Black Ritual Insulting in the Americas: On the Art of "VociferaR” (Colombia), "Vacilar” (Ecuador) and "Snapping”, "Sounding” or "Playing the Dozens” (U.S.A.)

Schwegler, Armin

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dc.creator	Schwegler, Armin
dc.date	2007-01-01
dc.date.accessioned	2022-03-29T18:06:41Z
dc.date.available	2022-03-29T18:06:41Z
dc.identifier	http://journals.iai.spk-berlin.de/index.php/indiana/article/view/1947
dc.identifier	10.18441/ind.v24i0.107-155
dc.identifier.uri	http://biblioteca-repositorio.clacso.edu.ar/handle/CLACSO/151143
dc.description	Dollard (1939), Abrahams (1962) and Labov (1974) were among the first to study an important ritualized speech event called "signifying” (also known as "the dozens”, "sounding”, "joaning”, "snapping”, etc.). Traditionally limited Black North American sub-culture, "signifying” typically consists of an exchange of ritualized insults directed at an opponent’s mother or relative. The practice can also include personal insults of a simpler form. Representative examples are: "If ugliness were bricks, your mother would be a housing project.” "Your mother is so ugly, she had to find a beautician that makes house calls.” African slaves also appear to have brought this practice to other parts of the Americas (Cuba, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, etc.). But to date, scholars of Latin America have paid virtually no attention to the phenomenon, and the few who did report on it failed to connect it to the North American tradition of "signifying”. This study first reviews the basic tenets of "signifying” as practiced in the United States. Thereafter, a series of texts recorded by the author in Afro-Colombian and Afro-Ecuadorian communities will be examined in order to illustrate that "signifying” is indeed a Black pan-American (rather than simply North-American) phenomenon.	en-US
dc.description	Dollard (1939), Abrahams (1962) y Labov (1974) figuran entre los primeros investigadores que estudian una práctica verbal que, en la subcultura afroamericana de los EE.UU., se conoce bajo el término de signifying ‘vociferar, vacilar’ (otros términos son "the dozens”, "sounding”, "joaning”, "snapping”, etc.). Tradicionalmente limitado a los EE. UU., "signifying” típicamente consiste en un intercambio ritualizado de insultos dirigidos a la madre (o a otro pariente) del oponente. La práctica puede también incluir insultos personales más simples. Dos ejemplos representativos son: "If ugliness were bricks, your mother would be a housing project.” "Your mother is so ugly, she had to find a beautician that makes house calls.” Los esclavos africanos parecen haber llevado dicha practica a varias partes de las Américas (incluso a Cuba, Brasil, Colombia, Ecuador, etc.). Pero hasta la fecha, los latinoamericanistas han prestado muy poca atención al fenómeno en cuestión, y quienes sí lo han hecho jamás lo han relacionado con la tradición norteamericana del "signifying”. Este estudio primero examina las características generales del "signifying” norteamericano. Luego examinará varios textos recogidos por el autor en comunidades afrolatinoamericanas de Colombia y Ecuador. Esta aproximación comparativa permitirá establecer que la práctica de la vociferación (o de las "vaciladas”) efectivamente es un fenómeno pan-americano (en vez de simplemente norteamericano).	es-ES
dc.format	application/pdf
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut - Preußischer Kulturbesitz	es-ES
dc.relation	http://journals.iai.spk-berlin.de/index.php/indiana/article/view/1947/1585
dc.rights	Derechos de autor 2007 INDIANA	es-ES
dc.rights	https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0	es-ES
dc.source	INDIANA; Vol. 24 (2007); 107-155	en-US
dc.source	INDIANA; Vol. 24 (2007); 107-155	es-ES
dc.source	INDIANA; Bd. 24 (2007); 107-155	de-DE
dc.source	INDIANA; v. 24 (2007); 107-155	pt-BR
dc.source	2365-2225
dc.source	0341-8642
dc.source	10.18441/ind.v24i0
dc.title	Black Ritual Insulting in the Americas: On the Art of "VociferaR” (Colombia), "Vacilar” (Ecuador) and "Snapping”, "Sounding” or "Playing the Dozens” (U.S.A.)	en-US
dc.type	info:eu-repo/semantics/article
dc.type	info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion