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| PEOPLE |
"My door is never closed.
The local children come here all the time. My neighbors and
I always help each other."
Workiwot is strong and full of life and
adores the people in her community. |
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Name:
Workiwot Kerga
Home: Emdibir, Ethiopia |
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SUSTAINING
THE COMMUNITY
Other things which bring people together. |
CEREMONIES
THE
BUNA (COFFEE) CEREMONY
The discovery of the powers
of coffee is told in a story of a shepherd, who noticed
his flock were not sleeping at night. After trying the beans
himself, he went to the king, who spread the news. Monks
ingested the bean to allow for more hours of prayer. The
powerful bean came from the Kaffa region in western Ethiopia
(hence the name), and was traded with the Arabs, who brought
it over the seas.
At first the beans were crushed and roasted with butter,
and eaten, only later to be consumed as a drink. Now all
tribes of Ethiopia have one thing in common: the buna ceremony.
The host, usually female, sits on a stool behind a small,
low table with coffee cups on it. Underneath the table she
has spread grasses and/or flowers. A round clay coffee pot
is on a burner beside it, as well as a burner with frankincense,
which fills the air.
The beans are first washed with purified water, then roasted
in a shallow pan over coals in another clay burner. When
they are a dark brown, they are crushed with mortar and
pestle into a fine powder, and poured into the boiling water
of the pot. It is boiled and then poured into small porcelain
cups. Each person receives a cup of buna, and is offered
popcorn or roasted barley with it as a snack. It is polite
to drink at least 3 cups.
THE CHAT CEREMONY
Chat is a plant grown in the Horn of Africa, the leaves
of which are chewed to induce a mildly euphoric state and
sleeplessness. In the same way as the buna ceremony (above),
incense is burned on hot coals. A group of people sit on
a mat with a kilo or two of chat between them, and talk...
and talk...
SURVIVAL
THE
ENSETE (FALSE BANANA) PLANT
Ensete
is a drought-resistant plant that looks like a banana
tree minus the bananas.
It has many uses for the Gurage people:
Fibers: bags, rope, mats, construction materials
(instead of nails), strainers
Leaves: plates, fermentation pit liners, food
wraps, cattle feed
Dried leaves and pulp: rags, brushes, diapers,
wraps for butter and kocho
Other parts: medicine (for humans and cattle)
for fractured or broken bones, childbirth complications,
diarrhea, birth control
Enset can be stored for several years, harvested any
time of the year and at any stage, and survive droughts
due to its water storage capabilities.
The main product of the ensete plant is kocho,
traditional Gurage-style bread. Starch is scraped
from the leaves and stem base and then fermented in
a pit in the ground lined with ensete leaves. It can
be stored in this state without spoiling for several
years, and wealthier families age similar to wine.
To make the bread the inner pulp of the ensete tree
is first strained through its own fibers to get the
water out. The mushy pulp holds moisture allowing
the tree to go for years without water. The pulp is
finely chopped and pressed into a round, flat loaf.
This is cooked over the fire. The result is a dense,
slightly nutty tasting bread.
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Gurage
people take pride in whatever work they do. Other Ethiopians
have much respect for this ethic. Whenever we discussed
this with local people, the name Mohammad Mahmoud would
come up, the shoeshine boy who worked his way up to
pop-singing stardom.
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