BANYORO CULTURE – CULTURE SUMMARY

 

ETHNONYMS

 

Unyoro is a corruption of Banyoro. The most popular usages, however, are: Banyoro (the people), Bunyoro (the region), and Bunyoro-Kitara (the kingdom). In the past, the name Kitara was commonly used to denote Greater Bunyoro.

ORIENTATION

 

IDENTIFICATION AND LOCATION

 

Etymologically, Unyoro was the name that 19th century Arab interpreters gave to those enemies whom the Baganda derisively called Banyoro, meaning inferior foreigners. In Bunyoro, however, a chief was called OMUNYORO (pl. ABANYORO). Gradually, the name became an honorific title used in addressing individuals of some significance. Bunyoro is one of the administrative regions that make up the modern Republic of Uganda. The Banyoro live largely in western Uganda, east of Lake Mobutu. The region comprises the districts of Hoima, Masindi, and Kibaale.

Lying between under 1 and 2.30 degrees north latitude and between 30.30 and 32.20 degrees east longitude, Bunyoro is part of the Western Uganda physical feature, itself a part of the western Rift Valley complex. The elevation is roughly between 2200 and 4800 feet above sea level. It is characterized by three topographic patterns: the western Rift Valley system, rising about 2200 feet above sea level, and comprises the areas around Lake Mobutu; the well-watered and fertile plateau system, about 3400 feet above sea level, descending westward by a steep escarpment to the Rift Valley system; and the central hilly system which runs from a southwesterly to a northwesterly axis at a height of between 4000 and 4800 feet above sea level, with a maximum width of between 18 and 19 miles.

 

DEMOGRAPHY

 

Physical and historical factors greatly affected Bunyoro’s demographic history. Although the early estimates of its population based on the geographic extent of the Kingdom on the eve of the British conquest can hardly be accepted as accurate for lack of sufficient data, the official guidebook to East Africa (1893) estimated the population at 2,500,000. The average population density in the 1890s was also estimated to be quite high. However, Bunyoro, has become one of Uganda’s smaller regions both territorially and by population. The provisional figure of Uganda’s population census in 1969 put the population of Bunyoro at 348,000, which ranked it as the 14th most populous district. And even though most of Bunyoro is well watered and fertile, population density remains the lowest in western Uganda. Among Uganda’s 31 sub-national groups, the Banyoro rank only between the 12th and 15th position in order of population.

 

LINGUISTIC AFFILIATION

 

The Banyoro speak Runyoro (Nyoro), which belongs to the Central Bantu division of the great family of Bantu languages. It was originally widely spoken in the Lake Region. In the Paluo area of northern Bunyoro a language related to the Luo language is also spoken in addition. Runyoro is spoken essentially in the Bunyoro districts and to a limited extent is understood in Tooro districts and to a lesser extent in Ankole and Buganda. Runyoro is more closely related to Runyankore than Luganda, however.

 

HISTORY AND CULTURAL RELATIONS

 

The earliest history of Bunyoro is not known. But it is suspected that people have inhabited the region since the Stone Age. However, there exist, among the Banyoro, a strong tradition that their ancestors founded the earliest state-system in the Interlacustrine Region of East Africa. The founding dynasty is identified as the ABATEMBUZI (Pioneers). They were probably a pastoral dynasty whose activities are very dimly remembered. It is claimed that they exercised dominion over agricultural communities who earlier had displaced the region’s hunter-gatherers to whom archaeologists attribute the origins of the Sangoan and Lupemban industries of the Middle Stone Age, as well as the Wilton industries of the Late Stone Age.

Between probably the 14th and 15th centuries this dynasty-whose humanity some dispute-was displaced by another pastoral dynasty identified as the Abachwezi who, within a century, are said to have turned the Abatembuzi state into a loosely organized and amorphous empire called Kitara. Unlike the Abatembuzi whose identity is not generally accepted, there is no doubt that the Abachwezi were real individuals whose activities are also imperfectly remembered. What is questioned is the description of their dominion as an empire and the territorial extent of that dominion. Nevertheless, their reign was short and exciting. They are credited with performing supernatural feats and to have exercised effortless dominion over those who came into contact with them. These superstars were elevated to a cult status-the Abachwezi Cult-after their defeat. The dynasty comprised only three kings.

The last dynasty, comprising 27 reigns, the Ababiito Dynasty, still reigns in Bunyoro. It was founded by the Luo, also a pastoral dynasty of Nilotic ancestry. It was they who defeated and displaced the Abachwezi sometime during the 16th century. Bunyoro tradition claims that the Ababiito exercised both formal and informal influence over the Lake region. The Ababiito, too, were human beings but the extent of their dominion is disputed. What is clear is that by the 18th century their influence came under heavy pressure from their neighbors, notably the Baganda and Banyankore who had also been expanding from their nuclear areas since the disintegration of the Abachwezi “empire”. By the middle of the 19th century the areas controlled by the Ababiito had shrunk considerably. The spirited efforts of Kabarega, the most famous of the Ababiito rulers, to reverse the situation was emphatically halted by the British conquest of Uganda.

During the early years of the 20th century the Banyoro formed the bulwark of resistance against British colonialism. They blamed the British for restoring the Tooro kingdom which Kabarega had reconquered; for allowing Buganda and Ankole to expand at their expense; and, most painful of all, for the indignity of being ruled by Baganda chiefs appointed by the colonial government. This resentment climaxed in the Nyangire Revolt of 1907, obviously a rejection of Buganda’s sub-imperialism, but in reality, a passive revolt against British rule The revolt was suppressed and direct colonial rule was imposed on Bunyoro.

In 1933 the colonial government, satisfied that the Banyoro had decided to behave themselves by accepting the political reality, signed the Bunyoro Agreement with Omukama Winyi IV and his chiefs by which Bunyoro district became officially recognized as the Kingdom of Bunyoro-Kitara. The Banyoro regard this recognition as a validation, in part, of their claim to have presided over a Kitara empire. The Agreement also ended the era of direct colonial rule from Kampala. The Bunyoro Agreement of 1955 formally ensured that the Omukama became only a titular head of his kingdom.

The independence of Uganda in 1963, far from restoring the equanimity of the Banyoro, caused them much disquietude instead. Not even the restoration to them of the counties of Buyaga and Bugangaizi could satisfy them. In 1967 the government of Milton Obote abolished all the Ugandan kingdoms and pensioned off the kings. Finally in 1993 the government of Yoweri Museveni decided to restore the kingdoms. And on June 11, 1994 Prince Solomon Gafabusa Iguru was crowned the 27th Omukama of the Ababiito dynasty of Bunyoro-Kitara. The Banyoro are currently engaged in what they call the ARebirth of Bunyoro-Kitara Kingdom@ in the context of their reduced circumstances.

SETTLEMENTS

 

Before the 19th century settlement patterns reflected the clan organization. This was seen as a protection against external enemies. The clans, (ENGANDA) which numbered over 150 by the 1950s, were both exogamous and patrilineal. Thus, the location and number of settlements tended to coincide with those of the clans. To a large extent Bunyoro’s topography determined the distribution of settlements.

By the 20th century, because of population movements, strengthening of chiefly institutions which afforded better protection, technological developments, natural disasters and colonialism, consanguinity gradually ceased to be the major determinant of where people lived. The dispersal of clan members over the years has continued within Bunyoro itself, within Uganda, and to other parts of East Africa.

The original houses, conical in shape, were made of wattle and clay and thatched with grass. Settlements (BYARO) were fairly isolated from one another except in a few lakeside areas where people lived in compact villages. Each homestead, usually comprising one or two buildings, had its own gardens and plantain plantations.

Colonialism brought changes to settlement patterns, structures, housing designs and materials. Now there are brick houses, corrugated iron roofs, and various sizes and shapes. Some byaro still exist and are being modernized.

ECONOMY SUBSISTENCE

 

The preindustrial economy was essentially a subsistence economy: people mostly produced food and other goods for their own use. Agriculture formed the basis of this economy. The ancestors of the Banyoro were both farmers and pastoralists, but the majority of them were-and have remained-sedentary farmers (ABAIRU). Their products included millet, root crops, bananas, coffee and barkcloth. Their implements were primarily hoes and knives. The pastoralists (ABAHUMA) operated mainly in the grassland areas. Although in those days it was rare to find someone who was both a farmer and a rancher, the two occupations were scrupulously distinct.

Knowledge of metal working greatly enhanced agricultural activities (see Industrial Arts). Animal foods included goats, sheep, chickens and a variety of animals that were hunted. Under British rule Bunyoro’s economy became more fully integrated into the capitalist system; production began to be sold for money. Agricultural techniques were modernized and the volume of production increased. Such crops as cotton, tobacco and coffee became prominent. But both traditional agriculture and modern agriculture continued to be practiced. Their features have not changed markedly since independence.

 

COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES

 

The Banyoro produced a wide range of goods to support market institutions well before the colonial period. However, commercial activities involving monetary exchange is essentially a feature of the 20th century. About sixty market locations scattered over ten countries have been identified. These comprised local, royal, specialized, frontier, central and satellite markets. The form of exchange was barter. Later in the 19th century the Arabs popularized the use of ENSIMBI (Cowrie shells) in commercial transactions. This marked the beginning of a money economy. During the colonial period, money in the form of currency gradually displaced the other forms of exchange.

 

INDUSTRIAL ARTS

 

These were specialized and reflected regional, cultural, social and religious characteristics. The products included: hoes, knives, spears, bows, arrows, canoes, boats, woodcarvings, jewels, ivory, and pipes. Iron deposits existed particularly in Bujenje, Masindi, and Kooki counties. Metalworking was monopolized by guild members who divided themselves into smelters and smiths. Secluded from the rest of the population, they lived in makeshift huts and worked in groups of ten and twenty. Other important occupations included salt mining at Kibiro and Katwe, and mining of graphite, copper, chalk, and clay.

TRADE

 

The specialized nature of the economy favored trading activities. The goods were traded in the numerous markets, which were patronized by Bunyoro’s neighbors. There existed a complicated network of trade routes which facilitated trading operations. The goods traded included both agricultural and industrial products.

DIVISION OF LABOR

 

To the best of my knowledge assignment of basic economic tasks by age was not strictly adhered to. Essentially, the specialized nature of the economy was a major determinant. Generally, women performed most of the basic agricultural tasks and the bulk of the domestic chores, but those functions requiring physical strength were left to the men.

 

LAND TENURE

 

In the pre-European period all Bunyoro land belonged to the Omukama. The system of land tenure known as the Kibanja system was divided as follows: lands allocated to the hierarchy of chiefs; allocations to the clans; and allocations to individuals. During the colonial period the ownership of land became invested in the Governor-General as a representative of the imperial government. An important innovation in the period is the concept of Certificate of Occupancy. The powers of the Governor-General were transferred to the government of independent Uganda.

 

KINSHIP. KIN GROUPS AND DESCENT

 

These were based on the clanship (OBUNYARUGANDA or OBUZAALE) system. The clans (RUGANDA), numbering over 150, were patrilineal and exogamous (except for the royal clans). Clan members observed totemic avoidances (MIZIRO). In the past the clans were essentially independent of one another but could form alliances for mutual defense. In such an eventuality, they entered into a blood-brother relationship (OMUKAGO). Clan members were forbidden to harm one another.

 

KINSHIP TERMINOLOGY

 

Cousin terminology is of the Omaha type. The children of father’s brothers, and of mother’s sisters, are called “brother” and “sister,” and they belong to your descent group. Father’s brothers are called “father” and also belong to your descent group.

 

MARRIAGE AND FAMILY

MARRIAGE

 

The marriage institution existed for procreation, but financial security, clan alliances, and desire for political power or influence were important considerations. Marriage (OKUSWERA) was often polygynous. It was traditionally arranged through someone (KIBONABUKO) delegated by an intending bridegroom’s father to collect particulars about a future bride-her clan, family, looks, health and behavior. If the information so gathered were satisfactory, and if the intended bride and her father were interested in a union, a bride price was paid to the bride’s father. Thereafter the bride moved to her husband’s residence. Divorce and remarriage were rare. They were frowned upon but not forbidden. The wife was regarded as a slave of her husband. With the advent of Islam, Christianity and colonialism, the traditional marriage system has been largely replaced.

 

DOMESTIC UNIT

 

The traditional household was often a polygynous family. The co-wives and their children occupied separate houses. Traditionally, the house contained metal and wooden utensils, clay pots of various sizes and shapes, wooden beds, mats made of raffia, wooden tables, chairs and stools. Nowadays, the household usually consists of a single monogamous family.

 

INHERITANCE

Inheritance was in the male line. A man may nominate any of his sons as his heir. The custom of primogeniture did not apply.

SOCIALIZATION

 

Child-rearing was essentially women’s work. But since women also had to work outside the home, there was need to have caretakers who could be older siblings (usually also female) or female relatives. Such values as respect for elders, good manners, chastity, hard work, martial spirit, courage, discipline, honesty, good neighborliness and truthfulness were inculcated. The naming ceremony was important. Three months after the birth of a boy (four months if the child were a girl), a personal name, chosen by the father, was given to the child at a simple ceremony. In addition, the child was given a pet name (EMPAAKO), the name Banyoro use in greeting each other. Major cultural rites included the initiation into the Abachwezi cult and the rites of graduating into manhood. Traditionally, education involved informal lessons in traditional history, folklore, vocational training, religious instruction, sporting activities, and the use of offensive weapons by the males.

 

SOCIOPOLITICAL ORGANIZATION

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION

 

With the inception of colonial rule, the village and not the clan became the basis of social organization. Still, the clan heads (ABAKURU B’ENGANDA), who were elected by their members, constituted an important social force. They were the omukama’s advisors on customary law, including inheritance. Certain clans, too, were associated with territorial administration. There were four royal clans that were divided into 156 royal sub-clans. The male head of the clans (OKWIRI or MUGAMBA) and not the king (OMUKAMA) ruled the male clan members. The female clan head (KALYOTA or BATEBE) ruled the female clan members.

The society was divided into four distinct classes. The Ababiito were the ruling family. The ABAHUMA (pastoralists) regarded themselves as superior to all others; they originally regarded the ABABIITO as part of the ABAIRU (farmers) who constituted the vast majority of the society. And then there were the ABAHUKA (slaves). However, the inequality premised by these classes was softened by the existence of a social mobility that was considerable. By the 20th century the Abahuma had disappeared as a distinct group, and slavery, too, had ceased to exist.

 

 

POLITICAL ORGANIZATION

 

To strike a balance between the two forces of centralization and decentralization, the Ababiito evolved a state structure that delegated powers and had checks and balances. Authority flowed from the Omukama, a divine, awesome figure, in descending order to a hierarchy of territorial administrators and palace officials who had specific functions. These officials poured praises on the Omukama while kneeling down. The highest ranking officials included: the ABAKAMA B’OBUHANGA (provincial governors); the austere order of the ABAJWARA KONDO (Crown Wearers); and the Abakuru b’Ebitebe (counselors of state). The major institutions of government included the ORUKURATO ORUKURU RW’IHANGA (Parliament) and the ORUKURATO RW’OMUBANANU (Cabinet). Since 1955, the Omukama of Bunyoro-Kitara has become just a cultural leader, and the traditional institutions of government have also lost their efficacy.

 

SOCIAL CONTROL

 

The sources of conflict within Bunyoro did not differ markedly from those that occur wherever there are human groups living together. Clan heads established and enforced social controls over their members and settled inter-clan conflicts. The hierarchy of territorial administrators enforced customary law and thus exercised juridical control over their subjects. Conflicts beyond the resolution of the village administrator were transferred to his superior. Some difficult cases climbed the hierarchical ladder until some eventually reached the Omukama himself.

The numerous market institutions, as culture-bearing agents, were also a source of conflict. Under the instrumentality of the market masters (ABAHOZA) and their assistants (ABAHOZA BEBIHYA), they exercised social and juridical control. The abahoza were the Omukama’s political agents/tax collectors.

The abarusura, the national standing army, was established by Omukama Kabarega during the second half of the 19th century. It was invested with powers of socio-political and juridical control in an effort by Kabarega to check the growing influence of the provincial governors following the civil war of 1869. In modern times these means of social control and conflict resolution have gradually given way to the laws of the Ugandan Republic as they have evolved from the colonial period.

 

 

RELIGION AND EXPRESSIVE CULTURE

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS

 

Traditionally the Banyoro believed in a Creator-God translated nowadays as Ruhanga. Tradition recounts in detail how Ruhanga created in Bunyoro a microcosm of the world and how he came to Bunyoro in the company of his brother Nkya Mba. Although the account looks like an initiation of the biblical story of the creation, thanks perhaps to the embellishment by an early European missionary, it has a peculiarly Banyoro piquancy to it. Ruhanga, disgusted at the evil he perceived existed in the world, ascended into heaven never to return. Nkya Mba or Kantu was left behind. Mba had three sons-Kairu, Kahuma and Kakama. Of these sons, it was Kakama who passed a set of tests prescribed by Ruhanga and thus became the Omukama. Kahuma became his brothers’ herdsman; and Kairu, the firstborn, furious at his disinheritance, became the source of evil in the world (the biblical Lucifer?). This obvious myth is nonetheless historically and socially relevant because it is Bunyoro’s contribution to the history of the Creation; it provides the historical charter for the monarchical institution; and it provides a mythical charter for the justification of social inequality. Thus, the Omukama is invested with divine attributes on earth. A lot of ritual surrounded his person. The Banyoro believed also in various supernatural agencies to whom they turned for help or intervention especially to ensure fertility, good health, prosperity and population increase. Most Banyoro nowadays are either Christians or Muslims, but some vestiges of the old beliefs still remain.

 

RELIGIOUS PRACTITIONERS

 

Religious practitioners included diviners and the spirit mediums of the Abachwezi cult as well as those of minor cults.

 

CEREMONIES

 

Ceremonies included the elaborate coronation of a new king, which involved a lot of myth and ritual; the EMPYEMI (succession) rite; the ENJERU (a periodic declaration of peace) rite; and the MPANGO (refresher) rite held every two years to renew the king’s ascension to the throne. The coming of Islam and Christianity has led to the modernization of some of the ceremonies to make them acceptable to the new religions.

 

 

ARTS

 

Literature and written music are associated with the coming of Islam and Christianity. Before then literature was oral; so were music compositions; the art of dancing was well developed. And Banyoro artistic talents are reflected in the various styles and shapes of their pottery, amulets, drums, etc.

 

MEDICINE

In spite of the tremendous strides made by modern medical science and the existence of modern hospitals, medical clinics, and pharmacists, belief in the efficacy of ANATIVE doctors is still widely held. The two types of medicine-traditional and scientific-occasionally go hand in hand, often with disastrous consequences.

 

DEATH AND AFTERLIFE

 

The Banyoro believed that Kantu, with the approval of Ruhanga, introduced hunger, disease and death to their country because Kantu was envious of how well the society was prospering. Death, therefore, was not a punishment for sin. Most Banyoro still attribute death not to chance or natural causes but to sorcerers, ghosts or other supernatural agencies regarded as malevolent. In the past the dead body was wrapped in barkcloth, the male mourners shaved their heads, and members of the household refrained from sexual activities for about two months. Blankets and sheets have replaced barkcloths, coffins have been introduced, male mourners have a few locks of hair cut from the back and front of their heads, and sexual avoidance has been reduced to about two weeks. Banyoro believed in an afterlife in the fashion of most African societies. The most important of their ancestors were deified after their death.

 

SYNOPSIS

Documents referred to in this section are included in the  collection and are referenced by author, date of publication, and document number.

There are sixteen documents in the Collection of Ethnography Banyoro collection. The major works are Beattie’s study of Bunyoro political institutions (Beattie (1971, no. 1) and Roscoe’s study of the royal household and rituals (Roscoe 1923, no. 14.) The Banyoro historian, John Nyakatura (1970, no. 13) and Beattie (1960, no. 2) both wrote primers on the Bunyoro, which serve as excellent overviews. Other Banyoro scholars have written articles critical of British historical accounts of the 1907 Nyangire Revolt (Uzoigwe 1970, no. 15), the relationship among the peoples of Northern Uganda in the 19th Century (Uzoigwe 1970, no. 16), Hamitic hypothesis (Kiwanuka 1968, no 11), and the fall of the Bunyoro state (Kiwanuka 1968, no. 12.) Doyle (2000, no. 10) discusses the demographic effects of the colonial period. The prolific Beattie writes on Banyoro kingship (Beattie 1957-1958, no. 4), marriage and affinity (Beattie 1958, no. 3), mortuary rites (Beattie 1961, no. 7), divination (Beattie 1967, no. 6), spirit mediums (Beattie 1961, no. 5), and sorcery (Beattie 1963, no. 8). Charsley (1970, no. 9) examines village organization and structure.

For more detailed information on the content of the individual works in the collection, see the abstracts in the citations preceding each document.

This culture summary was written by Godfrey N. Uzoigwe, in August 2001

INDEXING NOTES

• BABIITO-royal clan-614, 643
• BACWEZI-spirits, clan, ancient rulers-173, 614, 776
• BAHUMA-pastoralists-233, 565
• BAIRU-agriculturalists-241, 565
• BAKUNGU-village chief-631
• BATONGOLE-village chief-622, 631
• GOMBOLOLA-sub-county chief-631, 634
• KALYOTA-female head of royal clan-644
• KIBANJA-estates-423
• MAHANO-power, political authority-642, 643, 829
• MIRUKA-parish chief-632
• MUGONGO-neighborhood-361
• MUKAMA-king-643
• OKWIRI-head of royal clan-614, 643
• SAZA-district/county, chief-634
• Secret guild-king’s council, high chiefs-634, 645

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Beattie, John. The Nyoro State. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1971.

Langlands, B. W. The Population Geography of Bunyoro District. Occasional Paper No. 35. Uganda: Department of Geography Mackerere University, 1971.

Nyakatura, J. W. Anatomy of An African Kingdom: A History of Bunyoro-Kitara, edited by Godfrey N. Uzoigwe. New York: Anchor Books, Doubleday, 1973.

Oliver, Roland. The Traditional Histories of Buganda, Bunyoro, and Ankote. Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 85:111-17, 1955.

Oliver, Roland. A Question About the Bachwezi PU: Uganda Journal 17(2): 135-37, 1953.

Posnansky, Merrick. Introduction to Second Edition of Ruth Fisher, Twilight Tales of Black Baganda. London: Marshall, 1969.

Uzoigwe, G. N. Revolution and Revolt in Bunyoro-Kitara. London: Longman, 1970.

Uzoigwe, G. N. Precolonial Markets in Bunyoro-Kitara. Comparative Studies in Society and History 14(4): 422-455, 1972.

Uzoigwe, G. N. Succession and Civil War in Bunyoro-Kitara. International Journal of African Historical Studies IV (1): 49-71, 1973.

Uzoigwe, G. N. Kabarega and the Making of a New Kitara, in Leadership in 19th Century Africa, edited by Obaro Ikime, pp. 87-102. London: Longman, 1974.

Uzoigwe, G. N. Pioneers, Superstars, Nilotes and State Formation in the Interlacustrine Region of East Africa, in Dike Remembered: African Reflections on History. Dike Memorial Lectures 1985-1995, edited by E. J. Alagoa, pp. 18-65. Port-Harcourt, Nigeria: University of Port-Harcourt Press, 1998.