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Posted by: Stephanie Hall
I remember a history class my junior year in high school dealing with the period in United States history when Indian tribes were being forced onto reservations. Presented as a better option were Indian schools where children were taught to assimilate into American society. To ensure that they would learn English and American customs these …
Posted in: Languages and Dialects, Native American History, Religion
Posted by: Stephen Winick
To launch the annual International Conference of Indigenous Archives, Libraries and Museums, the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress (AFC) and the Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries and Museums (ATALM) present a symposium. Titled Civil Rights, Identity and Sovereignty: Native American Perspectives on History, Law, and the Path Ahead, it will take place …
Posted in: AFC Events, Native American History, Uncategorized
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
This is the second part of a two-part article on the folklore of trains. Part one, focusing on the development of railroads in the United States and related songs and lore can be found here. Part Two: Trains and American Culture The coming of the railroads made profound changes in life and culture in the …
Posted in: African Americans, Alan Lomax, Bluegrass, Charles Lafayette Todd, Folksong, George Korson, John Lomax, Legends, Robert Sonkin, Robert Winslow Gordon, Sam Eskin, Sidney Robertson Cowell
Posted by: Stephen Winick
Did you ever wonder why U.S. government institutions like the Library of Congress use the word “folklife” rather than the more common “folklore?” Largely, we can thank the influence of Don Yoder, the eminent Pennsylvania folklorist, who passed away Tuesday at the age of 93. Long before the founding of the Library of Congress’s American …
Posted in: AFC Events, AFC History, Don Yoder, Folklorists, German Americans
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
The earliest East Asian immigrants often had a difficult journey making their way to the United States. Many carried little with them but the cultural traditions they knew, such as language, stories, religious customs, foodways, music, song, and dance. Chinese Americans Chinese immigrants, mainly Cantonese speakers from Guangdong, were among the first Asians to come …
Posted in: Asian American History, Cultural Heritage, Dance, Folk Music, Folksong, Foodways, immigration, Religion
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
John James Audubon was born on April 26, 1785 in what is now Haiti. His passion for North American wild birds fostered an ongoing interest in birds and bird conservation in the United States. But, of course, interest in birds and birdsong is as old as humankind. This essay will look at some of the …
Posted in: Animals, Carita Doggett Corse, Folk Music, Folksong, Frances Densmore, Hunting, Juan B Rael, Mary Hufford, Sidney Robertson Cowell, Stetson Kennedy
Posted by: Stephen Winick
Last week, the Library announced this year’s inductees to the National Recording Registry. There, along with classics by The Doors, Radiohead, Steve Martin, and Joan Baez, was a fascinating AFC collection: The Benjamin Ives Gilman Collection Recorded at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition at Chicago. This collection of 101 wax cylinder recordings was created by …
Posted in: AFC History, African Americans, Alan Jabbour, Alan Lomax, Cultural Heritage, ethnomusicologists, Folk Music, Folklorists, Folksong, Narratives, Native American History, Oral History, Preservation
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
One reason I became interested in the study of folklife was to learn through the voices of peoples who are often under-represented in history. As this is the end of February, African American History Month, and March is Women’s History Month, it seems a good time to take a look at what African American women …
Posted in: African Americans, Folk Music, Folksong, Herbert Halpert, John Henry Faulk, Oral History, Willis Laurence James, Zora Neale Hurston
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
January 24, 2015 is the date for the Hindu festival Vasant Panchami or Saraswati Puja, celebrating both the coming of spring and the birthday of Saraswati, the goddess of wisdom, learning, crafts, and fine arts. The date for the celebration of Vasant Panchami varies from year to year, as it is calculated by a lunar calendar. It falls on …
Posted in: Asian American History, Folk Music, Folksong, Holidays