From Massai to explorers; from lions, tigers, and bears (Oh My!)....
Its indeed the circle of life...
Friday, May 8, 2015
Tanzania in a nutshell...
Tanzania is a country
full of amazing people, animals, and landmarks. Throughout its history the
people of Tanzania have proven they have a great deal of fight and spirit to
keep things sacred and attempts to prosper. Many things, people, and events
have affected the history of Tanzania; some in great ways and others in not
such great ways. The ocean played a crucial role in people coming and exploring
and later settling parts of the land. The ocean also provided influence in
agriculture, food, music, and even the introduction of diseases. Tanzania has
many resources to that take care of its people and if managed properly could
indeed help prosper the country.
Tanzanians often pride themselves on their culture, art,
paintings, or traditional dance. Each tribe within Tanzania may have its own
dance or rituals such as the Zaramo people. They often dance to melodies like
“Mitamba Yalagala Kumchzi” on tuned goblet drums, cylindrical drums, and tin
rattles. (www.britannica.com)
Music and dance has grown with the exposure to people of Tanzania also a genre
of music called Taarab. This is thought to have descended from Islamic
roots. During the 1960s Tanzania was
greatly influenced by African, Latin, and Cuban music. This is largely due to
the access by the ocean where explorers would come to explore, exchange, or
barter for goods. (www.britannica.com)
Paintings and art work were a part of the culture by way
of expressing and preserving history. Paintings would often reflect beliefs,
superstitions, or landscapes. Popular paintings in Tanzania are called
“Tingatinga”. These paintings are named after their founder, Mr. Edward Saidi
Tingatinga and have been a way of painting in Tanzania for years. Along with
paintings and music, religion has played a significant role in the history of
Tanzania. Origins can be found in its tribes where storytelling keeps ideas and
beliefs moving throughout generations. There can also be Muslim, Hinduism,
Roman Catholicism, and Christianity. Religion has long been an area that has
caused fights, divisions of people, and in some cases war. There have been
great issues between the Muslims and Christians in Tanzania; so hostile it
resulted in people being killed in schools and businesses. (www.mapsoftheworld.com)
Missionaries have also influenced Tanzania since about the sixteenth century.
During the 1830s there was a caravan route established
which allowed for early missionary influences. There was already an Arab slave
trade established and this route helped communication happen for Europeans to
end the slave trade. (www.histclo.com/country/afr/Tanzania)
Missionaries came through the caravan route and some only passed through and
some settled land to make life there. Many churches were established through
these missionaries for example missionaries from Portugal and Roman Catholics.
(www.encyclopediaofchristianity.com)
As missionaries continued to come to Tanzania they saw a
huge need within the country. A huge issue that was arising in Tanzania with
explorers coming and going; diseases were also brought. People of Tanzania were
contracting diseases they had no way of treating. Missionaries now found they
could best serve the people of Tanzania by way of establishing hospitals,
clinics, or providing medical drugs for treatment.
Along with its people, music, paintings, and influence of
missionaries that make Tanzania what it is today, Tanzania offers many
attractions across its vast land. A few major cities would be Arusha and Dar es
Salaam. Dar es Salaam is an embarkation point for Zanzibar and also is home to
a few schools of Tanzania. Tanzania is also home to many lakes for example Lake
Victoria and Lake Malawi. Tanzania also has a volcanic crater called Eden of
Ngorongoro. Many mountains and wildlife land exists in Tanzania as well. Mount
Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru are two of the largest mountains in Tanzania. The
Serengeti is home to the greatest population of game animals in the world.
Animals and land were also affected over time by new people investigating and
explorers finding new ways to make money.
During the colonial era in Tanzania had explorers coming
and going all the while bringing goods, animals, or cloth to trade. Though
trade and new people brought some good to Tanzania, it also brought some bad.
Tanzanian wildlife found itself in a very vulnerable situation. The people of
Tanzania lived off the land for some time and having the explorers trade and
often poach the animals caused many people to starve to death. Restrictions
were put on the killing of animals because of the fear of extinctions however
this caused the people who lived off the killing of animals to survive to
starve to death in many cases. It is clear that the arrival of explorers caused
good and bad to the people of Tanzania.
In some cases Tanzania benefited from outsiders settling
the land but many cases there were wars and strive that broke out. The people
of Tanzania at some points broke out in rebellion in efforts to gain control
again. Europeans would control the land for a while then the Germans would take
control for a time. With new people brought territory issues, greed, and
slavery. (www.lonelyplanet.com)
Tanzanians have fought for independence and in fact gained it though the land
did not find stability right away. Even today Tanzania finds itself fighting
for peace with each other and with each religion. In some regions of Tanzania
people are thriving and have found to live in peace while others find
themselves trying to survive day to day. Tanzania has a large albino group who
has to struggle each day to stay alive. Albinos are often sought after for
their arms and legs for witchcraft practices. (www.bbc.com/news/world-africa)
There is protection offered to them however people are paid a lot of money to
kill adults or babies for these practices.
Though Tanzania has made good strides to move forward it
still finds itself as one of the poorest countries in the world. Present day
Tanzania finds a large portion of its money comes from tourism. With new
Presidents brings new policies that would be set in place with intents to make
the country better though many reforms often brought hardships. Tanzania can be
labeled as many things and has had its share of wars and poverty. Today it
still has its problems though the people have made huge strides to better their
country. Tanzania today is beautiful, vast, and colorful.
Resources:
www.encylocpediaofchristianity.com;
Erwin, Fahlbusch; WM.B. Eerdmans Publishing company, May 7, 2015
www.mapsoftheworld.com,
May 7, 2015
www.lonelyplanet.com;
May 7, 2015
www.bbc.com/news/world-africa;
“living in Fear: Tanzanian’s Albinos”, July 28,2008, May 7, 2015
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
People, Politics, and money
Tanzania is a country that offers many great things and has always had its problems. The people of Tanzania have always fought hard for themselves and still today continue to struggle for bear necessities. Tanzania is a bit different from other countries in Africa because it has not had a lot of internal issues. For the most part Tanzania's struggles comes from outsiders and not a lot of strife between itself. Tanzania is not without its corruption and poor leadership.
Today Tanzania is one of the poorest country in the world. One thing for sure, Tanzanians have amazing pride in their country. Over the past few decades they have wanted independence, attempted to figure out how to bring in revenue, and wanting to be self- reliant in any way. Tanzanians tend to find themselves up against a wall when it comes to farming and exports because Tanzania does not have many items to export or great land to farm. One attempt in reconciling this issue was made in 1964 when Mainland Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged. Tanzania still had such little exports and land to cultivate, Tanzania was not able to secure or establish its economy.
The first President of Tanzania, Julius Nyerere wanted to bring in revenue to his country so in 1967 he issued the Arusha Declaration. This declaration attempted to gain self-reliance by way of farming, creating factories, plantations, banks, and private companies. This declaration carried on for the next decade or so but in the end failed due to corruption, inefficiency, and surprisingly the rise of petroleum. Julius continued to make poor decisions through his presidency even in sending military aid to help overthrow President Idi Amin of Uganda in 1979 through 1981. This decision only caused further issues in the economy. Under the next president, Benjamin Mkapa continued to strive for economic stability and in fact succeeded a bit during his term. Tourism became a huge part in bringing in revenue to the country such as Mount Kilimanjaro and wildlife preserves like the Serengeti.
While Tanzania becomes stronger in its economy another beast arrises in its midst. Tanzania has a large Albino population that is being attacked and killed for sorcery and witchcraft. For some reason, Tanzania has a large population of Albino people and in recent years lots of been killed for their limbs or outcasted
Sources:
"Tanzania country profile-overview"; www.bbc.com/news/world-africa, April 2015; April 29,2015
"Living in fear: Tanzania's Albinos"; www.bbc.com/news/world-africa; July 21,2008; April 29,2015
Picture source:
http://www.viralnova.com/tanzanian-albinos/; January 28,2015; April 29,2015
"Tanzania Travel Guide"; http://www.worldtravelguide.net/tanzania; April 28,2015; April 29,2015
Thursday, April 23, 2015
The missionary presence.
Tanzania has had numerous missionary influences over the years. If anything Tanzania has so many options when it comes to religion and what to believe. Not only do they have the ideas and things the ancestors or tribal people believe but they also have tons of people coming from other countries preaching, building, and teaching. I cannot help but think how over loaded some may have been as they sought out what is truth for their own lives. I would imagine it is difficult to choose just one however many Tanzanians have chosen to practice one or two religions.
Tanzania saw a presence of missionaries as early as the 1830s. In the surrounding countries there was a lot of strife and world powers attempting to gain further control. After the Napoleonic wars Tanzania saw missionaries coming by way of caravan routes. One thing that is interesting to note is that some of the first missionaries did not have a specific agenda to convert people or spread the good news. Some first concerns were to send word to Europeans about Arab slave trade and even assisted in ending it. Islam and the Muslim religion had a significant presence in Tanzania; primarily Zanzibar. With this religion already established in Tanzania, the missionaries that came were up against this mindset.
During the 16th century Portugal sent missionaries to Tanzania. They attempted to establish churches however in the 17th century they stopped their efforts. Bagaymoyo is where the presence of these missionaries were and some of the first converts came from here. Bagaymoyo not only became home to churches but also stood as refugee center for slaves. Again the purpose of the missionaries shifted from establishing churches to assisting the people in a real tangible way by providing basic necessities for the people. Soon the Roman Catholic church began to have presence along the coast. At around the same time the Anglican church is sending people and also German missionaries are coming. The German missionaries arrived during the 19th century in Dar es Salaam. During the wars; WWI and WWII; missionaries were in an out of Tanzania. The Lutheran church also became involved and sent help to Tanzania. Scandinavians, Swedish, and Danish missionaries came to aid as well.
The presence of missionaries in Tanzania became more like aid workers. The slave trade was a big deal and some were beginning to be released. Many of them had no where to go so the churches that were established became homes for them. At first the missionaries were people who got information on the happenings and dealings with Europe then over time progressed to really attempting to meet tangible needs of the people. Many churches also established schools so not only informants and aid workers but also educators. Even today, the church is sort of an all encompassing entity.
Sources:
Fahlbusch, Erwin, Encyclopedia of Christianity, WM. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids/Cambridge.
Friday, April 17, 2015
First Contacts.
Beginnings are an important part of people and as we have seen, countries. The foundation on which things are founded or started can set up people or countries to be successful or fail miserably. Finding the gems of Tanzania was no easy feet for the explorers. Before being found, Tanzania was able to keep to itself, living off what the land provided. Tanzania went through a few different powers before it gained its independence back in 1961.
Tanzania was primarily controlled by Omani Arabs beginning in 1698. Under the Omani rule Tanzania actually came to life again. At least for a time trade was happening and new settlements were founded. As with most success when word gets around someone tends to get greedy! Zanzibar was the place most people wanted to settle and do business. In the last half of the 18th century, Tanzania had many revolts and uprisings do to people trying to take advantage each other. Sa'id Sultan gained leadership around 1806 and focused on controlling the rebellions so work could resume.
The first Portuguese sailor to make it to Tanzania was Vasco de Gama. In 1498 he was sailing the East coast of Africa in search of the Orient and found Tanzania instead. Word spread about things happening in Tanzania. Others knew Tanzania had ivory and slaves and fertile land. For Europe, they waited and watched for the right moment to make their claim in Tanzania. As people traveled and traded goods there was also disease spreading which in turn weaken any control people had. Europe saw this and waited. Carl Peters began making treaties as a way to explore the land. This gave way for British settlers and European settlers to come and make claim to territory.
Around this time Europe was in the midst of an Industrial revolution. Europe had much to gain from expanding to new territories. Zanzibar had rich, fertile land for cultivating and offered a good starting point to getting their hands on some new land. Once in Tanzania Europeans could force farmers to grow crops, exchange cattle, or people for ivory or land deals.
Most of the decisions Europe made in regards to Tanzania was selfish and motivated by furthering their own agenda. The people of Tanzania likely thought they would somehow benefit from some of these business deals but in the end they did not. For Tanzania's their quality of life was greatly diminished. They were forced to work really hard and produce items for trade for money they never saw. People were traded overseas and would most likely never see their families again. This disregard for the effects of Tanzania's caused a lot more rebellions and instability within itself. People began stealing from each other, villages were burned down, farming crops were ruined, and many people lost their lives.
Sources:
--Tanzania:Omani Conquest (1698-1884); Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa; www.content.eisa.org.2a/old-page/tanzania-omani-conquest; updated September 2005, 2015,April, 15
-- Tanzania: History; Lonely Planet; www.lonelyplanet.com/tanzania/history; updated 2015; 2015,April, 15
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
The Trading Game
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| (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_Nyerere) |
Tanzania has its history with trading and in some cases being exploited. Once word got around about the valuable items Tanzania had, many people and countries wanted to have their hands in the pot so to speak. Tanzania has many goods it imports as well as many goods it exports. Tanzania mostly conducts business with the surrounding countries and continents.
Trading in Tanzania can be traced back to A.D. 900 when South West Asia and India settled on the coast. People from these places brought cloth, beads, and metal goods in efforts to trade for ivory. Ivory was a major item to be traded around this time. It was also found that a small number of Africans were traded as slaves. Slave trading was not high on the list for trade however it was happening on the coast. This small time trade exchange is what made way for a larger scale of business to be built. The Portuguese began to explore parts of Tanzania, mostly the coast. As more and more Portuguese came into Tanzania they began taking control of the country. By 1506 the Portuguese controlled most of the coast of East Africa. The locals however were not fond of them; they were not willing to live and conduct business together resulting in trade disruption, declines in towns, and people actually leaving the area.
Years later the Arabs make the mark on Tanzania. The Arabs of Oman helped expel the Portuguese from East Africa. Zanzibar became the Arabs focus for conducting trade business and when the Bu Said dynasty replaced the Yarubi rulers Zanzibar became the location of Oman's capital. This group of Arabs helped restore towns and even founded new ones. Along with reviving towns, caravan routes were beginning to
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| http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/-Fang_traders_with_ivory.jpg |
Today Tanzania imports machinery, pesticides, industrial raw material, transportation equipment, petroleum, construction materials, and consumer goods. Tanzania exports minerals such as gold, gemstones, and diamonds, coffee, cotton, cashew nut, tea,sisal, tobacco, pyrethrum, and cloves. Under the rivers Malagarasi and Ruchugi lies brine springs from volcanic formations. This is where a lot of salt Tanzania exports comes from. These rivers are in west Tanzania near Uvinza. The salt is so pure it needs no filtering!
Resources:
www.tanzaniaembassy.or.jp/english/business/trade
www.infoplease.com/world/Tanzania-history.html
Reader,John, A Biography of the Continent of Africa page 271, 1998, New York
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Religion...
Tanzania's religion can be divided into muslims, Christians, and indigenous people. Tanzania has many tribes with the Massai being a well known one. The muslims in Tanzania are thought to have been decendants of Aga Khan's spiritual leadership. This may have roots in Jainism, Hinduism, and Roman Catholicism. Zanzibar is the place that most of the muslims of Tanzania call home. It is estimated that about 99% of the muslims in Tanzania live in Zanzibar.
Christianity is also a religion of Tanzania. It is thought to have been introduced around the beginning of the 16th century via the establishment of Francisan mission. Then an actual Christian foundation was founded in 1934. Islam was first seen in the late medieval period during the establishment of Arab commercial stations in Zanzibar. Religious tension is the same today as it was years ago. There is no surprise that Tanzania has conflict with its people. Tanzania has a constitution that allows its people to have freedom with their religion however the hostility among the people does sway people to often choose the safer religion.
The Massai tribes much like the other tribes believe in a higher god but it is not always classified as the God of Christianity or the gods of muslims. The Massai are a people group who live off the land which is a way of life for many of the tribes of Tanzania. The Massai believe in one God called "Engai". They believe there are two sides of this God; kind and vengful. Within the tribe they have a patriarchal society; this includes a spiritual leader called "Laibon". This person does not necessarily have a high status in the tribe; they only carry prophetic or healing power among the people.
Among the Massai tribe there are others who live off the land, have myths or stories that have been passed down from generation to generation. They tend to be spiritual people, connecting with the land and taking from it what they need. Today, there are many conflicts with religion and attempting to take land from the tribe people. It is clear that religion plays significant parts in the lives of Tanzanians. It has caused fights and in worst cases death. Some Tanzanians have adopted modern ways of beliefs and others have fought hard to maintain the history of the people.
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Tribal Dances and Tingatinga Paintings
Tanzania art and music have influences from many cultures. Tanzania has a history that has been able to stay alive through art and music. Today there are many styles of music that has its roots in traditional African sounds and dance. The art of Tanzania includes sculptures, paintings, and wood carvings that preserve the culture of the people and beliefs to be passed down from generation to generation.
The Taarab is a genre of music in Tanzania. It has its roots in Islamic culture and is a blend of African, European, Arab Middle East, and East African instruments. Taarab is basically sung poetry. It is mostly used in wedding ceremonies today. Over the years hip hop and jazz have influenced the cities of Tanzania which is why Taarab is usually found in coastal areas today. During the 1960s Tanzania became influenced in their music by Latin and Cuban music. Tanzanian soldiers were in those countries and upon arriving home they brought some of this influence. This made way for Tanzania to create their own style of music. They called it 'Swahili Jazz". The 1960s is also when Tanzania became independent so creating this style of music gave the people an opportunity to be themselves. I believe music has had a huge impact on this country to become themselves and be creative.
(Tingatinga painting)
Paintings, sculptures, and wood carvings can be found in Tanzania as a way to depict their thoughts, ideas, and surroundings. Zanzibar is most famous for its carved doors and Arab chests. A famous painter, Edward Saidi Tingatinga was native to South Tanzania. His style of painting has flourished in the country, becoming the most widely known type of painting. When Edward passed away the country named his style of painting after him; "Tingatinga". This style can be found in most places of Tanzania and there are many artists who
paint this style. These types of paintings are typically bright in color, illustrating superstitious beliefs or particular animal or scenery. Within the newspaper you can find cartoons and comics that can be traced back to pioneering artists. Tanzania is also known for its wood carvings. Wood carvings are mostly known by the name "Makonde art". Typically, wood carvings show nature like animals or people working however recently these wood carvings show off devils in different forms and family trees relating to the tradition of togetherness. This recent style of wood carving is known as "Shetani". These wood carvings in general are done by hand with iron tools on ebony wood.
In general, music and art has helped preserve Tanzanian history. They also show case beliefs the people have and can give a glimpse into the life of the people. Tribal dances can tell a story sometimes better than words can and traditional art or paintings can lock images for years to come of the struggles, joys, and fears the people deal with. Even though music and art in Tanzania is influenced by other cultures it seems there is still a fight to preserve its history and make head way to creating their own identity for the future.
Resources:
www.Britannica.com
www.press.uchicago.edu
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Gems of Tanzania
Tanzania is a country on the East coast of Africa. It is bordered by a few other countries. In the south, Tanzania is bordered by Mozambique, Malawi, and Zambia. To the west, Zaire, Burundi, and Rwanda border it. Uganda and Kenya border Tanzania in the north. The east of Tanzania is bordered by the Indian Ocean. The location of Tanzania has given it a valuable place in terms of weather, animal migration, and sea trade. It's location offers options not only to the people who inhabit the land but also those who travel by sea. The animals across east Africa also take advantage of the warm weather and cool temperatures of the mountains.
Tanzania has many gems within it. Some of those gems have long been discovered and some are only recently discovered. The Serengeti may be one of the well-known areas of Tanzania. It stands as the place that has the greatest concentration of migratory game animals in the world. A lot of animals migrate here from the surrounding countries in Africa. Within the Serengeti lies the Olduvai Gorge. This place is most widely known for being the site of well known discoveries. Leaky discovered fossil fragments from the early ancestors of humans. Another area that hosts a large concentration and diverse wildlife is the Eden of Ngorongoro. It is actually a twenty-mile wide volcanic crater! Lake Victoria is the largest lake on the continent and it is also the primary water source for the Nile. Dar Es Salaam is a major city in Tanzania. It is mostly a city that travelers go to in efforts to get to Zanzibar. Zanzibar is an island just off the coast of Tanzania. If you shift your focus from flat land to higher mountains, Tanzania has a few gems as well. Mount Kilimanjaro may be the most well-known mountain. It stands at about 19,340 feet. There is also Mount Meru that stands at 14,979 feet. Tanzania offers many gems of the land and there is much to be explored!
History of trading overseas can be traced back to the 900 AD. Tanzanians traded slaves, ivory, clothing material, and other products with India, Europe, China, and other surrounding countries. Zanzibar became a major trading post for ivory which attracted many greedy people. Tanzania went under control of the Germans for awhile then by Britain after World War II. The trade business in Tanzania brought a money flow but it also exposed the people to diseases and political instability. It also affected the wildlife in Tanzania; exposing them to poaching. Poaching laws have been in place but many disregard them. One aspect of poaching that is not always thought about is how do these laws affect the natives of the land. People of Tanzania have lived off the land for decades. This means they grow their food and hunt for their meat and warmth. Poaching has forced the country to make laws against hunting thus the people have been restricted to the food they can hunt. Today, Tanzania is a country with many gems but it is also politically unstable, weak in it's economy, and poverty stricken.
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