PDP2 - Using "Tribe" and "Tribalism" to Misunderstand African Societies

Author Bio: David Wiley, in 2013, was in the Department of Sociology and African Studies Center at Michigan State University. David Wiley specializes in social ecology of Africa and its environment (rural and urban), the political economy of Africa and African militarization, social inequality, social movements, social stratification and religion, and internationalization of higher education. Wiley is more positively biased toward Africa because of his argument about misleading negative terms. He uses definitions to factually describe what words actually, not stereotypically or presumptuously, mean and whether or not they can truly be applied to Africa.

Date/Context: This article was written in 2013 and its content about how the use of words like "Tribe" and "Tribalism" can often be incorrect and misleading connects with many other aspects of Africa that are commonly mistaken. This is a time in society when many people are unaware to a full extent what is going on in some parts of the world who may not realize the implications of using certain terms to describe a region or society. This article describes the importance of correct terminology as to not misunderstand other peoples, especially, in this case, in Africa.

Summary: Tribe is a word with so many different connotations and definitions used in a variety of fields. Some people believe that this term should be abandoned because of the wide variety of uses that could easily cause confusion. It is also believed that the way it was used in the 19th century to describe inferior, disorganized, primitive, and less civilized peoples can not be correctly applied anymore because this was an evolutionary and racist time period. When this was used it was mostly between white governments and other groups trying to break off in which their were just differences in histories, leaderships, styles, goals, and memberships. In Western society such differences help create different ethnicities, not tribalism, as it is labeled in Africa. This misuse of words is not a small error in Africa because misconceptions in language can lead to a difference in the perception of truth. This can result in incorrect judgments of societies and their strengths by other countries. The demeaning term only leads to misunderstanding the great diversity of Africa.

Key Quotation: "Tribe is a source of misunderstanding the great diversity of rural Africa by labeling small hunting and gathering groups of less than 100 persons as a tribe as well as a far-flung, multinational Fulani trading group of millions of persons across circa 19 nations as a 'tribe.'"