Gift-giving and hospitality in Eritrean Tigrinya society

Tesfay, Sába (2016) Gift-giving and hospitality in Eritrean Tigrinya society. Acta Ethnographica Hungarica, 61 (1). pp. 117-133. ISSN 1216-9803

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Abstract

In the present study, with the help of Eritrean examples, the author discusses how objects and visits become a means of expression for relationships and social connections. In Tigrinya society, kinship and friendly relationships have great significance, their preservation is secured by frequent visits, meetings and phone calls. They are completed by gifts, the sharing of food, contributions and loans, which move between the individuals within society, in the form of objects and money. Every transaction and exchange signifies the quality of a relationship and an event. Starting with a summary of theories that has influenced her ideas of gift-giving, the author continues with a discussion of the types of gifts she has seen in her Eritrean field, and presents the argument that the movement of objects in society signifies the intensity and quality of social bonds and the relationship between the specific individuals involved. She also attempts to map patterns of commonality. This is followed by a discussion, in which — through interpreting objects, individuals, and occasions as signifiers —, she endeavours to outline some general characteristics of Tigrinya society.

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