Akazehe
Burundian women's polyphonic, dialogic greeting ritual / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Akazehe[lower-alpha 1] (also known as agocoya[1] or, regionally, akayégo[lower-alpha 2] or akahibongozo[lower-alpha 3]) is a traditional Burundian form of chanted extended musical greeting, sung exclusively by and between women.[4][5] The polyphonic form is practiced among rural women as a quotidian greeting between pairs of friends or relatives, irrespective of time or occasion.[4]
Within Burundi, akazehe is generally understood as conversational rather than musical, with the practice (whose name derives from the Kirundi root -zehe, meaning to chat) typically referred to in terms of speaking rather than of singing.[4] Though it was noted in 1996 as being in decline,[4] the practice has been identified as recently as 2014 as a source of well-being for conflict-affected women in Burundi.[6] Akazehe has been noted by UNESCO for its promotion of peace and traditional cultural values in Burundi.[7]