Mwani people

Last updated
Mwani people
Wamwani
Falume Issa (5192008136).jpg
Regions with significant populations
Flag of Mozambique.svg  Mozambique 120,000–200,000 [1]
Languages
Kimwani (Native Language)
Religion
Star and Crescent.svg Islam [2]
Related ethnic groups

The Mwani people (Kimwani/Kiswahili: Wamwani; Portuguese: Muane) are a Bantu ethnic group primarily inhabiting the coastline of the Cabo Delgado Province of Mozambique. [3] The Mwani people speak the Kimwani language, [4] [2] also known as the Ibo language, [5] which is a Bantu language belonging to the Niger-Congo language family. [4] They are often considered part of the Swahili cultural world as they have important connections with the East African coast (especially coastal Tanzania and Zanzibar) [2] [6] [7]

Contents

Ethnonym

PersonMwani
PeopleWamwani
LanguageKimwani
CountryUmwani

The ethnonym Mwani is commonly translated as "people of the coast" or "(at) the coast," referring to the coastal environment the Mwani live in. [2] This ethnonym appears to be a loan translation of the term Swahili , which has a similar meaning. [8] In Kiswahili, Mwani means seaweed. [9]

The ethnonym Mwani can also be written as Muane or Mwane. [5]

Demography & Distribution

In modern times, the Mwani number around 120,000-200,000 people and live mainly in Cabo Delgado Province. They make up 5.2%-8.6% of Cabo Delgado's total population of 2.3 million. [1] In Cabo Delagado, the Mwani mainly live in the coastal districts (Mocímboa da Praia District, Quirimbas Islands, Vamizi Island, Ibo District, Pemba District, Palma, etc.). [10] [11] [12] [2] [13] In Cabo Delgado's Mocímboa da Praia town, around 70% of the 40,000 inhabitants is Mwani. [14] Ibo Island is considered by the Mwani to be an important cultural center, however the Mwani do not form a majority of the population there. Instead, the population is diverse and includes ethnic groups like the Makwe, Portuguese, Indian, Makhua, Omani, and Mwani. [2] The Mwani form a significant minority of the population of Pemba, which is majority Makhua. [13] Palma, a Mozambican beach town, has a majority Mwani population. [7] A small number of Mwani also live in Tanzania. [6] [10]

Some coastal Mwani villages claim to be of Shirazi lineage. However, it is difficult to ascertain these claims due to intermarriage with other predominantly Muslim groups. Hence, it is possible that these Mwani villages are of Shirazi descent, but they could also have Comorian origins. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swahili language</span> Bantu language spoken mainly in East Africa

Swahili, also known by its local name Kiswahili, is a Bantu language originally spoken by the Swahili people, who are found primarily in Tanzania, Kenya, and Mozambique. Estimates of the number of Swahili speakers, including both native and second-language speakers, vary widely. They generally range from 60 million to 150 million; with most of its native speakers residing in Tanzania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cabo Delgado Province</span> Province of Mozambique

Cabo Delgado is the northernmost province of Mozambique. It has an area of 82,625 km2 (31,902 sq mi) and a population of 2,320,261 (2017). As well as bordering Mtwara Region in the neighboring country of Tanzania, it borders the provinces of Nampula and Niassa. The region is an ethnic stronghold of the Makonde tribe, with the Makua and Mwani as leading ethnic minorities.

The Swahili people comprise mainly Bantu, Afro-Arab, and Comorian ethnic groups inhabiting the Swahili coast, an area encompassing the Zanzibar archipelago and mainland Tanzania's seaboard, littoral Kenya, northern Mozambique, the Comoros Islands, and northwest Madagascar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pemba, Mozambique</span> Place in Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique

Pemba is a port city and district in Mozambique. It is the capital and largest city of the Cabo Delgado province and lies on a peninsula in Pemba Bay, the third largest in Africa. It is located northeast of Maputo, Mozambique's capital.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ibo (Mozambique)</span> Island in Mozambique

Ibo is one of the Quirimbas Islands in the Indian Ocean off northern Mozambique. It is part of Cabo Delgado Province. It grew as a Muslim trading port. Vasco da Gama reportedly rested on the island in 1502. The island was fortified in 1609 by the Portuguese.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quirimbas Islands</span> Island group in Mozambique off the Indian Ocean

The Quirimbas Islands lie in the western Indian Ocean off northeastern Mozambique, close to Pemba, the capital of the province of Cabo Delgado. The archipelago consists of about 32 islands, including Ibo, Matemo, Medjumbe, Quirimba, Metundo, Quisiva, Vamizi Island and Rolas Island all going up to the border of the Tanzanian region of Mtwara.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palma, Mozambique</span> Town in Mozambique

Palma is a town on the northeast coast of Mozambique's Cabo Delgado Province. Less than 32 kilometres (20 mi) away is the border with Mtwara Region of Tanzania to the north and north-west.

Articles related to Mozambique include:

The Mwani language, also known by its native name Kimwani, is a Bantu language spoken on the coast of the Cabo Delgado Province of Mozambique, including the Quirimbas Islands. Although it shares high lexical similarity (60%) with Swahili, it is not intelligible with it. It is spoken by around 167,150 people. Speakers also use Portuguese, Swahili and Makhuwa language. Kiwibo, the dialect of the Island of Ibo is the prestige dialect. Kimwani is also called Mwani and Ibo. According to Anthony P. Grant Kimwani of northern Mozambique appears to be the result of imperfect shift towards Swahili several centuries ago by speakers of Makonde, and Arends et al. suggest it might turn out to be a Makonde–Swahili mixed language.

The Shirazi people, also known as Mbwera, are a Bantu ethnic group inhabiting the Swahili coast and the nearby Indian ocean islands. They are particularly concentrated on the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba and Comoros.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vamizi Island</span> Island in Mozambique

Vamizi Island is situated in the far north of Mozambique in the Quirimbas Archipelago. The island is recognised as one of the leading luxury private islands and conservation projects in East Africa and the Indian Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Insurgency in Cabo Delgado</span> Ongoing armed conflict in Mozambique

The insurgency in Cabo Delgado is an ongoing Islamist insurgency in Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique, mainly fought between militant Islamists and jihadists attempting to establish an Islamic state in the region, and Mozambican security forces. Civilians have been the main targets of terrorist attacks by Islamist militants. The main insurgent faction is Ansar al-Sunna, a native extremist faction with tenuous international connections. From mid-2018, the Islamic State's Central Africa Province has allegedly become active in northern Mozambique as well, and claimed its first attack against Mozambican security forces in June 2019. In addition, bandits have exploited the rebellion to carry out raids. As of 2020, the insurgency intensified, as in the first half of 2020 there were nearly as many attacks carried out as in the whole of 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al-Shabaab (Mozambique)</span> Islamist militant group active in Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique

Al-Shabaab, also known as Ansar al-Sunna or Ahlu Sunna Wal Jammah, is an Islamist militant group active in Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique. Since October 2017, it has waged an insurgency in the region, seeking to undermine the secular FRELIMO government and establish an Islamic state. It has occasionally captured territory from the government and has been accused of committing atrocities against civilians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Islamic State – Central Africa Province</span> Central African branch of the Islamic State

The Central Africa Province is an administrative division of the Islamic State (IS), a Salafi jihadist militant group and unrecognised quasi-state. As a result of a lack of information, the foundation date and territorial extent of the Central Africa Province are difficult to gauge, while the military strength and activities of the province's affiliates are disputed. The Central Africa Province initially covered all IS activities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique and Uganda. In September 2020, during the insurgency in Cabo Delgado, IS-CAP shifted its strategy from raiding to actually occupying territory, and declared the Mozambican town of Mocímboa da Praia its capital. After this point, however, the Mozambican branch declined and was split off from IS-CAP in 2022, becoming a separate IS province; as a result, this leaves IS-CAP to operate in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda.

This article lists events from the year 2020 in Mozambique.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mocímboa da Praia offensive</span> Islamic State operation during the Insurgency in Cabo Delgado

The Mocímboa da Praia offensive was a six day long offensive in northern Mozambique by Islamic State's Central African Province (IS-CAP) to capture the town of 30,000. The offensive, part of the insurgency in Cabo Delgado, was a major success for IS-CAP, as they captured Mocímboa da Praia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Palma</span> Battle for the control of Palma in Mozambique

The Battle of Palma or the Battle for Palma was fought during late March and early April 2021 over control of the city of Palma in Mozambique, between the Mozambique Defence Armed Forces, other Mozambican security forces and private military contractors on one side, and Islamist rebels reportedly associated with the Islamic State (IS) on another side. The Islamists invaded the city, killing dozens of people before Mozambique regained control days later. Palma was left destroyed, and a major oil and gas company decided to suspend all operations in the area due to the battle. Researchers have described the battle as an overall success for the insurgents. The rebels also maintained their presence in the town's surroundings, and continued to raid Palma in the following weeks. The battle was part of the insurgency in Cabo Delgado, which started in 2017 and has resulted in the deaths of thousands of people, mainly local civilians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 Cabo Delgado offensives</span> Aspect of ongoing armed conflict in Mozambique

From July to November 2021, the Mozambique Defence Armed Forces (FADM) and Rwanda Defence Force (RDF), and belligerents from Southern African Development Community (SADC) states, conducted offensives in Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique, against local rebels loyal to the Islamic State's Central Africa Province (IS-CAP). The first offensive succeeded in retaking the important town of Mocímboa da Praia which had previously fallen to rebels as a result of the insurgency in Cabo Delgado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Mocímboa da Praia</span>

On June 27, 2020, jihadists from al-Shabaab raided the city of Mocímboa da Praia in the Cabo Delgado Province of Mozambique. Al-Shabaab fighters attacked the city following brutal crackdowns against civilians by the Mozambican government, and in their attacks, destroyed homes and killed more civilians. A Mozambican counteroffensive aided by South African mercenaries of the Dyck Advisory Group renewed fighting in the city, with the mercenaries being criticized for their indiscriminate shooting of civilians.

Between November 6 and 8, 2020, jihadist militants from Ahlu Sunna Wal Jammah (ASWJ) executed over fifty civilians in the village of Muatide. The massacre took place four days into the group's occupation of the town, and many of the victims were undergoing male initiation rites. The bodies of residents from other occupied villages were brought to the football field in the town, and ASWJ fighters hunted down remaining civilians that had fled into the bush.

References

  1. 1 2 "Southern African Jihad: THE CABO DELGADO INSURGENCY" (PDF). Intelyse .
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Sousa., Santos, Ana Margarida (2011). History, memory and violence : changing patterns of group relationship in Mocimboa da Praia, Mozambique (PDF). Oxford University.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. "Evaluating the Expansion of Global Jihadist Movements in Mozambique". Jamestown. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  4. 1 2 Ulrich, Alexis. "Mwani numbers". Of Languages and Numbers. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  5. 1 2 "Mwani alphabet, prounciation and language". omniglot.com. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  6. 1 2 "Evaluating the Expansion of Global Jihadist Movements in Mozambique". Jamestown. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  7. 1 2 "Mozambique: Why were the 'experts' surprised by the occupation of Palma?". The Africa Report.com. 2021-04-08. Retrieved 2021-08-19.
  8. Aceto, Michael; Bakker, Peter; Mous, Maarten (1995). "Mixed Languages: 15 Case Studies in Language Intertwining". Language. 71 (4): 842. doi:10.2307/415772. ISSN   0097-8507. JSTOR   415772.
  9. "Seaweed - Zanzibar's 'gift from the ocean'". BBC News. 2014-03-27. Retrieved 2021-07-23.
  10. 1 2 "Jihadi Insurgency in Mozambique Grows in Sophistication and Reach". Combating Terrorism Center at West Point. 2020-10-22. Retrieved 2021-07-23.
  11. "History - Vamizi". www.vamizi.com. Retrieved 2021-07-23.
  12. "Stemming the Insurrection in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado". Crisis Group. 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2021-08-19.
  13. 1 2 "SOS Children's Village Pemba". SOS Children's Villages.
  14. Margarida Santos, Ana. "The past in the present" (PDF). St. Antonyʼs College, University of Oxford. via Observatori Solidaritat (Solidarity Observatory).