The Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire, continues to
struggle with socioeconomic and political development. "Culture and
Customs of the Congo" provides the full context of traditional
culture and modern practices against a backdrop of a turbulent
history. The volume opens up a land and peoples little known in the
United States. Written expressly to meet the needs of students and
the general audience, the work will inform about the geography,
economy, political history, and history from the slave trade to
dictatorship; ancestral religions and inroads of western faiths;
ancestral literary heritage and communication; art, architecture,
and housing; diet and dress; marriage, family, and women;
lifestyles and life events, and traditional and modern music and
dance.
Congolese society comprises hundreds of ethnic groups, such as
the Luba, the Kongo, and the Kuba. The countryside is largely based
on the hunting and gathering, herding, and farming lifestyles. The
city is marked by lifestyles reflecting the prevalence of small
business activities and increasing cultural sycretism of customs
from different parts of the Congo and Western imports. Mukenge's
narrative gives the diverse perspectives of their cultures with
their fascinating juxtapositions to our familiar western ways.
Examples of this are found in the Religion and Worldview chapter,
which discusses ancestral religions, the spirits of the land, and
supernatural power practitioners. The Literature chapter covers
verbal competition and game songs. Congolese cuisine is based on
starches such as the cassava root, the corn, and the plantain;
green vegetables, insects, fish and, to a lesser extent, meat.
Other chapters cover topics from the distinct Congolese dress and
symbolic adornments, all-important family lines, to ceremonial
music and dance. A chronology and glossary are added value.
General
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