Oral source or oral data are testimonies handed down
to us by word of mouth from one generation to another over time. According to Janvansina
“oral tradition are all testimonies concerned past which are transmitted from
one generation to another”. Oral
tradition or oral data comes in many forms and serve variety of functions.
Professor E.J Alaoga has defined oral tradition as
historical information transmitted orally by processes peculiar to each
community, and which should be studied first in the content of its culture
before being made available for cross cultural analysis and compares on.
However, there
are two forms of oral data
a. Oral history
b. Folklora
Oral
history tradition: It present accounts
of past events and activities rendered
by persons who were direct actors or participates or eye witness to the events . There is also
the oral history tradition which is
the same of account of past events
and activities, but revived by
persons who were not direct actors
or participants to the events.
Folklora: This is as a
form of oral tradition is the blanket
term for myth, legend, song, poem, drama, literature, riddles, ritual
formlae proverbs, belief and cosmology
Myth: The English
word derived from the Greek mythos meaning that branch of knowledge which is
indisputable not subject to rational argument. The content of myth is supposed
to be the about past events including concept and belief about the early history of a
particular group of people. Such
history is held to true and
unreliable.
Myth explains the origin of things and how things
happened and the way they be and set
down rules for human behaviour . Myth thus beliefs in the law of cause and effect, and the law of nature.
Myth have been also defined as the stories concerned the super natural of the activities of deities, spirits and ancestors semi –divine of heroes and origin of the world and mankind . Finally, myth determines its meaning
of the past and argued the present ought to be reflected its view of the past.
Legend: Legend have been described as story handed down from the past but which could be of doubtful
truth. As a result, legend have been
defined as the stories are partly true and partly false. However, this definition does not diminished
as the source of history legend usually speak of time since the beginning,
after original founder, had departed their earthly lives,
Legend deal
with real personages and not animals and also deal with real places.
Legend are not seriously regarded
as historical fact but are all
acceptable for historical construction
especially when cross channeled with other sources.
Ritual
formula :
Ritual utterances incantation and
formule can all subsumed under myth. They are all important to customs because
with them the historians can interpret the people beliefs and cosmology. For
example, the pouring of liberation land in some African counties is symbolic
and signifies the supernatural and importance in the human affairs. The peoples
cosmological and philosophical beliefs usually embedded in such ritual
utterances.
PROVERBS AND RIDDLES
Proverbs and riddles do not only depict the peoples norms
and philosophy but also exposes the depth their wisdom. Proverbs
are defined as a popular short saying with words of
advice or warning (for
instance look before you
reap while riddles are
described as pushing question or
statement intended to make person
implore his intelligent or wits
proverbs riddles and feables are
non formal types oral sources
Folk –tales many belong to the same type of the
beginning as the myth. In most cases, the same gods and heroes may appears but
the principal actor may be animals.
Folk
–tells may often offer explanation of peculiarity that can be found in animal
and human behavour. Folk –tell are
usually told by old people especially women to children around the fire place
or kitchen in the moonlight. Such tells
often contains moral /lessons
and express value to be drawn or
emulated folk tell are good for character formation and offers useful recreational period to children who might
have engaged in mischievous act folk –tell provide historian with an insight
into the peoples expectation of their present generation and quality of their code of
conduct
SONGS, POEM,
DRAMA AND MUSIC
These are varieties of utterances which constitutes
types of oral source outside the formal historical category. Thus, songs,
poem music and drama may be placed in general
category of literature. These forms could be used to give a vivid
description of their exploits heroes. They could be spoken through song, it
could be chanted even rendered through the talking of drum. The account be rendered in the form
of an epic which is poetic account of the deed of one or more
people of their great heroes of their nation past history eg . Homerville. Such a poem is regarded as praise poem. Songs
could be therefore, also epics of poetry
.
Songs
are generally used for recording special campaign and important individuals
achievement