Ethnographic Features of The Maasai Culture - Literature review Example

 Ethnographic Research Paper: The Maasai Culture by Dorothy L. Hodgson The Maasai Culture by Dorothy L. Hodgson Historical background The Maasai culture is found among the Maasai people who are located in Eastern Africa. Their culture can be dated back to their ancestors in the 1500s and has grown overtime to its large size and complex traditions. The Maasai people are a Nilotic group that has specialized in pastoralist activities (Hodgson 2003). Their culture has spread in both Kenya and Tanzania where it has been involved in tourist activities due to Maasai habitats near game reserves. They originated from Southern Sudan and found their way to their present habitats through their Great Rift Valley migration path. According to oral history passed on over generations, the Maasai culture is said to have begun in the 15th century (Strang 2010). The Maasai people have interacted with the Cushites who have been their neighbors hence adopting most of their lifestyles. The interaction led to assimilation of some of the Cushitic groups in East Africa leading to the Maasai’s extension of their boundaries further south to Tanzania. Their culture has been a source of tourist attraction in both countries. It has also attracted scholars and anthropologists who have studied the culture deeply to come up with its social and cultural roots and understand its activities. Their strong cultural bonds have helped in the endurance of the Maasai culture in the dynamic world due to impacts from Western cultures. Social organization The Maasai has the age-set as the central unit of their society. It consists of small boys and girls who have undergone the set rituals to become adults. The boys in the same age-set start taking care of their cattle at tender ages making most of them skip school. To encourage them and ensure survival in different situations, they are frequently beaten to help them gain courage that is useful while herding cattle in the wild. The girls are allocated duties such as milking and cooking (Strang 2010). They learn most of their roles from their parents as soon as they stop breastfeeding. As for the boys, they are initiated into morans (Warriors) from the ages of 12-25 years. Circumcision is a rite of passage that involves both genders. Boys have to undergo painful circumcision procedures that ensure they become strong men in the future. Society elders who use locally available tools; hence, lack anesthetics in the procedure perform the ritual. The boys are believed to undergo the pain in silence and fight it on their own. Failure of endurance leads the marking of the individual making him known to the community of being a coward. During the circumcision period, the boys live in Manyattas that are built by their mothers. Manyattas in the Maasai culture are small houses built using locally available materials such as mud, cow dung, urine, and sticks from Acacia trees. Girls, on the other hand, undergo excision that is known as "Emorata" in their culture (Maimai 2005). It happens to young girls from the age of 12 and is seen as a gateway to adulthood and marriage. The culture upholds the ritual and allows men to give up their wives or reduce the bride price if they find them not circumcised. Such rituals are subject to any member of the society and can be used to accuse political leaders if they have not undergone the rights of passage. Language Maasai's language of communication is referred to as ‘Maa’ (Maimai 2005). It can be historically traced to the Cushites who were neighbors of the Maasai after their migration from Southern Sudan. Remarkably, Maasai language is one of the central symbols of pride in the community, which is used to recognize members of the community in in the Eastern African rehion. However, most Maasai have adopted other languages such as Kiswahili and English that are used as national languages in the countries. Adoption of other languages has facilitated communication between the community and other cultures especially from the West that come to visit. Based on phonology, the language has 30 contrasting sounds containing vowels and consonants. In some cases such as wars between communities, the language has been used to mark ethnic boundaries. Kinship and marriage The Maasai society highly values its family with it being referred to as the basic unit of the society. The father is the head of the family and makes sure its members are protected from any external issues. Marriage ceremonies happen between members of the same society and getting spouses from other cultures is highly prohibited. Most families are polygamous in nature with men having more than one wife. Polygamy is a sign of prestige since one is regarded as strong and economically stable due to his capability of taking care of all wives and children (Maimai 2005). Community ethics is stipulated in the community's oral laws that are read by the elders in case of members breaking the laws. Death is referred to as the last rite of passage whereby the dead are treated with respect and the whole community helps the left members of their families. In case a member of the family dies, the huts or houses are marked to cause awareness to the public who may offer help. Marriage happens as early as 12 years just a short period after circumcision where the male gender is issued the right to choose women of choice. Parents of the bridegroom are required to pay a bride price that is compensated through use of cattle in most cases. The cultural laws also stipulate that a man can withdraw the bride price if the wife does not obey her husband. Circumcision is a mandatory aspect in marriage where all genders should have passed through the rite of passage. According to the culture, a woman does not only marry his husband but the whole age group. She should respect all men in the same age group, as her husband failure to that she is disowned by the society. Children are viewed as a present from God to the Maasai culture and are treated with respected by all members (Maimai 2005). Male children are seen as a continuation of the patriarchal classification of the Maasai society. Men or women married in other societies are regarded to as outcasts and their children cannot undergo Maasai rituals. Economic organization The Maasai people carry out various activities as sources of income. Their economic activities can be dated back to the 18th centuries when they were known for their livestock culture. They sell products from their livestock such as milk, meat, hide and skin to other communities. During dry seasons, they destock their cattle by selling most of them to food commissions such as the Kenya Meat Commission. Women have engaged in charcoal burning for domestic uses and the excess amount is sold in markets to other communities. Since most of them live in arid areas, there is the presence of indigenous trees that are best known for timber and charcoal burning. The Maasai culture has its own dressing styles where they use beads to make necklaces. In the late 1900s, their dressing codes were made public through media attention and tourist visitations. The publicity has led to the sale of beads to other cultures that are proud of the Maasai. Diet The Maasai has relied on livestock products such as meat and milk for their diet for a longtime. They have been eating raw food until modernization that has led them to adoption of new cooking methods to prepare their meals. However, people drink blood in different occasions such as rituals (women giving birth, elders alleviating hangovers and intoxication levels and being fed to children to boost their immune system). Remarkably, assimilation has led to the Maasai adopting other staple foods such as maize and beans. Soups have been made from roots of different plants that with historical medicinal abilities. However, the reducing cattle numbers have led to a decrease in the use of blood in most ceremonies. Reduction in herds of cattle has been caused by changing climatic patterns and occupation of their pastoral land by members from other communities due to the increasing population numbers in East Africa. Maasai Fashion Cultural laws have had various requirements on the dressing codes of the Maasai. Clothing has been differentiated by ages, location and the ceremonies happening in the society (Maimai 2005). Most of their clothes are multicolored with African designs. However, red is the preferred color of the community where most clothes must contain it. During circumcision, men are required to wear clothes and Shukas with black colors to identify them from other members. Since their past, their clothing has been known as Matavuvale that had replaced the animal skin and hides used by their ancestors. Shukas are wrapped over each shoulder to signify adults. Beads are used to make bangles and large necklaces. The more the necklaces on a person's neck show his/her rank in the society (Maimai 2005). Both Maasai young girls and boys are required to keep short hair because they have to shave before undergoing most rites of passage. On the birth of a boy, the parents have to shave him after he has been issued with a name. The hair style also tells whether a woman has had a miscarriage before. When she positions her hair on the front, it means that she had a miscarriage before her pregnancy. Designing of hair is done with the use of animal fat obtained from milk. Shelter and labor Kraals have provided shelter for the Maasai since their past. They can be easily built therefore facilitate their pastoral and nomadic life. Women are allocated construction roles while men gather the building materials. Cow dung and fat is used to prevent water from penetrating in the houses. They are shared by all family members including those from extended families to help save the land for pastoral use. Their culture requires that the houses be built in a circular shape. Enkajs are structures used to prevent cattle and poultry from being stolen. They are built using sticks that are held together using cow skin and barks from particular trees. Fences prevent cattle from different families from mixing since they do not mark their animals. They also prevent entry from other communities in the case of war. Labor roles are divided on the basis of age and gender. Men and young boys spend most of their time herding and preventing an attack of cattle by wild animals such as lions. Before measures to protect wild animals were put in place, a boy was required to kill a lion before being initiated to being a moran (Saitoti & Beckwith 2003). Political organization of the Maasai The community has a council of elders that was the highest political rank in the society. The elders are called upon during times of both internal and external conflict and disputes (Saitoti and Beckwith 2003). Age-group systems separate the young from the old hence ensuring respect is observed in the society. Since the land is communally owned, the council of elders has the duty of controlling ownership and social activities. They also have the duty of developing new laws that govern the society. Council of elders consists of old men in the societies who have leadership qualities such as knowledge and can make rational decisions on behalf of the Maasai People (McQuail 2003). They are known to perform various activities such as drinking traditional beer at their time of choice. Other members have to follow the set rules on beer drinking failure to that they are disciplined through a variety of physical punishments. In the past, the council of elders was known to bless warriors before they went to war. They also controlled the use of resources and emergence of other respected members such as rainmakers. Religion They are monotheistic and worship their God known as Enkai. They believe that their God has two sides (the good side and the vengeance side) and should be known by both by all members despite their age. The ‘Mountain of God' located in Northern Tanzania has been viewed as the home of their God (McQuail 2003). Since their ancestral period, they believed that God has been talking to them through priests known as ‘Laibon.' The Laibon had religious duties such as blessing warriors before a fight and praying for rainfall so that their cattle would get grass to feed on in dry seasons. In cases of disease outbreaks, the Laibon should pray for the community and ensure intervention from God causing healing. Modernization has led some of the Maasai to convert to Christianity (McQuail 2003). Conclusion The Maasai culture has lasted for many years amid modernization and globalization due to its strong cultural ties. Egoism and an egalitarian society have made sure that all Maasai are aware and proud of their culture. Cultural relativism has also ensured that the community has respected other cultures including those from the West that have contributed a lot in cultural degradation of most African societies. References Hodgson, D. L. (2003). Once intrepid warriors: gender, ethnicity, and the cultural politics of Maasai development. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Maimai, O.2005 (n.d.). Maasai People, Kenya. Maasai People, Kenya. Retrieved April 18, 2014, from http://www.maasai-association.org/maasai.html McQuail, L. (2003). The Masai of East Africa. Minneapolis, MN: Lerner Publications. Saitoti, T. O., & Beckwith, C. (2003). Maasai. London: Harvill. Strang, F. F. (2010). Maasai life and Christian practice: a photographic portfolio.. S.l.: Eden Green, Llc. eHRAF World Cultures: The Maasai. (n.d.). Human Relations Area Files. Retrieved April 18, 2014, from http://hraf.yale.edu/maasai-in-ehraf-world-cultures-2/ Read More