Reflections on Oral Traditions as History

George Washington, Nelson Mandela, and Simon Bolivar are figures whose names are almost universally recognizable in North America, South Africa, and South America, respectively. They command attention and represent courage, fortitude, and ability. These individuals stand as cultural heroes and models worthy of emulation. In preliterate societies names also mattered, especially when they evoked memories of an imagined past peopled by heroic ancestors. They projected power; they had fame; they held meanings and, in that sense, served as historical artifacts and social types. They encoded information on religious beliefs, values, and worldviews (Akinnaso 1983, esp. 140, 145; Wieschhoff 1937). They