In Burundi, Women Learn an Old Way to Say Hello

01The hug between the two women lasted a long time.

02An 85-year-old woman put her arms around a younger woman she had not seen for months.

03She asked her a series of questions in a song-like way.

04How are you?

05How is your husband?

06How are the kids?

07How are your cows?

08Are you on good terms with your neighbors?

09Prudenziene Namokobwa stopped the song to permit the younger woman to answer.

10The pattern is familiar to her because she has been doing it for many years.

11Ego.

12Emmeline Nziamana answered over and over in the local Kirundi language.

13Yes.

14The two women were performing a greeting of their ancestors.

15A group of neighbors watched with surprise.

16Many were seeing their first performance of the traditional form of musical greeting, known to Burundians as Akazehe.

17It is performed only by women.

18Akazehe is becoming less common, but cultural officials, teachers, and others say the greeting is worth keeping.

19During disease outbreaks, public health officials urged people to limit close contact.

20Such recommendations affected the greeting.

21Among young people in Burundi, it is hard to find those who know what Akazehe means.

22It is even harder to find someone who can perform it.

23Sendrin Kitonze is a cultural advisor in the office of the governor of Ngozi province.

24She said, People stopped doing the greeting, even though Akazehe made you feel that the person who greets you loves you.

25Some experts have noted, Akazehe could help lead to a feeling of unity in Burundi.

26The country is now largely peaceful, following a period of deadly civil war and political unrest.

27Anunciate Baragahorana is a teacher in the province of Bujumbura.

28She told the Associated Press that when she visited the central plateau area as a young girl, she was surprised and a little uneasy when women hugged and greeted her in this song-like way.

29I wanted her to finish quickly, even if it was sweet words to hear.

30Baragahorana said she feared Akazehe may disappear because of the fear of spreading diseases.

31Now, she said, people greet each other from a distance.

32Namakobwa lives in Ngozi, a hilly province in Burundi's north.

33On a recent morning, she was sitting on a mat outside when she saw Ndiyamana, the visiting daughter of a former neighbor.

34She rose and welcomed the woman as if she were her own daughter.

35I felt that the first love she had when I was just a girl is kept until now, said Ndiyamana, a broadcaster in Ngozi.

36This means that I am still her daughter.

37Isaac Nikobiba is an anthropologist in Bujumbura.

38He said a custom such as Akazahe should be kept at all costs because of its role in protecting families.

39Among communities that practice it, women could tell elder women about any problems at home.

40That could bring support from the extended family, he said.

41Nikobiba said the threat to Akazahe is part of other effects of modernization.

42He explained how the custom worked to help younger women.

43Normally, before starting a home in traditional Burundi, the girl would first receive advice from her father's sister.

44She would tell the girl, I will come to greet you after a certain time.

45Nikobiba added that during that greeting, the young woman could report any problems.

46The support from elders would help them develop better mental health for the young family, he said.

47Floride Ntakeru-Temana was among the small group of women who gathered to watch Namukobwa greeting Ndiyamana.

48She said she grew up in a farming community where no mother could perform Akazahe.

49She only heard of it through radio programs.

50After watching, she wanted to learn Akazahe herself.

51I feel better, Ntakeru-Temana said, and I saw that it was good.

52I'm Jill Robbins.