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Zimbabwean Culture In The House of Discarded Dreams
The people of Zimbabwe belong to one of the two major tribes, the Ndebele or the Shona tribe, to which Vimbai's family belongs. The Shona people were the founders of the ancient capital city of Great Zimbabwe and they consist of 11.5 million people: 75% of Zimbabwe's population.

Language
In addition to being the name of a tribe, Shona is also one of the languages spoken in Zimbabwe. English is the official language of the country and Vimbai's primary language. Shona and Sindebele, also known as Northern Ndebele, are the most commonly spoken. Shona is spoken as the first language by two-thirds of the population.

Arts
Music and arts are important to the Zimbabwean culture. Traditional music is still played using local instruments. The art is of crafting; pottery, bakery, textiles, jewelry, and carving are some examples. Stone sculpting is also an artwork practiced.

Dance is also important in the Zimbabwean culture. Dance and music was part of rites of passage, and thus custom is still practiced to this day.

Beliefs and Religion
The spirit world is a major influence on Zimbabwean people and shows up in the book regularly. Beliefs in prophecy and divination, divine inspiration through communication with spirits, are common. The Shona believe in two spirits; Shaved spirits and Vadzimu spirits. In The House of Discarded Dreams, Vimbai's grandmother appears to her as ghost, or a vadzimu. Christianity is the religion of 85% of the population. Just as in Christianity, Zimbabweans have a monotheistic faith, where they believe in one supreme being. Mwari is their supreme creator. Traditional African religions, such as Shona and Ndebele, as well as Islam, Hinduism, and Buddism are some other major religions in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwean Folklore In The House of Discarded Dreams
Reoccurring themes in Zimbabwean folklore are animals and tricksters. Zimbabweans also believe in smaller gods. For example, Nyami Nyami is the Zambezi river god.

The Wazimamoto
The Wazimamoto is a vampire fireman that drives around in a red truck, abducts it's victims and takes them back to a fire station where it drains their blood. In the African's perspective, the wazimamoto, sought to destroy their culture, or steal their "cultural blood". Vimbai says that the victims of the "wazimamoto" are horse shoe crabs, because their blood was being stolen (Sedia 15). The tale of the Wazimamoto was a created by the African people to warn women about the dangers of living alone. The Wazimamoto legend differs from the one in the book because Sedia portrays the Wazimamoto as a vampire that drives a medical truck rather than a firetruck.