African traditional religions is a broad term for many locally rooted religious traditions. Its plural form matters. A Mijikenda sacred forest on the coast of Kenya, a Kongo power figure from the Chiloango River region, and the Sango festival in Oyo, Nigeria, involve different histories, practices and forms of authority. Each helps answer a concrete question about how a religious tradition is sustained. Who looks after a place associated with ancestors? Who can prepare an object used in a dispute? How do children learn the words, rhythms and gestures of a festival?
The Mijikenda kayas and the care of ancestral places
Along the Kenyan coast, sacred forests contain the remains of fortified Mijikenda settlements called kayas. As these settlements ceased to be the main places where people lived, the forests around them became places where Mijikenda communities continued to recognize the presence of their ancestors. The World Heritage documentation describes the role of councils of elders in maintaining the sites. The history of the villages helps explain why a forest can be sacred to particular communities and why its significance is tied to a particular place. UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Sacred Mijikenda Kaya Forests
Kaya Kauma is one of the sites included in the World Heritage property. The National Museums of Kenya documents its collaboration with elders and local communities through its Coastal Forest Conservation Unit. The World Heritage description connects restrictions on the use of forest resources with the survival of the forests’ biodiversity. Decisions about access and use therefore have consequences for both the care of a sacred place and the plants and animals found there. National Museums of Kenya, Kaya Kauma project · World Heritage statement on the forests’ significance
What a Kongo power figure did
The Metropolitan Museum of Art catalogues a Mangaaka power figure made by a Yombe-Kongo sculptor and a ritual specialist, or nganga, around 1880–1900. The figure comes from the Chiloango River region, which includes territory in the present-day Republic of the Congo and Cabinda, Angola. It leans forward with its hands planted on its hips and wears a headdress associated with authority. The museum relates this type of figure to a spiritual force invoked in matters of law and order. The Met, Mangaaka Power Figure
Making such a figure took more than carving the wood. A study by conservators describes how the nganga prepared bilongo, materials charged with spiritual power. The study identifies places where these compounds could be concealed, including cavities behind the eyes and in the abdomen. The carved stance was visible to people who came before the figure, while much of the material prepared by the specialist was hidden. The object joined those two kinds of work in a form that could be used in ritual. The Met’s technical study of Mangaaka figures
Learning the Sango festival in Oyo
The Sango festival takes place around the Koso Temple in Oyo, Nigeria. The Nigerian heritage nomination describes a celebration associated with the beginning of the Yoruba traditional new year in Oyo. It connects Sango, the divinity of thunder and lightning, with the remembered ruler Tella-Oko, whom devotees regard as an incarnation of Sango. At the opening, devotees share roasted new yam with palm oil. That meal gives participants a way to mark the change of year together. Nigeria’s nomination dossier for the Sango festival, sections 1 and 2
The same dossier describes several settings where children learn to take part. At Saturday worship they observe chanting, storytelling and dance. Women teach forms of praise for Sango, and experienced bata drummers teach younger participants how to interpret the rhythms. The festival draws on skills learned across the year, and the roles of teachers differ according to what they pass on. Further examples of public festivals, initiation and royal ritual appear in the article on Vodun, Makishi and Asante traditions. Nigeria’s account of how festival knowledge is taught
Conclusion
These cases show how religious authority takes different forms. Kaya elders help care for places their communities associate with ancestors. In the Chiloango region a sculptor and a ritual specialist contributed different skills to a figure used in matters of justice. In Oyo, people learn how to take part through worship, teaching and practice. Starting with the names of places, the work of specific people and the objects they use gives the broad term African traditional religions a more precise meaning.
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