Sona (Mathematik)

Sona-Diagramm, das die Entstehung der Welt illustriert

Sona, auch tusona (in einigen Zentral-Süd-Bantusprachen, Singular lusona, auch kasona) sind traditionelle geometrische Muster mancher Bantu-Völker, wie der Chokwe, in einem Gebiet von Angola und Sambia im südlichen Afrika.

Männer zeichnen sona mit den Fingern in den glatt gestrichenen Sand oder verzieren damit Häuserwände, während sie dazu eine Geschichte erzählen. Ohne den Finger abzusetzen, wird eine geschlossene Linie gezogen. Die Linie kreuzt sich mehrmals, führt aber um Punkte eines vorher festgelegten Musters herum. Manche Muster stehen für ganz bestimmte Geschichten und Fabeln. Sie sind somit geometrische Visualisierungen von Erzählungen.[1]

Siehe auch

  • Kolam (südindische Bodenmalereien mit teils mathematischen Mustern)

Literatur

Einzelnachweise

  1. Henning Krause: Ethnomathematik - dargestellt am Beispiel der Sona Geometrie[sic!]. Spektrum der Wissenschaft 1998, Heft 9, S. 118 (online bei spektrum.de).

Auf dieser Seite verwendete Medien

Kalunga-lusona.jpg
Autor/Urheber: OmarTheKingFr, Lizenz: CC0
This lusona ideograph illustrates the oral story of the beginning of the world among Tchokwe people :

"At one time the Sun went to pay his respects to God. He walked and walked until he found the path which led to God. He presented himself to God, who gave him a cock and said to him: 'See me in the morning before you leave.' In the morning the cock crowed and woke up the Sun, who then went to see God. God said: 'I heard the cock crow, the one I gave you for supper. You may keep him, but you must return every morning.'

This is why the Sun encircles the earth and appears every morning. The Moon also went to visit God, was given a cock, who also woke him up in the morning ... So God said: 'I see that you also did not eat the cock I gave you for supper. That is all right. But come back to see me every twenty-eight days.'...

And man in turn went to see God, and was given a cock. But he was very hungry after his long voyage and ate part of the cock for supper and kept the rest for his return trip. The next morning the Sun was already high in the sky when our man awoke. He quickly ate the remains of the cock and hurried to his divine host. God said to him with a smile: 'What about the cock I gave you yesterday? I did not hear him crow this morning.' The man became fearful. 'I was very hungry and ate him.' ... 'That is all right,' said God,'but listen: you know that Sun and Moon have been here, but neither of them killed the cock I gave them. That is why they themselves will never die. But you killed yours, and so you must die as he did. But at your death you must return here.' And so it is."

The top figure is God, the bottom is man, on the left is the Sun and on the right is the Moon. The path is the path that leads to God."(Bastin, 1961, page 39)