essay
The Shilluk of the upper Nile
African worlds • London • Published In 1954 • Pages: 138-193
By: Lienhardt, Godfrey.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This article, which is based on previously published documents, deals with the cosmology, religious beliefs and world view of the Shilluk. While there is little that is new in the data, Lienhardt pulls together materials from various documents to develop a systematic picture of Shilluk cosmology. The nature of divinities and the amoral characteristic of Shilluk religion are discussed and related to the values placed on success. A number of recurrent themes and symbols are examined and tied to significant social and economic aspects of Shilluk life. Finally the basis of the divine nature of kingship is examined and traced to conceptions of universal order and the king's role as a symbol and a maintainer of that order. Much of this interpretation is based on Shilluk myths and traditional history which the author summarizes.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Cosmology
- Mythology
- General character of religion
- Sacred objects and places
- Chief executive
- Religious offenses
- Traditional history
- Historical reconstruction
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Shilluk
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2010
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- Africa
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Eastern Africa
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- essay
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Ethnologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Betty Potash ; 1960
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- no date
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1900-1954
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Sudan
- NotesAdditional notes
- Godfrey Lienhardt
- Includes bibliographical references(p. 163)
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- a 54005828
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Shilluk (African people)