Talk:Poro

Rewording needed

I would like to draw your attention to the line:

• "It primarily represents a type of freemasonry, a friendly society"... etc

I realize that you are using the word "freemasonry" in its coloquial form... not refering to the actual fraternal order itself but in a broader sense, as a general noun meaning "a tight knit society or fraternity". However, because the bots keep linking the word to the Freemasonry article, your meaning shifts and the use of the word implies that there is some sort of direct tie between Poro and Freemasonry. Perhaps a better wording can be found? Thanks Blueboar 18:18, 6 September 2006 (UTC)

Soko?

At least one news article [1] refers to this society as the "Soko", at least in how it relates to Alhassan Bangura's father. Is this a misprint, or a different sect? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 124.168.121.134 (talk) 13:19, 20 December 2007 (UTC)

I believe it is a mis-nomer though this is just my own bit of casual googling. The 'Soko' is the head of the Poro, i.e., Bangura's dad was the Soko.

the only other group called the 'soko' is one that does street performances. Then again- he is trying to claim a reason why he must stay in the UK;)) His countrymen aren't happy [2]Merkinsmum 19:50, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

Puru

I've been doing work w/ Liberian religious conflict and i've found several articles that call it "puru", maybe poro should have a redirect option to this page. I've also seen poro used to describe the host of superstitions Liberians hold dear, but this is specifically about the heirarchy of poro clergy. from culture and customs of Liberia by ayodeji olukoju: "traditional religionists, esp those in the PORO areas of n. and nw. liberia, believe in the existence of a variety of spirits:ancestral spirits, ..., and specific PORO spirits... Poro spirits include the bush devil, which communicates the will of the gods, and acts as its earthly or visible manifestations. These spirits are represented by several masked dancers under the control of the PORO." I can cite it and all that, speak up if you think it's worth adding. Baron Harkonnen (talk) 04:51, 30 May 2008 (UTC)

There is already an article at puru on a different topic but it would be a good idea to create a disambiguation link at the top of the current puru article to point people here. There's information on how to do this at Deciding to disambiguate but let me know if you need any help doing this.

It would be really good if you could expand the article as the information is from a very old source and any extra information will be very valuable especially if you can add the sources as references. --Kaly99 (talk) 06:58, 30 May 2008 (UTC)

I've added some structure to the article but feel free to change them if there is a better structure. --Kaly99 (talk) 07:05, 30 May 2008 (UTC)

I think this article is kind of questionable. How reliable is something English people wrote about African culture 100 years ago? Are there more recent sources? Coastghost (talk) 03:14, 30 March 2009 (UTC)

How

is it a secret society if it has it's own wikipedia page? x.X 24.109.35.90 (talk) 01:04, 13 October 2009 (UTC)

Membership and rituals are secretive. Only members of the respective society are able to partake and they're usually conducted in secluded areas. DA1 (talk) 07:53, 22 July 2018 (UTC)

Copying this from the Sande talk page: The term "secret society" to describe Poro/Sande is extremely controversial. The societies themselves are not a "secret," although they contain knowledge about the world shared only among members. Describing such institutions as "secret societies" makes them seem much more exotic, and perhaps therefore dangerous or antiquated, to Western readers than they in fact are. See: Michael Gomez, Exchanging Our Country Marks p. 95. If your definition of a secret society is that it selects its members and conducts its operations in private, doesn't that mean most organizations in the West are also secret societies? 73.74.200.115 (talk) 17:43, 10 August 2020 (UTC)

Possible sources for a potential overhaul

• Initiation: Ritual Drama and Secret Knowledge Across the World by Jean Sybil La Fontaine, Manchester University Press ND, 1986.
• The Encyclopedia of African and African-American Religions by Stephen D. Glazier, Taylor & Francis, 2001.
• Social Organization and Peasant Societies: Festschrift in Honor of Raymond Firth by Raymond Firth and Maurice Freedman, Transaction Publishers, 30 Apr 2008 - Despite the subtitle, one of the essays discusses the Poro.
• Ritual and Memory: Toward a Comparative Anthropology of Religion by Harvey Whitehouse and Dr James Laidlaw, Rowman Altamira, 2004.
• Crisis of the State: War and Social Upheaval by Bruce Kapferer, Bjørn Enge Bertelsen, Berghahn Books, 23 Apr 2009.
• The War Machines: Young Men and Violence in Sierra Leone and Liberia by Danny Hoffman, Duke University Press, 26 Aug 2011.
• The Continuum Encyclopedia of Native Art: Worldview, Symbolism, and Culture in Africa, Oceania, and Native North America by Hope B. Werness, Continuum International Publishing Group, 1 Mar 2003.
• Culture and customs of Liberia by Ayodeji Olukoju, Greenwood Publishing Group
• Peoples of Africa by Fiona MacDonald, Elizabeth Paren, Kevin Shillington, Gillian Stacey, and Philip Steele; Marshall Cavendish, 1 Nov 2000. Ian.thomson (talk) 04:41, 28 November 2012 (UTC)
• "Notes on the Poro in Liberia" by George W. Harley; George Banta Publishing Company, 1941 :::: "Masks as Agents of Social Control in Northeast Liberia" by George W. Harley, Papers of the Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University vol. XXXII -- No. 2 1950 - from the Peabody museum of american archaeology and ethnology, Harvard University, author lived in Ganta, Liberia for 35 years. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:1C0:CB00:5313:EC51:E765:4405:6872 (talk) 18:40, 9 July 2016 (UTC)
• Senufo Unbound: Dynamics of Art and Identity in West Africa by Susan E. Gagliardi, 2014 - Disrupts many erroneous notions about Poro societies (many of which are present in this article) RaincIouds (talk) 22:10, 25 July 2022 (UTC)