Fascinating facts about African culture: traditions, clothing, art, food, tattoos

Africa is a continent made up of 54 independent countries as well as a rich mix of cultures, indigenous people, history and economy. Its scenic diversity and beauty is breathtaking as it features vast tropical rainforests, deserts, fertile grasslands and rugged mountains. It is full of flora and fauna that cannot be matched by any other continent in the world. Tourists from all over the world flock to this stunning continent in increasing numbers every year to experience its wonders up close. The only thing more beautiful than looks is African culture.

Despite its beauty and natural wealth, fifteen of the world’s least developed countries are in Africa, and millions die of famine and disease every year. A large number of African children are denied basic education and over 70% of the total population live on less than $2 a day. The good news is that there is more to Africa than just famine, disease and poverty. Here are some fascinating facts about African culture.

African culture and tradition

The “self” in African culture is not separate from the world as it is blended and united with the social and natural environment. Through the relationship with his environment and his community, an African individual becomes a voluntary person. It is assumed that the decisions and actions of an individual affect entire groups and not just one person.

See also: Cultural Facts about Swahili in Kenya

The diverse and rich African culture varies not only within each nation, but also from one nation to another. The culture of each ethnic group is family-focused and can be observed in the music, oral literature, and distinctive art of each group. Across the continent, people practice many religions, speak a variety of languages, and reside in many types of housing. Although the majority of the people living in this continent are indigenous and indigenous people of the continent, there are people who have been immigrating to Africa from all over the world for centuries.

In the 7th century AD, the Arabs began crossing from the Middle East to North Africa, bringing the religion of Islam with them. Europeans have been settling in the south of the continent since the mid-17th century. They were followed by South Asians who settled in East African areas such as Tanzania and Kenya, as well as South Africa. African ethnic groups and tribes have customs and traditions unique to their culture. The traditions of each group have been woven into a tapestry as diverse and colorful as the people of the continent. Over time, some cultures in Africa adopted parts of the culture that the new settlers brought to their lands.

However, there are some traditions that are universally popular in most African countries. Some are:

  1. Most traditions allow a woman’s family, a price for the woman, if she is to be married. This price is considered a bride price and combines money, food, clothing, drinks and other items based on the particular culture the lady is from.
  2. There is a belief in the connection between the world we are in and the next world. For this reason there are strong greetings to the ancestors.
  3. As long as one lives, it is a tradition in Africa that one always remains a part of one’s immediate and extended family.

African clothing and art

There is some uniformity when it comes to African clothing, although most vary from what is available in other parts of the continent. What is consistent is that what is worn most often is loose clothing. In places particularly in East Africa, both males and females use shawl-like material to cover themselves, while in North Africa males use what is mostly known as jellabia. Women in this part of the continent also use a different type of jellabia and also cover their heads in niqab.

The clothing industry in Africa was formerly dominated by handwoven materials and later dyed and dyed materials in countries like West Africa. From the beginning to the end of these clothes, they were made with hands. This includes the design and patterns of each.

Some of the most popular styles of dress in Africa are Ghana’s kente, Kuba dress popular in the DRC, boubou, gandoura, kaftan and more.

Beads, bangles and skin abrasions are also of great importance in African garments. These are used by the royalty most of the time.

One thing that is evident about African clothing is that there is a lot of creativity in both the creation and the design. This creativity stems from the arts that are central to African culture.

Here are some facts about African art:

  1. African arts like most other things on the continent are influenced by the religion and specific culture of the places. For example, there are many paintings and carvings made to honor the gods and cater to human idols they would serve.
  2. Most of the arts are made of wood and the arts were mostly in the form of masks and in human form. There were also bronze arts discovered on the continent.
  3. Much of early African art is now in western countries and attempts are being made to bring it back to the continent.

African culture, religion, sport and profession

Currently, Africa is politically organized in the African Union, abbreviated as AU, a federation created in 2001 and composed of all countries except Morocco. Islam is the largest religion on the continent, closely followed by Christianity. These two religions make up about 85% of the African population, with only 15% of people belonging to traditional religions or being non-religious. There is more physical variation among the native population than on any other continent. Average life expectancy ranges from just under 32 years in southern Swaziland to 74 years in the island nation of Mauritius.

When it comes to sports, three of the most popular are cricket, soccer and athletics. Introduced to the continent during colonial times, the sport has grown rapidly due to the success of African teams in international tournaments. Before these were introduced, Africans embraced wrestling as a major sport and as a form of competition to decide who gets what in some places. In some other places, hunting was also a sport.

There are a number of well-known African traditional cultures such as the East African Maasai, the South African Kalahari Bushmen and the Touareg living in the Sahara. The Maasai are warriors and herders living in the semi-arid Rift Valley region of Tanzania and Kenya. Proud and self-sufficient, they do not farm land, but are dependent on a cash economy instead of subsisting on the produce their cattle provide. They now appear to be struggling to maintain their culture and traditions. Most of the land on which they graze their livestock has been divided into parcels to become protected land for national parks.

The San people of the Kalahari are commonly referred to as the Bushmen. They live in the rather inhospitable terrain of a desert and survive by gathering bulbs and roots and hunting wild animals. Their culture is considered the oldest in the world, dating back more than a hundred thousand years. Just the fact that they’ve survived this long is what sets them apart in Africa.

Facts about tattoos in African culture

One very fascinating thing about African culture is the location of tattoos. In many places, these body paintings mean a lot to people beyond mere embellishment. What is interesting is that the use of tattoos is spreading and extending to almost every part of the continent.

The African tattoos are said to be one of the earliest emerging tattoos in the world. What cannot be said is whether or not they had to spread as a result of slavery in the western world. However, it is also known that Egypt had one of the earliest histories regarding the use of tattoos.

Sometimes these tattoos appear on faces as tribal symbols. Here are some quick facts:

  1. Tattoos among most Africans are used for the purpose of beautification. Mainly used by young men and women, these tattoo forms are temporary tattoos that can be wiped off and redrawn. However, there are some that are permanent.
  2. There are also a lot of people who use tattoos to show their class, especially those in the royal class, or even to show they are from a specific place or tribe.
  3. Religious purposes, protection from evil spirits, as well as following a specific religious belief are other reasons why people in Africa wear tattoos.
  4. Most tattoos drawn by native Africans are some form of tribal or ethnic identification. Such tattoos usually feature a similar pattern of designs or inscriptions on the backing.

African Food Facts

There are many things that are mostly unique and true about the African way of feeding and the way the food is prepared in the traditional African setting:

  1. The most dominant African food is carbohydrate. This is mainly because roots and tubers such as yam and cassava, as well as cornmeal, among others, are heavily consumed.
  2. While starchy foods remain very dominant, meat and eggs are highly valued. Also, Africans consume a lot of fruits, most of which grow by themselves.
  3. Vegetables are heavily consumed in Africa not only for food purposes, but also for medicinal purposes. There are different leaves that are believed to treat different diseases like malaria, typhoid and many others. A variety of dishes/soups often eaten with cassava or yam are usually prepared with vegetables.
  4. Everything used in traditional African cuisine is completely natural and not industrially produced or with the addition of chemicals. This also includes native spice ingredients.
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