By: Augie Alvarado
The concept of endangered cultures is an interesting and sad one. This idea basically explains how and why cultures, languages, and people are becoming “endangered” or even extinct because of the loss of cultural integrity and the desire to learn or continue a culture. Dr. Wade Davis discusses this phenomenon as something “as important to the well-being of the planet as, indeed, the biological web of life that you know as a biosphere”. The rapid spread of English and other “mainstream” languages like Cantonese, Spanish, and French as well as the Western culture are partially responsible for smaller cultures being pushed out of existence. To the Anuak people of Ethiopia, their culture is close to disappearance. Originally living in southwest Ethiopia and parts of South Sudan, the Anuak were forced out of their homelands by others and now reside along numerous rivers and streams. As agricultural people, they survive off of raising sheep and goats, yet are only able to have a few cattle, sheep, or goats and plant/grow what they can. The community of remaining Anuak is extremely tight knit with little contact to the outside world. This has made it so that new generations of Ethiopians know close to nothing about the Anuak culture while the group continues to grow smaller and smaller. People living near the Anuak often took advantage of them, treating them with little respect and scamming them out of money, food, and other resources. Many outsiders also took Anuak men to become slaves and young girls to forcibly become concubines. Though slavery was abolished in Ethiopia after WWII, peope still look down on the Anuak and consider them of “slave” status. A combination of the prejudice held by other Ethiopians and other cultures within the country and how the Anuak culture is structured are the main reasons for the near extinction of the Auak. People associated with the group are all seen as lower class, and this makes those curious about the culture to rethink ever making any sort of connection to the Anuak. In order for the world to remain a vibrant and diverse place, people have to want to learn about a culture, language, or people. A world with only one language, one culture, one kind of person is a boring one that will inevitably destroy the beauty of Earth and its human population.
The Anuak – A Threatened Culture | Cultural Survival
