What is the Abelam yam cycle?
This sociorhythmic ritual complex involves adherence to various taboos which encourage a 6-month period in which social conflict is avoided and sexual activity is markedly curtailed.
What does the yam mask of the Abelam represent?
In the Sepik River Region of Papua New Guinea yams play a prominent role in the agricultural and ceremonial practices of the Abelam people. The large decorated yams are believed to be live embodiments of the ancestors and the masks play a central role in representing the spiritual beings.
Where are Abelam people from?
Papua New Guinea
The Abelam are a people who live in East Sepik Province of Papua New Guinea. They are a farming society in which giant yams play a significant role. They live in the Prince Alexander Mountains near the north coast of the island. Their language belongs to the Sepik language family.
Which of these do Abelam men make masks for?
Yam Mask early to mid-20th century The “heads” of the enormous tubers are adorned with specially made yam masks such as this one, which are made exclusively for yams and are never worn by humans.
In what part of the world is a person’s age determined by the yam seasons?
Anthropologists who have worked with yam-growing communities in the Sepik region of Papua New Guinea (PNG) have noted symbolic identification between yams and humans.
What is a yam mask?
Masks are used to cover long yams in a ceremony showing the men’s gardening prowess. It is of utmost importance in the culture. the Abelam believe only men can grow long yams. A fine yam is named for the ancestral spirit and that spirit is brought into being by the mask and decoration.
On which island is the yam used as currency?
Trobrianders use yams as currency, and consider them a sign of wealth and power. Western visitors will often buy items from the Trobrianders using money. There is also a Kula exchange, which is a very important tradition among the Trobriand Islands. The women also use bundles of scored banana leaves.
What does African art look like?
African art takes many forms and is made from many different materials. Most African artworks are wood sculptures, probably because wood is a very widespread material. Sculptures can be wooden, ceramic or carved out of stone like the famous Shona sculptures, and decorated or sculpted pottery comes from many regions.
Which of these are common forms of African art?
African art, the visual arts of native Africa, particularly sub-Saharan Africa, including such media as sculpture, painting, pottery, rock art, textiles, masks, personal decoration, and jewelry.
What kind of food does the Abelam Tribe eat?
The Abelam are horticulturalists living mainly on yams, taro, and sweet potatoes. The soils in the area, as well as the Abelams’ skills in gardening, yield considerable harvests of different varieties of yam and taro.
How many people live in an Abelam village?
This high mobility is still reflected in the alliances of small groups in hamlets with other groups in other hamlets. Abelam villages vary in size. They are much smaller in the south with only 50 to 80 people. In the north, they now number up to 1,000 people.
How does the yam cult in Papua New Guinea work?
Yam cult begins with a ceremony called “blowing on the yams” and finishes with the ceremonial exchange of yams. Yam exchange partners from other villages symbolically “breathe life” into the planting yams to ensure a successful harvest.
Where are the Abelam languages located in the world?
Linguistically, Abelam forms, Together with the Iatmul, Sawos, Boiken, and Manambu, the Ndu Family of the Sepik Subphylum, which is classified as part of the Middle Sepik Stock, Sepik-Ramu Phylum. All of these language groups are located within the Sepik Basin, Except for the Boiken who have spread over the coastal range to the north coast.