Grand Life Magazine Winter 23-24 - Flipbook - Page 21
Junkanoo is the most sacred cultural festival in The
Bahamas. It is a national celebration of the
country’s West African heritage, an ode to the
ancestors who were plucked from their homeland
and enslaved on plantations. Junkanoo is equally
treasured by Bahamians residing within the country
and the diaspora because it is the root of
Bahamian culture and a gift of tradition passed
down from the elders to generations who have
preserved it for hundreds of years.
The origins of Junkanoo in The Bahamas is a
fascinating conversation linked to several theories
about the history of this cultural event. Historians
believe the festival was first celebrated during the
16th or 17th centuries by enslaved Africans on
plantations who were given time off by plantation
owners to celebrate the Christmas holiday. Another
popular theory links the origin of Junkanoo to John
Canoe, an African tribal chief brought to The
Bahamas as a slave who demanded that his people
have the right to celebrate Christmas.
However, research conducted by Bahamian
Historian Christopher Davis has linked the ancestral
origins of Bahamians to Ahanta, Ghana. Davis
visited the region in 2022 to identify and establish
what his research had discovered - the Africans
who were enslaved and brought to The Bahamas
originated from Ahanta and the Junkanoo Festival
originated from Princess Town (or Pokesu) located
in the Western Region of Ghana.
Today, the spirit of Junkanoo radiates stronger than
ever throughout The Bahamas, with the parade
consistently categorized as one of the top festivals
in the Caribbean, attracting visitors to the country
annually to experience this unique artistic
expression.
Major Junkanoo parades are held on New
Providence, Grand Bahama, Exuma, and several
other islands on December 26th (Boxing Day) and
