People and Culture - Madagascar - page 63

lose face. You often see young men walking to market wearing a comb in their hair; they
are advertising their quest for a wife.
Most Malagasy (and all Christians) have only one wife, but there are exceptions. There
is a well-known man living in Antalaha, who has 11 wives and 120 children. This arrange-
mentseemstoworksurprisinglywell,witheachwifeworkingtosupportherownchildren,
and a head wife to whom the others defer. The man is wealthy enough to provide housing
for all his family.
THEVILLAGECOMMUNITY Malagasysocietyisastructuredhierarchywithtwofun-
damental rules: respect for the other person and knowing one's place. Within a village, the
community is based on the traditional fokonolona . This concept was introduced by King
Andrianampoinimerina when these councils of village elders were given responsibility for,
amongotherthings,lawandorderandthecollectionoftaxes.Day-to-daydecisionsarestill
made by the fokonolona .
Rural Malagasy houses are always aligned north-south and generally have only one
room. Furniture is composed of mats, tsihy , often beautifully woven. These are used for
sitting and sleeping, and sometimes food is served on them. There are often fady attached
to tsihy . For example you should not step over a mat, particularly one on which meals are
eaten.
Part of the Malagasy culture is the art of oratory, kabary . Originally kabary were the
huge meetings where King Andrianampoinimerina proclaimed his plans, but the word has
nowevolvedtomeantheelaborateformofspeechusedtoinspireandcontrolthecrowdsat
such gatherings. Even rural leaders can speak for hours, using highly ornate language and
many proverbs; a necessary skill in a society that reached a high degree of sophistication
without a written language.
The market plays a central role in the life of rural people, who will often walk as far as
20km to market with no intention of selling or buying, but simply to catch up on the gos-
sip or continue the conversation broken off the previous week. You will see well-dressed
groups of young people happily making their way to this social centre. Often there is a
homemade tombola, and other outlets for gambling.
FESTIVALS AND CEREMONIES Malagasy Christians celebrate the usual holy days,
but most tribes or clans have their own special festivals.
Ala volon-jaza This is the occasion when a baby's hair is cut for the first time. With the
Antambahokapeopleinthesouththehaircutisperformedbythegrandparents.Thechildis
placedinabasinfilledwithwater,andafterwardsbathed.AmongtheMerinatheceremony
is similar but only a man whose parents are still alive may cut a baby's hair. The family