Conversation

Notices

1. Embed this notice
   1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:21 JST 1031

   Many readers will have been too young – if they were yet born at all – to remember Miriam Makeba’s 1959 single, “Pata Pata,” or even when Makeba re-recorded it in 1967. It was a remarkable song which you can see Makeba sing below on the Ed Sullivan show in 1967 when it gained international fame. It’s old footage, so bear with it, and listen carefully to hear what makes this song so unique. And yes, this is a dog post. Eventually.....

   https://youtu.be/lNeP3hrm__k?si=Thr_dotZkVYJyIVg

   • Embed this notice
     1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:16 JST 1031

     in reply to

     Only in the 21st century did the dogs begin to shed the “mutt” image because of 2 dog experts who studied dogs they encountered in rural KwaZulu-Natal kraals and homesteads. One of them gave the breed its name based on the Latin for dog – “canis,” and the dog’s place of origin, Africa.

     They concluded that the dogs were not a “stew” of common mutts, but dogs with a distinct and consistent set of characteristics and behaviours. In other words, a breed

     Inscius repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:16 JST 1031

     in reply to

     A distinct genetic makeup led the Kennel Union of South Africa to recognize the Africanis as an emerging breed, but some objected to the dog being called an emerging breed rather than as a landrace,. In the end, the Union decided unanimously to remove all references to the breed from the KUSA website.

     While there’s still a feral population in South Africa, people are recognizing that the playful, friendly, and loyal Africanis is a marvelous family pet.

   • Embed this notice
     1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:17 JST 1031

     in reply to

     While some of these populations may have more phenotypic variety than would be found in standardized breeds, most breed true, and the Africanis may be such a dog.Visitors to South Africa may have dismissed the Africanis to be the stereotypical plain brown street dog seen around the world, but many others consider it to be the original dog of Africa, a distinct breed endemic to southern Africa with a lineage that goes back at least 7,000 years.

   • Embed this notice
     1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:18 JST 1031

     in reply to

     My answer is to name the Canaan Dog, Carolina Dog, Korean Jindo, and Basenji.

     At one time, the aforementioned breeds were regarded as landraces (and there are more if I include breeds whose ancestors were primitive, aboriginal, or village dogs).

     Landraces typically evolve through natural processes, often in isolated areas, which helps maintain their genetic integrity. Over time, a person or people identify certain populations of dogs to be so consistent as to resemble a breed.

   • Embed this notice
     1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:19 JST 1031

     in reply to

     Xhosa is the 2nd most common language in South Africa after Zulu, and if you listened carefully to Makeba sing, you heard “clicks.” Like Zulu & 6 other African tongues, clicks are phonetic elements of Xhosa. And it’s harder to do than it looks. Each click in Xhosa is followed without any pause by a vowel sound. When each type of click is paired with one of six vowel sounds, it makes for a total of 18 click sounds in the Xhosa language.

     Is the world not an amazing place?

   • Embed this notice
     1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:19 JST 1031

     in reply to

     What this has to do with purebred dogs underscores a tenet of National Purebred Dog Day. If we lose a breed because of neglect or war, we lose the legacy of the culture which created or nurtured it.

     Several breeds originated in South Africa including the Boerboel, Basenji, and Rhodesian Ridgeback. There is one other breed – the Africanis – that may cause some dog fanciers to ask me why I mention what some consider to be a landrace when I always talk about purebred dog breeds. I have an answer.

   • Embed this notice
     1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:20 JST 1031

     in reply to

     It wasn’t until 1990 when the apartheid system collapsed that Makeba was finally able to go home. Eighteen years later in 2008, Miriam Makeba died of a heart attack after performing in a concert in Italy. She was 76.

     I hope you listened to the song in the post before this because it's important. Pata Pata is an Afro-pop dance song that popularized African rhythms and melodies by blending traditional Xhosa music with modern pop elements.

   • Embed this notice
     1031 (1031@freeatlantis.com)'s status on Monday, 10-Mar-2025 22:57:21 JST 1031

     in reply to

     Before I get to the song,I should mention that Miriam Makeba was pretty special, herself. Often known as Mama Africa, Makeba was the first artist from Africa to popularize African music around the world. Her songs raised awareness about apartheid, and about the injustices faced by South Africans as listeners learned more about the singer. In response to Miriam’s outspokenness, the South African government revoked her passport in 1960, and then her citizenship in 1963.