The Traditional cultures Are those that are organized around elements of the past, such as customs and habits of previous societies. In this sense, they hold in high esteem the inheritance of the ancestors.
The traditional cultures are organized in small communities, mainly tribes, that allow to preserve the values (rituals, religious practices, among others) in a more efficient way. In larger societies, the transmission of values would be more difficult.
Traditional culture contrasts with modern cultures (which attach to contemporary values but are open to change) and even to emerging cultures (which propose changes as subcultures).
In this regard, Claude Lévi-Strauss indicates that traditional cultures are"cold societies"since they do not allow historical processes to modify their values . This means that they are more or less static.
Some of the best-known traditional cultures are the Aboriginal culture of Oceania and the Aboriginal cultures of Central America.
Aborigines of Oceania
The culture of the aborigines of Oceania is traditional because it preserves the values of their ancestors. Some of these values are shown below.
Semabonds
Most Aboriginal groups in Oceania are semi-nomadic. Each group"owns"a wide area of land and moves in it in accordance with the changes of the seasons.
Each group knows the local fauna and flora and how this varies according to the climatic conditions that occur throughout the year.
Language
The origin of the aboriginal languages of Oceania is unknown. However, it is considered that the languages spoken on the continent come from a common ancestor, while the languages spoken on the islands have descended from another linguistic branch.
During the period of colonization of Oceania, more than 270 aboriginal languages were spoken. However, at present, only between 30 and 70 of these are conserved.
The Spiritual Plane
The nucleus of the aboriginal traditions is the spirituality, the human being and its relation with the nature.
The dream
According to the Aborigines of Oceania, the Dream, the World of Dreams or the Time of Dreams, is the timeless period in which they converge past, present and future. The World of Dreams is beyond the physical and temporal planes.
The conception of the World of Dreams is transmitted through stories, which give explanations for any aspect of life, from the creation of the Earth to how the porcupines were formed.
The stories of the Dream explain how the spirits of the world, the ancestral beings, roamed the Earth and gave shape to the sky, the waters and the earth's crust.
For example, one of the Dream tales explains that the sun emerged from a giant emu egg that burned in the atmosphere.
When the fire of the egg was extinguished, the gods of the sky decided to keep a bonfire in the sky during the day, to remember the brilliance of the emu egg.
Likewise, ancestral beings were responsible for the creation of human beings.
At first, humans and spirits coexisted in harmony, but with the passage of time the latter left Earth. Some returned to their spiritual houses and others merged with landscape elements (rivers, mountains, trees, among others).
Totem
Another spiritual aspect of the aborigines of Oceania is the belief that each person is born with a totem.
The totem can be a specific element (such as a plant, an animal, a river) or an abstract idea (such as joy, friendship, sexual desire, among others).
An individual's totem is assigned the moment the mother realizes she is pregnant. For example, if a woman learns of her pregnancy while bathing in the river, this river will be her son's totem.
Family
Within families, the following system applies: Siblings of the same sex are"equal". To illustrate this principle, let us imagine that there are two brothers. One of these brothers has a daughter.
According to the rule, the two brothers are equal to being of the same sex, reason why both are the parents of the girl. However, there is a distinction between the biological father and the second parent.
With the brothers of different sexes, the western model is followed. That is, the father's sisters are the girl's aunts.
Aboriginal Cultures of Central America
In Central America, mainly in Mexico and Guatemala, Aboriginal tribes are found.
Traditional Cultures in Mexico
In Mexico, there are 56 Indigenous groups And each of these represents a traditional culture. Among these groups, stand out Nahua, Mayan, Zapotec, Mixtec and Otomi.
These groups constitute diverse linguistic communities, since each one of them presents / displays a diverse dialect that serves to give name to the tribe. For example, nahualt is the Nahua language.
With respect to religion, Mexican Aboriginal cultures do not retain many aspects of their ancestors. The few religious elements of pre-Columbian cultures have been syncretized (mixed) with Catholic beliefs.
Traditional Cultures in Guatemala
As for the Guatemalan aboriginal tribes, they preserve little more than 20 dialects that are linguistic heritage of the Mayas. Among these languages, the kaqchikel, the kekchi and the man stand out.
Many of the Guatemalan natives do not speak Spanish, which demonstrates their attachment to the values of their ancestors.
As for religion, many of these aboriginal cultures keep practicing certain rituals to heal affections, to celebrate life, death and all their transitions (baptisms, marriages, among others).
In some tribes, the figure of the shaman is still conserved, that is a sorcerer or priest that can contact the beings supreme.
References
- Traditional societies. Retrieved on August 2, 2017, from en.wikipedia.org
- What is Aboriginal Dreamtime? Retrieved on August 2, 2017, from aboiginal-art-australia.com
- Australian Aboriginal Dreamtime Mythology. Retrieved on August 2, 2017, from crystalinks.com
- Aboriginal Bechbook. Chapter 2: Aspects of Traditional Aboriginal Australia. Retrieved on August 2, 2017, from jstor.com
- The Dreaming. Retrieved on August 2, 2017, from australia.gov.au
- Indigenous People of Mexico. Retrieved on August 2, 2017, from en.wikipedia.org
- Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. Retrieved on August 2, 2017, from en.wikipedia.org.