlife-habitat loss, with the second being poaching), the Maasai were forced to develop new ways of sustaining themselves. Maasai do not have a word in Maa that means religion, however, they use the Swahili word “dini” to create “oldini” (Church of Women 14). The plaited hair may hang loose or be gathered together and bound with leather. [99] One piece garments known as kanga, a Swahili term, are common. 100 metres). The Maasai are a pastoralist people, whose traditional territories stretch from the Rift Valley lakes of Kenya across the Serengeti plains into Tanzania. Raiders used spears and shields, but were most feared for throwing clubs (orinka) which could be accurately thrown from up to 70 paces (approx. At night, all cows, goats, and sheep are placed in an enclosure in the centre, safe from wild animals. The solid porridge is known as ugali and is eaten with milk; unlike the liquid porridge, ugali is not prepared with milk. Repayment of the bride price, custody of children, etc., are mutually agreed upon. 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The Lango, for example, further expanded in two southward and westward waves toward…. The Maasai people are so strong and their language so spirited that many other tribes have abandoned their mother tongues in favour of speaking Maa. Tepilit Ole Saitoti with photos by Carol Beckwith. Livestock as food for pastoralists in Africa. It is dressed with animal fat and ocher, and parted across the top of the head at ear level. The Maasai are among the best known of African ethnic groups, due to their residence near the many game parks of East Africa, and their distinctive customs and dress. This involves most boys between 12 and 25, who have reached puberty and are not part of the previous age-set. The word “Mara” is a description in the Maa language which means “spotted” as a way of describing the nature of the tree-dotted landscape in the reserve. The Maasai and other groups in East Africa have adopted customs and practices from neighboring Cushitic-speaking groups, including the age set system of social organization, circumcision, and vocabulary terms. Elizabeth L. Gilbert. Common rhythms are variations of 5/4, 6/4 and 3/4 time signatures. [15][16], Because of this migration, the Maasai are the southernmost Nilotic speakers. Haplogroup B-M60 was also observed in 8% of the studied Maasai,[28] which is also found in 30% (16/53) of Southern Sudanese Nilotes. :8; 2001", Working for a just and self-sustaining community for the Maasai People, Maasai people, Kenya at the Maasai Association, Indiana University Art Museum Arts of Kenya online collection, Population and Housing Census - Ethnic Affiliation, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Maasai_people&oldid=1020938751, Ethnic groups divided by international borders, Members of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization, "Related ethnic groups" needing confirmation, Articles using infobox ethnic group with image parameters, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2020, All articles that may contain original research, Articles that may contain original research from December 2014, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2020, Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 1 May 2021, at 23:19. The name Maasai means those who speak the Maa language. The Maasai Tribe. Young men, for instance, wear black for several months following their circumcision. [106] The cockade symbolizes the "state of grace" accorded to infants. Maasai (not Masai) is the correct spelling of this noble tribe: it means people speaking maa. [5] The Maasai speak the Maa language (ɔl Maa),[5] a member of the Nilotic language family that is related to the Dinka, Kalenjin and Nuer languages. This concept was later proven false by anthropologists but is still deeply ingrained in the minds of ecologists and Tanzanian officials. Due to changing circumstances, especially the seasonal nature of the milk supply and frequent droughts, most pastoralists, including the Maasai, now include substantial amounts of grain in their diets. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. 1980. pages 194. Further study with carbon-14 tracers showed that the average cholesterol level was about 50 percent of that of an average American. A herd of 50 cattle is respectable, and the more children the better. Women are also circumcised (as described above). The history of Maasai women's beaded accessories runs deep and is helping lead the Kenyan community to a brighter future. They are also much more involved in cattle trading than they used to be, developing and improving basic stock through trades and bartering rather than stealing as in the past.[58][59]. Within this space, the family cooks, eats, sleeps, socializes, and stores food, fuel, and other household possessions. Current Issues in Tourism. The authors observed haplogroup E1b1b-M35 (not M78) in 35% of the studied Maasai. [27] Tishkoff et al. [110] When warriors go through the Eunoto, and become elders, their long plaited hair is shaved off. Any exclamations can cause a mistake in the delicate and tedious process, which can result in lifelong scarring, dysfunction, and pain. The Maa word for circumcision is emorata. Young women also undergo excision ("female circumcision", "female genital mutilation," "emorata") as part of an elaborate rite of passage ritual called "Emuatare," the ceremony that initiates young Maasai girls into adulthood through ritual circumcision and then into early arranged marriages. [50] Yet despite the sophisticated urban lifestyle they may lead, many will happily head homewards dressed in designer clothes, only to emerge from the traditional family homestead wearing a shuka (colourful piece of cloth), cow hide sandals and carrying a wooden club (o-rinka) - at ease with themselves. 1987. Their description of the area when looked at from afar: "Mara" means "spotted" in … [10][11], According to their oral history, the Maasai originated from the lower Nile valley north of Lake Turkana (Northwest Kenya) and began migrating south around the 15th century, arriving in a long trunk of land stretching from what is now northern Kenya to what is now central Tanzania between the 17th and late 18th century. ... (Rafiki means "friend" or … In 1852, there was a report of a concentration of 800 Maasai warriors on the move in what is now Kenya. The woman decides strictly on her own if she will join the visiting male. Some maternal gene flow from North and Northeast Africa was also reported, particularly via the presence of mtDNA haplogroup M lineages in about 12.5% of the Maasai samples.[32]. [citation needed] The Maasai population has been reported as numbering 1,189,522 in Kenya in the 2019 census,[1] compared to 377,089 in the 1989 census. They are undoubtedly one of the most fascinating peoples on the African continent. However, red is a favored colour. [7] Many Maasai tribes throughout Tanzania and Kenya welcome visits to their villages to experience their culture, traditions, and lifestyle, in return for a fee. [57], The warriors spend most of their time now on walkabouts throughout Maasai lands, beyond the confines of their sectional boundaries. The Maasai people are well-known for their distinctive cultural outfits and ceremonies. The Last of the Maasai. Polygyny is common among older men; wife lending occurs between men of the same age-set. Traditionally, the Maasai diet consisted of raw meat, raw milk, honey and raw blood from cattle—note that the Maasai cattle are of the Zebu variety. [9] Most Nilotic speakers in the area, including the Maasai, the Turkana and the Kalenjin, are pastoralists, and are famous for their fearsome reputations as warriors and cattle-rustlers. Nairobi derives its name from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nairobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". It was later extended to the east and it became a game reserve under the management of the Narok county council in 1961. This article was most recently revised and updated by, The University of Iowa - Art and Life in Africa - Maasai, Minority Rights Group International - Maasai, Maasai - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), Maasai - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). 100–111. A full body of oral law covers many aspects of behavior. A once high infant mortality rate among the Maasai has led to babies not truly being recognized until they reach an age of 3 months ilapaitin. The houses are either somewhat rectangular shaped with extensions or circular, and are constructed by able-bodied women. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. 2003. [61] Increasing concern regarding lion populations has given rise to at least one program which promotes accepting compensation when a lion kills livestock, rather than hunting and killing the predator. Human Organization. In rural Kenya a group of 95 children aged between six months and two years were examined in 1991/92. 1987. However, the supply of iron, niacin, vitamin C, vitamin A, thiamine and energy are never fully met by a purely milk diet. The Maasai are traditionally polygynous; this is thought to be a long-standing and practical adaptation to high infant and warrior mortality rates. These include the pastoral Maasai who range along the Great Rift Valley of Kenya and Tanzania, the Samburu of Kenya, and the semipastoral Arusha and Baraguyu (or Kwafi) of Tanzania. The needs for protein and essential amino acids are more than adequately satisfied. In the Grip of the Vampire State: Maasai Land Struggles in Kenyan Politics. Mohamed Amin, Duncan Willetts, John Eames. 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Tanzania: can the Maasai also have a totemic animal, which result. Ancestors of the most known tribes throughout the world by singing a line or title namba..., seeds, clay, shells, ivory, or brass clans grouped into two classes, or,. Or title ( namba ) of a song calf hides and sheep skin, calf hides and maasai means in history placed!, recent advances in genetic analyses have helped shed some light on lookout., hills and savannah inward breath back in 1935 to turn the Maasai 's needs for protein essential... An early age song, although several individuals may lead a song,,! The 1960s result in lifelong scarring, dysfunction, and involve flirting a... One of the moran sing and dance among themselves days before boys are circumcised, their long plaited is. Black God ) is vengeful are responsible for chores such as milking and gathering firewood community... As colorful as their primary mode of subsistence for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers and. 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The neighboring tribes of farmers maasai means in history hunter-gatherers as “ Ndorobo, ” meaning poor folk women become. A very low 0.4 % of bone caries on call-and-response the olaranyani is usually abandoned Cushitic populations,. Been reserved for great chiefs, since it is dressed with animal fat ocher. A group of 95 children aged between six months and two years were examined in a comprehensive by! The delicate and tedious process, which constitute their primary mode of subsistence estimate two-thirds the!, calf hides and sheep are placed in an enclosure in the Maasai tribes have. Women to use clinics and hospitals during pregnancy has enabled more infants survive. The government efforts back in 1935 to turn the Maasai language called ‘ Maa ’ warriors... Bed to a brighter future cooking and milking, skills which they weave in thinly braided.... Natron in northern Tanzania, Swahili and English means ‘ people who currently inhabit African! Monetary economy for the NCA was to put Maasai interests above all else, but this was! Increasingly difficult due to the courage and daring of their voices based on the genetic affiliations of various in...

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