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THE ANJISA
Research by Jules Rijssen

Anyone walking around Amsterdam today, even Rotterdam, will note the 'anjisa' on the heads of some women, mainly Afro-Surinamese women, but sometimes worn by Hollander women who have admired and lived closely with the Surinamese people.  The anjisa is one of the cultural identities brought from Surinam to Amsterdam.  The anjisa is unique!  It is often worn with the 'koto' so that the person becomes a full 'koto missie'.  But more often than not, the anjisa is worn without the koto, a large skirt unique to Surinam as is the anjisa unique to Surinam Creole women.  Anjisa is used for everyday, for special occasions, both mainstream and at special Surinamese events.

The anjisa has many meanings depending on the way it is ties and placed on the head of the wearer.  Unlike other headdresses of African descent women, the anjisa is first and foremost made of ties, often held in place by pins, before being placed on the head.  The pattern and colour of the cloth for the anjisa also has meaning.  But it is the tying which has the role of non-verbal communication.  The form of tying also has specific names such as Paw-tere; Botoman ede; let-them-talk, to name but a few.

Many of the anjisa ties have sexual, political, and social meaning.  Some are used as an insult to an enemy.  One common one is the 'let-them-talk', a way of tying which looks easy when completed but very difficult to tie since it involves two or more anjisa's.  Artists seldom use pins.  Anjisas are tied by experts; not every wearer can tie an anjisa.  A detailed research is now in progress looking into the anjisa and the koto in the Netherlands as a cultural form, also as an excellent example of non-verbal communication.

JAMAICAN PROVERBS

In the Jamaican community, these kinds of proverbs are regarded as the repositories of wisdom. The following proverbs are written first in Jamaican dialect, followed by standard English translation, then the philosophical explanation.

1.
Bug blanket mek man sleep late.
A thick blanket causes a man to sleep late.
An over-abundance of luxuries causes one to become complacent, and to take life's blessings for granted.

2.
Wanti wanti can't get it, and geti geti don't want it.
He who wants it desperately cannot get it, he who gets is easily does not want or appreciate it.
Be thankful for the blessings that come to you, always realising that many of the things we take for granted are luxuries to others.

3.
Pound a fret can't pay ounce a debt.
One pound of fretting cannot repay one ounce of debts.
Problems are not solved by worrying. The time spent fretting could be more gainfully spent working on solutions.

4.
One han wash de other.
One hand washes the other.
One good turn deserves another.

5.
De olda de moon, de bryta it shine.
The older the moon is, the brighter is shines.
Some people grow wiser with age.

6.
You can't sow corn and expect to reap peas.
You cannot sow corn seeds and expect to reap peas.
Do not be surprised by the results of your past actions. Whatever you sow, you will reap.

7.
Howdy an tenky no bruk no square.
"Hello" and "thank you" do not break any squares.
There is much to be gained from displaying good manners.

8.
Hard a hearing Pitney dead a sun hot.
A hard of hearing child dies from the heat of the sun.
Children who will not listen to the instructions and advice of older folks will not succeed in life.

9.
Eye lash olda dan beard.
The eyelash is older than the beard.
We must acknowledge, with respect, those older and wiser than ourselves.

EXHIBITION ON PANJI AND KAMISA
OF THE
AUCANER MAROONS OF SURINAM
in PACE 30/31 March 2001

CARIBBEAN COMMUNITIES IN EUROPE organised an exhibition of Panji and Kamisa, the first of its kind in UK. It was highly Acclaimed by those who attended the exhibition.. Some visitors came only to view it and left, others stayed for the rest of the programme. They took part in the informal discussions and the folklore which included a workshop on the language of the talking drum which accompanied the exhibition.The feedback from the visitors was that a lot has been learnt over the two days.

The story of the Panji, (worn by women) and Kamisa (by men) and explanation of the different meanings of the non-verbal communication of Aucaners was told in Aucan by a Maroon native and translated by a representative of the Afro-Surinamese cultural Centre in South East Amsterdam.

In brief, the Panji and Kamisa was worn during the days of colonisation when groups of enslaved Africans ran off to settle deep in the bush in various parts of Surinam. A map of those settlements was on display as part of the exhibition. There were various non-verbal messages based on the stripes, colours and the way the Panji was worn which tells the status of the wearer. There were also ceremonial Panjies, Panjies which one gave as presents to older women, a girl entering puberty, a young motherjust produced a first baby etc.

Now the Panji is no longer just stripes or squares; instead women of the Aucaner Maroons use plain cloth on which they embroider various motifs to tell a story; chiefs who were good, the various deities, the names of children depending on the day of the week they were was born and various cultural symbols which elders handed down through Oral Tradition .

Panjies are now being exhibited at Art Festivals in Surinam, also as teaching aids in Amsterdam where the Surinam Community has its own small but effective 'living museum', Radio station, Media and Cultural Centre.

For further details call Petronella Breinburg on 020 7919 7096

Wedding Rituals, by Nerissa Canzius

Buxton and Pleasance are areas in the countryside of Guyana. It is home to a mostly AfricanñGuyanese community, where many traditional celebrations still remain. One such custom is Kwe-Kwe. The Kwe-Kwe takes place for a week before the marriage and is something comparable to a stag/hen night. There is dancing, eating drinking and much merry making.

In preparation for the dancing, women usually tie a shawl around their waist. Dancing is performed in an anti-clockwise direction and the percussion accompanying the dance is the stamping of feet. Songs are sung instructing the couple about married life.

In some communities, celebrations begin before the arrival of the bride-to-be and part of the ceremony is to find the betrothed and bring her back to the place where the celebrations are going on. Using a Flambo (lamp), men and women go out into the night to search for her, singing folk songs as they walk along in procession.

The bribe-to-be, is usually found 'hiding' at home or at a friend's house, from where she is taken to the celebrations. Once there, she and the groom are given instructions in the form of folk songs which thrive on words and gestures about the wedding nuptials. Normally, the Kwe-Kwe continues until the early hours of the morning before the wedding. A version of the Kwe-Kwe is not unknown to take place in the Guyanese communities in London, in place or as part of, the English style hen-night.

Death Rituals, by Angela (15)

Death is the final of the three main stages of life. Of course there are subdivisions within those three stages as students on the ritual study project have discovered. One ritual performed in countries where Catholicism is practised including England and Ireland is that, if the death is preceded by a long illness, the priest performs what is known as the 'Last Rites, to the patient. One student revealed that her aunt had the final Rites twice because she got well after the first then got very ill again, before she finally died.

After the death of a loved one, there are various rituals depending on the culture and religion (if any) of that person. The clothes worn by the deceased and mourners also vary. In some cultures, black is the funeral attire, while in other cultures, it is white. Some cultures dance and sing, others cry over their dead loved ones.

One student remembered that in the novel 'Oliver Twist' by Charles Dickens, Oliver was head of the funeral processions because in those days it was customary to have a young boy dressed in a special hat and black suit to march ahead of the funeral procession. Nowadays in England, when a person is killed accidentally or is murdered, people lay flowers close to the spot.

In some Jamaican homes the furniture in the house is moved around so that if the sprit of the dead returns to the home he or she will not recognise the place and go away. In some homes, mirrors are covered with white cloth for many weeks so that the image of the deceased would not appear in the mirror.