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Archive: February 2018 (14 Posts)

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Edward Avery McIlhenny: Spicy Folklorist

Posted by: Stephen Winick

This blog post about the naturalist, ornithologist, and hot sauce innovator E. A. McIlhenny is part of a series called “Hidden Folklorists,” which examines the folklore work of surprising people, including people better known for other pursuits. In preparing this post, I was greatly aided by Shane K. Bernard, the archivist at Avery Island in Louisiana. Edward Avery …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Kumbaya: History of an Old Song

Posted by: Stephen Winick

In honor of African American History Month, we thought we’d present a classic article from Folklife Center News. This one concerns the early history of the African American spiritual “Kumbaya,” also known by other titles such as “Kum Ba Yah,” “Come By Yuh,” and “Come By Here.”  In the years since this article was first published, …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Frederick Douglass: Free Folklorist

Posted by: Stephanie Hall

This blog post about the abolitionist Frederick Douglass is part of a series called “Hidden Folklorists,” which examines the folklore work of surprising people, including people better known for other pursuits. This is part one of a two-part article, part two, “Frederick Douglass: ‘I Am a Man,’” can be found at the link. I have often …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Botkin Lectures to Go!

Posted by: Stephen Winick

The following is a guest post from AFC Folklife Specialist Nancy Groce. Botkin Lectures to Go! Learn More About Folklife, Ethnomusicology, and Oral History through the American Folklife Center’s Online Resources Have you always wanted to know more about folklore? Do you regret not taking that ethnomusicology course in college? Does finding out more about …