Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Puberty Rites'

A descriptive study concerning the Navajo Puberty Ceremony for girls, the Kinaalda', examined the extent of the practice of the ceremony, and the frequency in which the girls who have had the ceremony and the girls who have not had the ceremony differ in traditional characteristics. Fifty-four percent of the girls questioned have had the Kinaalda'. Significant differences between the girls who had the ceremony and those who had not had the ceremony were found, using a chi square test of significance at an alpha level of .05, in the frequency of a set of traditional characteristics. The Kinaalda' girl possessed the set of traditional qualities more frequently than the non-Kinaalda' girl.

Contact between the Western culture and African indigenous cultures, during the Colonial era, resulted in directional cultural changes in these cultural systems. One of the Gikuyu customs most affected by this change was the rite of passage from childhood into adulthood. This study, which was carried out through the standard anthropological technique of participant - observation and focused interviews, examined the form of change that this rite underwent and the effect of this change on the Gikuyu society. Through the cross-sectional method I traced this change in three generations based upon descent from a living Gikuyu elder.The study shows that the age-grading system, the ceremonies and functions associated with the traditional rite of passage into adulthood has virtually vanished. Female clitoridectomy has been replaced by the onset of menarche as the rite of passage into adulthood. Male circumcision has lost its significance as a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood, and is mainly practised as a rite of passage from primary school to secondary school due to peer-pressure. The disappearance of the functions associated with the traditional rite of passage into adulthood has resulted in an inadequate preparation for the adult roles. The consequence has been a high rate of social problems and a widespread dissatisfaction with the current social life among the Aa-Gikuyu.
Department of Anthropology

The study is about the rock engravings on the wonderstone hills just outside Ottosdal, North West province, about 70km northwest of Klerksdorp. Wonderstone is remarkable rock that is 
smooth, shiny and very easy to mark. The wonderstone occurs only on two adjacent farms, Gestoptefontein and Driekuil, and thus the rock art on the wonderstone outcrops is referred to as the Gestoptefontein- Driekuil complex (GDC). This rock art is now the only remaining trace of what must once have been a much larger complex of engravings. Sadly, much of the rock art has been destroyed in the course of mining activities, with very few records. The largest remaining outcrop is still threatened by potential mining activities. The study attempts to bring this disastrous and unacceptable situation to the attention of the public and the heritage authorities, who have so far failed to respond to applications to grant the sites protection. It therefore has two main aims: to 
locate and record as much of the rock art as possible and to understand the significance of the outcrops in the lives of the people who made them. Based on the rock art itself, as well as what little historical evidence is available, it is argued that the rock art was made by Khoe-San people during the performance of important ceremonies and other activities. The rock art has two main components: engravings of referential motifs and a gestural, or performative, element. The referential motifs depict a range of things: anthropomorphs and zoomorphs, decorative designs, items of clothing, as well as ornaments and decorations. The gestural markings were made by rubbing, cutting and hammering the soft wonderstone, probably in the course of a range of activities that people carried out on the outcrops. One of the main findings of the study is that the GDC was a place that was of particular significance to women. This is suggested by the large number of engravings of items that are closely associated with Khoe-San women &ndash
depictions of aprons, ornaments, and decorations. These play a prominent role in the initiation practices of many Khoe-San groups. Initiates emerging from ritual isolation after their first menstruation are given new clothes
they are also loaned ornaments and jewellery. This reincorporation into society as a &lsquo
new person&rsquo
has been described by some Khoe-San women as one of the high points of their lives. Oral traditions from the area indicate that the wonderstone outcrops were believed to have 
special properties
the study incorporates these traditions to argue that the wonderstone outcrops were associated with the presence of a great water snake that lay on the rocks and also lived in 
the pools of water in the nearby Driekuil Spruit. People therefore came to the outcrops to perform rites of reincorporation. One of these ceremonies may have been performing rites of association 
with the great snake
such practices may have included the use of rock dust as an ingredient for body paint.

À partir de témoignages littéraires, épigraphiques, archéologiques et iconographiques, cette thèse étudie les rites qui accompagnent le développement physiologique et le chemin vers l'accomplissement féminin qu'est la maternité. Une première partie traite des pratiques religieuses dans la vie intime des jeunes filles qui deviennent pubères. On y envisage d'abord quels rites accomplit la jeune fille lorsqu'elle est réglée pour la première fois, signe qu'elle entre dans la catégorie des filles "mariables" car capables de procréer, et pourquoi elle ne peut accèder au sanctuaire en période menstruelle. Sont ensuite analysés les actes cultuels qui la préparent à quitter l'enfance pour se marier, c'est-à-dire pour assurer dans un cadre bien défini la reproduction de la cité. La deuxième partie concerne les femmes mariées qui doivent être fécondées: on y voit comment la jeune mariée se concilie les puissances divines pour devenir enceinte, pourquoi elle est exclue de certains rites en début de grossesse ou lorsqu'elle arrive à terme, en quoi l'accouchement lui apporte une souillure dont elle se débarrasse lors des relevailles. Après ces deux parties centrées sur les deux événements biologiques et sociaux les plus importants, la puberté et l'enfantement, une troisième traite des rites qui consistent pour les femmes à éviter cette forme de mort sociale qu'est la perte de la fertilité; pour celles qui ont déjà mis au monde un enfant, il s'agit de préserver son couple et sa fertilité, ce qui passe par une attention particulière à la bonne entente conjugale et aux organes génitaux; d'autres femmes sont confrontées à de nombreux problèmes, de la stérilité aux affections diverses dont témoignent les ex-voto anatomiques représentant les organes génitaux indispensables au processus de la reproduction. Parmi ces accidents de parcours, figurent la fausse-couche, l'avortement, et la mort en couches qui sont l'occasion de rituels spécifiques.

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This dissertation is dedicated to the study of the myth of the chrysalis, the myth of puberty, which is set by the Rite of Passage experienced by the protagonists of the masterpieces The Trout by Sean O'Faolain and Menino de Engenho by José Lins do Rego. The main issue of this paper raises a question that conveys the passage from the being as an individual to the being as a part of a social group, which is started by the act of union between Nature and Being and Being and Sexuality. This research aims to understand the presence of a conundrum among Nature, Human and Myth by the correlations between the characters and their ritualistic experiences. Along the study of this Rite of Passage process, we believe that, in the brief moment when the characters go through transformation, a social exclusion takes place, and that fact depicts them as members of the submerged population. The short-story, which is the genre studied for this dissertation, contains all the characteristics that can be applied to both narratives.Some authors were chosen to give theoretical foundation to this deductive and comparative study: Frank O'Connor, Mordecai Marcus, Edgar Allan Poe, Van Gennep, Victor Turner, Tania Franco Carvalhal and Eduardo Coutinho, among others.In the development of the three chapters, we put up the theories and themes proposed in dialogue with the narratives of the corpora we analysed. It s also demonstrated the way how the Rite of Passage is transposed to the Iniciation Literature besides suggesting that the characters are members of the submerged population
Esta dissertação trata do estudo do mito da crisálida, o mito da puberdade, configurado pelo rito de passagem, vivenciado pelos protagonistas dos contos, curto e longo, A Truta, de Sean O Faolain, e Menino de Engenho, de José Lins do Rego. A problemática do trabalho levanta um questionamento sobre a passagem do individual para o social, que se inicia pelo ato de união entre ser e natureza, e ser e sexualidade. A pesquisa visa esclarecer a presença ternária entre a Natureza, o Humano e o Mito pelas correlações entre as personagens e suas experiências ritualísticas. No estudo deste processo de Rito de Passagem, entendemos que, no momento breve em que as personagens passam pela transformação, dá-se a exclusão social, que as enquadra como membros da "população submersa" (submerged population), conceito este somente possível no conto, o gênero narrativo estudado, por conter características estruturais aplicáveis às obras. Para dar embasamento teórico, essencialmente, por meio de um estudo comparativo-dedutivo, fundamentamo-nos em: Frank O'Connor, Mordecai Marcus, Edgar Allan Poe, Van Gennep, Victor Turner, Tania Franco Carvalhal e Eduardo Coutinho, entre outros. No desenvolvimento dos três capítulos, colocamos as teorias e os temas propostos em diálogo com as narrativas do corpora, e demonstramos como o Rito de Passagem ocorre na Literatura Iniciática, além de sugerir que as personagens, em suas diferenças territoriais, definem-se como membros da "população submersa"

There has been a great deal of focus on young people and how they obtain information about reproductive health matters in the era of HIV/AIDS. However, there has very limited research on role of traditional initiation schools in the era of HIVIAIDS. In some parts of South Africa, young men and women continue to attend traditional initiation schools. The primary aim of these schools is to disseminate information about sexuality and other reproductive health matters in order to ensure that young people are well prepared for their future social growth, societal responsibilities and conjugal matters. Interviews were conducted with young people who had attended traditional initiation schools. The study was conducted in three villages in the Limpopo Province in South Africa where traditional initiations are widely practices. The study examines the impact of traditional initiation schools on adolescent's sexuality and reproductive health behaviour. The findings of the study show that traditional initiation schools have an important role to play in imparting information about sexuality and reproductive health. Traditional initiation schools prepare young people for the transition to adulthood. It is believed that these schools produce men who are independent, brave and courageous and women who are good mothers, wives and daughter-in-Iaws. However, some young men and women feel that they are more likely to engage in sexual activities soon after attending traditional initiation schools. This is because there is massive use of sexually explicit language during the process of initiation. Some young people feel that traditional initiation schools have contributed to the increase in sexual activity and as a result, negative reproductive health outcomes. However, the main conclusion is that traditional initiation schools have an important role to play to shaping the sexual and reproductive health behaviour of Venda young men and women.
Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2005.

Almost all African societies have female initiation rites to mark the process of growing up. Initiation rites signal the transition from one stage in life to another. Between the two levels is “the camp,” the liminal phase, in which the initiate is secluded in order to be initiated into the mysteries of life. Through female initiation rites, positions of power and social relations within the society are demonstrated. The Bemba people of Zambia perform the Chisungu female initiation rites in which young women are initiated into adulthood through the ritual process. Chisungu female initiation rites remain an important source of traditional education on sex and the social and religious leadership roles of women in Zambia although they are now being modified and performed in a shortened form. This study builds on the scholarly work undertaken by African women theologians particularly in the last decade, to engage theologically with the subject of HIV and AIDS on the African continent. Their theoretical insights and analysis provide the critical lenses for this thesis. The objective of the thesis is to offer a gendered analysis of Chisungu initiation rites among the Bemba people, in order to retrieve the values of indigenous female initiation rites which can critique patriarchy in the context of HIV and AIDS. This objective is achieved in the following steps. Firstly the function, the form and the practices of indigenous female Chisungu initiation rites are explained. Secondly, the gendered cultural values of indigenous female Chisungu initiation rites are demonstrated while simultaneously providing details of the symbolic meaning of the rites and the interpretation of the initiation songs and the sacred emblems (imbusa). Thirdly, how gendered cultural values of indigenous Chisungu initiation rites can be retrieved for HIV prevention is illustrated. Finally the importance of inculturating the values of indigenous female Chisungu initiation rites in the UCZ with regards to empowering women in the context of HIV and AIDS is explored.
Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Community Psychology) Faculty of Arts University of Zululand, 2010.
The lives of individuals in all societies are a series of passages from one age to another and from one occupation to the other. Among the Vhavenda, there are fine distinctions among age or occupational groups and progression from one group to the next is accompanied by special rituals enveloped in ceremonies which involve actions that are clearly regulated and guarded so that the entire society suffer no discomfort or injury. The research explores and describes the lived experiences of Vha-Venda initiated women in the rural areas of Mashau, Mashawana and Shayandima village in Limpopo Province, South Africa. The perception that transition practices, otherwise known as initiation rituals or rites of passage, are only practiced in the ‘traditional’ societies because it is believed to be where the culture is embedded. This study draws on qualitative research principles based on the ethnographic approach. This research explores and describes the lived experiences of initiation of Venda women that is practiced and currently being implemented in the three villages that is, Mashau, Mashawana and Shayandima village in Limpopo Province, South Africa. As a result, this study is informed by the qualitative data gathered during the initial stages of the research with the assistance of research guides. The core material in this study emerges from in depth, semi-structured interviews conducted during individual interviews and focus group interviews with fifteen initiated women and two research guides between the age of thirty and sixty. The research guides, with special knowledge of the culture assisted the researcher on the process and activities of the initiation and also informed the researcher about the venues where certain rituals take place and also assisted in translation of certain phrases for clarification. In compliance with research ethics, the identities of the respondents remain confidential through the use of pseudonyms. The research concludes that the lived experiences of women initiation are private and one is strictly prohibited to talk about them, especially with uninitiated women. The aim is to portray the traditional social and cultural ritual proposed to be learnt and preserved. In this study, the researcher’s findings are that: Conformity, compliance and obedience with the initiation rituals can save a person from embarrassment in Limpopo Province where initiation is practiced. Participants reported that women are silenced and forbidden to talk about initiation outside ‘dombani’ with the uninitiated women. They reported that the initiation ritual is secret and thus a taboo to talk about it. Initiates are prohibited to disclose what happens during the initiation process. In contrast, uninitiated women viewed the ritual as barbaric and promiscuous. The initiated indicated that they were forced to attend because of fear of rejection, discrimination and isolation by the community. Other participants agreed to have attended for the sake of acceptance, though they believed to have gained knowledge about understanding womanhood. Most of the women mentioned that although it was some years that they had attended the initiation school, they still carried the burden of anger, shame, humiliation, frustration, low-self esteem, sense of helplessness and lack confidence and still find it hard to share their experiences or talk about them. The researcher concurs with the participants and Stayt (1968) that initiated women are denied freedom of expression. It is sticky prohibited to talk or share the initiation experiences with the non- initiated let alone discuss it outside dombani. Thereby, the aim, and its concomitant 4 objectives, have been thoroughly explored and achieved.

This study investigates the distinguishing characteristics and the modifications to the traditional male initiation ritual as practised in KwaBhaca in the Eastern Cape. The concerns surrounding the incidence of death and maiming from related traditions is also investigated. The study reveals that • the male initiation ritual is still highly regarded in KwaBhaca; • the male initiation ritual itself is still performed strictly traditionally in KwaBhaca; • the male initiation ritual as practised in KwaBhaca has been successfully performed with minimal negative incident attributable to the performance of traditional circumcision; • where there is incidence of a negative reaction, this is usually attributable to a prior health condition of the initiate, and in these circumstances, the initiate is referred to a medical doctor, on condition that the medical doctor is himself an initiate, and that the consultation will be conducted in a place deemed to be safe from spiritual contamination • incidences of maiming and death can be attributed to a number of causes, associated with poor practice and unacceptable conduct; • boys who do not undergo circumcision in the traditional fashion are not regarded as men and remain boys in the eyes of the community. This means that they have to forego participation in important socio-spiritual ceremonies; • there is a necessity to share the experience of the successful traditional circumcision process to avoid further misadventure, maiming and death; • it is not the mechanics of the process of traditional circumcision that endangers lives, but the poor practice of the iingcibi (traditional surgeons) and other significant role-players including the initiates; • The traditional teaching that accompanies the ritual of circumcision is as important, if not more important, than the ritual itself. The study concludes with a series of recommendations aimed at rehabilitating and supporting the continuation of this important and venerated tradition.
Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2000.

Puberty rites are practised in many countries including South Africa. In South Africa the puberty rites have different names and different practices. This study focused on vukhomba among the Manchangana/Vatsonga. Vukhomba is conducted exclusively for girls who have reached menarche. The purpose of this study was to explore the possibility of utilising vukhomba for the improvement of the health status of women. The study design is a qualitative, exploratory, descriptive contextual research study conducted in the Northern region of the Northern Province among Vatsonga\Manchangana in four selected areas. The ethnographic strategy was used to gain access to the vukhomba to view and describe the rite from an emic perspective. The sample included all girls who were initiates during January 1998 and December 1999 in the four selected areas, as well as Vadzabi, varileri, initiated girls, initiated women and vukhomba elders who attended the initaitions. The techniques for data collection included participant observation, semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, key informant interviews and feedback workshops. The findings indicate that vukhomba is conducted during the school holidays in order to cater for girls who are still attending school. The sexuality education in this rite is mainly about encouraging initiates to maintain their virginity for their future husbands. Vukhomba therefore teaches girls attending the initiation the facts of life. It was however, found that girls often attend the initiation for material gain and respect for elders. The content of sexuality education information given to girls during the rite is inadequate. Initiated women and girls wanted to gain more knowledge about their bodies, their health, menstruation, child bearing and pregnancy, contraceptives and pregnancy. After reviewing the findings of the research an intervention programme was developed and discussed with the initiated women and initiated girls. Vukhomba elders accepted the intervention programme, however, certain topics were not approved e.g. contraception. The intervention programme is expected to form part of the initiation programme in the future. Initiated community members will be trained to facilitate the activities of this programme.
Health Studies
D.Litt. et Phil.

La langue Yanesha’ est parlée sur la frontière de deux mondes, les Andes et l’Amazonie, au Pérou central. Un travail de terrain ethnolinguistique parmi le peuple Yanesha’ a été effectué en mai-août 2008 pour étudier cette langue et les facteurs menant possiblement à sa disparition. Ce mémoire porte sur les traits caractéristiques de la langue Yanesha’ et sa place à l’intérieur de la famille linguistique Arawak. L’auteure discute aussi à propos de ponapnora, un rituel de puberté qui joue un rôle important dans la préservation d’héritage musical et linguistique auprès des femmes Yanesha’.
The Yanesha’ language is spoken on the edges of two worlds, the Andes and the Amazon, in southcentral Peru. Ethnolinguistic fieldwork was carried out among the Yanesha’ people in May-August 2008 to learn about their language and the possible factors leading to its endangerment. This thesis examines the unique linguistic features of Yanesha and its place within the Arawak language family. It also discusses a puberty ritual that plays an important role in preserving musical and linguistic heritage among Yanesha’ women: the ponapnora female initiation ritual.
Thesis written in co-mentorship with Richard Chase Smith Ph.D, of El Instituto del Bien Comun (IBC) in Peru. The attached file is a pdf created in Word. The pdf file serves to preserve the accuracy of the many linguistic symbols found in the text.