Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A storyteller in western Africa who perpetuates the oral tradition and history of a village or family.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun West African
storyteller who passes on oral traditions, a wanderingmusician andpoet .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a storyteller in West Africa; perpetuates the oral traditions of a family or village
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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For those of you who are not familiar with the term "griot" or jali, or jeli, depending on where the griot is from a quick explanation: the griot is the repository of the history of his or her people, knowing geneologies and major epic songs by heart.
Michal Shapiro: Bards of West Africa: the Griot Summit (Video) Michal Shapiro 2011
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For those of you who are not familiar with the term "griot" or jali, or jeli, depending on where the griot is from a quick explanation: the griot is the repository of the history of his or her people, knowing geneologies and major epic songs by heart.
Michal Shapiro: Bards of West Africa: the Griot Summit (Video) Michal Shapiro 2011
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I also liked the term griot as it reinforces the need for a point of view.
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For example, A griot is a major player in West African society.
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For those of you who are not familiar with the term "griot" or jali, or jeli, depending on where the griot is from a quick explanation: the griot is the repository of the history of his or her people, knowing geneologies and major epic songs by heart.
Michal Shapiro: Bards of West Africa: the Griot Summit (Video) Michal Shapiro 2011
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Understanding the function of the griot is a great way to gain insight into the culture of West Africa.
Michal Shapiro: Bards of West Africa: the Griot Summit (Video) Michal Shapiro 2011
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Understanding the function of the griot is a great way to gain insight into the culture of West Africa.
Michal Shapiro: Bards of West Africa: the Griot Summit (Video) Michal Shapiro 2011
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Understanding the function of the griot is a great way to gain insight into the culture of West Africa.
Michal Shapiro: Bards of West Africa: the Griot Summit (Video) Michal Shapiro 2011
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Understanding the function of the griot is a great way to gain insight into the culture of West Africa.
Michal Shapiro: Bards of West Africa: the Griot Summit (Video) Michal Shapiro 2011
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Actually Luke the great Malian griot aka praise singer Salif Keita, with whom griots, not SK who kicked the habit you have a lot in common - singing the praises of whoever pays, like arms industry PR or hailing Blair through his worst days - is an albino and has red hair.
chained_bear commented on the word griot
"... an old man entered the room, stooped over a black cane, moving with dignity. ... It was made clear that he was the griot, or historan, of the Kamara house.... 'He can explain to you what he knows of the slave trade,' said Madame Modu. The room fell silent.... Speaking through an interpreter, in Temne, he began by saying that the slave business was finished and that therefore it should not be spoken about. He turned to Chief Modu, asked permission to describe what he knew, and the chief assented with a wave. Hand on cane, the historian launched a monologue that began with the 1500s and the arrival of a few Portuguese sailors on the African coast...."
—Edward Ball, Slaves in the Family (NY: Ballantine Books, 1998), 439
October 13, 2009
tumbel commented on the word griot
...the ngomi, a plucked lute made from a combinaton of wood or calabash and goatskin, used by griots in northwest Africa...
March 19, 2010