Oral Text

A text is a verbal or nonverbal body of symbols and signs that Africans perceive and interpret as a language. Africans transmit the oral text verbally in such a way that the audience not only hears it, but also bears an imprint and transcription in their mind and memory. In ancient times, the oral text was referred to as medu netcber, “divine speech.” Sometime later, it was referred to as Nommo, the regenerative word. The oral text was and still is perceived by many Africans as verbal energy that is considered an effective vehicle of power. In African tradition, the beholder and master of the oral text was believed to not only paint a picture, but also deter maladies, conjure spirits, and appease and placate demons. He or she could honor and revere the deceased as well as foment war, peace, or activism. The master of the oral text was a valued preacher, oracle, diviner, seba maat, teacher, djele, poet, or singer. The oral text in the African tradition is instructive, destructive, and constructive, a wealth of wit and transmitted wisdom.

According to Africa's oldest myths, the oral text became the vehicle for the creator to form and fashion the cosmos, to order the world we live in, as well as to supply intelligence, values, and instructions to humankind. It has practical and mythological significance. In the mythological sense, it is at the whim, wish, and will of the oldest ancestor to create and re-create order in the universe. It was the gift of the transcendent and lower gods to humans. In the practical sense, the oral text was used to heal, instruct, teach, name, and add insight. The oral text in the African world is both sacred and secular depending on the rhetorical situation and location. It is permanent because it cannot be taken back once released. Once spoken, it imprints the memory of those who bear witness and becomes embedded in the hearts and minds of the listeners. Although spontaneous on some occasions, at other times it may be carefully presented. It has and creates form, but it also has a function, that is, to motivate and inspire. In religion, the text is in the domain of the preacher or divine and is the conduit or emissary of inspiration from the divine for the presentation of a message. In war, the oral text is the domain of the leader. The contemporary forms of the African oral text include song, rap, spoken soul, or poetry.