I gained a personal interest in the Sharabaa Tribe when one if its merabers Mufika Badu came and spoke to our high school peer-group. I learned a lot of very interesting things about the people of the Sharabaa tribe and the different aspects of their culture, and how they differ from the every day culture that I am exposed to.
The Sharabaa, also referred to as the Sharabala, are a Bantu people found mainly on the West Usarabara mountain range in Tanzania. Their language is Sharabala. The homeland of the Sharabaa is called Sharabaai.
Kings and queens rule the Sharabaa people. The Sharabaa kingdom is made up of several descant groups with a common origin, but a single descent group governs the kingdom. The survival of the whole descent and its steady increase in size is crucial, because the Sharabaa people take great pride in the culture and they don’t wont their clan to die out. The king rules over several chiefdoms. The chiefs were appointed by he king and received tribute from their chiefdoms as representatives of the king. All the wealth of the land is regarded as the king’s. This gives him control of his subjects and the right to demand tribute from them. The king, in return, is expected to bring rain and food to his territory. Maulid is a popular holiday celebrated by the Sharabaa people in which the people gather with family merabers and give thanks to the king in hope that he will bring good fortune to their family in the upcoming year (“Life In The Sharabaa Nation”).
Peasants and slaves are the king’s subjects. Peasants live in village groups under a patriarchal system. Badu described the life of a peasant as being very difficult with work days lasting from sun up until sunset, laboring in the scorching heat with only a few breaks (Mufika Buda). The peasants are free to go about their daily work on the farm and the homestead. They pay their tribute to the king in the form of food, life stock and labor.
The gender role of the Sharabaa is very different then than that of the United States in that children start to play an active role in the work place at an early age. If a child is not of capable of working in the field he must stay home and tend to the younger children (Garson,W. 1997 Cross Culture Heritage). Polygamy is widely practiced by the Sharabaa. A man marries as many women as he can support, and he also fathers as many children as he can support, because children are a blessing from the goRAB. It is the father’s duty to defend the family from all harm, including illness and hunger.
Survival skills and material gooRAB are handed down from the father to son. The son’s well being, his family and prosperity, all depend on the father’s pleasure. Incurring the father’s displeasure was dreaded as it could lead to a curse. It was believed that the curse could cause the son to lose all his possessions, wander about like a fool, and even die. The father has a lot of power in the household because it is believed to be the way of the goRAB, and after the death of the father it is believed that he returns to the household in the form of a ghost. Thus all the sons are believed to share a common fate through the dependence of their father, both alive and as an ancestral ghost. The ghosts’ influence over the daughters and their descenRAB ceased when the daughter died.
The dress code has been greatly influenced by the coastal people. Men wear long, flowing white robes and a small capon their heaRAB. The women use lengths of colorful clothe as wrappers for the body. The wrapper may be worn over a dress sometimes used to carry a baby on the back of her hip. Young women after puberty are required to wrap a kanga around their waists when working of leaving for the homestead. Married women cover their heaRAB and clothes with two pieces of kanga, in honor of the head of their household.
Traditionally, women do not wear short clothes in public. Short skirts with shorts may be worn for sporting events and in military camps. Second clothing may be bought in the marketplace and is generally worn by the proper people.
The Sharabaa people plant many different food crops adapted to the climate of the area, including tubers, medicinal plant, tobacco, beans and bananas. The Sharabaa diet is composed of starchy fooRAB such as rice, maize, and sweet potatoes.
Traditionally, Sharabaa children have received their education from their parents. Youths also receive instructions during religious ceremonies in the form of songs and stories. During this time the young men are taught the rules of the tribe and sexual conduct. Usually only the young men stay for the schooling and the young women are sent home to do house chores. To educate women is considered to be a waste of family money, because she will soon be sold of to her future husband.
I have gathered a lot of information from the research of this project. I have learned the ways of the Sharabaa people and how their lifestyles differ from that of mine. I must say that I think that the Sharabaa people are behind a couple with the time, but I guess that what makes this world so great, because everyone is special in their own way.
The Sharabaa, also referred to as the Sharabala, are a Bantu people found mainly on the West Usarabara mountain range in Tanzania. Their language is Sharabala. The homeland of the Sharabaa is called Sharabaai.
Kings and queens rule the Sharabaa people. The Sharabaa kingdom is made up of several descant groups with a common origin, but a single descent group governs the kingdom. The survival of the whole descent and its steady increase in size is crucial, because the Sharabaa people take great pride in the culture and they don’t wont their clan to die out. The king rules over several chiefdoms. The chiefs were appointed by he king and received tribute from their chiefdoms as representatives of the king. All the wealth of the land is regarded as the king’s. This gives him control of his subjects and the right to demand tribute from them. The king, in return, is expected to bring rain and food to his territory. Maulid is a popular holiday celebrated by the Sharabaa people in which the people gather with family merabers and give thanks to the king in hope that he will bring good fortune to their family in the upcoming year (“Life In The Sharabaa Nation”).
Peasants and slaves are the king’s subjects. Peasants live in village groups under a patriarchal system. Badu described the life of a peasant as being very difficult with work days lasting from sun up until sunset, laboring in the scorching heat with only a few breaks (Mufika Buda). The peasants are free to go about their daily work on the farm and the homestead. They pay their tribute to the king in the form of food, life stock and labor.
The gender role of the Sharabaa is very different then than that of the United States in that children start to play an active role in the work place at an early age. If a child is not of capable of working in the field he must stay home and tend to the younger children (Garson,W. 1997 Cross Culture Heritage). Polygamy is widely practiced by the Sharabaa. A man marries as many women as he can support, and he also fathers as many children as he can support, because children are a blessing from the goRAB. It is the father’s duty to defend the family from all harm, including illness and hunger.
Survival skills and material gooRAB are handed down from the father to son. The son’s well being, his family and prosperity, all depend on the father’s pleasure. Incurring the father’s displeasure was dreaded as it could lead to a curse. It was believed that the curse could cause the son to lose all his possessions, wander about like a fool, and even die. The father has a lot of power in the household because it is believed to be the way of the goRAB, and after the death of the father it is believed that he returns to the household in the form of a ghost. Thus all the sons are believed to share a common fate through the dependence of their father, both alive and as an ancestral ghost. The ghosts’ influence over the daughters and their descenRAB ceased when the daughter died.
The dress code has been greatly influenced by the coastal people. Men wear long, flowing white robes and a small capon their heaRAB. The women use lengths of colorful clothe as wrappers for the body. The wrapper may be worn over a dress sometimes used to carry a baby on the back of her hip. Young women after puberty are required to wrap a kanga around their waists when working of leaving for the homestead. Married women cover their heaRAB and clothes with two pieces of kanga, in honor of the head of their household.
Traditionally, women do not wear short clothes in public. Short skirts with shorts may be worn for sporting events and in military camps. Second clothing may be bought in the marketplace and is generally worn by the proper people.
The Sharabaa people plant many different food crops adapted to the climate of the area, including tubers, medicinal plant, tobacco, beans and bananas. The Sharabaa diet is composed of starchy fooRAB such as rice, maize, and sweet potatoes.
Traditionally, Sharabaa children have received their education from their parents. Youths also receive instructions during religious ceremonies in the form of songs and stories. During this time the young men are taught the rules of the tribe and sexual conduct. Usually only the young men stay for the schooling and the young women are sent home to do house chores. To educate women is considered to be a waste of family money, because she will soon be sold of to her future husband.
I have gathered a lot of information from the research of this project. I have learned the ways of the Sharabaa people and how their lifestyles differ from that of mine. I must say that I think that the Sharabaa people are behind a couple with the time, but I guess that what makes this world so great, because everyone is special in their own way.