Dynamic Africa
Formerly, "This is Africa/fyeahAfrica".
(Profile Photo by Mama Casset)
DISCLAIMER:
I do not endorse any of the products or opinions shared on this site, nor do I claim any of the work posted here to be my own - except where stated. All posts originally made by me are credited. If no credit is given then the work is either my own/written by me or reblogged from another source.
A LITTLE ABOUT ME:
Student, 24
Based in Cape Town, South Africa
From Lagos, Nigeria
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(As an unemployed media student, all donations go into ensuring my survival in this cruel world and future projects I hope to embark on).
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(since Oct. 21th 2012)
Today’s classic tune comes from Somali artist Magool.
According to the Youtube description, this video is titled ‘Anna waxaan run & been’. Digging the beats to this song, as well as Magool’s beaded braids, just wish the video was better quality.
I believe she’s known popularly as ‘Magool’ but was born Halima Khaliif Omar in the city of Dhusa Mareb, the capital of the Galgaduud region in central Somalia. in 1948, and passed away in Amsterdamn in 2004. She began her singing career in 1959 after joining a Mogadishu-based band and by the 1960s had gained a significant amount of popularity in her home country.
In the 1970s, whilst Somalia was at war with Ethiopia over the Ogaden, she sang patriotic Somali songs, but by the end of the decade, she began using her music to criticize the ruling military government in Somalia at the time. Magool then left the country on a self-imposed exile which lasted until 1987. To mark her return back to Mogadishu, a concert titled “Mogadishu and Magool” was held and is, to date, the most successful concert in Somali history.
CNN | The Namibian Women Who Dress Like Victorians
Their style of dressing was influence by the wives of German missionaries and colonialists who first came to the country in the early 1900s.
The long dresses are heavy and reflect the style of the Victorian period with numerous petticoats worn to add fulness to their skirts.
They are hand-sewn by the women who add their own personal style and flair.
Continue reading the story here.
(via nocturnalphantasmagoria)
Madagascar:
Incredible images of beautiful Madagascan women, c. 1898
(Every morsel of discovering your history changes your life for the better imho. The overwhelming beauty of these women is humbling and inspiring)
Was watching this documentary, did a quick search on Gannibal and realized that May 14th, today, is the anniversary of his death.
NOTABLE AFRICANS: Major-General Abram Petrovich Gannibal, also Hannibal or Ganibal or Ibrahim Hannibal or Abram Petrov
Much of his early life is unknown but historians speculate that the most famous black figure in Russian history, who was kidnapped at the age of seven and taken to the court of the Ottoman Sultan at Constantinople, could have been from either present-day Eritrea, or Cameroon. It is also speculated that he may have spoken Kotoko, an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in West Africa.
During the year of his kidnap, the Sultan of Constantinople was either Mustafa II (reigned 1695–1703) or Ahmed III (reigned 1703–1730), and in a German biography written anonymously and informed by Gannibal’s first-hand accounts it states that, “the children of the noble families were taken to the ruler of all the Muslims, the Turkish sultan, as hostages”. These children would either be killed or sold into slavery. It is also said that Gannibal’s sister Lahan was kidnapped at the same time but died during the voyage after being brutally raped.
The following year, 1704, Gannibal was ransomed and taken to Moscow where he was adopted by Emporer Peter the Great. In 1705, Gannibal was baptized in St. Paraskeva Church in Vilnius, with Peter the Great as his godfather.
Gannibal was sent to France where he received an education in the arts, sciences and warfare. By the completion of his education in 1722, he was fluent in several languages. Whilst in France, he fought with the forces of Louis XV of France against those of Louis’ uncle Philip V of Spain and rose to the rank of captain. During this time he adopted the surname that he is known by in honor of the Carthaginian general Hannibal (Gannibal being the traditional transliteration of the name in Russian). Whilst in Paris, his biographer Hugh Barnes claims that he met and befriended Enlightenment figures such as Denis Diderot, the Baron de Montesquieu and Voltaire.
Gannibal then returned to Russia in 1722. However, in following the death of Peter the Great in 1755, Gannibal was exiled to Siberia in 1727 but was pardoned in 1730 for his skills in military engineering. Peter’s daughter Elizabeth became the new monarch in 1741 and as a result, Gannibal became a prominent figure in her court, rising to the rank of major-general and became superintendent of Reval from 1742 to 1752.
Gannibal married twice. His first wife was Evdokia Dioper, a Greek woman. The couple married in 1731 and had one daughter. Unfortunately Dioper despised her husband, whom she was forced to marry. When Gannibal found out that she had been unfaithful to him, he had her arrested and thrown into prison, where she spent eleven years living in terrible conditions. Gannibal began living with another woman, Christina Regina Siöberg (1705–1781), daughter of Mattias Johan Siöberg and wife Christina Elisabeth d’Albedyll, and married her bigamously in Reval (now Tallinn, Estonia), in 1736, a year after the birth of their first child and while he was still lawfully married to his first wife. His divorce from Dioper did not become final until 1753, upon which a fine and a penance were imposed on Gannibal, and Dioper was sent to a convent for the rest of her life. Gannibal’s second marriage was nevertheless deemed lawful after his divorce.
On her paternal side, Gannibal’s second wife was descended from noble families in Scandinavia and Germany: Siöberg (Sweden), Galtung (Norway) and Grabow (Denmark and Brandenburg). Her paternal grandfather was Gustaf Siöberg, Rittmester til Estrup, who died in 1694, whose wife Clara Maria Lauritzdatter Galtung (ca. 1651–1698) was the daughter of Lauritz Lauritzson Galtung (ca. 1615–1661) and of Barbara Grabow til Pederstrup (1631–1696). Abram Gannibal and Christina Regina Siöberg had ten children, including a son, Osip. Osip in turn would have a daughter, Nadezhda, the mother of Aleksandr Pushkin. Gannibal’s oldest son, Ivan, became an accomplished naval officer who helped found the city of Kherson in 1779 and attained the rank of General-in-Chief, the second highest military rank in imperial Russia.
Some British aristocrats descend from Gannibal, including Natalia Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster and her sister, Alexandra Hamilton, Duchess of Abercorn. George Mountbatten, 4th Marquess of Milford Haven, a cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, is also a direct descendant, as the grandson of Nadejda Mountbatten, Marchioness of Milford Haven.
NOTABLE AFRICANS: Portrait of King Khama III, South Africa, early twentieth century.
Kgosi Khama III became chief of the Ngwato in 1875.
He visited Britain in 1895 on a self-funded journey with other chiefs, and successfully protested against the possible transfer of the administration of the Bechuanaland Protectorate to the British South Africa Company.
A cropped version of this portrait was printed in a leaflet, “Khama: The Great African Chief,” distributed by the London Missionary Society in 1923. Smart & Copley, Bulawato, also published the image as a postcard.
Read more about King Khama III.
NOTABLE AFRICANS: William Moore (attr.), inscribed: “Macomo and his chief wife,” South Africa, c. 1869.
Along with several other Xhosa leaders and their wives, Maqoma was imprisoned on Robben Island for leading insurgencies during the Frontier Wars of the eighteen-fifties.
This widely circulated portrait was taken after their release.
Even when they were photographed on Robben Island, Maqoma and his wife never sat for the camera without dress coats, hats, and shawls.
Taken at the Scholtz Studio, in South Africa.
Maria was born to a family of inboekselings, which, loosely translated, means those forced into juvenile apprenticeships in agriculture. Her family became prosperous livestock and grain farmers at the turn of the century.
Santu Mofokeng, from “The Black Photo Album / Look at Me: 1890-1950,” 1997.
(Photographer: Scholtz Studio, Lindley. Ouma Maria Letsipa, née van der Merwe, with her daughter Minkie. Orange River Colony, South Africa, c. 1900. Albumen Print.)
A. M. Duggan-Cronin, “Bomvana Initiates,” South Africa, c. 1930.
From what I understand, ‘Bomvana’ is a Xhosa clan name.
Xhosa clan names are family names which are considered more important than surnames among Xhosa people.
Each Xhosa person can trace their family history back to a specific male ancestor or stock. Mentioning the clan name of someone you wish to thank is the highest form of respect, and it is considered polite to enquire after someone’s clan name when you meet them. The clan name is also sometimes used as an exclamation by members of that clan.
When a woman marries she may take her husband’s surname, but she always keeps her own clan name, adding the prefix Ma- to it. A man and a woman who have the same clan name may not marry, as they are considered to be related.
A. M. Duggan-Cronin, “The Late Chief Jonathan Molapo”, Chief of the Leribe District, Basutoland.
South Africa, 1933.
Photogravure.
Messenger of the Great River (trailer)
This film is a poetic and musical journey along the Niger River with Malian musician Afel Bocoum.
Come and discover his ancestral connection with the Great River whose messenger he has become. via
Photos of South African women protesting in the streets against the Apartheid government.
1980s.
Read more about the critical roles women played during the anti-Apartheid struggle.
Two uniformed South African ANC comrades in Mozambique. During the 1970s and 80s, Mozambican liberation movement FRELIMO lent their support, resources and knowledge to the ANC.
Further reading: Speech by Oliver Tambo at the fourth congress of Frelimo
Sweden’s highest musical honour is awarded annually to both a pop performer and classical artist.
The pair will each receive one million kronor (£98,600) from the Royal Swedish Academy of Music.
King Carl XVI Gustaf will present them with their awards at a Stockholm ceremony on 27 August.
The prize is awarded for “exceptional achievements in the creation and advancement of music”.
The academy recognised Ndour as “not just a singer, but a storyteller, poet, singer of praise, entertainer and verbal historian”.
“With his exceptionally exuberant band Super Etoile de Dakar and his musically ground breaking and political solo albums, Youssou Ndour has worked to reduce animosities between his own religion, Islam, and other religions,” it said.
“His voice encompasses an entire continent’s history and future, blood and love, dreams and power.”
He was last year appointed Senegal’s minister of tourism.
He also owns an influential media group, a night club and a music studio.
Saariaho, who has written chamber music, orchestral works and operas, was praised as “a modern maestro who opens up our ears and causes their anvils and stirrups to fall in love”.
The prize was founded in 1989 by Stig Anderson, the manager of Swedish pop group ABBA.
Last year’s winners were US singer Paul Simon and cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
Other previous winners include Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney, Bob Dylan, Bjork and Patti Smith.
Earlier this year Vladimir Tretchikoff’s portrait Chinese Girl, often referred to as The Green Lady, was sold for almost £1m ($1.5m) at auction in London - a reflection of its status as one of the most popular prints ever made. The model, Monika Pon-su-san, recalls what it was like to be thrust into the limelight.
One day in 1950, a curly-haired stranger walked into my uncle’s laundry in Cape Town, where I worked.
He stood there as I served a customer, his eyes fixed on me the whole time. He only spoke when we were alone together in the shop.
“Hello!” he said. “I’m Tretchikoff. I’d love to paint you.”
At that time Vladimir Tretchikoff wasn’t very famous but by chance I had read about him in a newspaper just the Saturday before.
So I was a bit nervous, but I said yes. He picked me up after work and took me back home.
I was given his wife’s gown to put on. It was silk chiffon - beautiful, beautiful stuff. It wasn’t yellow like in the painting - that was his own invention.
A lot of people ask me: “What is that stern look you had on your face? What were you thinking about?” And I always say: “Well you know, one gets tired sitting and just looking.”
All the time I was thinking about Tretchikoff’s life. Because he had had a miserable life - during the war he’d been on a boat for three weeks without food, after his ship was bombed. Then he was imprisoned by the Japanese.
He had lost contact with his wife and daughter. Thinking they were dead he took a lover, but they weren’t dead, and as fate would have it they went to Cape Town, which is where he ended up too. So they got back together again.
I liked him very much. He was a funny man - we always laughed a lot. In all, I was paid six pounds and five shillings for the work.
He had a class of about 20 pupils. All the time I was sitting for him they could see me but I was never allowed to see the painting - it always had its back to me.
I would nag him: “What are you going to call it?” He said that a name would come to him later on. It was only at the end of the six or 10 weeks - I can’t remember exactly how long it took - on the night his exhibition opened that he said it was called Chinese Girl. I thought that was very ordinary.
And when I saw the painting I was so shocked. I thought I looked like a monster from a horror film. I pulled an ugly face and said: “Ugh - green face!”
Right away people started to recognise me. I remember going to a supermarket and a woman shouted: “Look at this girl! She looks just like the painting!”
I decided I had to buy a print. By the time I went to him Tretchikoff had run out, so he gave me one he had used in London when he was on tour. I’ve got it in my lounge.
There was a block of flats in Cape Town, filled with artists. The man on the ground floor was a sculptor and one day he asked Tretchikoff: “Can I borrow your model?” He wanted to cast a bronze of my face. But Tretchikoff said: “Certainly not!”
I had so many modelling offers but - stupid me - I went and got married and had children, so that was that. I didn’t socialise much, with five children to look after, so I was hidden away from Cape Town’s artists. The offers stopped coming.
I was so disappointed to miss the auction recently. My daughters said to me: “The painting’s sold! The painting’s sold!” And when I found out it had gone for £1m, I jumped up and down, up and down!
Everybody’s fascinated by that painting. I don’t know what it is about it really.
One of my daughters - the second youngest, who is supposed to look like me - said: “I wish I had a lot of money and then I would buy that painting and keep it forever in my own house.”
When I was asked by a journalist if I would let another artist paint me at this moment in time, I said: “No… but if Tretchikoff were alive, I would let him paint me again.”
(source)
Bruno Barbey’s photographic documentation of the events surrounding the Green March demonstrations of 1975.
Morocco, to the north of the Spanish Sahara, had long claimed that the territory was historically an integral part of Morocco. Mauritania to the south argued similarly that the territory was in fact Mauritanian. Since 1973, a Sahrawi guerrilla war led by the Polisario Front had challenged Spanish control, and in October 1975 Spain had quietly begun negotiations for a handover of power with leaders of the rebel movement, both in El Aaiún, and with foreign minister Pedro Cortina y Mauri meeting El Ouali in Algiers.
Following the World Court at the Hague’ s “consultive opinion” that the Spanish Sahara should be free of Spanish colonial rule, King HASSAN II of Morocco announced the organization of a peace march of 350.000volunteers (the “Green March” ), of which 10% to be women, to the Spanish Sahara in order to reclaim their rights to sovereignty over the territory. The King HASSAN II provided transport, food and shelter for the march.
The demonstration of some 350,000 Moroccans advanced several miles into the Western Sahara territory, escorted by near 20,000 Moroccan troops, and meeting very little response by the Sahrawi Polisario Front. Nevertheless, the events quickly escalated into a fully waged war between Morocco and the Polisario - the Western Sahara War, which would last for 16 years.
The Green March was a well-publicized popular march of enormous proportions. On November 6, 1975, approximately 350,000 unarmed Moroccans converged on the city of Tarfaya in southern Morocco and waited for a signal from KingHassan II to cross into the region of Sakiya Lhmra .
They brandished Moroccan flags and Qur’an; banners calling for the “return of the Moroccan Sahara,” photographs of the King and the Qur’an; the color green for the march’s name was intended as a symbol of Islam. As the marchers reached the border, the Spanish Armed Forces were ordered not to fire to avoid bloodshed. The Spanish troops also cleared some previously mined zones.
