MARCH 21st, The ELEVENTH Day of GARIFUNA American Heritage Month in New York (Hüngü Hüngü — Garifuna Dance and Rhythm)
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March 21st 2014 (Original Publish Date)
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Copyright 2014 by Teofilo Colon Jr (a.k.a. “Tio Teo” or “T.O. Tayo”) for Being Garifuna. All Rights Reserved. Contact Tio Teo.
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Central America / United States of America — Did you know that there are other Garifuna Dances out there besides the VERY popular Punta dance? In this post, we will focus on the HüngüHüngü Garifuna Dance and Rhythm.
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Typically a circle dance danced at a Fedu (a celebration or feast) or during the Dügü or Chügü Ceremony. When you see the dance, you generally see Garifuna women (and men) swaying from side to side. I was unable to find video where you clearly see the dance. But in general, it’s a swaying from side to side. The participants also sing in unison.
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Garifuna Anthropologist Joseph O. Palacio defines the Dügü is a placatory ritual, conducted by a buyei, designed to propitiate those ancestors regarded as afflicting the living. 1 Joseph O. Palacio (Editor), “The Garifuna: A Nation Across Borders–Essays in Social Anthropology”. — Notes on Garifuna words and expressions. pg 252 (2006).
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You can also see this dance during a procession (when a number of people or vehicles are moving forward in an orderly fashion) especially at a ceremony, festival or funeral.
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At it’s root, you usually find that two drums are used In the playing of Garifuna rhythms, The Primero drum and The Segundo drum. The Primero drum has a lighter sound and usually accents, variations and improvisations are played on this drum. The Primero sound it makes changes depending on the activity of the dancers and changes in the rhythms from fellow drummers.
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The Segundo drum serves as a bass drum which has a heavier sound. The Segundo drum also sets the tempo of the rhythm. The segundo drum is often referred to as expressing the heartbeat of all the Garifuna rhythms.
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Below is a video by Ronald Raymond McDonald of The Warasa Garifuna Drum School in Belize. Here, you can HEAR this unique Garifuna rhythm.
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You can also hear this unique rhythm in the Unofficial International Garifuna Anthem, “Yurumein” or “Yurumey”.
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About Garifuna American Heritage Month in New York
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March 11th through April 12th is designated Garifuna American Heritage Month in New York. This period of time marks the date the Garifunas were removed from the St. Vincent area, traveled in a convoy of mostly British ships across the Caribbean Sea and the date the Garifunas reached Central America. Specifically, Roatan, Honduras on April 12th 1797. When in Roatan, the Garifunas petitioned the Spanish government to be allowed to move to the mainland of Honduras. From there the Garifunas migrated to the neighboring countries of Guatemala, Belize (then known as British Honduras) and Nicaragua over the years.
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Garifuna American Heritage Month is designed to reflect on and observe the forced removal of the Garifuna people (then known as Black Caribs) from their ancestral land of the island of St. Vincent in 1797 to their arrival in Central America on April 12th 1797.
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According to a press release from the non-profit organization the Garifuna Coalition USA Inc, Garifuna American Heritage Month in New York also,
“celebrates the great contributions Garifuna-Americans to the fabric of New York City and New York State, band pays tribute to the common culture and bonds of friendship that unite The United States and the Garifunas countries of origin (Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and St. Vincent & The Grenadines)” – Garifuna Coalition USA Inc
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The Garifuna Coalition adds, “New York City is home to the largest Garífuna Community outside of Central America! However, although Garífunas have been migrating here in search of a better life since the 1930s; the community was virtually obscured until the Happy Land Social Club fire on March 25th, 1990.”
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Most of the victims of that tragedy were Honduran, many were of Garifuna descent. 2 Edna Negron, “Club Tragedy An Awakening for Garifuna”. New York Newsday, Sunday, August 18th 1991. Overall, the idea is to pay tribute to the survival and resiliency of the Garifuna people and also highlight the contributions made by Garifunas to the state of New York and the United States of America.
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