Inclusive Celebrations at USN: Kwanzaa

USN parent Metanoya Webb (Journey '35) shares how her family celebrates Black heritage. Learn about the origins of Kwanzaa and how USN families are marking the occasion. Click here to help us recognize the many holidays and cultural observances celebrated within the USN community.
By Ian Dinkins, Assistant Director of Marketing and Communications

What’s the holiday?
Kwanzaa

Date(s):
Thursday, December 26, 2024 through Wednesday, January 1, 2025

Background on Kwanzaa
"Kwanzaa is an African American holiday that means the "first" fruits of harvest in Kiswahili," USN parent Metanoya Webb said. "It recalls our traditional feast of celebration, "to rejoice and give praises" together as a people to our ancestors and Creator for the fruits of our labor and the blessings of our needs for the coming year." This celebration lasts from December 26 to January 1 and the Webb family celebrates both Kwanzaa and Christmas.

According to Britannica, Maulana Karenga, a professor of Africana studies at California State University in Long Beach and an important figure in Afrocentrism, devised both the name and the celebration in 1966. Karenga borrowed the word kwanza, meaning “first,” from the Swahili phrase matunda ya kwanza, adding the seventh letter, an extra a, to make the word long enough to accommodate one letter for each of the seven children present at an early celebration.

What are the traditions associated with the holiday?
Each of the days of the celebration is dedicated to one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa: Unity (Umoja), Self-Determination (Kujichagulia), Collective Work and Responsibility (Ujima), Cooperative Economics (Ujamaa), Purpose (Nia), Creativity (Kuumba), and Faith (Imani). "Each day, the family comes together to light one of the candles in the kinara or candleholder and discuss the principle for the day. On December 31, families join in a community feast called the karamu. Some participants wear traditional African clothing during the celebration," Metanoys said. 


How does the Webb family celebrate?
For the Webb family, Holidays of legacy and tradition are celebrated so that people may reinforce their principles and teach something of value to the new generation. "The Nguzo Saba are the seven principles of Blackness. Each night over the seven days of Kwanzaa, you light a candle to celebrate one of the principles. The candle holder is called a Kinara, and it is made of solid wood and holds seven candles: three red, one black, and three green," Metanoya said.

Kikombe is the Unity Cup. The kikombe and the kinara are placed on a straw mat. An ear of corn for each child in the family is placed on the mat as well. Fresh fruits and vegetables are added to remind us of the end of harvest and the beginning of the planting season. 

Each day when we celebrate, friends and family say "Habari Gani," which means "What's the news?" We then discuss the principle for the day and sing with family and friends.

On the last day of Kwanzaa, zawadi is given, these are gifts for promises we have kept all year. The feast, or karamu, is on the last day, Imani. Everyone takes a sip from the unity cup. Family and friends dress in African garb, sing, dance, play music and celebrate.

What do you eat when you celebrate Kwanzaa?
"Ultimately, a traditional Kwanzaa meal is what you want it to be. There are influences from African, Caribbean, and Southern cuisines," Metanoya said. "Because our family is Jamaican, we typically enjoy a delicious mashup of Jamaican and Southern dishes:  fried plantain, jerk chicken, rice and peas, macaroni and cheese, collard greens, and candied yams. "

The Office of Marketing & Communications is making a concerted effort to recognize the many holidays and cultural observances the USN community celebrates. Click here to let us know holidays and cultural observances you would like to help others in the USN community learn about this year. 
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