oral tradition
form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another
AI overview
Oral tradition is the practice of passing down knowledge, stories, art, and cultural information by speaking and listening rather than writing them down. It matters because it has been a primary way for communities throughout history to preserve and share their identity, values, and accumulated wisdom across generations.
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Article
A traditional Kyrgyz manaschi performing part of the Epic of Manas at a yurt camp in Karakol Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication in which knowledge, art, beliefs, ideas and culture are received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. The transmission is through speech or song and may include folktales, ballads, chants, prose or poetry. The information is mentally recorded by oral repositories, sometimes termed "walking libraries", who are usually also performers. Oral tradition is a medium of communication for a society to transmit oral history, oral literature, oral law and other knowledge across generations without a writing system, or in parallel to a writing system. It is the most widespread medium of human communication. They often remain in use in the modern era throughout for cultural preservation.
Religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Catholicism, and Jainism have used oral tradition, in parallel to writing, to transmit their canonical scriptures, rituals, hymns and mythologies. African societies have broadly been labelled oral civilisations, contrasted with literate civilisations, due to their reverence for the oral word and widespread use of oral tradition.