To browse Academia. In July , years ago, after a long and tedious journey, the first Finnish missionaries arrived at their new missionary field in Owambo in what is now northern Namibia. This marked the beginning of an intricate relationship between Finns and Aawambo. The relations of these two people, one from the very far North, the other from the far South, formed into a remarkable and unique bond, which has not always been unproblematic but has always been intense.
This has especially been the case in past decades, leading to the long-sought independence of Namibia in The Vakwangali people of Kavango West Region in Namibia have lost much of their cultural identity through encounters with traders, missionaries and colonial rulers. A practice-based research methodology was employed to extract in-depth knowledge regarding the yihiho traditional headdress from narratives and how to design this form of textile.
The textile prints were presented to the Vakwangali community at the Ukwangali Cultural Festival, and the responses of the community are also discussed in the chapter. In post-colonial Namibia, state-sponsored cultural festivals have been a central way to promote national cultural pride and to restore cultural identities.
This chapter is not an anthropological study of cultural festivals; rather it presents a creative methodology that links Vakwangali cultural identity in practice to Vakwangali Cultural Festival. The objective was to create textiles designs inspired by the yihiho traditional headdress with an attempt to revive its value and meaning. A creative methodology was adopted to reflect on colonial history and influence by acknowledging trauma and loss suffered through the forceful removal of the yihiho headdress.
(mh=vIEp0xJB9_OkTY8X)6.jpg "Call girl in Maseru")
Twenty-five years after the inauguration of the first President of an independent Namibia, we at the Journal of Namibian Studies thought it was time to pause, take stock and look ahead. Of course, we were not the only ones. Throughout the year, celebrations and impassioned speeches have marked the anniversary. Indeed, praise is merited. The list of accomplishments has been impressive, not least the number of new schools, hospitals and health clinics that have brought essential services to almost the entire population.
