Kwanzaa

[Lounge Daddy]

i really dont know any one who really celebrates it
i also dont know anyone who knows what it is...

all i have heard is its some goofy made up holliday

[philothea]

I have no idea. African, I guess?

[Aloysius]

it was made up by some hippy intellectual as supposedly a celebration from the african harvest cycle

too bad december 26 has absolutely no significance to the african harvast cycle

[PadreSantiago]

Kwanzaa (Kwaanza) is a week-long secular holiday honoring African-American heritage, observed from December 26 to January 1 each year, almost exclusively by African-Americans in the United States of America, though Africans of the diaspora in many countries have begun to practice its observances as well.

Kwanzaa consists of seven days of celebration, featuring activities such as candle-lighting and pouring of libations, and culminating in a feast and gift-giving. It was founded by black nationalist Dr. Ron "Maulana" Karenga, and first celebrated from December 26, 1966, to January 1, 1967. Karenga calls Kwanzaa the African American branch of "first fruits" celebrations of classical African cultures.

History and etymology

Kerenga, a political activist and former Black Panther, created Kwanzaa in California in 1966, during his leadership of the black nationalist United Slaves Organization (also known as the "US Organization"). The name Kwanzaa derives from the Swahili phrase "matunda ya kwanza", meaning "first fruits". The choice of Swahili reflects its status as a symbol of Pan-Africanism, especially in the 1960's, though most African-Americans have West African ancestry.

For two reasons an additional "a" was added to "Kwanza" so that the word would have seven letters. At the time there were seven children in Karenga's United Slaves Organization, each wanted to represent one of the letters in Kwanzaa[1]. The name was also meant to have a letter for each of the Seven Principles of Blackness. Kwanzaa is also sometimes spelled "kwaanza", which also has seven letters.

It is a celebration that has its roots in the civil rights era of the 1960s, and was established as a means to help African Americans reconnect with their African cultural and historical heritage by uniting in meditation and study around principles that had their basis not only in African traditions, but in common humanist principles.

According to Karenga's 1977 Kwanzaa: Origin, Concepts, Practice, the holiday was developed "to give a Black alternative to the existing holiday and give Blacks an opportunity to celebrate themselves and history rather than simply imitate the practice of the dominant society." Later, as Kwanzaa gained mainstream adherents, Karenga altered his public view of its justification so as not to alienate practicing Christians, then claiming in the 1997 Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community, and Culture, "Kwanzaa was not created to give people an alternative to their own religion or religious holiday."[2]

Principles of Kwanzaa

Kwanzaa celebrates "The Seven Principles of Blackness", or Nguzo Saba (originally Nguzu Saba). These seven principles comprise Kawaida, a Swahili term for tradition and reason. Kwanzaa is an adjunct of Kawaida. Each of the seven days of Kwanzaa is dedicated to one of the following principles. In order, they are:

* Umoja (Unity)
* Kujichagulia (Self-determination)
* Ujima (Collective work and responsibility)
* Ujamaa (Cooperative economics)
* Nia (Purpose)
* Kuumba (Creativity)
* Imani (Faith)