The relevance of traditional folksongs of the Banyankole to the youth in Ankole (South-Western Uganda)

Abstract

This study was about the folk songs of the banyankole of South Western Uganda and their relevance to their to the youth of Ankole. In this study, I examined the background of the banyankole, the stucture of performance, Gender roles in the performance of folk songs , continuity and change of the folk songs . I also examined the occasions where the folk songs were performed. The findings of the study indicate that the folk songs and less relevant to the youth in Ankole today. This is mainly because the youth have less knowledge about these folk songs. My research has also shown that a number of things have changed in the context of what folk songs are composed of and the perception of people about them. These changes are as a result of education, religion, and modernity as a whole. For example, in the twenty-first century, it is no longer only the men that are allowed to perform folk songs as it was the case among traditional Banyankole, but also the women can do so in the contemporary society.