Sample Essay On Namibia Culture

The San community in Namibia lives in the most undesirable and driest part of Kalahari Desert, Namibia. As a matter of fact, most of these people do not own cattle or land, instead depend on black farmers for work. They also depend on the government to supply them with foods which are life-saving. Although this is the case, there is a general consensus that they are the country’s original people, settling in Namibia long before the Blacks or whites. Although technology has been appreciated in Namibia, the San still practice their culture. For their survival, for instance, culture played a very special role.
One of the key cultural elements that played a major role for the survival of the San was that they were hunters and gatherers. Despite the uprise in civilization in Africa, the San have been consistent with their culture. This way, many people have come to the conclusion that hunters and gatherers live with nature. Over the years, the hunter-gather life has managed to sustain them, shaping them to cope effectively even in the harshest environmental conditions. For instance, it is this nature and their willingness to be associated with it that they have coped well in forests, by the shores, deserts, arctic tundra, grasslands and even rainforests.
In many ways, the San culture differs from my culture. In a society that is highly influenced by the day-to-day technological changes, it is almost impossible to imagine of a community that still practices the traditional ways of living. One way that my community is different from the San is as regards to economic activities. As already argued, the San depend on hunting and gathering for their survival. This is very different from my community. White-collar jobs and other modern ways of earning a living are common in my community. This implies that the difference between the San and my community are visible and can be noticed. Whereas my community has embraced civilization and modernization, the San are yet to accept the role that technology, modernization and civilization have played in the world. To a large extent, the San are characterized by nomadism, less knowledge, sharing and low population growth. These are the characteristics of the San culture. Important to note is the fact that my culture is different in almost all the above aspects. For instance, we do not practice nomadism. Even though we embrace sharing, it is not to a large extent similar to what the San practice. In the modern society, my community included, population growth is very rapid. This is very different with the San culture where there is a low population growth. All these characteristics point out to major differences between the San and my community.
For the survival of my culture, there are several cultural elements that are important. The social organization ranks top among such elements. In a way, this refers to the culture’s social classes and family patterns. Over the years, my culture has always believed that unity is essential for a peaceful co-existence. Family patterns dictate the roles each member of the family is expected to play in the day to day livelihood. With this in place, it is easy to distinguish what is expected from every member of the community. The customs and traditions also play a major role. As long as civilization and modernization have played a major role, culture entails respecting traditions and customs. In observing this, special attention is given to the manner that people wear, how they act, the laws that govern them and what they eat. My culture has never deviated from the traditional beliefs, despite the fact that it has embraced change. Religion, common language, literature, art and the economic systems are some of other cultural elements that have ensured the survival of my culture.
Globalization and modernization forces have played a major role in affecting culture and traditions. One aspect of culture that has been severely affected is language. With globalization, there is an increasing need to have a common or universal language for the purposes of understanding each other. Problems arise when it is difficult to settle on a particular language that should be embraced by everybody. As a matter of fact, this has affected many cultures. Most people have ended preferring to learn foreign languages and international languages at the expense of their language. This affects the continuation of one’s culture. Legal systems have been widely affected by globalization. Unlike the past, the present moments require that there are common laws enacted to oversee the transaction of businesses across the boundaries. When this is the case, it is inevitable that universal rules and regulations have to be enacted to ensure a free flowing nature of business. This has affected my culture as the traditional rules have since been overshadowed by the new developments. What used to be law has since been overcome by the needs of globalization and modernization. In one way or the other, modernization and globalization have affected my culture.