 Banyoli man playing musical instrument for his two wives, one making alcohol and the other sauce. | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 530,120 [1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Uganda | |
| Languages | |
| Nyole, English | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity, Islam, traditional faiths | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Masaba people and Luhya people |
The Banyole or Banyuli are a Bantu ethnic group of Uganda that live mainly in Butaleja District.
The Banyole are one of the smaller Bantu ethnic groups in Uganda. They are sometimes called "Abalya Lwooba", meaning "mushroom eaters". They speak the Nyole language. They are mostly polygamous, and are divided into many clans. They have similar language and traditional customs to the Bagwe people, and like the Bagwe claim origins with the Banyala of Kenya. [2] The traditional founder of the Banyole came from near the point where the Yala River enters Lake Victoria. [3] He was named Omwa and lived 45 miles (72 km) west of their present location. They were forced to move east due to pressure from Nilotic people. [3]
According to a 2014 report by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics the Banyole population is about 300,000. [4] [5] Possibly there is confusion with speakers of the related Nyole language of Kenya. In September 2019 the clan leaders of the Banyole elected their first cultural head. At least 148 clan leaders participated. There was controversy because one of the two candidates was not a resident of the district. [5]
The Banyole were one of the ethnic groups in the plains between Lake Kyoga to the west and the slopes of Mount Elgon to the east when the British established the Bukedi District in this area at the start of the 20th century. Bukedi district also contained Gisu people in the populous and mountainous northeast, and several other ethnic groups in the western and southern plains including the Nilotic Teso people and the Bantu Gwere people. [6] The plains peoples were mostly acephalous. [7]
The Banyole today live mostly in Butaleja District in the east of Uganda. They also live in the nearby Budaka, Mbale, Tororo, Bugiri, Namutumba and Pallisa districts The surrounding peoples are the Gisu people to the east, Adhola people to the south, Soga people to the west and Gwere people to the north. The Banyole typically live by subsistence agriculture.[ citation needed ] The region is one of rolling grassland surrounded by papyrus swamps. The land is now densely populated and mostly cultivated. Rice, cotton and coffee are grown for cash. Their staple food crop is finger millet, and they also grow sorghum, maize, cassava and sweet potato. [8]
According to the 2002 Census of Uganda about 56.2% of the Banyole tribe are nominally Christian, mostly Anglican estimated at 42.6%. Due to low levels of literacy and lack of Christian texts in their language they have only a basic understanding of this religion, and may also follow traditional religious practices. About 41.6% have converted to Islam. [9]
Nyole diviners, known as lamuli, commonly practice invocation as a form of divination. When a person is visibly afflicted (usually determined by change of character, wellness, vocal exclamations, etc.), lamuli will ask "ohwebusa" in an attempt to ask a potentially malignant spirit who they are. [10] Lamuli are used by Nyole people solely to determine the causes of misfortune, which is believed to be the cause of malignant or upset spirits. It is believed by the Nyole people that the possession of a person is largely due to the spirits of his kin, who may feel as though the afflicted person has not done enough to honor them or their legacy. There are three main types of unhappy kin spirits. The first are known as ohulama or ohung'waba, and are older family members such as grandparents. The second type are ancestor spirits known as emigu j'abafu, and the third type are known as ekuni, or "clan spirits". [11]
The lamuli also use books for divination. The books used by the lamuli might be The Holy Qur'an, the Sa'atili Habari and the Abu Mashari Faraki [12] Divination by the use of books is thought to have begun by way of the first influence of Ali bin Nasoor, a trader from Oman who settled in Busolwe, and also by the influence of other Swahili or Arabic traders. [13] Findings of an investigation made by S. R. Whyte found that the majority of people (in the sample) went for divination consultations for reasons of their own bad or failed health. [13]
The Nilotic peoples are people indigenous to the Nile Valley who speak Nilotic languages. They inhabit South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, the eastern border area of Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. Among these are the Burun-speaking peoples, Teso people also known as Iteso or people of Teso, Karo peoples, Luo peoples, Ateker peoples, Kalenjin peoples, Karamojong people also known as the Karamojong or Karimojong, Datooga, Dinka, Nuer, Atwot, Lotuko, and the Maa-speaking peoples.
The Adhola people, also known as Jopadhola, are a Nilotic ethnic group of Luo peoples that live in Tororo District of Eastern Uganda and comprise about eight percent of the country's total population. They speak Dhopadhola,, which belongs to the Western Nilotic branch of the Nilotic language family. They are primarily pastoralists. The Jopadhola call their land Padhola which, according to historian Bethwell Ogot, is an elliptic form of "Pa Adhola" meaning the "place of Adhola", the founding father of the Jopadhola people. Officially, land of the Adhola is called Padhola, but the Baganda who misinterpret 'Widoma' – a Dhopadhola word for 'war cry' meaning 'You are in trouble' refer to the Jopadhola as "Badama". The social structure of the Jopadhola can be described as semi centralised because there is no traditional centralized government and its organization is limited to a clan called Nono. There are over 52 clans, each with cultural practices, common ancestry and a distinct lineage.
Masaba (Lumasaaba), sometimes known as Gisu (Lugisu) after one of its dialects, is a Bantu language spoken by more than two million people in East Africa. The Gisu dialect in eastern Uganda is mutually intelligible with Bukusu, spoken by ethnic Luhya in western Kenya. Masaba is the local name of Mount Elgon and the name of the son of the ancestor of the Gisu tribe. Like other Bantu languages, Lumasaba nouns are divided into several sets of noun classes. These are similar to the genders in Germanic and Romance languages, except that instead of the usual two or three, there are around eighteen different noun classes. The language has a quite complex verb morphology.
The Abagusii are a Bantu ethnic group and nation indigenous to Kisii and Nyamira counties of former Nyanza, as well as parts of Kericho and Bomet counties of the former Rift Valley province of Kenya.
The Luhya are a Bantu people and the second largest ethnic group in Kenya. The Luhya belong to the larger linguistic stock known as the Bantu. The Luhya are located in western Kenya and Uganda. They are divided into 20 culturally and linguistically united clans. Once known as the Kavirondo, multiple small tribes in North Nyanza came together under the new name Baluhya between 1950 and 1960. The Bukusu are the largest Luhya subtribe and account for almost 50% of the entire Luhya population, dominating other Luhya subtribes. They live in both Bungoma and Trans-Nzoia counties.
Bukusu is a dialect of the Masaba language spoken by the Bukusu tribe of the Luhya people of western Kenya. It is one of several ethnically Luhya dialects; however, it is more closely related to the Gisu dialect of Masaaba in eastern Uganda than it is to other languages spoken by the Luhya.
Culture of Uganda is made up of a diverse range of ethnic groups. Lake Kyoga forms the northern boundary for the Bantu-speaking people, who dominate much of East, Central, and Southern Africa. In Uganda, they include the Baganda and several other tribes
In Uganda the most spoken language in the capital city is Luganda, followed by English, as all schools in Uganda use it in their studies due to the introduction of English during the colonial period. English is also the language of business and judicial matters. Most spoken after Luganda and English is Swahili. This language is more common in neighbouring Kenya and Tanzania. Swahili is taught in schools as an optional additional language and it is mostly spoken by the Ugandan army. In 2005, there were talks to include Swahili as the second official language as it was seen as neutral, however this is still not ratified by the government. Swahili is used among some communities bordering South Sudan and Kenya.
The Kumam people are a Nilotic ethnic group of about 349,000 living mainly in the western areas of Teso sub-region and the south-east of Lango sub-region. The Kumam are an ethnic group of people found in Kaberamaido district, district in Eastern Uganda. They share Soroti district with the Iteso and some parts of formerly Lira district with the Langi. In the Lango region, they are now found in Dokolo district which was detached from Lira District. They are found at the shores of Lake Kyoga (Namasale). In Soroti district, they are found in Serere, Asuret, Kamuda, katine, Soroti city, Arapai as well as the outskirts of Soroti district neighboring Kaberamaido.
The Gisu people, or Bamasaba people of Elgon, are a Bantu tribe and Bantu-speaking ethnic group of the Masaba people in eastern Uganda, closely related to the Bukusu people of Kenya. Bamasaba live mainly in the Mbale District of Uganda on the slopes of Mount Elgon. The Bagisu are estimated to be about 1,646,904 people making up 4.9% of the total population according to the 2014 National Census of Uganda.
Alur are a Nilotic ethnic group who live in northwestern Uganda and northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). They are part of the larger Luo group.
The Gwere people, also called Bagwere, are a Bantu ethnic group in Uganda. They are among the 65 ethnic societies of Uganda. Gwere is the root word, and the people are referred to as Bagwere (endonym) or Mugwere (singular). According to the 2002 Census of Uganda, 23.6% of Bagwere are Roman Catholic, 46.8% are Anglican, 23.9% are Muslim and 3.1% are Pentecostal.
Kavirondo is the former name of the region surrounding Kavirondo Gulf as well as of two native peoples living there under the regime of British East Africa. Broadly, this was defined as those who dwelt in the valley of the Nzoia River, on the western slopes of Mount Elgon, and along the northeast coast of Victoria Nyanza.
The Kuria people (also known as the AbaKurya, are a Bantu community in Tarime District of Mara Region in Tanzania and southern Kenya. Their homeland is bounded on the east by the Migori River and on the west by the Mara River estuary. Traditionally a pastoral and farming community, the Kuria grow maize, beans and cassava as food crops and coffee and maize as cash crops.
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The Baruuli or Baluuli, are a Bantu ethnic group native to Bunyoro-Kitara, a subnational kingdom within Uganda. They stay in an area called Buruuli. They share a common ancestry with the Banyala.
African divination is divination practiced by cultures of Africa.
The Bagwe people are a Bantu ethnolinguistic group that live mostly in Southeastern Uganda with a few scattered in Western Kenya. They are composed of several clans and their ancient economic activities include fishing (owunaabi) in Lake Victoria and other rivers, crop farming (owulimi), and animal farming (owutuki). They were recognised in the 1995 Ugandan Constitution as one of the 56 identified tribes of Uganda. At the time of the 2014 Census, 99,884 respondents identified as Bagwe.
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