At the start of every Kwanzaa celebration, someone asks the question "Habari gani?" It means "What's the news?" Another celebrant answers with the Nguzo Saba of the day. This is followed by sharing thoughts and stories of the day. After the candles and the sharing, people call out "Harambee!" It means "Let's pull together."
Kwanzaa is a cultural festival during which African Americans celebrate and reflect upon their rich heritage as the products of two worlds. It begins Dec. 26 and lasts for seven days. Kwanzaa was founded in 1966 by Dr. Maulana "Ron" Karenga, a college professor and African American leader. Karenga believed that a special holiday could help African Americans meet their goals of building strong families, learning about their history, and creating a sense of unity.
After conducting extensive research in which he studied the festivals of many African groups of people, he decided that the new holiday should be a harvest or "first fruits" celebration, incorporating ideas from many different harvest traditions. Kwanzaa is a Kiswahili word meaning "the first fruits of the harvest."
The East African language of Kiswahili was chosen as the official language of Kwanzaa because it is a non-tribal language spoken by a large portion of the African population. Also, its pronunciation is easy -- the vowels are pronounced like those in Spanish, and the consonants, for the most part, like those in English.
Kwanzaa is based on seven principles -- called Nguzo Saba. The principles are:
Learn More:
Also:
MelaNet: A Comprehensive Kwanzaa Guide
Send a Kwanzaa E-Card
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