Hilton Head Island Gullah Celebration
WHY IT'S HERE
Founded in 1996, month-long celebration of the Gullah Geechee cultural heritage of the South Carolina Sea Islands, recognized as one of the most authentic preservations of African American heritage culture.
The Hilton Head Island Gullah Celebration was founded in 1996 to honor the cultural traditions of the Gullah Geechee people, descendants of enslaved Africans who settled in the Sea Islands and coastal regions of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. Held throughout February each year, the celebration spans four weeks and includes an arts and crafts marketplace, the De Aarts Ob We People exhibit, a Freedom Day reenactment, Gullah cuisine demonstrations, a film festival, a children's heritage day, and the closing De Gullah Smokin' Blues evening. The celebration has been recognized by the Library of Congress as one of the most authentic preservations of African American heritage culture in the United States.
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