Editor:

Kwanzaa, is an annual holiday affirming African family and social values that is celebrated primarily in the United States from December 26 to January 1.

Both the name and the celebration were devised in 1966 by Maulana Karenga, a professor of Africana studies at California State University in Long. The name Kwanzaa is not itself a Swahili word actually. Yet, the concept of Kwanzaa draws on Southern African first-fruits celebrations.. Although Kwanzaa is primarily an African American holiday, it has also come to be celebrated outside the United States, particularly in Caribbean and other countries where there are large numbers of descendants of Africans.

It was conceived as a nonpolitical and nonreligious holiday, and it is not considered to be a substitute for Christmas.

Each of the days of the celebration is dedicated to one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa: unity (umoja), self-determination (kujichagulia), collective responsibility (ujima), cooperative economics (ujamaa), purpose (nia), creativity (kuumba), and faith (imani). There also are seven symbols of the holiday: fruits, vegetables, and nuts; a straw mat; a candleholder; ears of corn (maize); gifts; a communal cup signifying unity; and seven candles symbolizing the seven principles.

On each day the family comes together to light one of the candles in the kinara, or candleholder, and to discuss the principle or the day.

On December 31, families join in a community feast called the karamu.

Some participants wear traditional African clothing during the celebration. Let us all celebrate our cultural family traditions this holiday.

Craig and Sharon Butts, Unity in the Community Richmond Hill