Monday 20 May 2024

African Handmade Baskets for Food Storage

Some different types of these baskets are traditionally used for winnowing grain. 

They come in a variety of types, sizes and colors. African women use natural material found on the ground or from a plant or tree to make the baskets.

Not only does it continue to play an integra part in modern community life but in some countries it has evolved to a highly expressive contemporary art form. 

African basketry is a dynamic craft, altered by social changes and shaped by both environmental and economic factors. Traditionally, shapes and weaves were determined largely by the uses for what the baskets were intended.

Nowadays, while the methods of basket making are still held in regard, the materials have significantly changed from natural fibers to include man-made creations like plastic, wire and recycled products.

Traditional fibers used in basketry reflect the local habitat. They include illala palm, sisal leaves and fiber, raffia (African bamboo), fibrous tree and plant roots such as makenge, vines, leaves (banana and fan palm), cane, bark wood and papyrus.              

Two types of vegetative fiber are normally used to make a coiled basket, one for the inner coil and one for the wrapping of the coils. For example, in Uganda and Rwanda, baskets are woven from raffia or papyrus wrapped and stitched around a coil of banana leaf stems. Grass is often used for the core of the coils.

The following are some of the tribes that have basket making existing as an integral part of their community for social, or functional use:

(1). Tutsi, Hutu, Rwanda 🇷🇼 

(2). Kuba, Pygmy, Lele, Mangbetu and Bwaka, DRC 🇨🇩 

(3). Pende, Angola 🇦🇴         

(4). Chokwe, Lozi, Tonga, Zambia 🇿🇲 

(5). Buga, Guinea and Liberia 🇬🇳 🇱🇷 

(6). Sara, Chad 🇹🇩              

(7). Zulu, South Africa 🇿🇦              

(8). iSwati, Swaziland 🇸🇿           

(9). Barotse, Twana, Botswana 🇧🇼     

(10). Tonga (Binga), Shangaan, Zimbabwe🇿🇼  

(11). Gurune, Ghana 🇬🇭                                        

(12). Tusyan, Burkina Faso 🇧🇫                            

(13). Bamileke, Cameroon 🇨🇲

(14). Uganda 🇺🇬

#Africa

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