The Roles and Values of Menzuma : Islamic panegyrics in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa
International and interdisciplinary workshop Institute of Ethiopian Studies, 19 -20 November 2010
The songs of praise called menzuma, sung by a soloist accompanied by a choir and percussion are popular all over the Muslim areas of Ethiopia where the practice of Sufi Islam is still well rooted.
The purposes of this workshop are many :
To study Menzuma genre from different perspectives and in the different languages in which it is performed.
To study the role of Menzuma as a social performance in public or private spheres.
To understand the relations between the oral performance and the written text of Menzuma.
To explore the different levels of significance of Menzuma texts, i.e. Religious, moral, historical, artistic etc...
To observe the circulation, exchange and transformations of Menzuma among different societies of Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa.
Organizing Institutions
Institute of Ethiopian Studies, Addis Ababa University
