Our navigation bar is loading . . .

Helping San Diego, California and beyond since 1997.

Do you need volunteer, community service, work, military or court hours?

Click here and add this page to your favorites!

Encyclopedia Britannica

GENNA

This article appears in Volume V11, Page 596 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: GAG-GEO

GENNA , a word of obscure origin borrowed from the Assamese, and used technically by anthropologists to describe a class of social and religious ordinances based on sanctions which derive their validity from a vague sense of mysterious danger which results from disobedience to them. These prohibitionsor system of things forbiddenaffect the relations, permanent and temporary, of individuals (either as members of a tribe,

village

VILLAGE

, clan or household, dr as occupying an official position in the

village

VILLAGE

or clan) towards other persons or groups of persons and towards material objects which possess intrinsic sanctity. The term is extended to the communal rites performed by the village, clan or household, either as magical ceremonies or as prophylactics on

special

SPECIAL

occasions when the social, commensal, conjugal and alimentary relations of the group affected are subjected to temporary modifications. These practices and beliefs are observed among the hill tribes of Assam from the Abors and Mishmis on the north to the Lusheis on the south, all linguistically members
' See Gerald Campbell, Edward and Pamela Fitzgerald (1905).of the Tibeto-Burman group, and among the Khasis, members of the Mon-Khmer group. Genna and taboo (q.v.) are products of an identical level of culture and similar psychological processes, and provide the mechanism of the social and religious systems.
Permanent Gennas.The only universal genna is that which forbids the intermarriage of members of the same clan. In some cases in Manipur animals are genna to the tribei.e. they must not be killed or eatenbut tribal differentiation is, in practice, based on dialectical distinctions rather than on tribal gennas. The village as such possesses no permanent gennas, but the clans, as the units of

marriage

MARRIAGE

under the law of exogamy, have distinct elementary gennas, especially the clan to which the priest-

chief

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

belongs. The most important individual gennas are those which protect the priest-

chief

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

from impurity or contact with " sacred " substances such as the flesh of animals used in sacrifices. He may neither eat in a strange

house

HOUSE
HOUSE (O. Eng. hiss, a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Dut. huis, Ger. Haus; in
Gothic
- GOTHIC
it is only found in gudhiss, a temple; it may be ultimately connected with the root of " hide," conceal)

, nor utter words of abuse, nor take an oath in a dispute, except in his representative capacity on behalf of his village. The first-fruits are genna to the village until he eats, thus establishing an opposition between him and his co-villagers. Married and unmarried women are subject to alimentary gennas; thus unmarried girls are forbidden the flesh of any male animal or of any female animal dying gravid.
Ritual Gennas.Ritual gennas are held annually to foster the rice crops, all other industries and activities being genna (for-bidden) during the cultivating season, to secure good hunting, to avert sickness, especially epidemics, to take omens, and to lay finally to rest the ghosts of all that have died within the year. The village gates are closed, men and women eat apart, and conjugal relations are suspended.

Special

SPECIAL

village gennas are. held when rain is needed, when a villager dies in any manner out of the

ordinary

ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

, as women in childbirth, when an animal gives

birth

BIRTH (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages from the root of the verb " to bear ")

to still-born offspring, and when any permanent genna has been violated. Clan gennas are held for all

ordinary

ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

cases of death. Household gennas are held on the occasions of

birth

BIRTH (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages from the root of the verb " to bear ")

(when the aliment and conduct of the father are specially regulated), naming, ear-piercing, the first

hair

HAIR (a word common to Teutonic languages)

-cutting, sickness, and, in certain areas, tattooing. Individuals are subjected to temporary gennas as warriors both before and after a head-hunting raid, pregnant women, married persons at the beginning of their married life, the wives of the priest-chief, and those who from ambition or

pride

PRIDE, THOMAS (d. 1658)

of wealth seek to perpetuate their names by erecting a stone monument, an act which confers the right to wear the distinctive clothes of the priest-chief which otherwise are genna to the whole village. Ritual gennas are of varying duration. Some last for a month while others are complete in two days. As religious or magical rites, they prevent danger or establish and restore normal relations with powers which are potentially
harmful or require placation.

End of Article: GENNA

If you wish, you can link directly to this article.

<a href="http://jcsm.org/StudyCenter/Encyclopedia/GAG_GEO/GENNA.html">
GENNA
</a>

(Previous)
GENLIS

(Next)
GENNADIUS II

JCSM was founded in 1997 and exists to help the community and bring people into a life-changing and productive relationship with Jesus Christ. JCSM offers over 200,000 free web pages, including its weekly inspirational emails that were sent continuously for over a decade.

Jesus Christ Saves Ministries
P.O. Box 9297
San Diego, CA 92169
1-888-887-0417 or Email