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Fête afro-américaine
Kwanzaa is a week-long celebration of African identity and culture throughout the world, particularly in the United States. It takes place annually from 26 December to 1 January (du 26 décembre au 1e janvier).
The seven principles of Kwanzaa ~ Les sept principes de Kwanzaa
The celebration of Kwanzaa is centered around seven principles, or values. Each day of the week-long festival is dedicated to one of these values.
Note: because the Swahili language is such an integral part of Kwanzaa, I included the Swahili terms (in parentheses).
| 1. | Unity | l’unité | (Umoja) | ||
| 2. | Self-determination | l’autodétermination | (Kujichagulia) | ||
| 3. | Collective work and responsibility | le travail et la responsabilité coopératifs | (Ujima) | ||
| 4. | Cooperative economics | la coopération économique | (Ujamaa) | ||
| 5. | Purpose | le but | (Nia) | ||
| 6. | Creativity | la créativité | (Kuumba) | ||
| 7. | Faith | la foi | (Imani) |
Kwanzaa colors ~ Les couleurs de Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa has three symbolic colors:
| black | noir | (the people) |
| red | rouge | (their struggle) |
| green | vert | (hope for the future) |
More: Colors in French
Kwanzaa vocabulary ~ Le vocabulaire de Kwanzaa
Some French terms and ideas related to the celebration of Kwanzaa:
| Africa | l’Afrique | ||
| African | africain | ||
| African-American | |||
| (adjective) (noun) |
afro-Américain, noir américain un Afro-Américain, un Noir américain |
||
| art | l’art | ||
| book | un livre | ||
| candle | une bougie | ||
| candle holder | un bougeoir | ||
| community | la communauté | ||
| corn | le maïs | ||
| culture | la culture | ||
| family | la famille | ||
| flag | le drapeau | ||
| fruit | les fruits | ||
| gift | le cadeau | ||
| harvest | la récolte | ||
| heritage | le patrimoine | ||
| hope | l’espoir | ||
| humanity | l’humanité | ||
| mat | la natte | ||
| meditation | la méditation | ||
| rebirth | la renaissance | ||
| respect | le respect | ||
| seven candles | sept bougies | ||
| struggle | la lutte | ||
| thanks | remerciements | ||
| Unity cup | la coupe de l’Unité | ||
| values | les valeurs | ||
Happy Kwanzaa! Joyeux Kwanzaa !
Related lessons
French holiday expressions
More from LKL
French vocabulary for other holidays
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