Festval of Kwanzaa

 Kwanzaa is a week long celebration held in the U.S. The celebration honors African heritage in African American culture. The celebration takes place December 26 to January 1st. Kwanzaa was created by Maulana Karenga with seven core principles. It was first celebrated in 1966 to 1967

Kwanzaa is the first African American holiday. Karenga came up with the name of the holiday from the Swahili phrase matunda ya kwanza which means "first fruits of the harvest" Swahili an East African language was  status symbol of the Pan Africanism movement in the 1960s. Kwanzaa has roots in the black nationalist movement of the 1960 and was created to help African Americans reconnect with their African cultural and historial heritage by uniting in meditation and study of African traditional and the seven principles of African Heritage.

Early years Kwanzaa was created to offer "oppositional alternatve" to Christmas. Later s Kwanzaa gained population it was changed to be a celebration of family, community and culture not to give an alternative but to celebrate alongside their own holiday.