African proverbs

In the Sukuma language of the Sukuma Ethnic Group  in Western Tanzania there is a proverb: "Mbuli ya kitambo ikachaga yumela."  The English translation is: "The sacrificial goat dies while screaming in anguish."  This proverb can be used to demonstrate what inculturation of the Gospel in Africa is all about.  This and other proverbs and examples of African oral literature (sayings, riddles, stories and songs) are a very powerful way to explain the sometimes complex ideas of theology, catechesis, morality and spirituality in an African context.  This process can be a real African contribution to the World Church.

        This article treats:

I.  The First African Synod's Call for Inculturation
II.  History and Explanation of the Sukuma Proverb
III.  Parallels Between the Sukuma Tradition and the Christian Tradition
IV.  Christian Teaching on the Eucharistic Sacrifice

These examples stem from extensive research into the gradual decreasing Bantu southern African language of the
Kalanga people. This work is hardly original as the proverbs have been collected and edited from African students,
internet sources and various research initiatives; majority stem from the resources of the MAZINA E IKALANGA
‘baKalanga social group.’ The Kalanga or (Bakalanga) reside in north eastern Botswana and the extreme western
regions of Zimbabwe. Scholarship has revealed similarities between the Kalanga and Shona language.

This was a presentation for the third annual Berlin-Oxford Summer School in biblical studies, delivered June 18th, 2018 at Humboldt University of Berlin. My task was to present and critique Friedemann Golka's book "The Leopard's Spots" (1993) in the context of a discussion about the social setting of the book of Proverbs. I draw on my experience teaching Wisdom Literature in non-western contexts to show that Golka's instincts and approach are potentially valuable but his poor method mitigates his findings.

It is not the aim of this study to embark on the difficult task of defining proverbs, but to examine the use of proverbs within politics and ‘political action.’ The study is not intended to be a deep groundbreaking analysis of African metaphors in politics neither a survey into multifaceted aspects of Paremiology, (the study of proverbs) (Mieder 2008: 8); but is intended to be a foundational and general introductory research on how proverbs have been used on political platforms within colonial and postcolonial Africa; particularly focusing on how they have been used as tools for political action. This research discusses how traditional metaphors have been used by political figures and actors within African politics. Using examples; the study offers a general introduction not necessarily analysing the historical phenomena or debase importance of proverbs within politics but how they have been employed and the resulting action generated within post-colonial African politics.  This research was conducted from a random selection from documented examples across the continent and is not intended to be a typical small one/two case study qualitative research; rather a selection of events in which proverbs have been used as ‘tools for political action and movement’ within political circumstances and for political reasons within sub-Saharan African politics.

Proverbs are significant tools of conversation among Igbo people and Africans in particular. Among African writers, proverbs play major roles in their literary works and it gives a touch of African uniqueness, authenticity, and identity.  Through the use of proverbs, the writers project their culture, tradition, views and perceptions of their indigenous communities in spite of their communicating in a language alien to them. The use of proverbs in literary works does not just occur by chance nor are their efficacy to be compromised. They are natural linguistic tools loaded with sacred meanings, and with roles both in the literary works as vehicles of culture projection and the immediate communities as paraphernalia of oratorical ingenuity. On the one hand, they give the works in which they are used a touch of originality, the user a linguistic brand or identity, and the characters that use them, a chance to project  the exceptionally rich African culture and legacy.
This research examines the use of proverbs and language identity in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart and Arrow of God. It aims at analysing the roles and significance of proverbs in the Igbo and African context as well as their application to achieve a unique language identity which can be traced to a cultural base. Widely recognized as “the father of the African novel in English”, a label that has endeared him to many critics, Achebe is one of the most prominent writers in Africa with a literary vision that has strongly influenced the form and content of modern African literature.
In his novels sampled for study in this research, he has clearly chronicled the colonial hegemony in Nigeria and Igbo land precisely by the Great Britain as well as the conflicts that characterised that period.
We shall see in this research how Achebe has through the use of proverbs and unique linguistic style, been able to enrich his narrative and engage the readers in continuous affection and a profound understanding of the rich Igbo culture. This peculiar linguistic behaviour that gives Achebe’s writing a distinctive flavour has largely been responsible for his success as a writer. Adedimeji (2003).

Résumé
Ce travail examine le discours proverbial dans les romans d’Ahmadou Kourouma. Il fait valoir que le discours proverbial de Kourouma traduit la vision cosmologique des personnages romanesques dans cinq domaines, à savoir la religion, la culture matérielle, les animaux, le temps et la femme. Contrairement aux études publiées au cours des quarante dernières années qui traitent de certains de ces domaines sans véritablement privilégier le proverbe comme objet d’analyse, ou qui l’analysent trop rapidement chez Kourouma en utilisant de très minces corpus ou une approche peu efficace et non contextuelle, ce travail, lui, déconstruit le proverbe et fait ressortir ses dimensions esthétiques, discursives et idéologiques les plus variées et les plus significatives.
La thèse se sert des approches syncrétique, fonctionnelle et intertextuelle pour examiner les proverbes comme discours religieux. Dans le but d’explorer les proverbes portant sur la culture matérielle, l’étude adopte les concepts du symbolisme, de filiation, de territorialité ainsi que les notions de la hiérarchie des métaux et d’extra-textualité. Le travail aborde les proverbes animaliers en ayant recours aux concepts de métaphore, du symbolisme et du contractualisme. Quant à l’expression temporelle des proverbes, elle est approchée dans une perspective culturelle et spatio-temporelle alors que le rapport du proverbe au genre féminin est déterminé à partir d’une analyse culturelle et sociale de son statut.
Cette approche d’une étude multidimensionnelle du proverbe permet ici de déterminer le caractère biculturel, bispirituel, pragmatique, opportuniste et utilitariste de la foi religieuse des personnages kouroumiens. Elle montre en outre que les objets de la culture matérielle sont porteurs de significations sociales, culturelles, littéraires et environnementales. Grâce à son cadre conceptuel élargi et diversifié, ce travail permet également de constater que les animaux possèdent des identités distinctives et remplissent des fonctions romanesque, spirituelle, sanitaire et alimentaire. La thèse met enfin en évidence le caractère pluraliste du temps existentiel, et établit que la condition de la femme est fortement influencée par des facteurs naturels et socioculturels. De ses résultats, l’étude tire la conclusion que le proverbe permet à Kourouma de proposer sa lecture du monde et sa théorie de l’écriture romanesque.

When COVID-19 came along, the only thing that could pull people back from perceived ‘slavery’, was drawing on unreflected-upon ancient traditions.  Except, that is, those who have taken the Gospel to heart, who are ready to understand what they are being told as Christians, based on the Bible, that is transforming their traditions. Either way; re-interpretation of directives arising from the intent not to be enslaved, may be cancelling their intended scientific efficacy. Less directing may be better.

When we discuss the legacies and impact of trans-Atlantic enslavement on the Diaspora, we must consider several issues. Among these is the tendency of the word “legacy” to have a positive connotation for many – where the enslavement of African people may fail with regard to this criterion. More importantly, in this paper I would like to draw the reader’s attention to the fact that in many places, such as the United States, slavery has never been abolished by law, merely renamed. As such, it becomes difficult to discuss a legacy or aftermath of something that is still in progress. Therefore, we will take the United States as a case study of slavery changing names/forms yet remaining essentially the same in spirit and nature if not worse in terms of impact on African people.

African languages put the vast number of proverbs available to them to many uses in communication. One of the African languages rich in proverbs is Tiv; a language spoken by the Tiv people mostly found in Benue State of Nigeria. Many functions of Tiv proverbs have been investigated, to include the communication of ethical values, wisdom, for social control, inter alia. An important type of Tiv proverbs which has been neglected over time is Tiv humorous proverbs. This study investigates humour, vulgarity and meaning in Tiv proverbs and the peculiarity of the choice of words used in achieving humour in Tiv Proverbs. Using the General Theory of Verbal Humour (GTVH), the study carries out a descriptive analysis of 20 Tiv proverbs got from Akôsu Adeioyongo's Tiv Anzaakaa: A Collection with English Translations and B. D. Iortyom's Mpase u Anzaakaa a Tiv. The word-for-word translation method is used in translating the proverbs from Tiv to English and the descriptive method of analysis is used in describing the linguistic features in the proverbs. The study finds that Tiv proverbs achieve humour and meaning by making use of vulgar words, especially those that concern private parts of the body like tswar (anus), ijuwa (penis), and ikyul (vagina). The study concludes that Tiv humorous proverbs may have to undergo lexical modifications for them to be useful to the young ones, and for them to remain relevant in the face of the growing need to observe decorum and decency in public discourses.

Karin maganar Hausawa ta fa]o cikin kason da masana da manazarta ke kira na adabin gargajiya wanda ya kasance hanya ce ta sarrafa maganganun azanci da aka gada tun kaka da kakanni, aka tanada a cikin }wa}walwa amma a aiwatar da su ta fatar baki. Irin wa]annan sarrafaffun batutuwa sun ha]a da  wasannin gargajiya da tatsuniyoyi da labarai da wa}o}i.
Yawancin wa]annan abubuwa da Hausawa suka sarrafa, suka tanada sun samu zaunuwa ne a cikin al’ummar tun da da]ewa, musamman a daidai lokuttan da al’ummar ta kafu da tsarin sarauta da sana’o’i da mulki da kuma addini. Wannan tsayuwa da rayuwar ta yi ta ba da dama aka shigo da sababbin abubuwan rayuwa, musamman abin da ya shafi hanyar karatu da rubutu, da farko na Larabci da Ajami, daga baya kuma na Turawa ko kuma boko
Samuwar wa]annan hanyoyin rubutu da karatu ya sa adabin baka ko na gargajiyar Hausawa suka tsunduma cikin takarda domin adana su, yin haka ya sa aka samar da abin karantawa da nazari a tsakanin Hausawa a zamanin zuwan Larabawa da kuma Turawa.
Daga lokacin da makarantun boko suka zauna da gindinsu a }asar, musamman daga shekarar 1929, wasu daga cikin karin maganganun Hausawa sun samu tabarmar zama a rubuce, haka kuma wasu sun zama abin karantawa da nazari a tsakanin Turawan mulkin mallaka da malamai da ]aliban sababbin makarantun da ake da su a lokacin. Ko da aka samar da hukumomin adabin Hausa irin su Hukumar Fassara da ta Talifi da Gaskiya Corporation da NORLA da NNPC, a tsakanin shekarar 1929 zuwa 1966 al’amarin adana da nazarin maganganun azancin Hausawa a takarda ya inganta da }ara samun tagomashi, har zuwa yau.
Wannan littafi da muka ra]a wa suna Karin maganar Hausa a Rubuce, }o}ari ne muka yi domin tattaro karin maganganun Hausa da hannayenmu za su iya kai gare su, musamman wa]anda har zuwa yau suna a ka ne ba a tanade su a rubuce ba. Haka kuma littafi ne da ya }o}arta sake rubuce karin maganganun da ake da su a rubuce, amma warwatse a wuraren daban-daban domin maganin ~acewa ko salwancewa, wanda ya bayar da dama wajen yin bayanin irin sauye-sauyen da ya samu karin maganar Hausawa daga lokacin da aka fara tattara su da adana su, musamman saboda yadda zamani ke sauyawa cikin sauri. Wannan ya zama dole saboda shi zamani tafe yake da yadda al’umma ta wayi gari a cikinsa. Binciken samar da wannan littafi ya fito mana da sauye-sauye da ke faruwa a karin maganar Hausa a fili da suka ha]a da abin da yake na tarihi ne da yake shafar rayuwar karin maganar Hausawa, inda daga baya wani sabon yanayi kan taho sai ka ga an juya an sake rungumarsa, a yi ta tafiya.
Wannan littafi ya tattaro bayanai a matakai daban-daban na rayuwa da suka faru a tsakanin al’ummar Hausawa kafin da kuma bayan bayyanar addinin Musulunci, wanda ya ha]a da bayanin ayyukan adabin gargajiya da suka gudana tun kafin zuwan Turawan mulki da zamanin mulki mallaka da kuma bayan samun ‘yancin kai. Abin tin}aho da wannan littafi a koyaushe, shi ne, mayar da hankali da ya yi na nazarin sauyin rayuwar Hausawa a lokutta daban-daban da ake gani da kuma samu da yadda karin maganganun Hausawa suka yi ado da shi da kuma adanawa inda hakan ya zama dole.
Haka kuma wannan littafi ya zo da sharhi na wa]ansu za~a~~un karin magana tare da bayanai na yadda suke sauyawa bisa tsarin sauti da jimla, amma ba tare da sauyawar ma’ana ba, duk da kasancewa sun ratso zamunna mabambanta.
Haka kuma a karo na farko an gabatar da {amusun Karin Maganar Hausa a rubuce, inda aka kawo bayani ne kan wa]ansu kalmomi ko kalamai ko jawabai da ke cushe cikin karin maganar Hausa da ke ru]ar Bahaushe da hana masa fahimtar ainihin abin da sa}on ke neman ya isar ga al’umma. Daga cikin irin wa]annan abubuwa akwai masu ]auke da labari a ciki, wanda dole sai an san labarin kafin a fahimci ainihin ginuwarsu. Akwai kuma wa]anda ke da ararrun lafuzzan Larabci da Inglishi, wa]anda dole sai an san ma’anar lafuzzan kafin a san yadda suka ginu. Akwai kuma masu ]auke da wani tunani ko falsafa ta musamman, wanda sai an san ko na}altar tunanin ko falsafar da suka gina su, sa’annan za a fahimci ginuwar wa]annan karin maganganu da ma’anoninsu da ke ~oye,
Daga }arshe wannan littafi shi ne karon farko da aka fasalta karin maganganun Hausa dangane da zamanin da suka rayu, aka kuma tantance kusan karin magana 10,000 a matsayin rataye a wuri ]aya, ba kamar yadda suke warwatse a cikin kawunan jama’a da ]ai]aikun littattafai da kuma wasu wuraren adana da ake da su, da ba su da matabbata ba.

Hausa is one of the major world languages. It is spoken by approximately 60 million people across West Africa, mainly in Niger and Nigeria. Hausa folk tradition which includes proverbs, had been transmitted orally for a long time before the first writings in this language appeared around 17/18th century in the form of literary works in Arabic script. Modern Hausa literature in Latin alphabet dates back to the first half of 20th century and draws abundantly from oral tradition as the highly appreciated source of conventions, themes, symbols and sayings. The state of the art of modern Hausa literature can be considered fertile and vigorous comparing to the situation of the other native African languages. However, up to now the available Polish translations of Hausa literature are very few. The aim of the paper is to compare selected Hausa proverbs and their Polish translations in terms of the equivalence methods applied by the two translators: Nina Pilszczikowa and Stanisław Piłaszewicz. Hausa proverbs were translated into Polish as independent folklore forms as well as the elements of literary narrative. Therefore, the analysis covers two genres of texts: proverbs (as short literary forms) and novels.

En 1434, le navigateur portugais Gil Eanes double le Cap Bojador (également appelé Boujdour), situé dans l’actuel Sahara occidental et qui, à l’époque, marquait pour les Européens de l’Ouest les limites méridionales du monde connu. Dans les années qui suivent, les marins lusitaniens, cherchant à ouvrir une route maritime vers les Indes, vont progressivement reconnaître les côtes de la partie occidentale de l’Afrique subsaharienne, atteignant finalement le Cap de Bonne Espérance (à l’extrémité Sud du continent) en 1488. Tout au long de ce parcours, les Portugais entrent en contact pour la première fois avec de nombreux peuples et cultures, fondent des comptoirs sur les côtes africaines et développent des relations politiques et commerciales avec maints Etats locaux, qui leur fournissent notamment ivoire et esclaves en échange de produits manufacturés (tels que perles de verre ou pagnes tissés).
Ces échanges commerciaux et ces contacts désormais réguliers entre Portugais et habitants de l’Afrique subsaharienne conduisent à l’apparition d’une série de langues nouvelles, les créoles afro-portugais, qui constituent finalement un prolongement de la Romania en terre africaine. Ces langues créoles se sont probablement formées entre 1450 et 1550, à partir du portugais (dont elles tirent la majeure partie de leur vocabulaire courant) et de diverses langues africaines (généralement qualifiées de ‘substrats’ et dont l’influence est particulièrement forte au niveau de la grammaire des créoles résultants). Il existe aujourd’hui deux familles de créoles afro-portugais, pratiquées au quotidien par près de trois millions d’êtres humains.