Living in the navel of Waag: ritual traditions among the Daasanech of South West Ethiopia

“Living in the navel of Waag” offers a ideal typical description of the different ritual traditions among the Daasanech of South-West Ethiopia with special focus on the ways the body is modified. Ritual is seen as a means to induce wellbeing and to tackle misfortune. The dissertation starts with a brief situating of the Daasanech in their environmental and historical context. Chapter two an outline of the different social categories a Daasanech is born into or requires during his life. Special attention is given to the explanation of the generation system and the system of alternating generations called dolo. Chapter 3 deals with the notion of Waag, the source of rain and wellbeing, the role of the ancestors and the concept of sidha or pulse. The next chapter explains the different rites of passage a Daasanech passes through from birth to death. The two main rituals, male circumcision (bilte) and the blessing of the girls (‘dimi) are described, as well as the different steps a marriage takes and several other smaller rituals.. The last chapter deals with the ways the traditional Daasanech explain affliction and misfortune and how they deal with it. In this chapter, different notions such as curse, moral pollution and healing are introduced and explained.

Grantor dc:publisher

Univeristeit Gent, Faculteit Letteren & Wijsbegeerte

Year dc:date

2011

Author dc:creator

• Houtteman, Yvan

Contributors dc:contributor

• Pinxten, Hendrik

• Social Sciences
• misfortune
• ritual
• wellbeing
• ancestors
• cursing
• blessing

Statement dc:rights

• info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess

Language dc:language

eng

Identifier

https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/1848596
urn:isbn:9789070830281
https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/1848596/file/4335627

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:archive.ugent.be:1848596