Encyclopedia of Sociology

AFRICAN STUDIES

many Africans fought to retain their indigenous
languages. They believed their survival as a unique
people hinged on successful retention of their
original languages, and the culture, values, self-
affirmation, and history embodied within those
native tongues. Interesting variations in the reten-
tion of African language forms are observable
throughout Africa and the African diaspora. The
patois (patwa) spoken in Jamaica contains many
words that need no translation from Twi, the
language spoken by the Ghanaian Ashanti who
constituted the majority of the slaves brought in to
work on Jamaican plantations. French has been
transformed in both Louisiana and Haiti with
varieties of Kreyol. In North America we can
observe the Gullah people, primarily found in
South Carolina and Georgia, who infuse their
English-based Creole with the language of their
enslaved African ancestors. Standard black Ameri-
can English (sometimes referred to as Ebonics)
also retains evidence of similar African-derived
language structures. A related case is provided by
places like Bahia in Brazil where Yoruba, an in-
digenous African language, was successfully trans-
planted and maintained outside the continent.
There are nations on the African continent where
indigenous languages were practiced throughout
the colonial experience and reinstituted after in-
dependence. However, as we have observed, the
most common case across the diaspora is the
synthesis of African syntax with the dominant
European language syntax to create a new language.

The pattern of adaptive acculturation or syn-
thesis that occurs with language also characterizes
other sociocultural institutions in Africa and across
the diaspora. Art and music provide distinctive
examples. African people traditionally use visual
art as a means of communication. Cloth making,
for example, is not simply an aesthetic undertak-
ing. Often, messages are inscribed or embedded
within the very combinations of patterns and col-
ors chosen to create the fabric. Among the Ashanti
in Ghana, funeral cloth is often adorned with what
are known as Adinkra symbols. The symbols im-
pressed upon the cloth convey different meanings,
thereby transmitting messages to those who are
knowledgeable. The Touaregs, a people concen-
trated in Niger, are also known to transcribe mes-
sages on cloth in the distinctive alphabet that
characterizes their language. Within Rastafarian

culture in Jamaica, sculpture is used as another

method of communicating and reinforcing the

beliefs of the practitioners. Moreover, African-

American artists often draw from the diaspora in

their creation of visual art. Lois Mailou Jones

traversed the French-speaking African world, and

her work was influenced by the various cultures

she studied.

Artistic products of African people, especially

those living outside of the continent, reflect the

mixture of cultural influences—part indigenous,

part nonindigenous—that characterize the Afri-

can experience. The synthesis contains elements

that are obviously African-derived alongside ele-

ments that are obviously European or Islamic. Yet

the final tune or drawing is often truly syncretic,

possessing emergent qualities greater than the

sum of the influences. It is in the realm of cultural

production, music and art, where the African in-

fluence on world society has been most readily

apparent. During the period of colonization, rul-

ing cultures often defined the oppressed as ‘‘oth-

ers’’ in an effort to justify their subhuman treat-

ment. Historic views of African-American culture

provide powerful examples of objectification and

stereotypes such as ‘‘Sambo,’’ the happy darkie, or

‘‘Jezebel,’’ the promiscuous black female. These

false perceptions permeated the fabric of Ameri-

can society, allowing whites to embrace the racial

stereotypes and notions that blacks were content

in their status as second-class citizens. In order to

perpetuate these false images, blacks were allowed

to prosper in media and occupations that coincid-

ed with and reinforced views of their subservient

status. To do otherwise was to risk retribution

from whites. Thus, the entertainment industry

(and its related variant, professional sports) has

historically provided socially acceptable, non-threat-

ening roles for blacks.

Many blacks recognized the power inherent in

these media and used them for empowerment and

to accomplish larger goals. For example, we can

note the themes of resistance embodied in tradi-

tional spirituals sung during slavery. It is also

interesting to observe the tremendous impact of

music during the civil rights movement. In many

instances, a syncretic merger has been achieved

that fuses indigenous African ‘‘authenticity’’ with

nonindigenous traits to create new forms of music