African Tribes and Traditions

Indigenous Cultures of Africa

Of all the indigenous people of the world, African tribes and traditions are perhaps the most interesting and photogenic. With respect to African tribes and traditions, there is no "Pan-African" culture, and the Africa continent has countless tribes, ethnicities and kinship groups. Perhaps the closest thing among the various indigenous cultures of Africa to a "Pan-African" culture is the current extensive distribution of African peoples speaking Bantu languages in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Western Africa, Central Africa, Eastern Africa, and Southern Africa. The wide distribution of Bantu speaking tribes is a relatively recent phenomenon and has resulted in the marginalization of the tribes speaking languages in the Khoisan language family such as the Bushmen and Hottentots (Khoikhoi). In addition, the wide spread use of the Bantu language Swahili has contributed to the Bantu influence over African tribes and traditions. Another of the unique indigenous cultures of Africa are the Pygmies. The Mbuti Pygmies are related to the Hadzabe people, one of the ancient indigenous cultures of Africa that speak a Khoisan language. Both the Pygmies and the Hadzabe tribe are hunter-gatherers, representing the most ancient African tribes and traditions of the various indigenous cultures of Africa.