O Alambamento entre os Kibalas (Ambundos) em Angola: suas transformações socioculturais e econômicas diante da sociedade contemporânea

Abstract

This dissertative work deals with the ritual Alambamento: the reductionof its symbolicvalueamongkibalas (Ambundos) in Angola, withthe general objectiveof trying to understand through a bibliographic research, the causes behind the decrease in the practice of Alambamento within the Kibalas. Knowing what are the consequences for the family and society in general, which come about through unions made without the Alambamento, are the starting questions. In Angola in general, traditional marriage is still a very strong cultural tradition, and it is said that for some people it is more important than civil or 'religious' marriage. The main theoretical question used during the research that resulted in the elaboration of the work to obtain the master's degree in Anthropology is marriage. Other topics such as ceremony, rite of passage will be analyzed from the main question. However, through the objectives outlined, the methodological option constituted the intersection of documentary and bibliographic analysis, in which we analyzed books, theses, articles and dissertations on traditional marriage with the information resulting from the interviews (online), carried out with resources and techniques of a qualitative nature, where we went deeper in ordertoperceivetheunderstandingofthekibala social groupabouttheAlambamento, and of a quantitative nature where we sought in detail to perceive the Kibalas' view on marriage and we also carried out the participant observation where we can see in loco the practice of traditional marriage among the Kibalas. During the research it was possible to verify that the Alambamento is not a mere business where families sit down to stipulate a price to buy the bride, as it is much more than that. The symbolic value they ask of the groom's family is far from being an economic compensation, quite the contrary, it represents the respect that one family has for the other, because they have created and educated the new memberoftheirfamilysowell(familyofthegroom). The work is organized in six (6) parts.. It is concluded, from the study, that it is important to give the real value that the Alambamento has within Angolan society, and one cannot reduce the traditional marriage to simple extramarital relations.