INTRODUCTION
MASSAI
The Maasai are indigenous to North Central Tanzania and Southern Kenya. In old traditional Maasai stories it is said that the
Maasai journeyed from Northern Africa in search of fertile grasses to feed
their cattle. Their cattle were dying and consequently they did not have enough
food to feed their children. The elders knew that they must move their people
to a more prosperous place, but they had no idea where to go. Upon turning to
nature to provide them with answers, they saw a bird land in a bare tree with
green grass in its beak and work on building a nest. They watched the bird as
it flew over the horizon and up into the cliffs. The elders sent a few boys to
go climb that cliff and see what was beyond it. The boys did so and they came
back with the news that they had seen a green and lush land with rivers, green
trees, and rich grasses. The Maasai then decided that they would move to the
other side of the cliffs. A giant ladder was built and the entire village,
people and cattle alike, began to climb their way up in hopes of a better life.
Half the population had reached high ground when the ladder collapsed. The
people up on the cliff's edge knew there was nothing they could do for those
left behind. They began a new life and prospered in the new land; they were the
Maasai and that is how they came to be separate from other peoples. This is an
important story in Maasai oral culture, reflecting how they feel they became a
people.
As a historically nomadic and then semi-nomadic people, the Maasai have traditionally
relied on local, readily available materials and indigenous technology to construct their housing. The traditional Maasai house
was in the first instance designed for people on the move and was thus very
impermanent in nature. The Inkajijik (Maasai word for a house) are
either loaf-shaped or circular, and are constructed by women. The structural
framework is formed of timber poles fixed directly into the ground and
interwoven with a lattice of smaller branches, which is then plastered with a
mix of mud, sticks, grass, cow dung and urine, and ash. The enkaji is
small, measuring about 3m x 5m and standing only 1.5m high. Within this space
the family cooks, eats, sleeps, socializes, and stores food, fuel, and other
household possessions. Small livestock are also often accommodated within the enkaji. Villages
are enclosed in a circular fence (Enkang) built by the men, usually of thorned
Acacia. At night, all cows and goats are placed in an enclosure in the center,
safe from wild animals.
The piercing
and stretching of earlobes has been common among the Maasai.
The removal of deciduous canine tooth
buds in early childhood is a practice that has been documented in the Maasai of
Kenya and Tanzania. There exists a strong belief among the Maasai that diarrhea,
vomiting, and other febrile illnesses of early childhood are caused by the
gingival swelling over the canine region, and which is thought to contain
'worms' or 'nylon' teeth. This belief and practice is not unique to the Maasai.
In rural Kenya, a group of 95 children aged between six months and two years
were examined in 1991/1992; 87 percent were found to have undergone the removal
of one or more deciduous canine tooth buds. In an older age group (3-7 years of
age), 72 percent of the 111 children examined exhibited missing mandibular or
maxillary deciduous canines.
Many Maasai in
Tanzania wear simple sandals, sometimes soled with pieces of motorcycle tires.
Both men and women wear wooden bracelets. The Maasai women regularly weave and
bead jewelery. This bead work plays an essential part in the ornamentation of
their body. A main article of Maasai clothing is a wrap, the women's wraps are
called kanga and the men are called kikoi. The tribe usually
incorporates some form of red in to their attire. Some believe that red is a
special color to them because the tribe traditionally created the color for
their shields by mixing the clay with the red sap of the solanum campylae
fruit or cattle blood. The Morani are the great protectors of the
Maasai community. These warriors are known for being brave and pround. When the
Maasai are young men, around the age of 15, they learn to become Morani.
They are not allowed to travel or eat alone in hope to teach them to work as a
group. The young Morani hunt lions as a way of proving themselves brave
warriors. These warriors are recognized by their painted faces as well as their
headdresses which are made out of feathers and wood. In order to increase their
bravery, the warriors drink a special narcotic made from the bark of the thorny
olkiloriti tree.
Maradun
The Maradun people are found in both East and West Africa
countries like Kenya, Tanzania and Nigeria respectively. But the Maradun are
mostly found in Nigeria where a timid population is found. As a non- literate
society like other Africa societies, they do not have a concrete and written
account of their origin. Based on their oral history, the Maradun people claim
to have originated from the Nile Valley north of Sudan where they journeyed to
Nigeria. In Nigeria, they are found in states like Sokoto, Imo (Orlu) and Zamfara
(where the highest population live). These people have their unique culture,
tradition and lifestyle which happens to the be their cultural heritage from
their ancestors.
One unique aspect of the maradun people is their
tradition which remains intact without change irrespective of the western
civilization. They have different autonomous societies with common culture and
these people make their living from nomadic farming and many are artisan. These
people live in hut and farm in deserts land and scrub land. Traditionally the
Maradun people believe that office of the traditional ruler or chief depend on
hereditary. It is quite interesting to note that these people marry their wives
through the use of cow heads, thus the more the cow head one provides the more
wives one is likely to marry or have. The Maradun of Orlu do not live wildlife
like those in Kenya, Tanzania and northern Nigeria. The people of Maradum
traditionally based their source of living on farming and observe western life
but remain intact with their culture and tradition.
Finally, Maradun traditional life assume kingship both in
north and eastern Nigeria like a successor to the throne and has spirit of
loyalty and honesty in their common tradition to their chief or emir that any
person confirmed with tittle must be respected in their homes and outside their
tribe by their as one chosen to represent them. And these people also
circumcise their children and practice mutilation up till date.
Comparing
and contrasting the Traditional Lifestyle of the Massai and morandun People
Ø Maasia and maradun marry their wives through
using cow heads to get their wives,
thereby as many wives as many cow head you present to the family, maasia and maradun consult their deities and gods
before embarking on any mission both on security politics marriages.
Ø The maasai and manadun people circumcised
their children at the age of 14 years and left their youth as warriors to care for their livestock for
the period of 8 years before coming back to village marry as man.
Ø Maasai people feed with milk and blood as
protein source but maradun people of zamfara and sokoto feed on milk and other
foods for their survival.
Ø But they do not marry or have sex with each
at the same way of maradun people,
both of this tribe circumcise their children but do not live the same wildlife
as found in Kenya, Tanzania and north Nigeria.
Ø Maradun people traditional life assume
kingship both in north and eastern Nigeria like a successors to throne,, but the people of maasia in Kenya
and Tanzania they depend on their
leadership stages on the origination of
the wildlife law and their
council of elders to ascend to throne not in wise reputation like maradun but depend on the large expense of ones cattle,
sheep, cow etc, before one could be confirmed chief titles, massai and maradun people has spirit of loyalty
and honesty in their
common tradition to their chiefs or Emir, that any person confirmed titles must
be respected home and outside than tribe by their people as one chosen to
represent them.
Ø The maasai people mostly warrior at period of
grazing time for their livestock, but maradun goes
warrior as king coronation with different title hood, people of maradun were mostly on hides as skin of
animal, Zamfara but the maasai people wore blanket beaded hairs.
Ø The maasai and manadun people circumcised
their children at the age of 14 years and left their youth as warriors to care for their livestock for
the period of 8 years before coming back to village marry as man.
Ø They most lived in hut houses, that is made
from a bunch of branches, they use cow-dung to stick the branches together both in Kenya and northern
Nigerian. Their tribe has been noted of their different types of village
caravans and strange object of their
origins and nature, maasai people do not till their soil for farming rather for grazing of their livestock, than
depend on cultivated farm product for purchase but maradun farm in desert land and scrub land.
Ø The maasai people are mostly found in Kenya
and Tanzania while the maradun are found in Zamfara, Stokoto and in Imo State in East of Nigeria Orlu, they
are human beings with their own
specified traditional lifestyle which seems as their culture and customs from their ancestral origins.
Ø These people exist since, their way of
tradition remains intact without change in respective of the western
civilization today famously in all part of the world. The maasai and maradun are mostly to be seen in
different autonomous tribes and communities with distinct cultural heritage in their land, maasai and
maradun makes their living in
Ø through cattle, sheep, goats cow in Kenya
Tanzanian and zamfara, Sokoto were they are found. They are mostly artisans and
tourist economically based areas for strangers.
REFERENCES
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Drinking Water and Diarrhea in Maasai Children: A Controlled Field Trail.
Craats, (2005) Maasai (Indigenous
Peoples). New York, NY: Weigl Publishers. ISBN 978-1590362198
Crowe, (1997)."The Maasai Move to
Eliminate Trachoma" British Medical Journal
Falola, (2003). Sources and Methods in
African History: Spoken Written Unearthed. Boydell & Brewer, ISBN 1580461344
Salvadori, (1979) Peoples and Cultures of
Kenya. Nairobi: Transafrica,
Finke, (2003). Maasai – Music and Dance: Tradition Music and Cultures of
Kenya
BlueGecko.org. Retrieved Jan 23, 2007.
Galaty, (1982). Being "Maasai": Ethnic Shifters in East Africa American Ethnologist
Retrieved January 23, 2007
Gordon, Raymond G., Jr. (2005), Ethnologue:
Languages of the World, Fifteenth edition. Dallas, Tex.: SIL International.
Groom, D. (2007). Maasai Make Tully School Aid Effort Come Alive: Kenyans
Highlight Their Culture and Problems Their Community Face. The Post Standard.
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