A study of patriachy in Luganda proverbs

Abstract

In a society, people are from different cultures that have norms, beliefs and practices that join them. In Buganda, people use Luganda as their official language which they use for communication. Buganda tribe is one of the 23 tribes in Uganda and people there are called Baganda. The Luganda language is full of meaning because it uses proverbs which have a lot of symbolism in them. This work is to expose the meanings of sum of the proverbs used from Buganda. A proverb is one of the most important genres of oral literature. The study focuses on the need to promote cultural heritage and interest in proverbs as a genre of oral literature. It shows circumstances in which proverbs were developed and the lessons these proverbs have to offer to people with what they symbolize. The case study here in presents the representation of patriarchy in in the selected Luganda proverb. It is of importance for the Baganda and other related cultures to have knowledge about their traditions and things that come along with it like the proverbs that all cultures have regardless the their settings and can be comprehended in relation to their life experience and how valuable it is when it comes to passing on the morals and traditional beliefs to the young generation. Participatory observation is one the effective method that is being used in the case study. During this, both the researcher and those giving data contributes in a way that the researcher gets engaged in some parts where there is need when the proverb is being told but leading the session to the direction that gives the required information and at the same taking up the role of gathering the information that is from the told proverb. The researcher here in also employs oral interview for further collection of data, this creates a platform for the interviewer and the interviewee to have ample time of interaction to collect detailed information about the portrayal of patriarchy in proverbs among the Baganda. This research is of great benefit to both the Buganda community and other cultures more especially those that take proverbs as much important as any other traditional elements or customs. Not only is it of value to them but also to the scholarly work of literature at large. The selected proverbs in this study are analyzed to bring out patriarchy and how it is portrayed.