Final answer:
African religious traditions are termed "primal religions" because they represent some of the earliest forms of spirituality, with a focus on polytheism, animism, ancestor worship, and a cyclical concept of time linking the living with their ancestors through oral traditions and ritual enactments.
Step-by-step explanation:
African religious traditions can be referred to as "primal religions" because they embody some of the earliest forms of spiritual practices. These religions are characterized by features such as polytheism, animism, and ancestor worship. African religious traditions were rich in rituals and centered on a supreme being, yet daily affairs were managed by specialized secondary deities. Ancestor worship and various ceremonial practices played a significant role in these traditions.
Priests and followers often incorporated aspects of traditional African belief systems into their new faiths, such as Christianity, without completely abandoning their original beliefs. This can particularly be seen in regions where contact with Christianity occurred early on, as in West Central Africa.
In addition to these practices, most traditional African religions have an oral nature, with a cyclical concept of time, emphasizing the enduring connection between ancestors and the living, evident in the performance of religious rituals that involve storytelling and enactment of mythic events.