CONTENT

CULTURAL FORMS PRACTISED BY THE ENSLAVED In the 18th century, the Africans came with their cultural forms to the British Caribbean .They were able to survive although of the tribulations. These included:

MUSIC AND DANCE Music and dance, though recreational, were functional as well. Slaves, as was done in Africa, danced and sang at work, at play, at worship; from fear, from sorrow, from joy. Here was the characteristic form of their social and artistic expression. It was secular and religious. There was no real distinction between these worlds in the way that a post renaissance European was likely to understand. And because this music and dance were so misunderstand. Since the music was based on tonal scales and the dancing on choreographic traditions entirely outside the white observers. Dancing usually took place, as in Africa, in the centre of a ring of spectator participants, performers entering the ring single or twos or threes. Sometimes male dancers expressed themselves acrobatically, but more often especially at private entertainments, the shuffle step was employed, the dancers stylistically confining themselves to a very restricted area indeed. The ease and grace of their action, the elasticity of their step and the lofty air which they carried their heads. Lewis describing a Christmas carnival. Some of dances included: John canoe dance and kumina dance. At Christmas times, Africans in Jamaica, Bahamas, Belize and other places performed the John canoe dance, one of the more established cultural ritual in the Caribbean. The enslaved performed this ritual using elaborate headdress and masks. Seen in fig.1 According to LIBERTY LOST kumina dance is a core value of culture in Jamaica and other places at large. It is a dance that connects the living with the spirit ancestors. The kumina dance, when rival doctors called forth the spirits with the help of gombay drumming. Seen in fig.6. Some musical instruments that were used were: the abenghorn, a mouth violin or bender, the banjo(tambourine) filled with pebbles, drums (the cotter or cotta and the eboe (Ibo).

DRESS/ CLOTHING The general clothing was called osnaburgh linen. The slaves appeared normally in blue osnaburgh clothing provided by their masters, with two Africans variations. The women were fond of covering heads at all times, twisting one or two handkerchiefs round it, in the turban form. And at festivals, according to Lewis, they tended to dress in white ,an akan colour of celebration though Christian missionary influence cannot be ruled out there. Slave children were party-coloured beads tied round their loin scandals cut from ox-hide which they bind on with thongs were also worn by adults. In general slaves and field slaves went barefooted when working. RELIGION Africans ideas about birth and death, God and man, spirits and the spirit world as well as respect for the natural world all survived in the Caribbean. Slave funerals were carried out with much of the ceremony of Africa, and slavery did not destroy the belief that dead person remained part of the community. Sometimes a bowl of soup was placed at the head a bottle of rum at the feet to help the dead man to join the spirit relatives. Most of the slaves came from the Dahomey religion where Africans recognized a creator malefemale God mauri-lisa, and a host lesser gods or voduns, each caring for some aspect of life. Some Africans kept a strong belief in the power of obeahism and myalism, which kept alive by obeah men and myal men and women who came on the slave ships. Obeahism was a belief in sorcery. Obeah men used charms and shadow catching to harm a person who was thought to be the cause of the things that went wrong.Some do healing, myalism was a more certain way of dealing with disasters.

SKILLS AND LANGUAGE West African crafts survived in West Indies. These included: basket work and straw plaiting used to make bed mats, wicker chairs, baskets and occasionally plaited shoes. Traditionally pottery skills continued in the making of eastern pots and jars. Some groups kept alive some of the highly decorative fashions of Africa. Womens fashion lasted through the years of slavery to this present day. The practice of wrapping women s heads with distinctive ties can be traced to West Africa. The braiding and plaiting of hair into delicate cane rows and pieces is a fashion still shared by women in the Caribbean and West Africa. Some Africans terms survived such as ; Tata, for a beloved relative or grandmother, nyam- to eat and twi the word for meat.

FOOD The slaves had to prepare their own meals .They did it the way that they were taught back at home in Africa. Also the fact that they were allowed to grow their own provisions meant that they were able to choose what to grow. Ground provisions such as: yam, cassava, beans, rice, ackee etc.

HERBS AND MEDICINE Herbal secrets were passed from generation to generation. Some herbs that survived were; fever grass that was used to made tea and other things, aloe Vera which is still use in this present day. Some use it to make face soaps while others use it as one of the ingredients to make lotions. Rice bitters, dark blood etc.

ORAL TRADITION/STORY TELLING African folklore was passed down from generation to generation and the stories were very important to the traditions and customs of the African people. The stories normally end and start with a lesson being taught. It usually starts with the phrase bed time story and end with the phrase they live happily ever after. A famous anansi story Anansi and Snake

Tiger was the undisputed king of the forest. Tiger Lilies were named after him. Tiger Moths were named after him. And the stories of the forest were called Tiger Stories. Anansi was a nobody in the forest hierarchy. When the animals gathered together, they would ask idle questions like "Who is the strongest animal?" or "Who is the bravest?" All together, they would chorus "Tiger!". And just to poke fun, they would say, "Who is the weakest?" Like a church choir, they would all sing out "Anansi!". Anansi got sick and tired of it all.

MEASURES USED BY PLANTERS TO PREVENT SLAVES FROM PRACTICING THEIR CULTURE The white plantation owners used various methods to maintain complete control over the slaves. These included: POLICE LAWS There was a series of police laws put in place to control the movement and behavior of the slaves. Some of the laws dealt with the capture and punishment of the runaways. Slaves were forbidden to travel away from the plantation without a ticket from their master giving the destination and time of return. Other laws restricted to carry weapons, to blow horns, beat drums or assemble together in large numbers. SEASONING The planters ensured that newly arrived slaves went through the process of seasoning. Seasoning was the process whereby newly arrived slaves put in charge of an elderly slave who would taught them the way of the plantation, to live and work on the plantation and learn the European language in the way enforced by the European planters. SEPARATION OF TRIBES Members of the same tribe were separated on different plantations to prevent communication between them.Some of the tribes was always at war thus they wont