Title: Alphabet

General Information About Item:

• Customary Lore, Children Hand Games
• Language:
• Country of Origin: Rwanda
• Informant: Umunyana Kyla
• Date Collected: May 15, 2019

Informant Data:

Umunyana Kyla was born in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2003 and moved to Rwanda shortly after. She has lived in between Rwanda and Zambia ever since. She learned this game in her primary school in Rwanda.

Rules:

The game is incredibly complex, it needs to be played by three or more people, with the hand motions changing almost every two sentences. The hand motions involved in the game can be seen in the video. At the utterance of the last word: “freeze” the players are supposed to stop moving for as long as they are willing. Slowly all of the players will “break” until only one remains still “frozen” and this player is the winner.

Text:

Chu Chu Chihuaha Mhm Mhm

I saw a best friend ka biskwit

Chu Chu Chihuaha Mhm Mhm

I saw a best friend ka biskwit

Ice Cream Sugar and a Cherry on top

Ice Cream Sugar and a Cherry on top

Down Down Baby down

Gadigadiga

That is what I like

Gadigadiga

Down Down Baby down

Gadigadiga

Now is time for some music

I wanna A B C D E F G

I wanna  H I J K L M N O P

I wanna  Q R S T U V

I wanna W X YZ

I wanna do it do it turn around

I wanna do it do it turn around

Now FREEZE

Contextual Data:

Kyla said this game is typically played by young girls during “break time” at school. “Break time” would happen at 10AM every day after the first three classes of the day. During this time, the students would eat a small snack for around 10 minutes and then were given free time to do what they wanted for 30 minutes. Kyla said that the game would begin with two or three girls playing the game and would slowly grow to ten or twenty students. The girls would play this game and others like it until “break time” ended.

Associated file (a video, audio, or image file):

Alphabet Game – Rwandan

Additional Notes:

When looking at this game, we also looked at the impact of it. Kyla said that when her friends would play the game it would help create bonds of friendship and even resolve conflict. “If my friend Umwali harms my other friend Kay and Umwali doesn’t want to verbally apologize, she can try to initiate a game with Kay instead. This would be widely taken as an apology. Kay could reject the apology by refusing to play or accept it by playing enthusiastically”. As a result, hand games could function not just as a means to create friendship, but one to mend friendship as well.

Collector’s Name:

Manzi Bryan ’21

Tags/Keywords:

• Customary Folklore
• Children Hand Games
• Alphabet