Madagascar Cultural Book

By: Payton Ridge

The Beauty of Madagascar

A Glance Into Malagasy Culture

Lamba Garment

Famadihana

Romazava

Madagascar

Madagascar is an island well known for its diverse flora and fauna. It’s most notable features are the lemurs that are native to the land as well as its towering Baobab trees. One thing to note about this is almost all of Madagascar’s reptile and amphibian species, half of its birds, and all of its lemurs are endemic to the island, which means they can’t be found anywhere else on Earth. At one point, geologists believe that around 165 million years ago Madagascar was actually connected to Africa but inevitably started to drift away from the continent.

In addition to the wildlife and plant life, Madagascar cultivates a rich culture. Home to around 30 million people, Madagascar is considered the fourth largest island in the world. This country is currently represented by 18 different ethnicities. This makes it diverse in tribal heritages, customs, and religions. Their culture is influenced by other cultures who have settled in the country such as Arabic, Indian, French, English, and Chinese. Madagascar was once considered an autonomous state within the French community, however in 1959 they gained full independence. Due to this influence, their most spoken and official languages are French and Malagasy. Malagasy also doubles as the name for the natives of the island. Currently dominating the island are Islam and Christianity however most villages defer to a soothsayer and healer to predict the future and cure illnesses. Traditional music and dance which originated from Indonesia and Africa play a vital role within their culture as well specifically regarding their different ceremonies and festivals.

This book will detail a few aspects of the culture surrounding Madagascar in depth. If you are interested in learning more about the culture of the Malagasy people, then this book will help inform you all about the culture and the things you can expect to experience if ever the opportunity arises to visit the island.

“Almost all of Madagascar’s reptile and amphibian species, half of its birds, and all of its lemurs are endemic to the island, which means they can’t be found anywhere else on Earth.”

Romazava

Romazava is the national dish of Madagascar and a type of laoka – side dishes that are traditionally served with rice. This laoka is a stew made with a combination of local greens (paracress, anamamy, mustard greens), beef or zebu meat, tomatoes, and onions.

Paracress (also known as toothache plant) has a mouth-numbing effect, similar to a local anesthetic, but it is hard to find it outside of Madagascar, so arugula and spinach are sometimes used instead. As mentioned before, Romazava is traditionally served with rice, but the dish can also be additionally complemented with a serving of a spicy condiment called sakay - made with garlic, chili peppers, and ginger.

Ingredients

• 1lb beef chunk/zebu meat

• 1lb pork loin

• 1lb skinless chicken breasts

• 1 14oz can diced tomatoes

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

• 2 cups beef/chicken stock

• Half a yellow onion (diced)

• 5 cloves of garlic (minced)

• 2 pieces of ginger (minced)

• 3 Serrano chili peppers

• 1 bunch mustard greens

• 1 bunch spinach/anamamy greens

• 1 bunch arugula/paracress greens

• Salt

• Pepper

Steps

1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven pot

2. Add the beef/zebu meat to the pot and cook until brown on all sides

3. Stir in the can of diced tomatoes to the beef

4. Add the chili peppers, onion, garlic, and ginger to the beef and tomatoes

5. Pour in the stock, cover the pot, and let the ingredients simmer over low heat for 30mins

6. Add the chicken and pork to the stew, then bring to a boil

7. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for 15mins

8. Add the greens to the pot, then place the lid on the pot and allow them to wilt into the stew

9. Cook the stew for 10mins more

10. Season the stew with salt and pepper

11. Stir the ingredients together and then turn off the heat

12. Serve the Romazava over rice

Lamba Garment

Alamba is the traditional garment worn by men and women that live in Madagascar. It is very versatile. The textile, highly emblematic of Malagasy culture, consists of a rectangular length of cloth wrapped around the body. Besides its daily use as basic clothing, the lamba is also used for tying children to mothers’ backs or as a cushion when carrying a heavy object on top of the head. The lamba is also used ritually to wrap the remains of the dead before placing them in the family tomb. Which after the ceremony are then placed on the dead for an order of respect to their souls.

Famadihana

Famadihana is a funerary tradition of the Malagasy people in Madagascar. During this ceremony, also known as the turning of the bones, people bring forth the bodies of their ancestors from the family crypts, rewrap the corpses in fresh cloth, and rewrite their names on the cloth so they will always be remembered. Then they dance to live music while carrying the corpses over their heads and go around the tomb before returning the corpses in to the family tomb. They believe in celebrating the life lived by the dead person.

Madagascar

Famadihana appears to be a custom of somewhat recent origin, perhaps only since the 17th century in its present form. The custom is based upon a belief that the spirits of the dead finally join the world of the ancestors after the body’s complete decomposition and appropriate ceremonies, which may take many years. In Madagascar, this became a regular ritual usually once every five to seven years, and the custom brings together extended families in celebrations of kinship, sometimes even those with troubled relations.

Madagascar Destinations

Copyright © 2023 by Payton Ridge

All rights reserved.

Printed in the USA by Madagascar Destinations

For info, address Madagascar Destinations

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication date available ISBN-978-1-234-56789-7

Book Design by Payton Ridge

First Published in the United States of America by Island Books, LTC

First Edition published 2023 Madagascardestinations.com

+1 (727) 897-5412

Madagascar | 12

Credits:

TOC Pg.3:

https://epod.usra.edu/blog/2018/02/baobab-trees-in-madagascar.html

https://www.internationalcuisine.com/malagasy-romazava/

https://worldkings.org/news/world-tops-academy/worldkings-traditional-clothing-fromaround-the-world-p48-lamba-the dagascar-famadihana-dealing-with-death-can-be-joyful/

Pg. 4-5

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madagascar

https://www.pbs.org/edens/madagascar/eden.htm#:~:text=Best%20known%20for%20its%20 lemurs,most%20 .com/articles/travel-guides/africa/madagascar/history-and-culture#:~:text=The%20culture%20of%20Madagascar%20is,the%20future%20and%20cure%20illness

Pg. 6-7

https://www.tasteatlas.com/romazava

https://smartslowcooker.com/blog/romazava

https://nationalfoods.org/recipe/national-dish-of-madagascar-romazava/

Pg. 8-9

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamba_(garment)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamba_%28garment%29

https://www.rom.on.ca/en/collections-research/magazine/lamba-marevaka-cloth-of-dazzling-colour

https://fence.photoville.com/lamba/

https://www.rom.on.ca/en/collections-research/magazine/lamba-marevaka-cloth-of-dazzling-colour

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lamba_of_Madagascar_-_three_styles_of_lambahoany.JPG

Pg.10-11

https://guyshachar.com/en/2019/madagascar-famadihana-dealing-with-death-can-be-joyful/ https://voyage-madagascar.org/retournement-des-morts/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Famadihana

Madagascar is an island well known for its diverse flora and fauna. Almost all of their reptile and amphibian species, birds, and all of its lemurs can’t be found anywhere else on Earth. This book will detail the culture of the Malagasy people and help inform you about the things you can expect to experience when traveling to the country.