Celebrating African American Culture : Festival: Today’s Kwanzaa activities at Bowers Museum and a Mission Viejo church mark the start of the seven-day holiday.

The celebration of Kwanzaa, an African American holiday that embraces culture, family and community, begins today as people gather in their homes and attend festivities to reflect on the past and focus on making the future more meaningful.

The African Cultural Arts Council is having its festivities at the Bowers Museum of Cultural Art in Santa Ana from 1 to 4 p.m. The Southern California Chapter of the National Black Women’s Health Project is hosting a celebration at the Shepherds of the Hills United Methodist Church in Mission Viejo at 7 p.m.

Both events feature entertainment, storytelling and dramatic representations of the significance of Kwanzaa and its history.

Kwanzaa, derived from a Swahili word meaning “first fruits of the harvest,” was founded in 1966 by Maulana Karenga, director of the African American Cultural Center and chairman of the black studies department at Cal State Long Beach.

“It is not an African holiday. It is an African American holiday,” said Willia Edmonds, who chairs the African Cultural Arts Council. “It is nonreligious [and] nonpolitical and its purpose is to have a recommitment to family, children and our ancestors.”

At least two events have been scheduled in Orange County for Saturday to commemorate the holiday, which ends Jan. 1.

Participants at both celebrations will light seven candles, each representing the Nguzo Saba, the seven principles individuals should strive to follow. Each day of Kwanzaa corresponds to a different principle. They are Umoja (unity); Kujichagulia (self- determination); Ujima (collective work and responsibility); Ujamaa (cooperative economics); Nia (purpose); Kuumba (creativity) and Imani (faith).

At Shepherds of the Hills on Saturday, students will make presentations explaining the meaning of the principles. The students have delved beyond the surface of Kwanzaa in discussions about the holiday, said Natalie Miles, who has organized sessions at the church with youngsters playing a part in the events.

One young girl asked if she could bring a non-African American friend to the celebration, Miles recalled. “I said, ‘Absolutely,’ ” Miles said. “The whole meaning of the holiday is to share with the children that we are all the same underneath and that these values [the seven principles] are what we need to live by and would be wonderful if we could share them with everyone.”