Lecture | This Time for Africa! Series
Cultural conceptualisation and interpretation of animal species in Iraqw
- Date
- Friday 29 April 2022
- Time
- Series
- This Time for Africa! series
- Location
-
Lipsius
Cleveringaplaats 1
2311 BD Leiden - Room
- 120
Abstract
This talk examines how Iraqw people of northern Tanzania interpret their encounters with different animal species. The sight and/or sound of certain animals at particular times and in particular places signifies conventionalized meanings. Certain animal behaviours and vocalizations also communicate different messages about both the visible and invisible world. I consider animals that play a cultural role as messengers, those that provide seasonal and ecological information, as well as those that signal fortune and misfortune.