28 June 2013

THE GREAT AFRICA - Languages, Culture and Religion

















Languages


Map showing the distribution of the various language families of Africa.
By most estimates, well over a thousand languages (UNESCO has estimated around two thousand) are spoken in Africa.[94] Most are of African origin, though some are of European or Asian origin. Africa is the most multilingual continent in the world, and it is not rare for individuals to fluently speak not only multiple African languages, but one or more European ones as well. There are four major language families indigenous to Africa.
  • The Afro-Asiatic languages are a language family of about 240 languages and 285 million people widespread throughout the Horn of AfricaNorth Africa, the Sahel, and Southwest Asia.
  • The Nilo-Saharan language family consists of more than a hundred languages spoken by 30 million people. Nilo-Saharan languages are spoken by tribes in Chad, Ethiopia, KenyaSudanSouth SudanUganda, and northern Tanzania.
  • The Niger–Congo language family covers much of Sub-Saharan Africa and is probably the largest language family in the world in terms of different languages.
  • The Khoisan languages number about fifty and are spoken in Southern Africa by approximately 120,000 people. Many of the Khoisan languages are endangered. The Khoi and San peoples are considered the original inhabitants of this part of Africa.
Following the end of colonialism, nearly all African countries adopted official languages that originated outside the continent, although several countries also granted legal recognition to indigenous languages (such as SwahiliYorubaIgbo and Hausa). In numerous countries, English and French (see African French) are used for communication in the public sphere such as government, commerce, education and the media. ArabicPortugueseAfrikaans and Spanish are examples of languages that trace their origin to outside of Africa, and that are used by millions of Africans today, both in the public and private spheres. Italian is spoken by some in former Italian colonies in Africa.German is spoken in Namibia, as it was a former German protectorate.

Culture

Some[which?] aspects of traditional African cultures have become less practiced in recent years as a result of years of neglect and suppression by colonial and post-colonial regimes. There is now a resurgence in the attempts to rediscover and revalue African traditional cultures, under such movements as the African Renaissance, led by Thabo MbekiAfrocentrism, led by a group of scholars, includingMolefi Asante, as well as the increasing recognition of traditional spiritualism through decriminalization of Vodou and other forms of spirituality. In recent years, traditional African culture has become synonymous with rural poverty and subsistence farming.[citation needed]

Visual art and architecture

African art and architecture reflect the diversity of African cultures. The oldest existing examples of art from Africa are 82,000-year-oldbeads made from Nassarius shells that were found in the Aterian levels at Grotte des Pigeons, Taforalt, Morocco.[citation needed] TheGreat Pyramid of Giza in Egypt was the world's tallest structure for 4,000 years, until the completion of Lincoln Cathedral around the year 1300. The stone ruins of Great Zimbabwe are also noteworthy for their architecture, and the complexity of monolithic churches atLalibela, Ethiopia, of which the Church of Saint George is representative.[citation needed]

A musician from South Africa

Music and dance

Egypt has long been a cultural focus of the Arab world, while remembrance of the rhythms of sub-Saharan Africa, in particular West Africa, was transmitted through the Atlantic slave trade to modern sambabluesjazzreggaehip hop, and rock. The 1950s through the 1970s saw a conglomeration of these various styles with the popularization of Afrobeatand Highlife music. Modern music of the continent includes the highly complex choral singing of southern Africa and the dance rhythms of the musical genre of soukous, dominated by the music of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Indigenous musical and dance traditions of Africa are maintained by oral traditions, and they are distinct from the music and dance styles of North Africa and Southern AfricaArab influences are visible in North African music and dance and, in Southern Africa, Western influences are apparent due to colonization.

Sports

Fifty-three African countries have football (soccer) teams in the Confederation of African Football, while Cameroon, Nigeria, Senegal, and Ghana have advanced to the knockout stage of recent FIFA World CupsSouth Africa hosted the2010 World Cup tournament, becoming the first African country to do so. According to FIFA ranking, Egypt currently has the best soccer team in Africa. Their team has won the African Cup 7 times, and a record-making 3 times in a row.[95]
Cricket is popular in some African nations. South Africa and Zimbabwe have Test status, while Kenya is the leading non-test team in One-Day International cricket and has attained permanent One-Day International status. The three countries jointly hosted the 2003 Cricket World CupNamibia is the other African country to have played in a World Cup. Morocco in northern Africa has also hosted the 2002 Morocco Cup, but the national team has never qualified for a major tournament. Rugby is a popular sport in South Africa and Namibia.

Religion

Africans profess a wide variety of religious beliefs, and statistics on religious affiliation are difficult to come by since they are too sensitive a topic for governments with mixed populations.[96][97] According to the World Book EncyclopediaIslam is the largest religion in Africa, followed by Christianity. According to Encyclopædia Britannica, 45% of the population are Christians, 40% are Muslims and less than 15% follow traditional African religions. A small number of Africans are HinduBuddhistConfucianistBaha'i, or have beliefs from the Judaic tradition. Examples of African Jews are the Beta IsraelLemba peoples and the Abayudaya of Eastern Uganda. There is also a small minority of Africans who are non-religious.


The Great Mosque of Kairouan, founded in 670, is the oldest mosque in North Africa;[98] it is located in Kairouan,Tunisia


Voodoo altar in AbomeyBenin

A map showing religious distribution in Africa


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