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African American History: Detailed Analysis of Cultural Heritage Contributions to
American Society
African American History
Knowing one's cultural heritage and the cultural heritage of others is one of the key
things in understanding others and ourselves. The African helped in defending, developing and
establishing the USA, and they were the ancestors of the African American culture found
presently in the USA. Different heritages from West Africans have had a big contribution to the
creation of the present-day African American culture. The following are some of those heritages
described in detail.
Firstly, music- Historically, the African-American ethnic groups' music has been
influenced by polyrhythmic music from the continent's Sahel, Western and Central & Southern
areas. Afro-centric oral traditions, shaped by slavery, emphasized the importance of music in
transmitting information and teaching lessons (Mullins & Ryan, 2020). Several characteristics in
African-American music show its African heritage, including blue notes, syncopation, swung
notes, call-and-respond, improvisation, and the usage of melisma and falsetto.
Secondly, dance-African traditional dance has its origins in the many African ethnic
groups’ dances that were enslaved in America and European traditional folk dances. The
population of the enslaved African culture included African dance as a component of daily life
and special events. The ring yells, get down, and other forms of body language from Africa are
still used in modern dance today.
Thirdly, African-American art has contributed significantly to American culture since its
earliest beginnings in slave communities and continuing to the 20th-century ending. Quilts, small
African American History: Detailed Analysis of Cultural Heritage Contributions to
American Society
African American History
Knowing one's cultural heritage and the cultural heritage of others is one of the key
things in understanding others and ourselves. The African helped in defending, developing and
establishing the USA, and they were the ancestors of the African American culture found
presently in the USA. Different heritages from West Africans have had a big contribution to the
creation of the present-day African American culture. The following are some of those heritages
described in detail.
Firstly, music- Historically, the African-American ethnic groups' music has been
influenced by polyrhythmic music from the continent's Sahel, Western and Central & Southern
areas. Afro-centric oral traditions, shaped by slavery, emphasized the importance of music in
transmitting information and teaching lessons (Mullins & Ryan, 2020). Several characteristics in
African-American music show its African heritage, including blue notes, syncopation, swung
notes, call-and-respond, improvisation, and the usage of melisma and falsetto.
Secondly, dance-African traditional dance has its origins in the many African ethnic
groups’ dances that were enslaved in America and European traditional folk dances. The
population of the enslaved African culture included African dance as a component of daily life
and special events. The ring yells, get down, and other forms of body language from Africa are
still used in modern dance today.
Thirdly, African-American art has contributed significantly to American culture since its
earliest beginnings in slave communities and continuing to the 20th-century ending. Quilts, small
