Zamba

Zamba can mean:

Zamba (god)

Zamba is the Supreme Creator-God of the Yaoundé people of the Cameroons. According to the Yaoundé people, he made the Earth and all its creatures except human beings. He left that job to his four sons, Ngi (gorilla) the strong, N'Kokon (mantis) the wise, Otukut (lizard) the fool, and Wo (chimpanzee) the curious - and each made human beings in his own image, which is why we are the way we are.

References

Zamba (artform)

Zamba is a traditional dance of Argentina. It is a style of Argentinian music and Argentinian folk dance. Zamba is very different from its homophone, the samba - musically, rhythmically, temperamentally. It is afro-indigenous compared to the Samba, in the steps of the dance and in its costume. It has six beats to the bar and is a majestic dance, performed by couples who circle each other waving white handkerchiefs very elegantly. It has common elements with the cueca.

Zambas are composed about every genre, from those that celebrate people or events of Argentinian history, to those that describe the beauty of a region, or of its women. There are zambas of political protest, and even one called Aerolíneas Argentinas. The bombo legüero drum is prominent in the playing of the zamba.

Name and Origin

The name "zamba" refers to a colonial term for zambo (descendants of European Spanish, Amerindian mixed with African people). It is therefore called zamba because its lyrical content was aimed at its native listeners.