African Tribal Dance Traditions Still in Practice

Many countries have ceremonial and national dances but African traditional dances are quite different. These dances carry historical and social significance. To this day today, local communities are able to tell the rich history of their country through their own unique dances. These dances give the special events and festivals celebrated in Africa more meaning.

Dances and music are used as an expression of stories, feelings, and history. Each tribe in Africa has its own unique and significant traditional dances.

Two very important components of the dances are the African drum and human voices. The trained singers of the tribes used complicated arrangements and harmony to set the rhythm and pace for the dances. Despite the differences between tribes, in general, the drum binds them all together.

Some Basic Traditional African Dances:

Adzohu - this is a historical and sacred dance that was originally performed as spiritual preparation before a war. However, in today's times, it is performed only mainly for social and cultural events. The dancers wear colourful hats, bells, ankle raffia, and waist cloth. It is said that the dance reinforces cultural identity and builds self-respect to counter Western influence.

Agbekor - this is one of many war dances. This one in particular is performed by the Ewe and Foh peopleduring funerals and in cultural or social events. The dance movements of Agbekor show battlefield tactics like hand combat, surprise attacks, and scouting.

NanDom Bawa - this dance is performed as a thanksgiving, prayer, and celebration dance. It was first done by the Lobi people.

Tokoe - this is a coming of age celebration dance for Ga-Adangme girls. The newly eligible women are presented to the tribe with stylish movements learned in puberty.

Adumu - this is similar to the Tokoe but it is for warriors that have come of age

Traditional African dances can be boiled down to five basic types - the welcome dance, love or celebration dance, coming of age, possession or summoning dance, and warrior dance. The names are quite self-explanatory.

Some welcome dances like Gahu, Anyako Atsia, and Kinka are performed by villagers to show-off their versatile talents.

For Africans, movement is a great way of communicating with others. Because of this, the dances often utilize symbolic mime, gestures, masks, props, visual devices, and body painting. Most of the basic movements of African dances emphasize the use of torso, upper body, and feet. There are also complex dances that use intricate action and various body parts. Team dances are common but there are also times when the dance involves 2-4 individuals taking turns on the dancing ring. There are also different formations used by the dancers like columns, serpentine, circular, and linear.

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Fascinating African Artwork

African art is a traditional art, which is followed even now in the African continents. Africans have a great passion for their art. At first the African tribes designed several art which were focused on human as a figure. Later the art focused on living things mainly on wild life. Most of the art depicts about their culture which varied from region to region. There were several differences in the art which were designed in many regions. The art basically describes the aggressive behavior and the bravery which they possessed.

African artwork is mainly done using wood. They carved the wood to get the desired structure as they wished. It represents the hard efforts which they have laid down to get a perfect finish in the work. The artwork helps us to understand about the culture followed in Africa in the past generations. They are not just artworks but a precious treasure which should be safeguarded by us. The secret behind the existence of African art is that its artworks are crafted with great passion. Many ancient artworks have vanished nowadays, because the artworks changed its style according to this changing world but African artworks follow the same old tradition which makes it more stylish and unique.

Many artworks are also designed using stone. African sculptures are very different from one another. The sculptures describe about different cultures which existed in Africa. The sculptures differ from one location to another. The shapes of the sculptures were very different, some possessed elongated face, angular shapes and others had heart shaped faces. Most of the sculptures describes about their region and about their culture. The sculptures possessed an aggressive face which exposes the bold and brave looks of the Africans. The sculptures depict the skills of the Africans and also about the way of their lived. Many describe about their hunting styles which differs from region to region.

African masks are perfect artifacts of incredible creativity that tells about the Africans accuracy. There are several varieties of masks available. The masks were mostly designed from woods. They also differ from region to region. It describes about the face structure of the Africans in a better way. African masks look aggressive and brings a fear into us when we look at it. You can make your home as a tribal region by placing some masks in different places of your home. They differ largely in their shapes which vary from round shape to elongated shapes.

African jewelry exposes their design skills. They are designed with perfection which makes them truly a masterpiece. If you want to be different and stylish, then you can do so by wearing the African jewelry which is really crafted for this type of purpose. The jewelry ranges from bangles, earrings, necklace and much more than you expect. They are made up of beads, aluminum and some other materials. So, get some beautiful African artwork and bring the magnificence of Africa into your home.

African art depicts the art skills of the Africans in a beautiful manner. The author is an expert and has written several articles regarding African bags and African crafts in the past.

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West African Tribal Masks

Tribal masks of West Africa depict ancestors, spirit beings and invisible powers. In tribal ceremonial events the people express moral as well as important social and religions values for the community, with the African tribal masks providing a symbolic and artistic refection of these values.

The particular associations of African tribal masks vary widely across the different tribes, but it is universal that the artists who create masks are held in high esteem, as well as the individuals who wear the masks during ceremonies. Therefore, only certain people may wear the masks, predominately, men. These men are either the chieftains or kings, the elders of the tribe or perhaps those with high social status.

Mask-making is prevalent among the Maasai of Kenya, who produce some stunning works of art. The art of mask-making is passed from father to son. Along with the teachings of the process of the mask construction is included the teachings of the symbolic meaning in each component of the mask.

Dances of West Africa in which masks are worn include most events and ceremonies such as initiation rites, weddings, births, and deaths. It is believed that when a person puts on a ritual mask the individual losses a personal identity and thus becomes the spirit that the mask represents. This transformation of the individual is supported by additional costuming, particular dance moves and specific music. What occurs, then, with this transformation is that the individual becomes a medium allowing for communication between the members of the community and the spirit impersonated by the mask wearer.

Each "dominion," whether it be ancestor, nature, or magic, has a pantheon of spirits, and these spirits each have their own mask. There may be as many as nearly 100 masks to represent and honor each being or energy.

The complexity and over all quality of a Maasai mask, and generally the masks of other West Africa cultures and tribes as well, is a demonstration of the importance of the spirit portrayed.

Many masks from Kenya are in the shape of an animal face or a human face, although often very abstract. One of the most interesting components of African masks is in their focus on an abstract appearance rather than a strictly realistic look. This is due to the belief in African cultures that it is the essence of the subject, rather than the look of the subject, that is of relevance. As an example, when depicting flying spirits, the Bwa people show these spirits in geometrical forms only.

The effect of this abstract look of African masks is that they appear extremely contemporary with their minimalist but intensely evocative lines and forms.

Many components of African masks are tribe-specific, with subtle aspects identifying which tribe a mask has come from as clearly as a signature.

Animals are often the subject of masks. The animal mask when worn by the tribal member is an opportunity to communicate with the particular animal. During this ritual the dangerous, wild animal is asked to stay away from the tribe. Animals also represent certain attributes such as patience or strength. Sometimes various human and animal attributes may be combined on a mask to illustrate a combination of outstanding virtues.

Another frequently employed subject for African masks are traits and attributes of feminine beauty. The wearing of these masks is, again, generally restricted to men.

African masks are much appreciated around the world as fascinating works of arts, and are valued by collectors in every culture. For examples and tribal masks for purchase, visit http://www.karvingsfromkenya.com/.

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