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Introduction into the Ethnography of Central Africa
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Inhalt |
During colonial times, Central Africa was closely associated with the vast region of the Congo basin, covered by apparently impenetrable, “virgin” rain forest. Moreover, Central Africa was Josef Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” – that part of the continent which seemed to be least touched by Western civilisation and culture, and at the same time the region where modernity developed into its most violent variety. However, it was also a region where André Gide compared the squares of the towns to the Piazza Navona in Rome.
The subject of this regional course is present-day Central Africa. The first part is dedicated to the natural habitat and the history of ethnographic writing on this part of the continent. The course then addresses general questions of social organisation. The main issue here are some general problems and questions that arose during the ethnographic encounter with central African socie-ties.
The second part of the course covers the ethnographic work on particular central African socie-ties. It starts in Western Cameroon, then goes through southern Chad and the Central African Republic, the great lake region in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Burundi, the central Congo basin, the lower Guinea coast with Gabon, and ends in northern Angola and Zambia. |
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Literatur |
| There is no comprehensive ethnographic overview of the region. Recommended basic reading:
Grinker, Richard / Steiner, Christopher (eds.), Perspectives on Africa. Oxford: Blackwell, 1997.
Vansina, Jan, Paths in the Rainforests. London: Currey, 1990.
A script, including bibliographies, for most of the meetings will be available on this website for download. |
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Bemerkungen |
| Teaching and communication in the course will be in English, but you may also use German. General prerequisites: A knowledge of basic social science is required. Particular prerequi-sites in Social Anthropology as major: none. In African Studies: none.
Written test at the end of the semester by multiple choice and matching, short answers to specific questions. |
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Shortcuts
Inhalt
Literatur
Bemerkungen
Download
Merkblatt zur Änderung der Regionalkurse ab HS 2007
Einleitung (pdf)
Geographie (pdf)
Karte Naturräume (pdf)
Flora (pdf)
Liste Nutzpflanzen (pdf)
Fauna (pdf)
Sprachen (pdf)
Kulturkreislehre (pdf)
Ökologische Gl. (pdf)
Gesellschaftliche Gl. (pdf)
Ethn. Identität (pdf)
Kameruner Grasland (pdf)
Bergländer Nordkamerun (pdf)
Zande (pdf)
Mbuti (pdf)
Lunda/Luba (pdf)
Pende (pdf)
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studium