Another Look at the Nag el-Hamdulab Iconography

Introduction:

This entry is essentially a spin-off of another entry, Relationship between Nagadan and "Lower Nubian" Burials, and henceforth inspired by a matter that was raised in a reader commentary.  It revolves around the veracity of allegations contained in the iconography of the Nag el Hamdulab epigraphy that is making rounds in the net.

Relationship between Nagadan and "Lower Nubian" Burials

Introduction:

This entry piggybacks on a matter that came up in a 2009 blog entry on this site, titled "What the Different Styles of Crowns could mean in the developments leading up to Kmt [Nwt] State Formation". This matter concerned the possible relationship between the Ta-Seti (particularly in Qustul) royalty and those of Nagada. In particular, the potential of Ta-Seti royalty having "surrogate" or "proxy" ruling concern(s) in complexes up north, such as those associated with the Nagada, was raised on the grounds of certain characteristic regalia of the Dynastic Egyptian complex appearing to show their precedences in the content of the Qustul royal cemetery. Examples of such regalia, are the White Crown and the Falcon, which has intimately been associated with Horus on Dynastic Egyptian wall reliefs. The idea of a relationship whereby royalty from Nagada and Ta-Seti sought to manage international relations, for example to avoid costly confrontations to either party and strengthen political and trade relationships, through marital unions between members of two polities, had not been ruled out either. In the aforementioned 2009 entry, a study by Prowse and Lovell [1] was called upon. This study is hereby recalled, and will be discussed in more detail.

The Coming of Age of the Olympic Games

Introduction: 

It's hard to resist the temptation of having something to say about the Olympics, now that the summer Olympic Games are here again. Greece holds a special nostalgic place in the circles of the Olympic Games, that have been by tradition, held every four years for both summer and winter, respectively; the reason being, that these games are said to have been inspired by ancient Greek Olympic games. In the midst of accompanying jubilation around these games, Greece is often touted as the "birth place of sports", as particularly exemplified by media talk on those occasions when Greece took on the role as the host nation for the games, like the recent events that took place in Athens eight years ago. Such glorification rarely pay mind to history of organized sports events going even further back in time, as exemplified by those in say, ancient Egypt.

Rebuttal to: The "Correction" of the Supposed "10 Economic Myths" about Capitalism

Introduction: 

The development of modern capitalism in "western" nations has been accompanied by damaging consequences for Africa, as it has elsewhere, paving way to such destructive phenomena like the explosive and conflict-prone balkanization of Africa, ripping the continent off sizable chunks of its able-bodied workforce through the promotion and practice of slavery,  not leaving out brain-drain, disintegration of preexisting socio-cultural institutions [e.g. school systems, architectural concepts, dress codes, writing systems, preexisting trade networks, local industry, and the like] that had long served the peoples of the continent and replacing them with "western" counterparts/variants, thereby inducing people of the continent to become dependent on European economies, draining natural resources and compelling many localities on the continent to become net exporters of capital rather than net consumers of capital, rewriting history to serve the oppressors, and so forth. Since capitalism has had disastrous effects on the continent, it is only fitting to set some things straight about this system of economy.

Strolling down Memory Lane: African Labour Movement

Introduction: 

So what's new? The answer is a disappointing "nothing", as far as the ensuing subject matter is concerned. This grand continent (Africa), which has the distinction of being the default home of humanity and many other magnificent species, has been inflicted with gross propaganda-driven disinformation, along with a good amount of apathy; mostly of the willful kind, ever since the common era rise to significance of previously isolated west European countries in the globe's geopolitical landscape. Many examples of this trend have been covered on this site, ranging from DNA studies to historical analysis. For instance, it has become something of a cultic ritual of sycophants of 'western' imperialism and associated chauvinism to insinuate that African labour forces were granted "freedom" or "independence" on a silver platter, supposedly as a "goodwill" gesture on the part of occupying intruders (colonists) from outside, particularly from Europe, who had nothing at heart but thinking only of the people they came to inhumanely colonize. The same sycophants have a tendency to blame social misery in the continent on the supposed "premature withdrawal" of colonial presence.

Apathy has spurred others to opine away that Africans rarely stand up for themselves, thereby suggesting that Africans are somehow innately submissive to oppression. Such personalities assume that just because their local TV news networks don't cover it, African labour movements must then be all but non-existent, not leaving out that they all-too-often than not have a screwed up idea of what entails Africa as a geological entity. Of course, a sober research is all that is needed to render any of these assumptive opinions as nothing more than emotional bunk, and avoidable, by anyone with a genuine desire to acquire knowledge.

How are the Media and Schools catching up with Scientific Progress? Pt.5

Introduction:

We proceed on from the last segment, wherein we looked at how nationalism and like ideology continues to plague science. No science has infamously suffered from this more than the discipline of human palaeontology. In the "west", the venture into this field started with getting to know remains of the European Neanderthal, and the sparking thereof, the belief that Europe was the hub of human origins.

How are the Media and Schools catching up with Scientific Progress? Pt.4

Introduction:

In the previous segment, a good deal of space was dedicated to a straightforward preliminary look at the portrayal of non-European peoples, especially Africans, in "western" media not merely as a loosely connected hodgepodge of unconscious and conscious underlying motives, ranging from economic considerations to racism, but rather, as a conscious undertaking of "western" imperialism, of which the 'western' establishments are quite mindful.

How are the Media and Schools catching up with Scientific Progress? Pt.3

Introduction:

In the previous segments of the this blog entry, much attention was paid to History channel documentary reenactments of the ancients of Africa, particularly the Ancient Egyptians. Ancient Egypt has been the most popular subject of 'western' fascination and romanticism, but this sort of thing has not been limited to just Egypt. It has been extended to other African complexes, from Timbuktu, the Great Zimbabwe, to ancient Abyssinia (modern day Ethiopia). A good example of this can be seen in the portrayal of an Ancient Abyssinian kingdom in the now 9 year old comedy flick of the title "The Hot Chick".

How are the Media and Schools catching up with Scientific Progress?-Pt2

Carried on from the first entry.

Introduction recap:

The taking up of African historiography by Europeans has long been mired with disinformation, as scholars of European descent sought to accommodate imperialist designs of their governments around the African continent. This matter had been particularly brushed on briefly in an earlier entry discussing the significance of additional Timbuktu chronicles that were brought to light in recent times and the corresponding rush to preserve those relics, whereby we come across the systematic construction of the "Ghana Conquest Theory", at a time when European polities had their eye set on colonizing African territories and fuel their growth with African resources. The historiography of Ancient Ghana, and Western Sudan (otherwise now recognized as "West Africa") in general, was but just one element of this disinformation campaign; the policy had extended to other elements of African historiography, Ancient Egypt being the most popular and enduring example of this. Complexes from Kush, Abyssinia or Aksum to the Great Zimbabwe had all become casualties of European disinformation.

How are the Media and Schools catching up with Scientific Progress?

Introduction:

The taking up of African historiography by Europeans has long been mired with disinformation, as scholars of European descent sought to accommodate imperialist designs of their governments around the African continent. This matter had been particularly brushed on briefly in an earlier entry discussing the significance of additional Timbuktu chronicles that were brought to light in recent times and the corresponding rush to preserve those relics, whereby we come across the systematic construction of the "Ghana Conquest Theory", at a time when European polities had their eye set on colonizing African territories and fuel their growth with African resources. The historiography of Ancient Ghana, and Western Sudan (otherwise now recognized as "West Africa") in general, was but just one element of this disinformation campaign; the policy had extended to other elements of African historiography, Ancient Egypt being the most popular and enduring example of this. Complexes from Kush, Abyssinia or Aksum to the Great Zimbabwe had all become casualties of European disinformation.

Science has answers - III: God is Not Necessary for the Creation of the Universe - Says Stephen Hawking

This entry is the continuation of an earlier entry on the genesis of the universe, and perspectives on that issue, both from scientific standpoint and theological standpoint. Here, the main focus will be on what then science says must have happened before our universe emerged, if as science says, that there is no need to look towards God as the agent responsible for getting the universe going . Read the 1st and 2nd parts of this topic: Here and here, respectively.

Science has answers - II: God is Not Necessary for the Creation of the Universe - Says Stephen Hawking

This entry is the continuation of an earlier entry on the genesis of the universe, and perspectives on that issue, both from scientific standpoint and theological standpoint. Here, the main focus will be on the "life" aspect of the universe. Read the first part of this topic: Here

Could Religion be an Outmoded Institution?

Perhaps there were moments in humanity's social evolutionary history when religion served a progressive purpose, in the sense that it allowed humans to make that transition to begin asking questions of how they got here, how our world came to be and so forth. The turn towards burying the dead love ones by our pre-historic ancestors testifies to this abstract thought in human development, and hence, must have marked a turning point in human thinking. This was to serve as the prelude to the concept of scientific inquiry of our existence and how our world came to be.

Perspective on the so-called "Witchcraft" Practices

Just like the other romanticized media concoctions of Africa to 'western' and/or 'western influenced' audiences around the world, another typification of Africans is the practice of 'witchcraft'. A burgeoning trend in 'western' media outlets, is the progressive building up of a narrative of "increasing witchcraft" violence on the continent, whereby 'witchcraft' may be defined as follows: "defining witch craft as superstitious behavior that would traditionally be considered deviant".

Science has answers - I: God is Not Necessary for the Creation of the Universe - Says Stephen Hawking

Introduction:

Herein the age old question surrounding the creation of the Universe, including our planet Earth of course, and God's role in this will be visited and analyzed in some detail, both from the physicists' and creationists' perspectives.

Summarizing clade M1

Clade M1 has been mentioned on this site quite a few times, usually in complicated molecular genetics jargon that some may be hard-pressed to understand. At times, the jargon proves to be complicated to the point that some individuals don't even realize it, when their ideological views about this clade are being refuted beyond little to no doubt. So to address this, the goal herein is to simplify basic facts about this clade to the extent possible.

Knowledge-base Tool Kit: What's with all this not Getting "Africa" Right?

It is a familiar name for one of the largest tectonic plates on the planet and something that primary school kids can easily place on the map. There are very few places on the globe where the name "Africa" has not been heard, yet it seems to be the most inexplicably misconstrued and misused name. Thanks to basic geography lessons in schools, kids can pretty much get the basic idea of Africa right; so why can't full grown adults?

Lactase persistence genotypes and malaria susceptibility in Fulani of Mali: Review!

There seems to be a trend amongst 'western' geneticists, to cite third party (not of their own) sources to bolster theories that cannot be sufficiently explained by their own findings. This often leads to the referencing of sources that concern samples of geographic specifics, and possibly, sample sizes that are distinct from those of the research group doing the citing [of the foreign source], without full understanding of the archeological record and linguistic background of the sample subjects under study. A good example of this can be found in the 2009 study by Tishkoff et al. that was the topic of this blog in the same year, wherein the authors cite at least three different external sources on Fulani gene pool, concerning Y-DNA, mtDNA, and lactase persistence-affiliated T-13910 allele of the MCM6 gene, as means of securing support for a theory they envisioned from their limited data. For instance, they speculated that a section of their Fulani samples must have low to moderate levels of "European/Middle Eastern" ancestry, because there was some connection with the "European/Middle Eastern" cluster. Apparently their results were not sufficient enough to make that speculation conclusive, and so, compelled them to call on external sources as means to buttress their estimation of their results.

Modernization of Sahelian/Sudanic Archtectural Traditions

There is an attitude of dismissal amongst personalities who are foreign to and scornful of African cultures, with regards to elements of Sahelian/Sudanic architectural traditions, as merely simple structures of mud. Never mind the multiple layers of design both in physiology and building-material that constitute the Sahelian or Sudanic architectural traditions. In an earlier posting, the long tradition of building in stone in western Africa, along with several mud-built designs, was elaborately covered [see: Before the Ruins]. Perhaps nothing gets the point across better than photography, just how elaborate and sophisticated the otherwise "bland" looking architectural designs are; paint-jobs can do wonders in bringing out the true sophistry of these designs, that perhaps unpainted architecture do not make as apparent.

Getting to Know Ancient Egyptian Art - Continued

Here, we carry-over an ongoing topic on "Getting to Know Ancient Egyptian Art". This section will deal with certain codes which artists appear to have adhered to. These are recurring themes that appear to have then been timeless, in that they spanned several Dynasties despite new artistic styles sanctioned by succeeding rulers.