61. Ethnic Groups focuses on conflicts between african states and minority groups, and indigenouspeople s rights. The peoples of africa An Ethnohistoric Dictionary. http://web.uflib.ufl.edu/cm/africana/ethnicit.htm

African Ethnicities Please note that I have a separate page available on African languages A number of Web pages have been produced by members of indigenous minority and majority ethnic groups world-wide. Rather than primarily serving as academic, encyclopedic, or anthropological resources, they are often self-promotional, but several provide excellent information and rigorous documentation. This is a small collection of such pages produced primarily by Africans, along with some material produced by others. Most often, these African ethnic group home pages are a direct expression of individual members of the group, but in several cases represent an academic, official, or institutional point of view. If you are looking for an "objective" presentation, these links may not be the best sources for your work. Nevertheless, most have very good cultural, historical, and other background information, and many provide links to related sites that you may also find useful. Below the list, there is a collection of Other sites with information on African ethnic groups with different kinds of resources, for example, with a national, cultural anthropological, or linguistic focus. Finally, because this is an area that is not well represented on the web, a

62. Dancing To The Spirit Of Africa In Brazil by the West African slaves and the indigenous people of Brazil. An estimated80 percent of the people living in Bahia can claim African heritage. http://www.gonomad.com/features/0109/koch_dancing.html

Join the GoNOMAD NETWORK. Get free newsletters, special offers and help support sustainable and responsible tourism. enter email address: Give your travel business the exposure it deserves. Click here to get listed in GoNOMAD's searchable directory Travel deals from Big World News and special offers from the GoNOMAD Network Travelogues, adventures, misadventures and more from real travelers... Check out sustainable and responsible tourism projects around the world that you can help support Shop the world for books, world music, travel accessories, handcrafts and more... Share your travels! Click here to submit your stories to us! Dancing to the Spirit of Africa in Brazil By Sheila Mary Koch Photo courtesy of Fogo Na Roupa Africa's spirit dances through the cobblestone and dirt streets of Salvador da Bahia Brazil . African-rooted traditions have so shaped Bahia's culture, that the northeastern Brazilian state has earned the name "Africa in the Americas." Born of this spirit, the soul-invigorating pulse of Afro-Brazilian music has ignited the rest of the world. San Francisco, California is where it found me. Something buried deep inside me burst into life when I heard those drums. After taking African-Brazilian dance classes for several years, I traveled with my dance teacher and other students to Salvador, Bahia's capital city, to discover for myself the source of this wonderful sound and spirit.

63. General Essay On The Religions Of Sub-Saharan Africa Although the number of practitioners of indigenous traditions in africa has Beidelman, TO The Kaguru A Matrilineal People of East africa New York Holt http://philtar.ucsm.ac.uk/encyclopedia/sub/geness.html

General Essay on the Religions of Sub-Saharan Africa Religion in Sub-Saharan Africa has changed and evolved over the last two to three thousand years in many different ways. While the traditions depicted in this chart provide examples of those that exist today, and that were affected by the expansion of European colonialism in the 19th century, peoples living in the vast area south of the Sahara desert had already sustained rich systems of belief and practice long before the arrival of Christianity and colonialism, and certainly in some cases befroe the Muslim expansion from the Arabian peninsula. Islam entered Sub-Saharan Africa in the eighth century, and within six hundred years of the prophet's death had penetrated from the Sahara to the Sudanic belt, and from the Atlantic to the Red Sea, making its presence felt among the indigenous peoples who inhabited this expanse. Other transplanted religions have had virtually no impact upon Sub-Saharan traditions. With the exception of Judaism, these did not make any permanent incursion into the region until the 19th or 20th centuries. The chart suggests three wide areas of religious beliefs and practices: (I) Indigenous African religions; (II) World Religions (Baha'i, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Sikhism and Zorastrianism); (III) New Religious Traditions (African Independent Churches).

64. Benin, Country, Africa: Land And People The yoruba live in the southeast near Nigeria, the group s main homeland.The Voltaicspeakers live in central Benin, country, africa Land and People http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0856903.html

in All Infoplease Almanacs Biographies Dictionary Encyclopedia Daily Almanac for Sep 27, 2005 Skip Navigation Home Almanacs ... Word of the Day Editor's Favorites Hispanic Heritage Month Hurricane Katrina Daylight Saving Time Rosh Hashanah ... Texas Infoplease Tools Periodic Table Conversion Tool Perpetual Calendar Year by Year ... Site Map College Center Scholarship Search College Resources Career Center Job Search Post Your Resume Continuing Ed. more . . . Search: Infoplease Info search tips Search: Biographies Bio search tips Sponsored Links TripAdvisor Benin (Africa) google_ad_client = 'pub-1894504138907931'; google_ad_width = 120; google_ad_height = 240; google_ad_format = '120x240_as'; google_ad_type = 'text'; google_ad_channel =''; google_color_border = ['336699','B4D0DC','DFF2FD','B0E0E6']; google_color_bg = ['FFFFFF','ECF8FF','DFF2FD','FFFFFF']; google_color_link = ['0000FF','0000CC','0000CC','000000']; google_color_url = ['008000','008000','008000','336699']; google_color_text = ['000000','6F6F6F','000000','333333']; Encyclopedia Benin, country, Africa Land and People voodoo originated here some 350 years ago but was only officially recognized in 1996. About 15% are Christian (largely Roman Catholic) and an equal number (living mostly in the north) are Muslim. Benin's population is concentrated in the southern portion of the country and in rural areas.

65. Yoruba Religion - Books, Journals, Articles @ The Questia Online Library Subjects, yoruba (African People)Religion which have reference to the Subjects, EthnologyResearch, indigenous peoplesFolklore, legends, etc., http://www.questia.com/search/yoruba-religion

Questia The World's Largest Online Library Primary Navigation Skip Home Page Search Page Read Page ... Subscribe Page Secondary Navigation Skip About Questia Subscribe Requirements ... Login Search the Library: Advanced Search Put exact phrases in quotes Search within Results by media type: Books Journals Magazines Newspapers Encyclopedia Research Topics We searched for: yoruba AND religion we found: results by media type: books: journal articles: magazine articles: newspaper articles: encyclopedia articles: Research Topics on: yoruba religion List All Research Topics Santeria books on: yoruba religion - 1467 results More book Results: Olaodaumarae: God in Yoruba Belief Book by ; Praeger, 1963 Subjects: Yoruba (African People)Religion ...which have reference to the religion of the Yoruba , the Deity has been assigned...goddess and the whole set-up of Yoruba religion that he concluded that Ile-Ife...But from the traditions of Yoruba religion , we gather that Oris + a-nla... Olodumare: God in Yoruba Belief Book by ; Longmans, 1962 Subjects: Yoruba (African People)Religion ...which have reference to the religion of the Yoruba , the Deity has been assigned...goddess and the whole set-up of

66. Discrimination Against Indigenous And Minority Languages In Nigeria for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), recommends African governments The National Language Policy discriminates against indigenous peoples http://www.unpo.org/news_detail.php?arg=43&par=2538

67. West African Kingdoms 500-1590: Religion And Philosophy History Study Guide This list of states and peoples is not exhaustive, but it does provide a indigenous African cultures—especially ritual arts and music—were suppressed. http://www.bookrags.com/samphist/

West African Kingdoms 500-1590: Religion and Philosophy Literature Summaries Study Guides Essays Study Guides ... History Study Guides Biographies Research Topics Essays History eBooks History Guide Navigation Download the PDF Home History Study Guides West African Kingdoms 500-1590: Religion and Philosophy (World History) Jump to: Overview Topics In Religion And Phil... Significant People Download the PDF This is an online sample of a complete History Guide. West African Kingdoms 500-1590: Religion and Philosophy History Study Guide Overview Historiographical Context. Rejecting Classifications. The Rise of Christian Europe (1965), "Undergraduates, seduced, as always, by the changing breath of journalistic fashion, demand that they should be taught the history of black Africa. Perhaps, in the future there will be some African history to teach. But at present there is none, or very little: there is only the history of Europeans in Africa. The rest is darkness . . . and darkness is not a subject of history." Views such as this one are the result of too much reliance on Arabic and European sources and not enough primary research in West African sources. By the final decades of the twentieth century, historians and archaeologists had learned much about the complex civilizations that existed in West Africa between 500 and 1590, cultures whose religious and philosophical traditions have deep indigenous roots. Geographical and Cultural Backgrounds.

68. «Conversion» In African Traditional Religion The concept of conversion is as relevant to African indigenous religions as it is to a major deity of the yoruba people of Nigeria to serve as a medium. http://www.afrikaworld.net/afrel/conversion.htm

IN AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGIONS By Christopher I. Ejizu Introduction The concept of conversion is as relevant to African indigenous religions as it is to many other religions of humankind. This may sound something of a surprise to some people. After all, the indigenous religions of Africa do not fall within the category of religions generally referred to as universal or missionary religions. They are rather, classed within the family of traditional or folk religions of the world.(1) And this for many people, is another way of saying that African traditional religions admit of little or no change. They thrive in stable and homogenous ethnic societies. They have no founders, reformers, or prophets, and are handed on much in the same form from one generation to the next. In the words of Mbiti, African traditional religions "have no missionaries to propagate them". As folk religions, they are said to be community-based. "People simply assimilate whatever religious ideas and practices are held or observed by their families and communities"(2). This viewpoint assumed that African traditional religions were more or less fossil reality. Against that backdrop, the discussion of the subject of religious conversion made sense for the protagonists only within the context of the encounter of the indigenous religions with the missionary religions that are available now in the Continent, mainly Christianity and Islam (3). While this later contemporary stage in the religious history of Africa is important and of relevance to us in this paper, our discussion of the theme of conversion in African religions proposes to focus on the type of change brought about by dynamic impulses in the differing religious experience of indigenous African groups prior to the encounter, as well as on the phenomenal movement of former adherents as converts to the missionary faiths. This later development clearly amounts to a religious revolution. Both strands of religious change are signalled by and implied in the topic of conversion in African religions. We shall therefore, be handling the two dimensions in this paper. But first, the key concepts ought to be clarified and the scope delimited.

69. Debunking The Northern Myth Of The So Empirical evidence from major urban cities in yoruba show that when compared The bloodshed and systematic annihilation of indigenous people was based on http://www.gamji.com/article1000/NEWS1199.htm

Debunking the Northern Myth of the So-called Belief in Violence by the Yorubas and the Supremacy of Ethnicity as Factors in Nigerian Politics By Omoba Oladele Osinuga osinugao@hotmail.com It is imperative that in writing this article, issues raised in previous articles by Ahmed Tafida Jalingo titled “Ethnic cleaning Hausa/Fulani in Dilemma” Dr Aliyu Tilde’s; “Ige and nemesis” have sought to misrepresent the role of the Yoruba’s in nation building. In shaming a minority group of writers who take delight in peddling disunity and asserting cultural hegemony, I should start by espousing my antecedents and family ties to Northern Nigeria (could they say the same about themselves?). Firstly two uncles of mine both of blessed memory, Chief Hassan Odukale the late Chief Executive and Founder of Leadway Assurance PLC and his brother Pa A. Odukale, late Principal Private Secretary to the golden voice of Africa the late Prime Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa extolled the virtues of coexistence, tolerance and living in harmony with people of Northern Nigeria. Secondly my spouse’s maternal grandmother family ties are Hausa. Thirdly as an indigene of the Ijebu Remo, a substantial minority of Hausa/Fulani have resided in the Sabo area of Sagamu – Remo since the turn of the last century. At this juncture it is pertinent to address the issues raised by certain disingenuous Northern writers within the past few weeks.

70. (In)Visibility And Duality Of The Civil Rights And Yoruba Movements: 1950s-1990s The overwhelming consensus was that African people shared similar traits, indigenous yoruba religion with its blood sacrifices, trance possessions, http://www.africamigration.com/archive_01/f_ ifagboyede_invisibility.htm

In)Visibility and Duality of the Civil Rights and Yoruba Movements: 1950s-1990s Faola Ifagboyede California State University, Northridge The Rise of the Yoruba and Civil Rights Movements The New World racial dilemma that DuBois so passionately and poignantly wrote about in his monumental work, The Souls of Black Folk, still burns deeply in the consciousness of African Americans whose racial identity remains fragmented and even more compounded with troublesome implications and ramifications associated with the distant relationship and loss of indigenous customs. Hence, Shakespeare's quixotic question "to be or not to be" is the constant irresolvable that African Americans decisively and consistently pondered. The fifties ushered in a sedate American popular culture firmly entrenched in its racist ideology along with total control over the segregated and second class masses of African people subsisting within the dynamics of American-style apartheid. Racial attitudes of white superiority dominated in all areas of black and white contact as America ruthlessly enforced an oppressive mantle of racial inferiority on the African population. However, the dawning of the decade also saw African Americans stirring and uniting with a renewed resolve to resist attempts to undermine their humanity and racial origins. Keenly aware that African people were caught between the two opposing forces of double consciousness-the demand to conform to the distorted images created by minstrels and the desire to reclaim their humanity, two race leaders emerged that felt compelled to address the chronic malady related to the fragmented racial psyche of African Americans.

71. Isokan Yoruba Magazine: Nigerian Federalism In The 21st Century By Chief Anthony Nigeria exists, or subsists on the suppression of indigenous languages, Can a people, an entire nation, in fact hope to attain the height of their group http://www.yoruba.org/Magazine/Summer97/File6.htm

Isokan Yoruba Magazine Summer 1997 Volume III No. III: Nigerian Federalism in The 21st Century Keynote address by Chief (Dr.) Anthony Enahoro, C.F.R. to the 5th Yoruba National Convention held at Houston, TexasS, USA on Saturday, 26th April, 1997 Mr. chairman of the 5th Yoruba National Convention, Honorable delegates, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, May I begin by expressing my appreciation of the honor done to me in inviting me to deliver the keynote address in this convention. I assume that the invitation may be in part in recognition of the opinions I have espoused in recent years on the crisis of nationalities in our country and its pertinence to the future of the Yoruba people; in part in acknowledgment of my involvement in the pre- and immediate post-Nigerian independence affairs of Yorubaland; and in part in acceptance of my on-going presence in the fall-out from the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election. If the latter appears the most cogent or current of these reasons, I must say at the very outset of my remarks this morning that it is not in my view the most fundamental, being in itself but an expression and manifestation of the nationalities crisis in our country, indeed in much of Africa. I will not bore you with a recapitulation of the history of our part of the African continent before the advent of European colonialism. You know it as well as I do-our different nations with their separate identities, histories, languages, religions, cultures and stages of civilization, and some with their own empires. You know the countries - the combinations and amalgamation- created, contrived or arranged by European nations to serve their own interests, and the subsequent emergence of new nationalism on the basis of these new countries and amalgamation. You know the endorsement of these creations by the Organization of African Unity in the nineteen sixties, and the consequent absurdity, as we can now see it, of seeking to construct and develop new nation-states and civilizations on the basis of the destruction of the indigenous languages, political cultures and national identities which in some cases had existed and flourished for a thousand years and more.

72. Oceania: Photography's Other Histories along with other indigenous people were (re)created as performers for the Thus Stephen F. Sprague s discussion of how the yoruba see themselves http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3654/is_200406/ai_n9453292

@import url(/css/us/style1.css); @import url(/css/us/searchResult1.css); @import url(/css/us/articles.css); @import url(/css/us/artHome1.css); Home Advanced Search IN free articles only all articles this publication Automotive Sports FindArticles Oceania Jun 2004 Content provided in partnership with 10,000,000 articles Not found on any other search engine. Featured Titles for ASA News ASEE Prism Academe African American Review ... View all titles in this topic Hot New Articles by Topic Automotive Sports Top Articles Ever by Topic Automotive Sports Photography's Other Histories Oceania Jun 2004 by Reed, Liz Save a personal copy of this article and quickly find it again with Furl.net. It's free! Save it. Photography's Other Histories By Christopher Pinney and Nicolas Peterson (eds) Durham and London: Duke University Press. 2003. Pp.viii + 286 Price: US$22.95 paper Christopher Pinney notes in his introduction that 'photography is a cultural practice with no fixed outcome' (p. 14) and the diverse essays and theorisations presented here indicate the saliency of this observation. The book is organised around three themes: personal archives, visual economies, and self-fashioning and vernacular modernism, and whilst photography's Other histories' are primarily racialised ones, gender and sexuality and the return of the colonial gaze (whether it be European or Japanese) are also the focus of a number of the essays. Whilst this structural arrangement has enabled the thematic underpinnings of the volume as a whole to be more clearly elaborated, it was both a strength and a weakness that this has meant that the Australian Indigenous and the Seminole/Muskogee/Din© writers were, effectively, 'contained' within the 'personal archives'.

73. Consulate General Of Nigeria, Atlanta, Georgia This culture reflects African, and in some areas, Islamic influences. In thesouth and nonMuslim parts of the north, indigenous peoples produced their http://www.nigeria-consulate-atl.org/index.php?option=displaypage&Itemid=62&op=p

74. Africa's Ancient Egyptian Lotus Ring Here is where you can explore information about africa s ancient past. Here we will respect the ancient indigenous people and not lie about them. http://f.webring.com/hub?ring=ankhwas

75. Major Religions Ranked By Size primalindigenous 300 million; African Traditional Diasporic 100 million Adherents of some tribal religions (such as yoruba) are sometimes counted http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html

Return to Adherents.com homepage Christianity Anglican Catholic Evangelical ... more links Major Religions of the World Ranked by Number of Adherents (Sizes shown are approximate estimates , and are here mainly for the purpose of ordering the groups, not providing a definitive number. This list is sociological/statistical in perspective.) Christianity : 2.1 billion Islam : 1.3 billion Secular/Nonreligious/Agnostic/Atheist : 1.1 billion Hinduism : 900 million Chinese traditional religion : 394 million Buddhism : 376 million primal-indigenous : 300 million : 100 million Sikhism : 23 million Juche : 19 million Spiritism : 15 million Judaism : 14 million Baha'i : 7 million Jainism : 4.2 million Shinto : 4 million Cao Dai : 4 million Zoroastrianism : 2.6 million Tenrikyo : 2 million Neo-Paganism : 1 million Unitarian-Universalism : 800 thousand Rastafarianism : 600 thousand Scientology : 500 thousand Introduction The adherent counts presented in the list above are current estimates of the number of people who have at least a minimal level of self-identification as adherents of the religion. Levels of participation vary within all groups. These numbers tend toward the high end of reasonable worldwide estimates. Valid arguments can be made for different figures, but if the same criteria are used for all groups, the relative order should be the same. Further details and sources are available below and in the

76. Patriotism Or Nationalism?' Among them was a young yoruba boy named Adjai, given a new name after a London vicar The Krio people became the first educated elite of modern africa, http://www.martynmission.cam.ac.uk/CBSpaper.htm

Articles People Seminars HMT ... CTF Patriotism or Nationalism? Dr Brian Stanley Director, Henry Martyn Centre A sermon preached for the Church Mission Society at St Margaret's Church, Westminster, on 14 April 2004, at a service marking the 200th anniversary of the arrival of the first CMS missionaries in Sierra Leone. National identity is a precious gift. Without a sense of belonging to a particular people, we feel rootless, unsure of who we are, and vulnerable to exploitation by outsiders. The consciousness of being part of a nation and subscribing to its cherished values can inspire the best that is in human nature - generous service or astounding self-sacrifice. Yet nationalism can become not a gift but a curse. Nationalism can set nation against nation, person against person. It can inspire not the best, but the worst, in human nature. So what distinguishes a healthy sense of national identity or patriotism, the love of the land of our mothers and fathers, from the nationalism which fosters ethnic hatred and violence? And that is the theme of the second half of the game. In the New Testament the coming of Jesus Christ transforms the identity of the people of God. The ethnic boundaries between Jew and Gentile are transcended in the new humanity of the body of Christ. Those from every nation whose lives have been transformed by the grace of Christ become the new Israel, a 'holy nation' called to invite all peoples to draw near in worship to the God who had revealed Himself in the story of Israel.

77. Diogenes -- Sign In Page (1991) Sage Philosophy indigenous Thinkers and Modern Debate on African Philosophy . (1992) indigenous Vision. People’s of India Attitudes to the http://dio.sagepub.com/cgi/content/refs/52/3/17

JOURNAL HOME HELP CONTACT US SUBSCRIPTIONS ... SEARCH QUICK SEARCH: [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year: Vol: Page: This item requires a subscription to Diogenes Online. The Rehabilitation of Indigenous Environmental Ethics in Africa Kelbessa Diogenes. This Article Abstract Full Text (PDF) References ... Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager To view this item, select one of the options below: Sign In User Name Sign in without cookies. Can't get past this page? Help with Cookies. Need to Activate? Password Forgot your user name or password? Purchase Short-Term Access Pay per Article - You may access this article (from the computer you are currently using) for 1 day for US$25.00 Pay for Admission - You may access all content in Diogenes Online (from the computer you are currently using) for 24 hours for US$75.00. Regain Access - You can regain access to a recent Pay per Article or Pay for Admission purchase if your access period has not yet expired.

78. Current Dialogue No. 44 - Ucko Interest in the indigenous religions of africa is a reality. When the peoplesof africa were displaced through slavery, they lost their roots and land http://www.wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/interreligious/cd44-02.html

CURRENT DIALOGUE Issue 44, December 2004 of the world Report by Hans Ucko African religiosity has no sacred books. It is found primarily in oral sources, in stories, myths, proverbs, prayers, ritual incantations, songs, names of people and places, and the knowledge of religious personages. It has no written sources on which its authority may be based. And yet it is very much alive, it is lived, it is experienced, and it is integrated and present not only in African Traditional Religions but deep inside Christianity and in Islam. The missionary enterprise failed in trying to keep the African religious and spiritual experience at bay. The long-standing cooperation between the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) and the Office on Interreligious Relations (IRRD) furthered a discussion on the possibility of a common project on Africa and religion. The then President of PCID, Cardinal Arinze, himself from Nigeria, strongly supported the idea to throw light upon the continued vitality of the religious heritage of Africa in religious traditions in various parts of the world. Such a project would hopefully also lead to a greater understanding between Christians and people of other faiths and open new avenues for interaction and co-operation between peoples of different faiths or religious traditions. The project would be one way whereby the PCID and the IRRD acknowledged the contributions of the continent and its peoples to enrich the spiritual heritage of humanity. The project should recognise the sacrifices made by millions of Africans to keep their religious tradition despite years of untold physical and moral oppression. Through this project the PCID and the IRRD should celebrate the gift of Africa to the rest of the world.

79. Sfc : Social Studies In The Upper School The 10/11s study the African Diaspora and the African Experience in the Americas . of contact and colonization on the indigenous peoples of the Americas, http://www.bankstreet.edu/sfc/socialstudies_upper.html

Search Site Index Webmail Contact Us ... Physical Education Social Studies: Its Special Role as the Core Curriculum Social Studies Overview Social Studies in the Lower School Social Studies in the Middle School Social Studies in the Upper School Social Studies in the Upper School The social studies curriculum in the Upper School continues to provide students with the skills, procedures, and knowledge needed to fulfill the goals of the school's mission: finding answers to questions; understanding and appreciating the multicultural nature of their world; functioning effectively as citizens of a democratic society; understanding themselves and others; and acquiring strategies to improve the quality of their lives and the lives of others. Upper School students learn about cultures "long ago" and "far away" through artifacts, original documents, primary and secondary sources, myths, news articles, and scholarly essays. As they discover and learn about relationships from these sources, children review and expand skills in reading, writing, listening, speaking; using maps, charts and graphs; conducting research; participating in groups; and working individually. Through hands-on experiences as well as direct teaching, students acquire the skills necessary for note-taking and research; they also learn to analyze and interpret historical information; read and understand non-fiction texts; make maps; take tests; and write essays. Information and knowledge is shared and further reinforced through class meetings, discussions, debates, extended role plays, simulation games, art and craft projects, fieldtrips, and related publishing work.

80. CMA For Schools And Teachers : Presentation Outline Today, the Mossi and others living in this region of africa are farmers and People of the yoruba culture occupy a region of Nigeria and the Popular http://www.clevelandart.org/educef/art2go/html/4033988.html

For Schools and Teachers Art to Go Art To Go Art to Go Topics Masks: Let's Face It recommended for young audiences Masks: Let's Face It - Lesson Plan Contents Presentation Outline Presentation Outline The Noh mask in the presentation represents Hannya, a female demon. The designs of Noh masks were established hundreds of years ago, and new masks are copies. The oldest original masks are considered national treasures in Japan. With roots in Shinto dances and Buddhist traditions the Noh theater is purely Japanese and has enjoyed regular performances since the 1300s CE. Only males are allowed to perform, and can begin training as young as six or seven years of age. Young performers often start with masks less frightening and intense than those worn by adults. In addition to masks, the performers usually wear lavish robes and wigs that obscure much of their bodies. The plays are quite long and the action moves at a very slow pace, with very little talk or movement; the effort required to bring life to the wooden masks and create believable emotions is very strenuous for the actors. The stories in the Noh theater are serious and sad. Most of the characters in Noh plays are gods, dead warriors, ghosts, and demons. The Devil mask from Guatemala shows the influence of European cultures blended with ancient belief systems of indigenous people. During the 16th century, in order to maintain some of their own beliefs as Spanish missionaries sought to convert them to Christianity, indigenous people combined traditional celebrations with Christian holidays. For example, the Christian ceremonies marking All Souls and All Saints days (November 1-2) coincided with the indigenous festivals honoring ancestors. Devil masks depicted men with horns, painted red. The Diablado was a performance of masked dancers in which Lucifer and his band of devils try to conquer the earth, only to be driven back underground by the power of Christianity. Beating a devil in a ritual battle would be symbolic of defeating death, and of bringing an end to hardship. Even today, devil mask-making contests continue this artistic tradition in Mexico.

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