Life-cycle events in an African society that follows indigenous practices usually begin with an offering to the ancestral spirits. The offerings can be baskets of food left on the family shrine or a beverage, water or something stronger, taken out and poured over the ancestral burial ground.
Popular ritual foods are honey, pumpkins, and yams. Shortly after birth, it is important to name the newborn; usually an ancestral or "spirit" name is chosen. The name is chosen according to which dead ancestor has "returned" in the child. (See Death below.) The name is more than a label; being given the name of an ancestor is to inherit something of his or her basic nature, qualities, and status. Among most ethnic groups, when the male reaches puberty, an initiation ceremony takes place, usually at the beginning of the dry season in May. The first stage of this ceremony is separation from all females, especially from mothers. Among most groups, circumcision is performed during this separation. The boys spend several months at camps, away from the village, where they undergo trials and are instructed in traditional beliefs and practices. Their return to the village as men is a joyful occasion, and great communal feasts are part of the celebration. The initiation of girls is often performed on an individual basis, usually just before the first menstrual period. The initiation prepares young women for marriage and usually no celebration is held, or at most a party is given for the immediate family. Throughout rural Africa, the betrothal and marriage rituals are tied to the age-old concern of collective survival. The rituals, steeped in tradition, might differ slightly from tribe to tribe, but regardless of specific traditions, marriage is a union between families and communities rather than two people. Marrying within the kin group is discouraged; however, the preferred marriage is with someone belonging to the same ethnic group. In the traditional indigenous cultures, polygamy (one husband and many wives) has been the accepted family structure, in part because of the high death rate of women during childbirth. Once a mate has been selected, the long, drawn-out courting process can take up to a year to complete in traditional cultures. The giving of premarital gifts and providing of services to each other's families help to cement the marriage agreement. Gifts from the groom's family to the family of the bride, given to validate the marriage contract, include such things as cattle, kente cloth, bags of money, beer, and food. In some communities, the men farm for their prospective inlaws as part of the nuptial contract.
In these traditional cultures, to have children is the most important responsibility of life. To be childless is to have failed the community, including the ancestors. A person without children cannot be an "ancestor" and does not participate in the continuity of communal life. Until recent years, a girl had no say in her future. As Africa modernizes, women are speaking out, and in some communities they have the right to accept or reject the husband selected by their family. Some can actually choose their own husbands but not without first consulting the ancestral spirits for approval. In most traditional religions, ancestors are revered by the living. Not everyone who dies becomes an ancestor, however, only those who have children, who die without shame, and who are correctly buried. Upon the death of a family member, a period of mourning forges links between the living and the dead. Those in mourning perform a number of rituals to ensure that the spirit of the dead person moves easily into the world of his or her ancestors.
Families practice different rituals to retain the connection between this world and the next so that they do not lose contact with ancestors. For example, ancestral worshipers make offerings of food and drink at the grave, and some ethnic groups keep a private shrine or a "spirit house" within the family compound. When a favor is requested of the ancestor spirit a sacrifice may be made, usually a small animal such as a chicken or goat. The most important link between ancestors and the living is the rebirth of the dead through the birth of a child. In this way, the relationship between ancestors and descendants is continuous and never ending. In many traditional African societies, kings and chiefs are considered sacred, and they have elaborate funerals. To please their followers, it is important for ruling figures to be impressive in death, and so they are buried in full regalia. Not too many years ago, the wives and servants of the rulers were killed and buried along with the important men to help them in their afterlife.
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