Thesis (M.A.)(African Languages) --University of Limpopo, 2009. / Most people feel not comfortable in taking part in ritual ceremonies thinking that they are barbaric, old fashioned and valueless. The aim of this study is to make this people change their perspective by bringing out their significance through thorough investigation on the symbolism which is used in their performances which hides their practical meaning and value. Qualitative method was used to gather the information and data used in this research in which interviews were conducted. Thirty people, both males and females were visited at their homes from villages around Malamulele Township, although only few were quoted.Their responses made it clear that a lot of symbolism is used in Xitsonga ritual ceremonies which made it not clearly understood by the youth which led to their downfall. It is recommended that in the performance and practice of these rituals, a sort of explanation should be given which will clear inquisitive minds. It is also recommended that the society at large be educated about their value and significance for them to practice them with pride and dignity.

This is a study of Prehistoric musical instruments from Scandinavia and the different meanings they could have had in the Prehistoric society. I have described the different types of possible music instruments and the different categories that they belong to. I have also written about their different functions that could have been for example ritual artefacts, shamanic tools or useful instruments in hunting. Two case studies are also presented in the essay, the Falköpingsflute and the Balkåkradrum.

<p>This is a study of Prehistoric musical instruments from Scandinavia and the different meanings they could have had in the Prehistoric society. I have described the different types of possible music instruments and the different categories that they belong to. I have also written about their different functions that could have been for example ritual artefacts, shamanic tools or useful instruments in hunting. Two case studies are also presented in the essay, the Falköpingsflute and the Balkåkradrum.</p>

The Postclassic (pre-conquest) Nahua often performed displays of religious devotion. Usually involving stripping victims of their skin, flesh and internal organs, these public, state-sanctioned rites have been understood as astonishing, even exceptional, for their brutality. As a consequence, scholars have focused on human sacrifice at the steps of the Templo Mayor; ritual away from the imperial capital Tenochtitlan has remained very poorly understood. Where attempts have been made to understand regional practices, scholars have generally assumed binary distinctions between central versus periphery or state versus local. Existing studies fail to appreciate Nahua ritual as fluid and dynamic, instead casting ceremonial behaviour across space as unrelated and fundamentally oppositional. Integrating the ethnohistorical and archaeological records, this thesis takes understandings of Nahua ritual in new directions by examining the relationship between the public arena, the sacred landscape and domestic spheres. Crucially, this thesis argues that rituals were sensitive to circumstantial pressures and personal imperatives, across hierarchies,space and time. In so doing, this study suggests a more fluid model for understanding Nahua ritual than binary distinctions can allow. A lack of appreciation for variation or agency in ritual performance has perpetuated the understanding that the Nahua were trapped in a cycle of ferocious ritualism which left little room for critical thought. Using alphabetic, pictorial and archaeological evidence for a rounded perspective, this thesis examines the intersection between official structures and personal agency to question the notion that all Nahuas unthinkingly repeated human sacrifice and other ritual bloodshed. This study argues that the household was a crucial arena for the normalisation of the blood debt which permitted the acceptance of mass public human sacrifice. This thesis finds that, within the Nahua's symbiotic worldview, activities of the temple, mountain and household rituals were mutually supporting. Moreover, it is shown that the Nahuas chose to adapt their rituals throughout the years, to suit individual preferences and environmental circumstances. Taken as a whole, my findings suggest that the Nahuas sought to control their daily existence by adapting rituals to assuage violent and impulsive supernatural forces.

Vyšehrad cemetery: Place of National Cemetery Abstrakt - English Lucie Babíčková In the beginning of the thesis I am interesting about the history of Vyšehrad cemetery and about some social live happening at this cemetery. For example I am interested in several additional funerals to this cemetery (for example Vlasta Burian), with several ceremonies around some people buried on Vyšehrad (Karel Čapek or Bedřich Smetana). I am also interested in the Svatobor society - society which founded this cemetery. In the fourth chapter I am writing about visitors of Vyšehrad and about their perception of Vyšehrad areal - especially what differences they can see between the park and the cemetery. I am working on this part mainly with theory of Pierre Nora about national monuments (or so-called places of memory). According his opinion nations can worship itself thanks these monuments and I think that Vyšehrad is one of these monuments in the Czech environment. I am also interested in some important events connected to the cemetery or about reasons for visiting this place. For this I am using typology of John Urry mostly.

Au Yémen, et spécialement à Sanaa et dans les régions avoisinantes, la zaffah est à la fois une cérémonie collective et un rite de passage, dont l'organisation marque la célébration et la reconnaissance par la communauté du changement de statut de l'un de ses membres (mariage, mise au monde d'un enfant, obtention d'un diplôme...). Animée et interprétée par des spécialistes, la zaffah maintient dans la mémoire du groupe un répertoire de poésies chantées, dont la forme et le contenu véhiculent des traditions très anciennes, tout en s'adaptant aux mutations sociales et culturelles les plus récentes. / In Yemen, and especially in Sanaa and in the neighbouring regions, zaffah is both a collective ceremony and a rite of passage. Its organization marks the celebration and the recognition by the community of a change of status (marriage, birth, graduation…) of one of its members. Led and interpreted by specialists, zaffah maintains in the memory of the group a repertory of sung poetry, whose shape and contents transmit very old traditions, while adapting to the most recent social and cultural transformations.