Nilo-Ethiopian Studies nol.12 (2008)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.12 (2008)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

HIROKI ISHIKAWA

The war discourse of the Hor, comprised of idioms that provide them with meanings related to waging war, diverges considerably from the Hor’s present interethnic relationships with their neighbors. Since the end of the 19th century, the Hor have lived under Ethiopian state rule but have tried to maintain their cultural and political autonomy by constructing and upholding a patriarchal “tradition” (aada). This “tradition” includes sets of discourses and rituals, among which the war discourse is one of the most important. This paper analyzes the war discourse and demonstrates how it functions to consolidate the Hor’s patriarchal tradition. As interethnic relationships have changed, new idioms have been added, even though the discourse appears authentic and unchanging. While deterioration of the Hor’s relationship with the neigh boring Borana animated the war discourse in the 1990s, changes to the discourse also reflect challenges
to Hor tradition from within.

Keywords: discourse, Ethiopia, Hor, tradition, warfare

MAKOTO NISHI

Since the 1990s, the idea of participation has become a popular norm in implementing development cooperation. Community-based organizations (CBOs) are widely thought to promote local democratic participation effectively in the development process. However, the potential relationship between CBOs and development agencies raises questions about the relationship between a CBO and the people whom it claims to represent. Determining whether the organization benefits only the local elite or provides a discussion forum among groups with different positions is critical.
The Gurage Road Construction Organization (GRCO), which has been operating since 1962, is one of the most successful CBOs in Ethiopia. It was established in Addis Ababa as an association of Gurage migrants from southern Ethiopia to raise funds for the construction of roads and schools in their homeland. GRCO acquired a wide support base through negotiations with members of urban and rural communities. GRCO leaders sought not only to construct massive public works in their villages but also to develop alternative social relationships for the fairer redistribution of development funds.

Key words: community-based organization, development, ethnicity, redistribution

TOMOHIRO SHITARA

I have studied Italian colonial buildings in Gondar, Ethiopia, continuously since 2003. In my previous research, I clarified the total number of Italian colonial buildings, the concept of the Italian urban master plan, and the distribution, height, construction materials, construction methods, current conditions, and ownership status of Italian colonial buildings. Here, I focus on the spatial formations of and construction methods for Italian colonial residences and the divisional formation of Italian residential areas. During the colonial period, four Italian residential areas were constructed. These areas were distinguished clearly by dweller type in terms of profession:
high officials, officials, soldiers, and civilians. Italian colonial residences involved three types of construction methods, i.e., prefabrication, masonry, and reinforced concrete construction, which are subdivided into 10 types of principal structure. The use of each type of principal structure was distinguished by the dwellers’ profession. Italian colonial residences involved three types of building, i.e., detached house, row house, and dormitory, and contained various rooms, e.g., living and dining rooms (L&D), bedrooms, kitchens, toilet and bathrooms, corridors, and
verandas. Most residences had both verandas and corridors. Furthermore, Italian colonial residences involved seven types of layout; most were organized into three of the most common (“V→C→X, L&D”, “V→L&D→C→X,” and “V→L&D→X”. corridor (C); living and dining room (L&D); veranda (V); and bedroom, kitchen, toilet and bathroom, or other space (X)).

Key words: colonial architecture, construction method, Ethiopia, Gondar, Italy, spatial formation

SAYURI YOSHIDA

Under the present Ethiopian government, social discrimination is a human rights issue. Despite the national policy of the right to self-determination launched by the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front, the Manjo, a socially discriminated minority who live in the western Kafa and eastern Sheka zones, feel that they are being deprived of this right. In 2002, the Manjo attacked the Kafa in an attempt to put an end to this discrimination. Knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the Manjo uprising is essential for understanding the conflict. This article describes these circumstances and the changes brought about by the incident.

Keywords: Kafa, Manjo, social discrimination, minorities, conflicts

YUKIO MIYAWAKI

The war discourse of the Hor, comprised of idioms that provide them with meanings related to waging war, diverges considerably from the Hor’s present interethnic relationships with their neighbors. Since the end of the 19th century, the Hor have lived under Ethiopian state rule but have tried to maintain their cultural and political autonomy by constructing and upholding a patriarchal “tradition” (aada). This “tradition” includes sets of discourses and rituals, among which the war discourse is one of the most important. This paper analyzes the war discourse and demonstrates how it functions to consolidate the Hor’s patriarchal tradition. As interethnic relationships have changed, new idioms have been added, even though the discourse appears authentic and unchanging. While deterioration of the Hor’s relationship with the neighboring Borana animated the war discourse in the 1990s, changes to the discourse also reflect challenges
to Hor tradition from within.

Keywords: discourse, Ethiopia, Hor, tradition, warfare

Book Reviews


Nilo-Ethiopian Studies vol.11 (2007)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.11 (2007)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

MORIE KANEKO

In this paper, I describe pottery making by examining fine finger movements, with a focus on both shared finger movements common among potters and on unique pot-forming procedures developed by each maker. I regard Ari pottery making as a community-based technology (CBT) that creates commodities necessary for people’s basic daily needs, and consider how pottery makers create new sizes and shapes of pots based on two-way relationships between users’ demands and makers’ trials and errors. I describe the pot-forming process by (1) analyzing the fine movement of potters’ hands and fingers, (2) identifying each maker’s pot-formation processes, and, (3) analyzing the process of creating new shapes by focusing on relationships between makers and users.
Observations and analysis revealed four main characteristics. First, I found that Ari pottery makers exhibit 20 patterns of common finger movements and follow four stages in making pots. Second, observations focused on finger movement patterns showed that each maker develops a different procedure to form pots. Variations in pottery making are related to the weight and thickness of each pot and the customer’s evaluation of the durability of the pots. Third, each potter follows her own procedure in forming pots. Fmally, potters may invent new finger movement patterns (FMPs) to create new sizes and shapes for pots to accommodate orders by preferred customers (jaala). Pottery making in the Ari area is one aspect of Ari society, and potters have developed their pottery making techniques on the basis of social relationships.

Keywords: Ari, Ethiopia, finger movement patterns, pottery making, unit of process

MAKIKO OGUSA

Since France colonized the Republic of Djibouti in the 19’11 century, nomads have formed settlements in the area, concentrated on the outskirts of Djibouti City. The Balbala District is one of the biggest such settlements, which today is largely made up of slum quarters. To stem the expansion of slums, the government has resorted mainly to “lotissement,” or the creation of land allotments for settled nomads. However, this strategy has had only limited success, because it was designed from the viewpoint of the administration and disregarded the nomadic notion of the living environment. Here, we assessed the adequacy of this method of land use and clarify its cw-rent status. We conclude that to better manage slums in this district, it is necessary to consider the settled nomads’ viewpoint of land use.

Key words: slum, land use, nomad settlement, Is sa, Afar

ITSUSHI KAWASE

The aim of this paper is to highlight and analyze my anthropological filmmaking practice based on long-term participant observation of two different itinerant musical groups in northern Ethiopia: Azmari and Lalibalocc. I produced two different films on both groups: Kids got a Song to Sing (2006) and Lalibalocc-Living in the Endless Blessing (2005). These films were shown at academic seminars, conferences, lectures, and film festivals. The films I have produced take a slightly different viewpoint from that of most ethnographic films, which do not engage the subjects and are filmed in a detached manner, as if from a distance. They also differ from problem-and-solution-oriented documentary films that advocate specific social change or convey strong messages to the audience. Rather, the films attempt to capture the lives of people as they communicate and collaborate with the researcher/filmmaker. This method questions the binary opposition of researcher and informant. I consider the interactions between myself as an anthropological researcher with a video camera and the people of my films to be the fundamental aspect of the reality in an anthropological filmmaking context. The first part of this paper introduces the Azmari and Lalibalocc people, including their geographical, social, and historical background. Then I argue and clarify my position on filmmaking regarding certain key concepts of how to approach subjects.

Keywords: Gondar, Azmari and La.libalocc, anthropological filmmaking dealing with intimacy

Book Reviews


Nilo-Ethiopian Studies vol.10 (2006)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.10 (2006)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

OSAMU HIEDA

All three branches of the Nilotic language family use t.he ‘singulative’ formation in nominal morphology.
In the Proto-Western Nilotic language, singulative forms were derived from stems by attaching suffixes -0 or -nO; the suffix -nO was attached to st.ems ending in a voiced stop consonant. The alveolar nasal of the suffix nasalized the preceding voiced consonant.
In Eastern Nilotic languages, singulative forms are derived from stems by attaching a number suffix -l/-i, which is accompanied by a formative suffix -Ak/-ok; they can also be derived by attaching a number suffix -A/-o, which is sometimes accompanied by a formative suffix -(V) t. The velar voiceless stop consonant becomes an alveolar nasal intervocally.
In Southern Nilotic languages, singulative forms are derived from stems by attaching a suffix -(y )a:n.
Other examples, such as ‘cattle’, ‘animal’, and ‘people’ use suppletion to distinguish singular from plural forms. The singular forms of these nouns originated from archaic singulative forms in the Proto- Nilotic language. For example, in the Maasai language, En-kltEng’ ‘cow’: PN *(kwl)-r, Eg-Ak-l (singulative) > (kwJ)-r, Eg-An-I > (kwl)-r, Eg-n-I > (kwl)-r, Eng’-n-I > (kwl)-r, Eng’-l > (kwl)-r, Eng’

Key words: Historical linguisLics, ilotic, nominal morphology, Proto-Nilotic, siugulative

TOMOHIRO SHITARA

Research on historical architecture is critical before structures are lost to demolition or decay, a risk that is particularly great in rapidly growing developing countries. The historic town of Gondar, Ethiopia, features a wealth of historical architecture, including a palace registered as a UNESCO World Heritage property, traditional houses, and Italian-style buildings constructed during the Italian occupation. However, while researchers have examined many of these structures, the Italian buildings have not been previously researched. Here, I focus on Italian buildings in Gondar and attempt to clarify their historical background, current condition, and important issue for protection.
I found that 352 Italian buildings still exist in Gondar. These buildings have helped form the urban core of the city, functioning as public. commercial. and residential spaces, and have also influenced later Ethiopian modern architecture through construction techniques passed on from Italian to Ethiopian engineers. Currently, 83% of the Italian buildings are owned by governmental sectors (i.e., the government, kebeles [wards], and the Rental Housing Administrative Authority). To preserve these historic structures, it is necessary to cooperate with governmental sectors. and further research will be necessary to devise cooperative protection strategies.

Key words: Architectural preservation, Ethiopia, Condar, Italian Buildings, Urban planning

TORU SOGA

We examined representations of time among Gabra Miigo pastoralists in southern Ethiopia. Time was represented by changes in nature. cultural symbols, and social matters, although coherent knowledge of time representations was unequally distributed within Gabra Miigo society. We discuss how knowledge of time representation has changed and how modernization and Islam have affected this knowledge. Knowledge of time representations that regulate the age system has -faded as the influence of Islam has grown. However, time representations that serve to retain historical memories are gaining social value in the modern context. Those who are well informed in such time representations have become “experts” and have begun to act as leaders. Gabra Miigo society, which was traditionally acephalous, is becoming a more top-down and centralized
society.

Key words: Gabra, modernization, re-Islamization, change, knowledge, time

Book Reviews


Nilo-Ethiopian Studies vol.8&9 (2003)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.8&9 (2003)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

YOSHIKO KURITA
The Role of ‘Negroid but Detribalized’ People in Modern Sudanese History

KEIICHIRO MATSUMURA
Changes beyond the State Institution: Socialist Policies and Land Tenure in aCoffee-Growing Village, Southwestern Ethiopia

MINAKO ISHIHARA
The Cultural Logic of Civiculture in Ethiopia

YUKA KODAMA
The Sheepskin Marketing Channel in Ethiopia after Liberalization The Survival Strategies of the Participants

HIROKI ISHIKAWA
On the Functions of the B’_??_ht wäddäd and the Talallaq blattenoc gweta of the Solomonic Dynasty, 1607-1682


Nilo-Ethiopian Studies vol.7 (2001)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.7 (2001)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

KATSUYOSHI FUKUI

This paper intends to examine the characteristics of pastoral nomadism among the Bodi (Mela-Me’en) in southwest Ethiopia. Special attention will be paid into the interrelationship between their nomadic movement and socio-political factors. Their daily migrations, which are repeated very frequently, are closely related to the flexibility of their social networks while their yearly ones are related to inter-ethnic conflict.

Key words: Bodi, nomadism, herding camp, swidden, warfare.

HIROSHI NAWATA

This paper attempts to reconstruct subsistence activities among the Beja, camel pastoralists living along the Sudanese coast of the Red Sea, focusing on their coastal resource use.
I reveal, as a result of participant observation, that they target driftwood,
mangroves, gastropods, and fish in gathering and fishing activities. The principal types and purposes of resource use are as a resource for food; a resource as a means of subsistence; and a resource for daily life materials.
I also show how the one-humped camel plays an invaluable role in the process of appropriating and carrying these resources, because it has an outstanding ability to walk on both soft substrates (mud and sand) and coral-rich hard substrates in littoral and sublittoral zones.

Key words: Beja, camel pastoralism, subsistence, coastal ecosystems, resource use.

ITARU OHTA

As East African pastoral societies are incorporated into a global order of markets and money, they attract considerable attention as to how their systems of livestock exchange articulate with the new system of commodity exchange. This study describes and analyzes livestock exchanges of the Turkana of northwestern Kenya, and differentiates their exchanges from monetary exchanges. The points discussed are: (1) in most livestock exchanges among the Turkana, an individual asks only in need and takes an animal from the partner with whom he is on good terms, and his “debt” is cleared much later; (2) although a kind of livestock exchange rate is recognized, heated and delicate negotiations finally determine “debt” payment, and each agreement is local, transitory, and non-universal; (3) epistemological examination of Turkana verbs for livestock exchanges reveals specific and definite motivations behind the exchanges; ( 4) each animal is individually identified, and its singularity supports the uniqueness of each social transaction in which the animal is transferred.

SHINYA KONAKA

This paper examines the activities of the Samburu livestock trader who mediates between the market economy and the subsistence economy of this area. The trading activity of a Samburu livestock trader for two years was analyzed. The result indicates that the livestock trader ordinarily repeats a purchase and a sale at quite short intervals. Rich local knowledge on the climate, prices, and ethnic cultures is indispensable to his trades. The livestock trader integrates the activities as a trader with activities as a herder. For example, he purchases livestock at a drier period when the price falls. After fattening the livestock for some period at his homestead, he sells the livestock at a wetter period when the price rises. He makes his fortune by “livestock-rolling speculation”.
The livestock trader makes a profit on the mutual conversion of livestock and cash, as an investor. With the profit, he aims to reproduce the herd, the ultimate core of his social ambition. Therefore, activities of the Samburu livestock traders should not be regarded as an immature commerce, but rather as a unique combination of commerce and subsistence pastoralism.

Key words: Samburu, market economy, livestock trader, local network, laissez-faire
capitalism.

TORU SOGA

This study concerns social change in the Gabra, a peripheral pastoralist group in Kenya, brought about by the 1 99 7 general election. Supporters of an unsuccessful candidate in the nomination process tried to unite the Algana, one of the phratries of the Gabra, against the elected person, who belonged to another phratry, in the election. This paper analyzes the supporters’ attempts to mobilize people and unite the phratry, paying attention to their discourse and behavior. By participating in the election, Gabra society greatly changed. This paper also examines social change from two different points: in methods of manipulating others and the nature of the boundary of the phratry, which suggested the transition of Gabra society from ethnie to modern political-ethnic unit.

Key words: Gabra, ethnie, nation, election, social change.

Book Reviews


Nilo-Ethiopian Studies vol.5&6 (2000)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.5&6 (2000)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

RICHARD PANKHURST

Tradition holds that the craftsmen’s giidam, or monastery, at Mantek, near Ankobiir, in Shiiwa, like others in the region, was established by craft workers. Like the Falasha, to whom they were probably once affiliated, they consisted of blacksmiths, weavers and potters, and formerly inhabited the Gondar region of north-west Ethiopia, but settled in Shiiwa after Abeto Nagassi (1607-1703) founded a dynasty, and needed tools to clear the land for agriculture.
Little of the monastery’s history is known until the early 19th century, when the establishment was visited by European travellers. They indicate that the craftsmen were deeply religious, and apparently much influenced by theJudaic Old Testament. They kept the Sabbath on Saturday, as well as on Sunday. The travellers concluded that the community, though outwardly Chritian, belonged to a heretical, possibly Judaic, sect.
Present investigation shows that the inhabitants today practice the same crafts as formerly. Their establishment consists of (l) a place of worship, with a central mekrab, i.e. pillar, or sanctuary; (2) huts, and caves, in which the monks and nuns live rigidly apart; (3) shacks for bread-baking and beer-brewing; (4) craftsmen’s workshops; (5) a guest-room; and (6) two isolated teketo, i.e. menstruation houses, reminiscent of the Falasha.

Key words: handicrafts, craftsmen, blacksmiths, monasteries, Christianity, J udaism.

TADASU TSURUTA

Performances by dance bands (jazz bands as they are known in East Africa) have been an integral part of urban popular culture in Tanzania over the past five decades, though in an ever-changing socioeconomic environment. Amateur jazz clubs, which emerged in various urban centers from the 1940s under British colonial rule, developed in close-knit urban communities in the context of pre-existent traditions of competitive dance societies. This jazz-club movement culminated in the 1960s when Dar es Salaam, the capital, and some provincial towns produced a number of famous jazz bands which became popular throughout East Africa.
Post-independence changes in the economic and political system had a considerable impact upon the social character of urban musical activities. From the mid-1960s, chiefly in Dar es Salaam, a number of jazz bands were launched by various governmental organizations and public corporations, employing an increasing number of musicians on a regular salaried basis. Meanwhile, through the 1970s and 1980s, the commercialization of musical activities advanced in both the public and private sectors, undermining the existing jazz clubs. Along the way, jazz bands lost their communal character and were transformed into commercial enterprises, divorced from the urban communities from which they first emerged.

Key words: Tanzania, popular music, dance band, urban culture, socioeconomic change.

KEN MASUDA

This paper sets out to examine the paradox of matrilineal aspects among patrilineal societies in Africa, which was famously pointed out in the Nuer ethnography by E. E. Evans-Pritchard, and focuses on gender and sexual aspects of the indigenous theory of kinship among the Banna of southern Ethiopia. For this purpose, I describe some local strategies for securing descendants and children’s legitimacy. It follows that the concept of paternity must be analyzed by investigating the rules of marriage, sexuality, and the role of the baski, a term which could be translated ‘lover’ or ‘levir’ and denotes a man who lives with a widow in a relationship similar to marriage but not recognized as such. Paternity has ideological aspects which prescribe the legitimacy of children: in the case of the baski, he cannot give legitimacy to his lover’s children even though he is their biological father. Therefore we must distinguish paternity from two perspectives: (1) whether the father is a pater or genitor for the children, and (2) whether he is a legal or illegal marital partner for the children’s mother. This is a sort of local knowledge of reproduction technology: the Banna vary their interpretation of sperm and ovum, acquiring their descendants through a process of social manipulation.

Key words: Banna, Omotic, gender, sexuality, kinship study.


Nilo-Ethiopian Studies vol.3&4 (1996)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.3&4 (1996)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

KATSUYOSHI FUKUI

The present paper intends to make an analysis on the cattle composltwn and raiding among the Narim, one of the Surmic peoples, in Southern Sudan, and to introduce a hypothesis that their repeated cattle raiding against their neighboring peoples brings an economic leveling to their soicety. The paper also describes in detail the management of cattle, their folk categories for conflict, the strategy and tactics of their cattle raiding, and their distribution of cattle after raiding.

Key words: cattle raiding, pastoral society, ethnic conflict, leveling mechanism, Narim, Sudan.

EISEI KURIMOTO

In Nilotic studies, the image of cattle-obsessed Nilotes, in terms not only of their economy but also of their culture and religion, has been dominant. The Pari of southeastern Sudan offer us an interesting case to counter this dominant view. Pastoralism shares only a limited role in their subsistence economy, and goats, which are not considered substitutes for cattle, are usually victims in sacrifices. They have no “personal oxen” and hunting wild animals has a great significance in achieving and displaying manhood.
This paper will highlight the hunting culture among the Pari, with a special focus on Nyalam, a New Year hunting ritual, in which the first game is sacrificed. Then I will try to account for the ritual both in regional and Nil otic contexts. The aim of the paper is, instead of treating the Pari as being marginal or exceptional to the mainstream Nilotes such as the Nuer and Dinka, to set and evaluate their hunting culture among the Nilotes and to reconsider the dominant pastoral image of the Nilotes.

Key words: ritual hunt, sacrifice, multiple subsistence, Pari, Nilotes.

YUKIO MIYAWAKI

This paper illustrates age grade succession rituals of a society that has a dualistic world view. The Hoor are Cushitic agro-pastoralists who dwell along the Weito River in south-western Ethiopia. The Hoor have a developed age grade system, on which their political activities in local communities are founded. The age set is organized at an interval of 8 to 10 years, and four adjacent age sets are put together and organized into a generation set. The generation set is a unit which takes responsibility for administration of a territorial group. Once every 30 to 40 years, they have two successive rituals, in which a senior generation set transfers political authority to a junior generation set.
The society of the Hoor is saturated with a dualistic world view which consists of binary symbols. This dualistic world view is especially apparent in the arrangement of their settlement, where symbolic orientations permeate every corner of their social life. The age grade system has anomalous effects on the binary symbolism since the former is associated with the concept of continuity. Based on research on the Gandarab, one of the northern regional groups, this paper attempts to show how the rituals
transform dualistic symbols and introduce a concept of continuity into the dualistic world of the Hoor.

Key words: Hoor, Arbore, age grade system, succession ritual, symbolism.

Book Reviews2011


Nilo-Ethiopian Studies vol.2 (1994)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.2 (1994)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

SIMON SIMONSE

An interpretation is offered of two contrasting Nilotic customs relating to the
stomach of a king who has just died: the cutting of the stomach of a king who has been killed by his subjects for causing drought and the practice of some Bari speaking peoples of allowing the stomach of the king, who has died a natural death, to bloat and burst. The case material on the cutting of the stomach is taken from nineteenth century accounts by travellers and a missionary concerning two cases of regicide among the Bari and from the study of the murder of the Pari queen in 1984 by the anthropologist
Eisei Kurimoto.
In a first round of interpretation it is argued that the relevant property of the
stomach in this context, as well as in other Nilotic sacrificial ritual, is its capacity to turn a mass of undifferentiated substance into something valued and desirable. In a second round we demonstrate that the stomach-metaphor is used to make sense of the socio-political impact of the king on the conflicts in his realm and, closely interwined with that, of his cosmic impact on the weather. To understand why the king’s metabolism plays such an important role at the moment of his death we turn to the theory of the victimary origins of kingship developed by Rene Girard. Since the death of the king is a powerful lever for achieving social unity and cosmic harmony, his people should leave nothing to chance when he dies, especially with regards to the organ most closely associated with his powers to dissolve conflicts and bring peace and rain .

Key words: sacred kingship, body symbolism, victimization, Bari, Pari, Nilotes.

MASAYUKI AKAHORI

In 1990 the electorate of the governorate of Mars a Matrouh in the Western Desert of Egypt chose four members of the ruling National Democratic Party as their representatives for the People’s Assembly. However, the Bedouin forming the majority of the population explained that these were Bedouin representatives, nominated in the meetings of the tribal chiefs based on the consideration of fairness among the tribal groups in the district. This paper analyses the process of selecting candidates for the national election and its public acceptance. In particular, unusual appearance of strong rival candidates among the Bedouin in 1990 revealed the difference between rhetoric and political reality, given that every candidate claimed to have obtained the unanimous agreement of all the Bedouin before the election and even before the tribal meetings . The institutionalized setting of the national election and the strategic enterprises of the main actors including the candidates are all related to the discourse of “Bedouin democracy” which they advocate as being traditional and legitimate. The political process also serves to strengthen the distinctive social identity of the contemporary
Bedouin, as symbolized in the TV images of the representatives appearing in the assembly hall in their traditional Bedouin robes.

Key words: Bedouin, election, nation state, tradition, tribe.

YUKIO MIYAWAKI

Traditional agricultural societies have developed a tremendous number of plant varieties from the relatively few plant species that have undergone domestication . Botanists have investigated the diversity of indigenous varieties for the purpose of preserving genetic resources, but there have been relatively few anthropological investigations of how traditional knowledge systems create or maintain plant varieties.
In this paper, I describe indigenous method of sorghum cultivation and variety selection in an agro-pastoral society of southwest Ethiopia, and show that indigenous knowledge and cultivation strategy play important roles in diversification process of local varieties. I introduce the Arbore society and their agriculture . Then I discuss diversification mechanisms and the people’s knowledge system about indigenous varieties of sorghum. Finally I relate social and environmental factors to the introduction and loss of sorghum varieties.

Key words: Ethiopia, Arbore, sorghum, Sorghum bicolor (L .) Moench, indigenous variety.

Book Reviews


Nilo-Ethiopian Studies vol.1 (1993)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.1 (1993)

Nilo-Ethiopian Studiesの1993年〜2003年の号については、JST(科学技術振興機構)のJournal@rchiveにても公開されています。
JST Journal@rchive

MAKIO MATSUZONO

Social anthropologists working in Sub-Saharan Africa have paid little attention to the evil-eye belief compared to witchcraft or the spirits of the dead, and its description is fragmentary. This is related to the peripheral or minor part played by the evil eye as well as the primacy of other causes of misfortune in social life. This article highlights several aspects of the belief and the practices of the evil eye among the Gusii of southwestern Kenya, such as: methods of the evil eye, their effects, their treatments, symbolic features of the belief, and social relationships between evil-eyed persons and their victims
Ethnic groups referred to here for comparative analysis include the Teso, the Luo, the Kipsigis, and the Logoli in Kenya, and the Nuer in Sudan. Despite many divergences, the evil-eye belief in these societies is shown to have several significant features in common. Evil-eyed people are not held personally responsible for any damage caused by their evil eye. Damage caused by the evil eye is generally much less serious and infrequent compared to other supernatural causes of misfortune. Evileyed people and their victims are, in most cases, not related in terms of kinship, residence or economic interest. These features are compared and contrasted with those of witchcraft belief.

Key words: evil eye, witchcraft, Gusii, Kenya.

OSAMU HIEDA

The aim of this article is to explore the relationship between a language and a culture in the light of the borrowing from the Kara language observed in the Koegu language. The main cultural characteristics of Koegu lie in hunting and gathering, and Kara people introduced new cultivating methods in the downstream area of the Omo river.
The Koegu language has borrowed extensively from the Kara language with regard to vocabulary and grammar. There are some tendencies in borrowing.
(1) Regarding the vocabulary not related to the main cultural characteristics, that is, the whole vocabulary except for that of hunting and gathering, words with restricted semantic fields tend to be replaced by borrowed words, and words with general and wide semantic fields are not likely to be replaced . (2) In the case of the vocabulary related to the main cultural characteristics, that is, the vocabulary of hunting and gathering, words with general and wide semantic fields tend to be replaced by borrowed words, while words with restricted semantic fields are not likely to be replaced. Thus it can be concluded that a culture influences exchange of speech forms.

Key words: Koegu, Kara, language, culture, borrowing.

IWATARO MORIMOTO

Based on observations of human mummies from Tombs No. 317 and 178 at Qurna, Egypt, two important items of the mummification process were studied. First, the removal of the brain through the nostrils was characteristic of the ancient Egyptians. This was found in 55 out of 60 mummies (91. 7 %) from Tomb No. 317 , but in 5 out of 19 mummies (26 .3%) from Tomb No. 178. The low incidence in the latter tomb could be due to the moderated style of embalming adopted to avoid heavy expense. The
hooked rod used in extracting the brain remained in and around the median plane in 28 (46 .7%) of the 60 mummies, but was shifted to the left side in 22 (36 .7%). The brain was rarely extracted through an opening for ventilation made on the left side of the skull or in the roof of the right orbit, or through the foramen magnum. In this process, the embalmers would feel no reluctance about standing on one particular side of the corpse. Second, the male external genital organs were specially treated . The organs were partially or totally cut off in 5 (50.0%), and deformed in 1 (10 .0%), out of 10 mummies from Tomb No. 317, while they were cut off in 1 (25.0%), and deformed in 3 (75 .0%), out of 4 mummies from Tomb No. 178. No prepuce was found on those penises of adult mummies which were left intact, suggesting that the ancient Egyptians practiced circumcision. In one mummy, the removed genitals had been replaced with an artificial phallus made of gilded resin . In another child mummy, the penis was serpentine in shape, a symbol of new life and resurrection . The special treatment of the external genital organs in males may indicate that the Egyptians sought eternity on the basis of beliefs associated with the mythical tales oflsis and Osiris. The various embalming techniques presented here probably originated in the special crafts for this task for which the embalmers are employed under the direction of hereditary master practitioners.

Key words: mummification process, brain, external genital organs , lsis and Osiris, Egypt.

BADR EL DIN KHALIL AHMED & ABDEL RAHMAN KHIDER HASSAN

A follow-up prospecting was executed to investigate a gamma-ray anomaly in the Miri area in the southern part of the Nuba Mountains, Sudan. An overview of the geology, radiometry and geochemistry involved is presented.
The anomaly is related to structurally controlled uraniferous pegmatitic veins and quartz-rich stockworks genetically related to alkali syenite batholith, and is principally raised by uranium and thorium at high Th/U ratio over a local background of approximately 90 cps and a regional background of 50 cps. In addition to uranium and thorium, there is a variety of incompatible trace elements: Nb, Ta, Zr, Ni, Ba, Be, Sr, Y, Ce, La, and Rb. The elemental distribution in the analyzed samples is erratic and displays variable abundances. Constrains on geochemistry of the mineralizing solutions are reviewed on the basis of mineralogical investigations and geostatistical interpretation of geochemical data.
Mineralization is interpreted to be related to pegmatitic melts and late-stage
hydrothermal solutions, suggesting multiphase emplacement.
The geological investigations which have covered the area up to now are inadequate to reveal the feasible economic potentialities of U-Th mineralization; detailed and costly explorational work is still needed. However, the environmental impact of mineralization, due to U and Th and their radiogenic daughter products, is observed and should be studied in detail.

Key words: geological study, uraniferous pegmatitic veins, guartz stockworks, Nuba Mountains, Sudan.

TORU SHINOHARA

The Konso of southern Ethiopia are agricultural people, skilled at cultivating fields on stone terraces . They also have excellent techniques of cotton weaving, metalwork, pottery and other handicrafts. This paper focuses on Konso pots in an attempt to clarify their meaning, not simply in their important everyday role as utensils for cooking, storage or alcohol-making, or as commercial items to be traded on the market, but as symbolic objects that demonstrate the structure of society.
The Konso place the pots on the roofs of their houses . There are several social norms concerning pots, and the rank of each family in Konso society is shown by the presence or absence of a pot on the roof and by the type of pot. By understanding what sort of norms govern the use of pots in Konso society, I was able to deduce four norms which demonstrate the relation between the pot on the roof and their social structure.

Key words: Konso, decorative pot, symbolic objects, social norm, village structure.

MINAKO ISHIHARA

Key words: Ethiopia, sheikh, migration, Islam.

Book Reviews


Nilo-Ethioian Newsletter No.1

Nilo-Ethioian Newsletter No.1 (1993)

Minako ISHIHARA
COFFEE AND FOOD CROP PRODUCTION IN QADAMASA, ILLUBABOR REGION OF SOUTHWEST ETHIOPIA

ltaru OHTA
“TRADITION VS MODERNIZATION” DUALISM IN THE STUDIES OF AFRICAN PASTORAL SOCIETIES

Simon Simonse
THE MONYOMIJI AGE-CLASS SYSTEMS OF THE SOUTHERN SUDAN

Gen Suwa
THE PALEOANTHROPOLOGICAL INVENTORY OF ETHIOPIA AND THE DISCOVERY OF KONSO-GARDULA, THE EARLIEST ACHEULEAN