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African Communication System.

This document is a report submitted by Gladys Makimi for her Communication Systems in Africa course. The report summarizes traditional communication methods among the Kikuyu people of Kenya, such as oral storytelling, songs, proverbs, and rituals. It discusses how colonization by Britain introduced Western forms of written communication and displaced traditional African practices. Now, many Kenyans have lost touch with their cultural roots and view Western knowledge and identity as superior. The report argues that embracing indigenous African culture and knowledge is important for the advancement of the continent.

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David Lemayian Salaton
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388 views4 pages

African Communication System.

This document is a report submitted by Gladys Makimi for her Communication Systems in Africa course. The report summarizes traditional communication methods among the Kikuyu people of Kenya, such as oral storytelling, songs, proverbs, and rituals. It discusses how colonization by Britain introduced Western forms of written communication and displaced traditional African practices. Now, many Kenyans have lost touch with their cultural roots and view Western knowledge and identity as superior. The report argues that embracing indigenous African culture and knowledge is important for the advancement of the continent.

Uploaded by

David Lemayian Salaton
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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AFRICA NAZARENE UNIVERSITY

NAME: GLADYS MAKIMI

ADMISSION: 18S01AMC008

COURSE: COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS IN AFRICA.

COURSE CODE: COM 402

LECTURER: DR RAPHAEL OGUTU.

TASK: WATCH THE VIDEO ABOUT AFRICAN COMMUNICATION SYSTEM AND


CONTEXTUALIZE IT TO YOUR OWN PEOPLE.

SUBMISSION DATE: 21ST SEPTEMBER, 2020.


INTRODUCTION.

In Africa, meaning was derived from different patterns of sounds. Making sounds such as
grunting at a low or high pitch would indicate whether it was social communication or a
warning. Africa is home to hundreds of cultural groups and languages that have influenced each
other. There have been enormous changes over time and variations among societies. Over the
years we have had civilization from the European countries giving rise to a new form of
communication.

REPORT ON AFRICAN COMMUNICATION SYSTEM AMONG THE GIKUYU.

The main medium of communication among any African tribe long before colonization was the
oral form, it was supplemented by forms of communication such as fire, drums, smoke signals
and so on. The oral tradition is the whole of all testimony types verbally transmitted by a people
on their past .In order for the oral forms to function, language has to exist as the means of
learning and transmission of a culture and is further used to define and distinguish different
ethnic groups and cultures.[ CITATION Mba99 \l 1033 ]

The content of the oral tradition of the Kikuyu is characterized by immense diversity that
includes tales and fables, myths, epics, proverbs and riddles as well as songs and legends. Quite
often, these features of kikuyu oral communication are intertwined, for instance, a story teller
may sing part of the story and at the same time emphasize important lessons with proverbs. The
story may have begun with a riddle. In certain circumstances, oral forms of communication were
enshrined in mysterious rituals practiced by persons specially trained for the task from an early
age.

When Kenya got colonized by the British, we soon lost our traditional modes of passing
messages, we got introduced to education where European colonizers often used written form of
communication such as books and electronic gadgets. We threw away the culture we had
incorporated for decades and opted for the white’s lifestyle.

Chika Ezeanya Esiobu shows the adversity of identity crisis we have as a nation for allowing
ourselves to force the familiarity of the whites to us, the truth is what we are taught in schools is
out of our reach and we often glorify the whites a lot and they don’t really deserve that kind of
glory. She states that traditional ways that were implemented in Africa were resourceful but no
one taught any of us these methods.

The kikuyu is a cultural group that has lost its roots not because of any declared hostility but
because of an unacknowledged silence that was beginning to characterize most of our
conversations. Today’s generation lacks basic knowledge when it comes to traditions and
identifying their culture. I do not necessarily mean wealth or opportunities, but a mindset that
sets oneself apart from “the other” and treats one’s identity as the norm, and all those who
deviate from it as different, not necessarily in an overtly racist Trump kind of way, but in a
condescending, paternalistic manner. It is like when a white person asks you how you learnt how
to play the piano so well, or when she marvels at the fact that you have a PhD. Or like when a
white person asks if I still eat Indian food with my hands.

The biggest undoing for kikuyu children is being taught that some positions are set apart for
certain people and that our knowledge cannot be recognized and, in a society, so deeply divided
by race it is difficult for us to make a case for why we deserve to be treated equally. At this
point, we should embrace our own culture, fight and stand for our own rights, allow the use of
our own accomplishments. Africa’s advancement rests in Africa’s knowledge and tradition.

Joseph Shabalala said that the task ahead of us can never be greater than the power within us. We
can learn to place value on our reality and our own societal knowledge.
REFERENCE LIST.

Sall, Mbathio. Bibliothèque Développement lecture paper. Dakar (Senegal). International


Federation of Library Associations & Institutions. (1999) Retrieved from http://www.ifla.org.

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