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Chapter seven: village rituals |
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Nkam-ngi festival or ritual to protect village |
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footnotes indicated by boxes within square brackets |
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The Nkam-ngi festival falls at the end of October or early November. It includes a feast in each hangseoki for the male members of the kienga, the surplus being taken home for the women and children, and, since the dry and cold weather is beginning, there is also a ceremony to protect the village from damage by fire. Holy days continue at intervals for nearly a fortnight, and with the feast form a welcome rest-period in the intense activity of the harvest. |