Ceremonies
At the respective wedding of a young Bayso bride and a young Haro groom in Shinkiko, the latter is dancing with his Bayso bestmen among other guests only before the procession to the bride's house will take place. The music is various, Ethiopian popsongs and Ethiopian religious songs. No traditional dances are performed here. Bayso and Haro people dance under the tent that had been hired for this festive occasion.
All guests are ready for the procession from the groom's compound (Haro) to compound of the bride (Bayso). Before departure, one of the bestman (Bayso) sprays perfume on the guests.
The procession from the groom's compound (Haro) to the bride's compound (Bayso) starts after a lunch at the groom's parents’ house. After having taken pictures, after having danced and after having perfumed the wedding guests, bestmen, groom and other Haro and Bayso youngsters will drive in a minibus to pick up the bride from her house. They will take her to the nearby town of Wajifo where the bride will be kept until the bride price has been negotiated in her father's house. Others, mainly Haro wedding guests, are now following the car on foot.
The video has been shot during the procession from the Haro groom's homestead to the Bayso bride's homestead. Haro and Bayso women start to sing songs in Bayso language entering the Bayso area and the bride's compound. In the background the minibus will pick up the bride to take her to Wajifo. She will be kept there for several hours until the bride price negotiations have been regulated.
As part of the big wedding ceremony of a married couple which has accumulated wealth, women of the bride's family have to provide butter for the preparation of the feast. Among other things, the husband has to buy the maize for the porridge and invite the bride's family for food in order to show his respect and to establish smooth relations between his and her family. The video shows the Bayso women and one Haro woman preparing the buttered maize porridge (shore). The butter is made hot on a fire and the porridge cooked outside of the house. Inside the house, the cooked porridge is made into small pieces and further on mixed with butter. The language performed is Bayso while a few Haro is also spoken.
This video shows the ritualised consumption of food during the big wedding ceremony of a married couple which has accumulated wealth. Groom and bride are married since several years and have children. This wedding ceremony shall enforce the positive relationship of the groom towars the bride's (female) family. During the feast, the food is served by Haro men who are related to the groom or by Bayso men who are bondfriends with the Haro groom. First, the female guests will drink coffee with butter and eat some injera made of maize flour. Second, Haro and Bayso men will start serving meat to the female Bayso guests and relatives. As for drinks, locally brewed beer is offered, too.
This video shows a piece during the big wedding ceremony of a married couple which has accumulated wealth. The ceremony shall enforce a positive future relation to the bride's (female) family. In this case the bride's family is Bayso. The recording shows that female Bayso guests are served food in the nearby tent. It is exceptional that Haro men and Bayso bondfriends of the groom serve the food, a buttered beef stew. Serving food is usually a female duty.
This video has been recorded during the big wedding ceremony of a married couple which has accumulated wealth. After the female guests have been served two dishes, coffee and beer, they leave the wedding tent. Now it is time for the married couple plus Bayso and Haro men to enter the tent. They will finally eat a buttered porridge (haro: shore), made of maize while the couple will receive a buttered porridge made of wheat. The video shows how the Bayso best man and the groom are feeding the bride and others with both kinds of porridge in order to show their appreciation for their guests. Interestingly, this feeding gesture is usually not done in Haro daily life and has its origins in the national Amhara culture.
This video shows food preparation as part of the celebration of the Meskel festival ('the Finding of the True Cross') which is colorfuly celebrated among the followers of the Orthodox Christianity. As there are remarkable number of the Haro and Bayso following this religion, the video shows these two groups of people sharing and taking part in various activities in preparation for the holiday.
This video shows meat distrubution as part of a communal way of the celebration of the Meskel festival ('the Finding of the True Cross') which is colorfuly celebrated among the followers of the Orthodox Christianity. As there are remarkable number of the Haro and Bayso following this religion, the video shows these two groups of people sharing and taking part in various activities in preparation for the holiday.