The Dinka Vs Australia

The culture I have selected is the Dinka. The Dinka have a population of approximately 2 million, making them the largest ethnic group of Southern Sudan. Their lifestyle is simple and primitive. They base their activities and lives around the needs of their cattle. Without cattle the Dinka would not have religion or culture. They value their cattle, not for its meat or milk, but for its religious role. They are usually blacked skinned and quite attractive. They can also be characterized by their height; it is common for the males to be 7 feet tall. Song and Dance are tradition and play a huge role in the Dinka lifestyle.

The Dinka place a huge emphasis on Pride and honor. One of the rights of passage in this culture is a fatness contest. Fatness is highly valued and regarded as beauty. Therefore each year this contest is held to see which young man can become the fattest over a 3-4month period. During the contest they drink as much milk as possible and have no exercise. To be the fattest is a great accomplishment and brings you hero status as well as great honor. The young boys strive to make their families proud. The tribe and the expectations of their

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The bride is hidden while others celebrate, she joins the celebrations when the ‘bride price’ is agreed upon, and (the amount of cows) this agreement signals when the marriage has occurred. Young boys are given freedom when they take the cattle to feed.

Another tradition within the culture is cattle camp. Young girls are commonly effected by these diseases in a fight to be the skinniest, therefore the prettiest. It is traditional to sacrifice a bull in preparation for the marriage. The parents or religion may play a small role in influencing the ‘bride and groom to be’, but not nearly as much as we see in the Dinka Culture.

Song, dance and festivities are a vital part of the Dinka Culture. Just as the Dinka tell stories, our culture is shaped by our history.

The presence of a third party in the marriage proposal doesn’t exist in the Australian Culture. They were originally captured by ancient Egyptians, and sold into slavery. This is regarded as beautiful in the eyes of our youth. Our beauty contests consist of models that are thin. The young man then meets with a young boy on the outskirts of the girl’s village, who informs the girl’s family of the boy’s intentions.

Approximate Word count = 927
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

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