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| A smiling drumming group entertains guests at Kwita Izina |
In all communities naming of
children is an important cultural practice and each individual has a unique name
separating him from the rest. In African culture everything (humans, livestock,
different locations, tree species, tools of use in homesteads, period of time, many
other things) had a name by which it is able to be identified. Human names carry
a lot of significance and are based on family lineage, number of children born
at ago (twins, triplets, quadruplets, etc), events at time of birth (peaceful,
war, epidemic) period of time (drought, rainy, harvest or plant season, etc),
circumstances of birth (in captivity, in exile, etc), mood during time pregnancy
or at birth (joyful, mournful, sorrowful), conditions under which one was born,
place of birth (roadside, water spring, riverside) many others. By mentioning a
particular name, society members are able to read a lot into the events of the
time at birth.
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| HE Paul Kagame is ever present at Kwita Izina; a political statement of government commitment. |
In East Africa there is an
important cultural ceremony of Kwita Izina (baby naming ceremony) for infant
Mountain gorillas in Rwanda as a way of monitoring separate gorilla families
and appreciating important roles these primate species play in economic
development of the country. Mountain gorillas are highly endangered and face extinction
due to habitat loss to human settlement and encroachment, poaching and illegal
wildlife trade.
Baby gorilla naming is a way of
celebrating nature and continued humanity commitment of protecting and
conserving wildlife as an important resource on the planet. Each gorilla baby
is named by an important personality in Rwanda, wildlife and conservation
fraternity and entire globe whose role in many ways bring a long lasting landmark
in improving the livelihood of the people in the Rwandan and global society.
From 2005 when the maiden Kwita Izina ceremony was held 238 infant gorillas
have been named to this day. A huge step in conservation efforts and as such
the event could be termed one of the most high successful conservation effort!
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| Rwandan dancers cement Kwita Izina with cultural performances |
Take a safari to Rwanda and be part of Kwita izina ceremony at Kinigi on the fringes
of Volcanoes National Park; gorilla natural habitat, an exciting cultural
gala of dance, music, cerebration and entertainment on tourism calendar;
September of each year. It attracts a lot of attention and international media in
which important personalities in different fields; conservation, government, science,
research, security, philanthropy, tourism, international community and other
fields mingle together and cerebrate co existence in the end increasing the
government income through generating revenue on the event. The Kwita izina is a
rare ceremony of historical significance that mixes adventure and discoveryinto Rwandan history, traditional, political and economic customs and in many
ways an authentic way fulfilling a dream African safari.
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