baraza

/ baˈraza /

noun

1. a place where public meetings are held

2. a palaver or meeting

Word History and Origins

Origin of baraza¹

C19: from Swahili

Example Sentences

"This conversation stinks. This is not the way brothers. Victim shaming is as stupid as the act itself. Do better," said Sauti Sol, singer for the Kenyan pop group Bien-Aimé Baraza.

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From a woman hunched in a sheltered nook off the side of the road I picked up a pillowy disk of mkate wa ufuta, sesame bread baked over coals, and ripped off chewy, perfectly charred chunks to nibble on a baraza, a shaded bench that’s a fixture outside traditional Swahili houses.

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They have created the Baraza Badilika - a contemporary take on ancient meeting spaces where men would gather to resolve pressing community issues and initiate boys into manhood.

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Every week, around 20 men meet at the Baraza for two hours to learn about positive masculinity, gender equality and fatherhood.

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Community meetings — referred to as “baraza” in Swahili, roughly analogous to American town halls — continue to be an important part of the social structure.

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