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The circumcision ritual of the Merina of Madagascar is seen by them primarily as a blessing, involving the transfer of the love and concern of the ancestors of their descendants. Yet the ritual ends in an act of ciolent wounding of the child. Similarily, while the ritual involves a symbolic assault on women, it is nonetheless welcomed by them as a mark of receiving the blessing of the ancestors. In this book, Maurice Bloch provides a detailed description and analysis of the Merina circumcision ritual today, offers an account of its history, and discusses the significance of his analysis for anthropological theories of ritual in general. Pursuing the theme of the combination of religious joy and illumination with violence, Professor Bloch explains how, at various times, the circumcision ceremony can be a familial ritual as well as glorification of a militarist and expansionist state, or associated with anti-colonial nationalism. Describing changes that have occurred in the form of the ritual over two centuries, Professor Bloch argues that in order to understand the properties of ritual in general, it is necessary to view it over a longer time scale than anthropologists have tended to do previously. Adopting such an historical perspective enables him to identify the stability of the Merina ritual's symbolic content, despite changes in its organisation, and dramatically changing politico-economic contexts. As well as presenting an original historical approach to the anthropological study of ritua;, Professor Bloch discusses a range of general theoretical issues, including the nature of ideology, and the relationship between images created in ritual and other types of knowledge. The book will appeal widely to scholars and students of anthropology, history, African studies, and comparative religion

How to Read a Folktale offers the first English translation of Ibonia, a spellbinding tale of old Madagascar. Ibonia is a folktale on epic scale. Much of its plot sounds familiar: a powerful royal hero attempts to rescue his betrothed from an evil adversary and, after a series of tests and duels, he and his lover are joyfully united with a marriage that affirms the royal lineage. These fairytale elements link Ibonia with European folktales, but the tale is still very much a product of Madagascar. It contains African-style praise poetry for the hero; it presents Indonesian-style riddles and poems; and it inflates the form of folktale into epic proportions. Recorded when the Malagasy people were experiencing European contact for the first time, Ibonia proclaims the power of the ancestors against the foreigner. Through Ibonia, Lee Haring expertly helps readers to understand the very nature of folktales. His definitive translation, originally published in 1994, has now been fully revised to emphasize its poetic qualities, while his new introduction and detailed notes give insight into the fascinating imagination and symbols of the Malagasy. Haring's research connects this exotic narrative with fundamental questions not only of anthropology but also of literary criticism.

1. Women's Revolt, Story and Analysis On April 3, 1822, King Radama, monarch of the Merina kingdom of Madagascar, cut his hair. Before he cut them, Radama had long, intricately woven braids, and his hair had never been cut. The braids of the monarch, and the way in which they were arranged on his head, held political meaning for the Merina people. Madagascar historian Pier Martin Larson notes that the braids on Radama's head were "divided and organized (into their) proper social and political order", signifying the division and organization of the various status groups of the kingdom.2 Order in the king's hair was thought to signify order in the kingdom, which would bring fertility. Cutting one's hair was a sign of subordination. When a king died, the subjects were required to cut their hair to signify that they accepted subordination to the new king. It was "an overt sign of obedience, an enactment of the end of an old order and the beginning of a new one."3 The only people in the kingdom who commonly would be seen with short hair were slaves and condemned criminals.

AbstractPersistent stigma surrounding neurodivergent people still exists. This article advocates for changes to societal systems to improve the well‐being of neurodivergent individuals and families, beginning with widespread awareness and support. Our suggested approach to improve societal infrastructure includes large‐scale online educational training of multidisciplinary professionals who operate within these systems to increase understanding, awareness, support, and accommodations for neurodivergent people. Multidisciplinary professionals who have received neurodiversity training can advocate for their respective systems to improve services for neurodivergent clients. We describe the 2023 development of Florida State University's (FSU) new online Professional Certification in the Fundamentals of Neurodiversity. The asynchronous psychoeducational training provides continuing education credit to a wide range of professionals. The framework for this training and curriculum content are described. Such training, along with a set of accompanying open‐access resources, can be replicated by institutions in many languages and cultures to improve professionals' knowledge and skills across the globe.

Older adults and people who have a history of chronic disease (comorbid) are more at risk of contracting COVID-19, one of which is diabetes mellitus (DM). The role of cadres is needed to increase the DM patients' resilience during the pandemic. Optimizing this resilience can be realized in achieving cadres' performance where motivation is one factor. This activity is performed by increasing information to comorbid diabetes mellitus patients during the pandemic using coaching level, implementation level, and evaluation level. The motivation and performance were measured using questionnaires with observational analysis method. This activity was carried out on December 20, 2020, and was attended by 23 cadres under the guidance of the Candi Sidoarjo Health Center. From the observations and analysis results, it was found that 100% of cadres have high motivation, and 100% of cadres have good performance towards efforts to optimize the resilience of patients with diabetes mellitus comorbid in the Covid 19 pandemic era. Performance is a function of motivation, competence, and work system. The cadres' self-motivation makes the urge to behave (performance) that provides benefits to others; this will give the cadres some satisfaction (self-actualization) and help to achieve government programs through posyandu activities. The cadres' involvement is essential in optimizing the resilience of patients with diabetes mellitus comorbid in the Covid 19 pandemic. The motivation and performance of cadres need to be maintained and even increased to create a physically and mentally healthy society.

The identity of the inhabitants of Antananarivo, Madagascar's capital city, is complex. The urban dimension of their lives is changeable and rather difficult to define. The ambiguity may be explained through many elements which are : the sytematic reference to models from an idealized Merina past, the difficulty turning away from the rural world's references, the impact of the long economic crisis which deeply changed all the traditional landmarks, and the rise of even stronger barriers dividing a compartmentalized society with well-organized groups similar to casts. Sutyding the urban landscapes, the lives of the people of Antananarivo as well as their approach to the city shows that the geographical space in Antananarivo is not only segregated but is also a reflection of increasing political or social tensions. ; L'identité tananarivienne est tourmentée, la citadinité se révèle instable et difficile à définir. Cette ambiguïté s'explique à la fois par un recours systématique aux modèles d'un passé merina idéalisé, par la délicate différenciation par rapport aux références du monde rural, par une crise économique profonde et durable qui a déstabilisé les repères traditionnels, et surtout par l'affirmation de divisions de plus en plus fortes dans une société cloisonnée et hiérarchisée en groupes semblables à des castes. L'étude des paysages urbains, des pratiques et des représentations des habitants de la capitale de Madagascar révèle que l'espace tananarivien est en fait ségrégé et porte l'empreinte de crispations identitaires croissantes.

The identity of the inhabitants of Antananarivo, Madagascar's capital city, is complex. The urban dimension of their lives is changeable and rather difficult to define. The ambiguity may be explained through many elements which are : the sytematic reference to models from an idealized Merina past, the difficulty turning away from the rural world's references, the impact of the long economic crisis which deeply changed all the traditional landmarks, and the rise of even stronger barriers dividing a compartmentalized society with well-organized groups similar to casts. Sutyding the urban landscapes, the lives of the people of Antananarivo as well as their approach to the city shows that the geographical space in Antananarivo is not only segregated but is also a reflection of increasing political or social tensions. ; L'identité tananarivienne est tourmentée, la citadinité se révèle instable et difficile à définir. Cette ambiguïté s'explique à la fois par un recours systématique aux modèles d'un passé merina idéalisé, par la délicate différenciation par rapport aux références du monde rural, par une crise économique profonde et durable qui a déstabilisé les repères traditionnels, et surtout par l'affirmation de divisions de plus en plus fortes dans une société cloisonnée et hiérarchisée en groupes semblables à des castes. L'étude des paysages urbains, des pratiques et des représentations des habitants de la capitale de Madagascar révèle que l'espace tananarivien est en fait ségrégé et porte l'empreinte de crispations identitaires croissantes.

International audience ; Humans have favored the presence of Ficus species within anthropogenic landscapes and near human settlements throughout the planet due to a number of beliefs and for practical purposes. An intimate or mutualistic relationship between Ficus spp and human societies has been suggested but explanations about the motivations of these proximities between humans and Ficus remain very fragmentary. The case study presented in this paper, which was conducted in the sacred hills located in the surroundings of an urban area, Antananarivo, capital city of Madagascar, inhabited by the Merina, aims at finding some answers to the following two questions. To what extent are Ficus species integrated into the ecologies of human groups, understood here as interactions between humans (social, political and economic dimensions)? 2) Do humans introduce Ficus species into new habitats, potentially offering new ecological opportunities? This study builds on initial work conducted in Madagascar in the region of Fianarantsoa in Betsileo rural communities. Results shown in this paper suggest that: 1) the kings of Imerina, the region located in the north-eastern part of the High Plateau of Madagascar, have planted Ficus species abundantly, especially Ficus lutea Vahl and Ficus. polita Vahl, to claim ownership upon new territories of the Imerina and symbolically establish their political hegemony. Marriages with women from non-Merina cultural groups, such as the Sakalava inhabiting the Western Coast, and the use of Ficus species as symbols of power has contributed, with other activities, to the unification process of Madagascar; 2) The ecological distribution of F. lutea has been substantially manipulated by people from Imerina by planting this species quite abundantly in the sacred hills surrounding Antananarivo, an area where this species is at its ecological limit of distribution and also in faraway places such as the Western coast where the tree is not naturally distributed.

International audience ; Humans have favored the presence of Ficus species within anthropogenic landscapes and near human settlements throughout the planet due to a number of beliefs and for practical purposes. An intimate or mutualistic relationship between Ficus spp and human societies has been suggested but explanations about the motivations of these proximities between humans and Ficus remain very fragmentary. The case study presented in this paper, which was conducted in the sacred hills located in the surroundings of an urban area, Antananarivo, capital city of Madagascar, inhabited by the Merina, aims at finding some answers to the following two questions. To what extent are Ficus species integrated into the ecologies of human groups, understood here as interactions between humans (social, political and economic dimensions)? 2) Do humans introduce Ficus species into new habitats, potentially offering new ecological opportunities? This study builds on initial work conducted in Madagascar in the region of Fianarantsoa in Betsileo rural communities. Results shown in this paper suggest that: 1) the kings of Imerina, the region located in the north-eastern part of the High Plateau of Madagascar, have planted Ficus species abundantly, especially Ficus lutea Vahl and Ficus. polita Vahl, to claim ownership upon new territories of the Imerina and symbolically establish their political hegemony. Marriages with women from non-Merina cultural groups, such as the Sakalava inhabiting the Western Coast, and the use of Ficus species as symbols of power has contributed, with other activities, to the unification process of Madagascar; 2) The ecological distribution of F. lutea has been substantially manipulated by people from Imerina by planting this species quite abundantly in the sacred hills surrounding Antananarivo, an area where this species is at its ecological limit of distribution and also in faraway places such as the Western coast where the tree is not naturally distributed.

International audience ; Humans have favored the presence of Ficus species within anthropogenic landscapes and near human settlements throughout the planet due to a number of beliefs and for practical purposes. An intimate or mutualistic relationship between Ficus spp and human societies has been suggested but explanations about the motivations of these proximities between humans and Ficus remain very fragmentary. The case study presented in this paper, which was conducted in the sacred hills located in the surroundings of an urban area, Antananarivo, capital city of Madagascar, inhabited by the Merina, aims at finding some answers to the following two questions. To what extent are Ficus species integrated into the ecologies of human groups, understood here as interactions between humans (social, political and economic dimensions)? 2) Do humans introduce Ficus species into new habitats, potentially offering new ecological opportunities? This study builds on initial work conducted in Madagascar in the region of Fianarantsoa in Betsileo rural communities. Results shown in this paper suggest that: 1) the kings of Imerina, the region located in the north-eastern part of the High Plateau of Madagascar, have planted Ficus species abundantly, especially Ficus lutea Vahl and Ficus. polita Vahl, to claim ownership upon new territories of the Imerina and symbolically establish their political hegemony. Marriages with women from non-Merina cultural groups, such as the Sakalava inhabiting the Western Coast, and the use of Ficus species as symbols of power has contributed, with other activities, to the unification process of Madagascar; 2) The ecological distribution of F. lutea has been substantially manipulated by people from Imerina by planting this species quite abundantly in the sacred hills surrounding Antananarivo, an area where this species is at its ecological limit of distribution and also in faraway places such as the Western coast where the tree is not naturally distributed.

International audience ; Humans have favored the presence of Ficus species within anthropogenic landscapes and near human settlements throughout the planet due to a number of beliefs and for practical purposes. An intimate or mutualistic relationship between Ficus spp and human societies has been suggested but explanations about the motivations of these proximities between humans and Ficus remain very fragmentary. The case study presented in this paper, which was conducted in the sacred hills located in the surroundings of an urban area, Antananarivo, capital city of Madagascar, inhabited by the Merina, aims at finding some answers to the following two questions. To what extent are Ficus species integrated into the ecologies of human groups, understood here as interactions between humans (social, political and economic dimensions)? 2) Do humans introduce Ficus species into new habitats, potentially offering new ecological opportunities? This study builds on initial work conducted in Madagascar in the region of Fianarantsoa in Betsileo rural communities. Results shown in this paper suggest that: 1) the kings of Imerina, the region located in the north-eastern part of the High Plateau of Madagascar, have planted Ficus species abundantly, especially Ficus lutea Vahl and Ficus. polita Vahl, to claim ownership upon new territories of the Imerina and symbolically establish their political hegemony. Marriages with women from non-Merina cultural groups, such as the Sakalava inhabiting the Western Coast, and the use of Ficus species as symbols of power has contributed, with other activities, to the unification process of Madagascar; 2) The ecological distribution of F. lutea has been substantially manipulated by people from Imerina by planting this species quite abundantly in the sacred hills surrounding Antananarivo, an area where this species is at its ecological limit of distribution and also in faraway places such as the Western coast where the tree is not naturally distributed.