Culture
The Seven Principles of Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa is a seven-day non-religious holiday observed in the US, meant to honor African Americans’ ancestral roots.
December 26 marks the start of Kwanzaa, also spelled Kwanza.
Seven principles of Kwanzaa
It’s a seven-day non-religious holiday observed in the US, meant to honor African Americans‘ ancestral roots. The celebration lasts until January 1.
The name comes from the Swahili phrase “matunda ya kwanza,” which means “first fruits.”
Created in 1966 by Maulana Karenga, a black nationalist and professor of Pan-African studies at California State University at Long Beach, Kwanzaa became popular in the 1980s and 1990s in conjunction with the black power movement.
The holiday is defined by Nguzo Saba, or the seven principles. Each day of the festival is dedicated to a specific principle, marked by lighting a new candle on the kinara, a seven-branched candelabra.
Here are the seven principles of Kwanzaa:
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