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Sweet Canaan

Deborah Anne Goss
Language: English


Deborah Anne Goss

List of versions


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Lyrics : 1807 - Mead's General Collection
Music : 1844 - E.J.King
Music played an important part in the lives of enslaved Americans. Songs were a way of giving encouragement and hope for a free future.

During the underground railroad the word Canaan was substituted for the word "Canada" which was the destination of some slaves.

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The hymn was known to Frederick Douglass.
Frederick Douglass was a writer, statesman and anti-slavery activist. He also escaped slavery to freedom in the North. In one of his books, he writes about the songs sung by slaves to encourage each other to escape. Here is part of one of the songs that inspired him: “O Canaan, sweet Canaan, I am bound for the land of Canaan.” Douglass said about the song: “We meant to reach the north - and the north was our Canaan.”
(da SONGS OF FREEDOM )

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Attualmente Canaan è anche il nome di una piccola comunita’ della provincia Canadese della Nuova Scozia , nella contea di Kings.

*****

Note da :
I'm On My Way (civil rights song)
Edited by Azizi Powell 2014

The civil rights song "I'm On My Way" is an adaptation of the African American Spiritual "I'm On My Way To Canaan Land" (also known as "I'm On My Way To The Kingdom Land" and "I'm Bound For The Promised Land.) Note that there are several Spirituals and other religious songs with the title "I'm On My Way To Canaan Land" or "Bound To Canaan" or similar title. "Canaan", "the Promised Land", and "the Kingdom land" were references to Heaven. Some of the versions of those Spirituals had the same or nearly the same words that are used for the civil rights song. Only the meanings of those words are different. In the civil rights song, "freedom land" meant a land where everyone had equal rights under the law.

The Civil Rights movement in 1960s was the singingest movement in American history. Old African American spirituals like, “I Will Overcome,” “I'm On My Way to Canaan Land” and dozens of others were adapted by marchers and demonstrators throughout the South and across the nation. By design, the repetitive nature and “call back” structure of a spiritual make it ideal for improvised group singing."




(Pluck)
Oh who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the land of Canaan.
I’m bound fair Canaan’s land to see,
I’m bound for the land of Canaan.

Oh Canaan, sweet Canaan,
I’m bound for the land of Canaan.
Sweet Canaan, ’tis my happy home;
I am bound for the land of Canaan.

I’ll join with those who’ve gone before,
I am bound for the land of Canaan.
Where sin and sorrow are no more,
I am bound for the land of Canaan.

Oh Canaan, sweet Canaan,
I’m bound for the land of Canaan.
Sweet Canaan, ’tis my happy home;
I am bound for the land of Canaan.

Contributed by Pluck - 2024/1/5 - 12:34


Per chi volesse approfondire la storia dell'emigrazione degli schiavi Africo Americani dagli USA verso il Canada inoltro parte della recensione del libro :
Canaan And Canada (1904)
Edizione Inglese di Daniel Vannorman Lucas (Autore)
Editore ‏ : ‎ Kessinger Publishing - 2008

"Canaan and Canada is a historical account of the migration of African Americans from the United States to Canada in the late 19th century. Written by Daniel Vannorman Lucas and originally published in 1904, the book explores the reasons behind the migration, the challenges faced by the migrants, and their experiences in Canada. Lucas discusses the history of slavery and racial discrimination in the United States and how it led to the desire of many African Americans to seek a better life in Canada. He also examines the social and economic conditions in Canada at the time and how they impacted the migrants. The book includes personal accounts from African American migrants, as well as statistical data and analysis. Overall, Canaan and Canada provides a fascinating insight into a little-known chapter of North American history and sheds light on the struggles and triumphs of African American migrants in Canada"

Pluck - 2024/1/8 - 22:21




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