Culture and Customs of Mali - (Culture and Customs of Africa) Annotated by Dorothea Schulz (Hardcover)
About this item
Highlights
- Touching on everything from its rich musical heritage to its varied cultural traditions, this is a thorough and accessible introduction to the contemporary lives of the different peoples who call Mali their home.
- About the Author: Dorothea E. Schulz is professor of anthropology at the University of Cologne, Germany.
- 240 Pages
- Social Science, Anthropology
- Series Name: Culture and Customs of Africa
Description
About the Book
Touching on everything from its rich musical heritage to its varied cultural traditions, this is a thorough and accessible introduction to the contemporary lives of the different peoples who call Mali their home.
Rated among the world's ten poorest nations, Mali has a glorious past and a less-certain present. Culture and Customs of Mali touches on the first as background for understanding the second, exploring multiple facets of contemporary social life and cultural practices in this landlocked, West African nation.
The book offers an overview of diverse aspects of everyday social, cultural, and religious life in Mali, paying particular attention to regional and ethnic variations. It shows how current social conventions and cultural values are the product of a centuries-long history, while at the same time dispels the common perception that African societies are rooted in unchanging tradition. Readers will come away with a better understanding of the multiple ways in which Malians, starting from their own customs and cultural foundations, integrate themselves into an international economic order and a globalized world of shared media images and cultural practices.
- A chronology of important political events and developments from the medieval empires of Mali until the contemporary period
- Photographs of Malian life
- A glossary of key terms, such as polygyny, marriage payments, and oral tradition
- A bibliography of important work written in English on Mali, its history, peoples, culture, religion, and social customs
Book Synopsis
Touching on everything from its rich musical heritage to its varied cultural traditions, this is a thorough and accessible introduction to the contemporary lives of the different peoples who call Mali their home.
Rated among the world's ten poorest nations, Mali has a glorious past and a less-certain present. Culture and Customs of Mali touches on the first as background for understanding the second, exploring multiple facets of contemporary social life and cultural practices in this landlocked, West African nation. The book offers an overview of diverse aspects of everyday social, cultural, and religious life in Mali, paying particular attention to regional and ethnic variations. It shows how current social conventions and cultural values are the product of a centuries-long history, while at the same time dispels the common perception that African societies are rooted in unchanging tradition. Readers will come away with a better understanding of the multiple ways in which Malians, starting from their own customs and cultural foundations, integrate themselves into an international economic order and a globalized world of shared media images and cultural practices.About the Author
Dorothea E. Schulz is professor of anthropology at the University of Cologne, Germany. She has worked for more than 20 years in Mali. Her published works include Perpetuating the Politics of Praise: Jeli Singers, Radios, and Political Mediation in Mali and Muslims and New Media in West Africa: Pathways to God.
