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Did you know?
1. No African country names begin with the letters F, H, I, J, O, P, Q, V, W, X, or Y.
2. Africa is surrounded by water but by definition Africa is not an island because Africa is a continent.
3. The Republic of the Congo is one of the most urbanized countries in Africa.
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Step In The Name of Love | Gumboot Dancing History in South Africa
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Gumboot Dancing in Africa.
Strolls, Step Shows, Stomping the Yard in Africa
Gumboot Dancing history performed in South Africa by dancers wearing wellington boots.
Top Shayela gumboot dancers of South Africa
The History of Gumboot Dancing
Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture
Step in the name of love; today gumboot dancing is more popular than ever across the world especially in African American college Fraternities and Sororities
Thebe Ya Tlhajwa Secondary High School Koffiekraal South Africa Gumboot Dance
During the apartheid era gold mining was big
business in South Africa. Black miners worked underground in terrible
conditions, digging for gold for low wages. They carried out the most dangerous
dirtiest jobs in the mines and the safety of the workers during the time was
not a high priority.
Small mining villages which later grew into
larger settlements, towns and cities grew up around the gold mining industry. One of the first settlements was Johannesburg, also known as Egoli or the Place of
Gold.
The two most common methods in South Africa for
mining gold are panning and shaft mining. Shaft mining is a dangerous operation
due to the intense heat, most black miners were hired for shaft mining work.
Gold
mining consumes large amounts of water and flooding became a problem to the employer
due to low production from the workers due to air and water borne illnesses. Acid and other chemicals in the water from
gold processing were poisoning the shaft mine workers as well as harmful gases were
contributing to air pollution causing breathing problems.
Gumboot Dancing
Arthur Wellesley won his battle over Napoleon at
the Battle of Waterloo in 1815; Arthur Wellesley shoes became a fashion
statement known as Wellingtons. In 1856 the North British Rubber Company started
to manufacture Britain’s first rubber or ‘gum’ boots also known as Wellington
boots. The rubber boots had a long history of relieving the issue of trench
foot in World War I. Trench foot is a skin disease caused by prolonged exposure of feet to wet and damp conditions.
At the end of the war in 1918, soldiers brought the gumboots
home and wore them for work for farming, fishing and other wet dirty jobs.Therefore,
a solution to the low production of the gold shaft mine workers was to mandate
gumboots as a part of the daily uniform.
Gold mine tunnels were dark places where electricity
was spotty if it existed or was allowed but communication critical. It did not take long for the shaft miners
to create a language of their own by slapping, stomping and scuffling their boots
creating newly found dancing language.
Shells, bells and other decorative items were
attached to the boots when possible giving workers their own unique tribal identity.
Soon hand claps and rhythms using the whole body were incorporated with the
gumboot stepping.
Phi Beta Sigma Step Show
Gumboot workers were easily recognized
on the streets of South Africa due to their unique footwear and the gumboot became a fashion statement. Soon the gumboot dances and songs made their way out of the South African gold mines and into the culture of South Africa’s youth. Today gumboot dancing is more popular
than ever across the world especially to African American college Fraternities
and Sororities who drew on portions of gumboot as part of the ongoing legacy of
the historic African American stepping tradition.
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Africa is surrounded by water but is not an island, here are a few African Island facts.
Madagascar is the 4th large island in the world and is located in the Indian Ocean supporting a unique biology, about 90% of its plants and animals are found nowhere else on earth.
Composed of 155 islands, Seychelles is Africa's smallest country. By far the largest island is Mahe, home to about 90% of the population and the site of its capital city of Victoria.
Cabo Verde has a strategic location 310 miles or 500 km from the west coast of Africa near major north-south sea routes; important communications station; important sea and air refueling site.
Africa is surrounded by water but by definition Africa is not an island because Africa is a continent. Continents can not be considered islands because of their size and also by historic definition since many people who study geography define islands and continents as two different things.
Instruction in youth is like engraving in stone Africa Youth Instruction in youth is like engraving in stone African proverb teaches love, security and recognition should be at the heart of family life. Teaching Lesson African Proverb Explore and Understand Africa Through Her Food and Culture 7-29-2016 Children need leading in the right direction. When one hits you with a stone, you do not hit others with a piece of cotton. It is easy to recognize when a child needs food when they are hungry and warm clothes when they are cold. Yet, a child’s mental and emotional needs may not be as obvious. Children need leading in the right direction. When children grow up without love they look for love and acceptance wherever they can find it because they never experienced love in a healthy way. Abuse can disrupt a child's emotional development. Abuse can derail a child's emotional development More teaching lesson African saying
Usage of Amen and Ashe or Ase Ashe to Amen learn about the custom of using the words Ashe and Amen historically. Where did the word Amen and Ashe come from why is it said and what does it mean? In Judaism, 3,500 years old and Christian religions 2,000 years old, Amen, means may it be so. In the African Yoruba language among the Yoruba people whose culture is as old as time, Ashe or Ase means may it be so. Ase or Ashe means power, commandment, and authority, the ability to make whatever one says happen from the spiritual to the physical realm. In the Yoruba language, Ashe is omnipresent spiritual energy. Followers of Judaism and Christian religions use the word Amen. It is the word utilized to end prayers as an affirmation for the requests to be provided by God. Yoruba is as old as time, Ashe refers to the life force within all living things, the spark that animates life. It is used as a term used in the same manner as Amen at the end of appeals and prayers as an affirmati
How to make the popular African recipes Ugali and Fufu and what is the difference. Ugali is a starch dish in Kenya and Tanzania made of fine cornmeal cooked in boiling water into a soft dough. Fufu is a thick, dough-like West African food made by boiling then pounding a starchy vegetable such as yam, plantain, or cassava or a mixture of starchy vegetables. The main difference between fufu and ugali is fufu is boiled first then pounded while ugali is simply boiled. Ugali recipe. Easy Ugali Recipe Prep time 5 minutes Cook time 30 minutes Total time 30 minutes Ingredients 4 cups finely ground cornmeal 8 cups water Directions Heat water to boiling in a saucepan. Slowly pour cornmeal into boiling water stirring continuously. Add more cornmeal if necessary until it is thick as soft bread dough. Serve immediately with vegetables, stew, or any dish you would use a spoon with to soak up the sauce, ugali is purposely bland tasting on its own. What is the difference between ugali and
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