Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams provides some information about Malawi, Southeastern Africa and showcases two videos of Malawian versions of "Twelve Days Of Christmas".
Five additional videos of Christmas in Malawi are also featured in this post.
This is Part III of an ongoing pancocojams series on "Christmas in Africa". Click that tag for more posts in this series.
The content of this post is presented for cultural and entertainment purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos, thanks to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.
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INFORMATION ABOUT MALAWI
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malawi
"Malawi ..., officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. Malawi is over 118,000 km2 (45,560 sq mi) with an estimated population of 18,091,575 (as at July 2016). Lake Malawi takes up about a third of Malawi's area.[10] Its capital is Lilongwe, which is also Malawi's largest city; the second largest is Blantyre, the third is Mzuzu and the fourth largest is its old capital Zomba. The name Malawi comes from the Maravi, an old name of the Nyanja people that inhabit the area.
[...]
Demographics
Malawi has a population of over 18 million, with a growth rate of 3.32%, according to 2016 estimates.[3][79] The population is forecast to grow to over 45 million people by 2050, nearly tripling the estimated 16 million in 2010.18,091,575 is Malawi's estimated 2016 population based on most recent estimates.[80]
Malawi's population is made up of the Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuka, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, and Ngonde native ethnic groups, as well as populations of Asians and Europeans. The official language is English.[2] Major languages include Chichewa, a language spoken by over 57% of the population, Chinyanja (12.8%), Chiyao (10.1%), and Chitumbuka (9.5%).[35] Other native languages are Malawian Lomwe, spoken by around 250,000 in the southeast of the country; Kokola, spoken by around 200,000 people also in the southeast; Lambya, spoken by around 45,000 in the northwestern tip; Ndali, spoken by around 70,000; Nyakyusa-Ngonde, spoken by around 300,000 in northern Malawi; Malawian Sena, spoken by around 270,000 in southern Malawi; and Tonga, spoken by around 170,000 in the north."...
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SHOWCASE VIDEOS: TWO MALAWIAN VERSIONS OF "THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS"
Video #1: Children sing the 12 days of Christmas - African style!
Ganet's Adventure School, Published on Nov 26, 2011
Please help the children of Ganet's Adventure School in Malawi spread Christmas cheer around the world by sharing this, their Christmas video. We reckon it would get Scrooge himself into the Christmas spirit!
The kids practised for a week, having to learn the song from scratch. The teachers worked hard with a volunteer from the US to adapt the carol, develop actions, teach it to the children and record the performance. Thanks go to Jean Ni for filming the dance.
[...]
Ganet's Adventure School, Malawi
The school was founded by its Malawian director, Gertrude Banda, in a village in northern Malawi, and teaches primary and nursery age children. It receives no government funding, and relies on support from around the world to keep it running.
Keep up to date with school news at www.facebook.com/ganetsadventureschool
Now it's your turn!
Here are the lyrics for the song. Why not learn them and have a go yourself? We'd love to see videos of other schools and choirs performing our song!
On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...
Twelve farmers ploughing
Eleven boats a-fishing
Ten hyenas howling
Nine goats a-crying
Eight roosters calling
Seven pigs a-squealing
Six children dancing
Five beating drums
Four butterfish (the beautiful Lake Malawi is only a few miles from the school)
Three nsima pots (nsima is a traditional Malawian food made from maize)
Two cassava plants
And a giant baobab tree (baobab trees are common in Malawi, and are a famous symbol of Africa)
[...]
Find out more about the school and how you can get involved: www.ganetsadventureschool.org
Thanks to FremantleMedia Enterprises for supporting the video and donating to Ganet's Adventure School Fund.
-snip-
Here are two comments from this video's discussion thread:
1. HIROSTAR82, 2015
"Lol why did they change the words?It makes it even harder for them to make up new words"
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REPLY
2. Ganet's Adventure School, 2015
"@HIROSTAR82 People in Malawi get a bit tired of singing Christmas songs about snowmen and Christmas trees when they never get any snow and don't have pine trees, so we thought it would be more fun to make up our own lyrics!"
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Video #2: Twelve Days of Christmas - RIPPLE Africa - Christmas Carol
rippleafrica, Published on Nov 14, 2012
... A Christmas Carol - The Twelve (12) days of Christmas - Malawi style. This is a really fun video filmed by RIPPLE Africa with local Malawian staff and local characters. It is sure to make you smile
-snip-
Here's the lyrics for this version taken from the screen captions:
On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me
A bottle of Kuche Kuche
two chambo fish
Three mangos
Four changu motos [sometimes “four matola men"]
Five nsimas cooking
six men a- fishing
seven tailors trimming
eight farmers farming
nine children swimming
ten choirs singing
eleven ladies dancing
twelve drummers drumming
-snip-
Here are Explanations for the Malawian references in this song:
"Kuche Kuche" is a Malawian brand of beer.
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"Chambo fish"- a species of fish in Malawi
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"Changu changu motos" are fuel efficient clay stoves ("changu changu moto" = "fast fast fire". These clay stoves help prevent deforestation in Malawi. https://www.fromwales.com/changu-changu-moto
"Matola" are private vehicles used to transport people in Malawi. "Matola men" likely means the men who drive those cars.
**
"Nsima" is a traditional Malawian food made from maize
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Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:
IDK, 2012
"Zikomo. The world is a better place because of people like you, thank you for feeding the children and thank you for posting."
-snip-
According to http://malawi.tripod.com/chichewa.html "MALAWI - Learn Chichewa", zikomo is a Chichewa word that means "thank you".
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OTHER VIDEOS ABOUT CHRISTMAS IN MALAWI
Video #1: Christmas in Malawi 2011
Monica Gonzalez, Published on Dec 22, 2011
December 14, 2011 - Today was the day of the event. On our way to the stadium, it was stunning on how many children were walking from long distances just to get there. By 8 I would say the stadium was a bit more than ½ full and the children were in uniform and seated according their schools. A total of 19 public and 3 private schools attended the activity. Glory to God the event went as He planned and not by our own will. We were short of staff, but we managed to get thing under control with the help of some teachers. The highlight of the day was the Jesus formation by 5 different schools in different school uniform. After the formation the whole stadium shouted JESUS three times. The evangelist taught the Children the song "My hands are blessed with the blessings of the Lord". Take note that most of the 20,000 Children have never eaten bread , peanut butter or tasted honey before. We were informed that AMFC has just introduced a new diet to the Children and to Malawi. All the Children and the adults loved it. Out of all those kids we praise God there was no allergic reaction to the peanut butter. A couple of the schools participated in the event with plays and presentations. All the children received a cup, sandwich, and a bag from AMFC. We prayed for no rain and there was NO rain while dark clouds and rain was all around us except for the stadium. When it was time to leave, there were two rainbows, in which I know it was a sign from God letting us know He was pleased.
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Video #2: Children singing Christmas song in Malawi
Ganet's Adventure School, Published on Dec 22, 2013
This video shows the children of Ganet's Adventure School, Malawi, performing a Christmas song. They are led by Gertrude Banda, the school's founder, director and choir leader!
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Video #3: A very special Christmas message from Malawi
Ian Spooner, Published on Dec 17, 2015
We’d like to say a big thank you for supporting One this year. With your help we have reached another life-changing milestone: raising £13 million for sustainable water projects, giving the gift of clean, safe water to over 3 million people in the worlds poorest communities.
To celebrate and say thank you, we have a very special Christmas message from some of the communities we’ve supported in Malawi. Please spread the joy by sharing and retweeting it with your friends.
Thank you and a very merry Christmas from everyone at One.
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Video #4: We Wish You A Merry Christmas - From Esther's House in Malawi Africa
Mission Field Media, Published on Dec 24, 2016
The kids at Esther's House in Malawi Africa sing "We Wish You A Merry Christmas".
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