Emergence of the Nation. By the sixteenth century, European Traders had established permanent trading posts along the coast and encouraged local peoples to raid their neighbors for slaves. The slave trade created and reinforced ethnic distinctions in the region. Bijagos became notorious slave raiders, and Manjaco and Papel produced food for the coastal trading posts, along with trade goods, such as elaborately patterned textiles.
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Government The constitution, the Loi Fundamental, was ratified in1990. The government isbased on the French Napoleonic civil law system and traditional law. The president is democratically elected to five-year terms, and the holder of this office appoints the prime minister and the other ministers. Representatives to the People’s National Assembly, the unicameral parliament, are elected by popular vote.
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Classes and Castes. While Western education and employment in the formal sector have limited the strength of traditional social orderings, the legacies of caste groupings and domestic slavery continue to shape social relations. In Middle and Upper Guinea, professional artisans such as blacksmiths, leath-erworkers, and bards form a social caste. Precolonial social categories are also evident in areas where the descendents of slaves live in the farming villages that were inhabited by their bonded ancestors. In most of the country, marriage between noble women and men of lower status is frowned upon. These traditional rankings have weakened as education, employment, and monetary wealth have created new social hierarchies.
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Etiquette varies considerably according to ethnicity. In the past, Indians were expected to defer to La-dinos, and in general they showed them respect and subservience at all times. In turn, they were treated by Ladinos as children or as persons of little worth. Some of those modes of behavior carried over into their own society, especially within the cofradia organization, where deliberate rudeness is considered appropriate on the part of the highest-ranking officers. Today there is a more egalitarian attitude on
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Government As of 1993, the president and vice-president and sixteen members of the eighty-member congress are elected by the nation as a whole for non-renewable four-year terms, while the remaining sixty-four members of the unicameral legislature are popularly elected by the constituents of their locales. Despite universal suffrage, only a small percentage of citizens vote.
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Division of Labor by Gendert. Chamorro culture had a balance in gender roles. power within the clan belonged to both the oldest son and the oldest daughter. women traditionally held power over the household, while men conducted affairs in the public sphere, including hunting and fishing. The oldest daughter cared for her parents in their older years. Three centuries of colonialism have created much change, particularly in the public sphere. Men dominate political offices, and women are leaders in many social, religious, and cultural organizations.
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Religious Beliefs. Chamorros believe that their ancestors have lived in the Mariana Islands since the dawn of time. In this world view, the Mariana Islands lie at the center of the universe and all hu- man life began in Guam. While almost all residents are baptized into the Roman Catholic faith or belong to another Christian denomination, animistic beliefs persist, including a respect for ancestral spirits, or taotaomo’na, who are believed to occupy certain trees and other areas in the forests. Persons entering the jungle are expected to ask permission from the taotaomo’na and remain quiet and respectful. Those who offend the taotaomo’na may receive bruises or suffer from inexplicable ailments.
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Artists and writers often receive support from the french state. There is a private school of music, and music pervades the culture. Local record labels promote Antillean bands. With the renewed interest in Creole, traditional oral culture is being revived;
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Colonialism created different levels of culture, architecture, and the use of space. A unique architectural style was created in rural areas: the colonial villa with a majestic gallery, verandahs, and jalou-sied windows for ventilation and the vernacular dwelling (case Creole) of two or three rooms with a kitchen, yard, and garden. These wooden huts have been supplanted by hurricane-resistant cement houses of one or two stories. The traditional dichotomy between rural and urban landscapes has become less visible as cities and industrial zones expand and suburbs are created. urban architecture has evolved over time from French military, ecclesiastical, and colonial administrative architecture in the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries to public works in the 1930s, postwar construction such as low-income public housing, and a modern style influenced by local architects who are adapting contemporary construction principles to a tropical environment. More...
Support for the ArtsThe arts are supported largely by tourists, expatriates, and islanders.Literature. Crick-crack stories often include the spider character Anansi and his friends. These stories are similar to fairy tales and have both oral and written traditions. They often are shared in groups, with the storyteller beginning ‘‘Crick,’’ and the audience replying ‘‘Crack.’’
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