Tears of rain: Ethnicity and history in central western Zambia

Tears of rain: Ethnicity and history in central western Zambia

Book cover
Author	Wim van Binsbergen
Language	English
Series	Monographs from the African Studies Centre
Subject	History of Zambia
Genre	Non-fiction, History
Publisher	Kegan Paul International, (London, UK). [a]
Publication date	1992. [a]
Publication place	United Kingdom
Media type	Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle
Pages	495pp.
ISBN	978-0710304346
OCLC	23940601
Website	Routledge

Tears of rain: Ethnicity and history in central western Zambia is a non-fiction book by Wim van Binsbergen, first published in 1992 by Kegan Paul International and published as an eBook/Kindle by Routledge in 2016. ^[1] The book explores the history of ethnic groups in central western Zambia. ^[2]

Synopsis and structure

Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia focuses on the Nkoya people in western Zambia and their changing identity. The book includes a historical text called Likota lya Bankoya, written in the 1950s by Rev. Johasaphat Shimunika, a Nkoya pastor. Van Binsbergen translated and analyzed this text to explore how Nkoya identity was shaped by colonialism, local politics, and oral tradition. ^{[3] [4] [5]} he book shows how the Nkoya used history to claim recognition and resist domination by the Lozi people. It argues that Nkoya identity emerged in response to colonial and postcolonial pressures and was reinforced through written history and political activism. ^{[6] [7]} The book also discusses how gender roles changed in Nkoya society, from female ritual authority to male political dominance. ^{[8] [9]} Reviewers praised the book’s detail, originality, and scholarly ambition. ^[b] Some noted that the writing was dense and the theory challenging for general readers. ^[10]

Chapters: ^[11]

• Preface
• Part I. Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and history IN central western Zambia
  • Chapter 1. The contemporary point of departure: The Nkoya-speaking people and their chiefs
  • Chapter 2. The Likota lya Bankoya manuscript
  • Chapter 3. Historical criticism of Likota lya Bankoya
  • Chapter 4. State formation in central western Zambia as depicted in Likota lya Bankoya
  • Chapter 5. State and society in nineteenth-century central western Zambia:
  • Chapter 6. Likota lya Bankoya as cosmology and as history: Aspects of Nkoya symbolism and its transformations
• Part II. Likota lya Bankoya
• Part III. The history of the Nkoya people
• Part IV. Reference Material

Reception and academic reviews

• Ferguson, James (1993). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". Africa: Journal of the International African Institute. 63 (2): 269–272. doi:10.2307/1160848. JSTOR   1160848.
• Gann, L. H. (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". The Journal of Interdisciplinary History. 24 (4): 780–781. doi:10.2307/205688. JSTOR   205688.
• Hansen, K. T. (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". Ethnohistory. 41 (3): 508–510. doi:10.2307/481856. JSTOR   481856.
• Jeater, D. (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". Journal of Southern African Studies. 20 (4): 669–672. JSTOR   2636980.
• Kashimani, E. M. (1995). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". The Journal of Modern African Studies. 33 (3): 521–522. JSTOR   161498.
• Macmillan, Hugh (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". Journal of Southern African Studies. 20 (3): 477–479. doi:10.1080/03057079408708428.
• Palmer, Robin (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". Canadian Journal of African Studies / Revue Canadienne des Études Africaines. 28 (1): 142–142. doi:10.2307/485838. JSTOR   485838.
• Papstein, Robert (1993). "Reading Nkoya History [Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen]". The Journal of African History. 34 (1): 156–158. JSTOR   183044.
• Roberts, A. D. (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain; Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. 57 (2): 452–452. JSTOR   620660.
• Siegel, Brian (1993). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". The International Journal of African Historical Studies. 26 (2): 405–406. doi:10.2307/219560. JSTOR   219560.
• van Donge, J. K. (1993). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". Man. 28 (2): 387–387. doi:10.2307/2803443. JSTOR   2803443.
• Vaughan, Megan (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". The Journal of Modern African Studies. 32 (1): 177–179.
• Vansina, Jan (1993). "Review of Tears of Rain. Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia, by W. van Binsbergen". Anthropos. 88 (1/3): 215–217. JSTOR   40462764.

Release information

• Hardcover: 1992 (First Edition), Kegan Paul International, 518pp. ISBN   9780710304346.
• Paperback: 2016, Routledge, 518pp. ISBN   9781138996816. ^[12]
• Kindle/eBook: 2016, Routledge.

About the author

Main article: Wim van Binsbergen

Wim van Binsbergen was born in 1947 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. He earned his Ph.D. from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. He later became a professor of anthropology at the same university and was head of the Department of Political and Historical Studies at the African Studies Centre in Leiden. ^{[13] [14]}

See also

• A history of Zambia
• Bibliography of the history of Zambia

References

Notes

1. Reprinted in 2016 by Routledge.
2. See the "Reception and academic journal reviews" section for further information.

Citations

1. Vansina, Jan (1992). Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia. University of Wisconsin Press. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
2. van Binsbergen, Wim (1992). "Tears of rain: Ethnicity and history in central western Zambia". WorldCat.org. Kegan Paul International. ISBN   978-0710304346. OCLC   23940601.
3. Ferguson, James (1993). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia". Africa. 63 (2): 269–272. JSTOR   1160848.
4. Hansen, Karen Tranberg (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia". Ethnohistory. 41 (3): 508–510. JSTOR   481856.
5. Vansina, Jan (1993). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia". Anthropos. 88 (1/3): 215–217. JSTOR   40462764.
6. Siegel, Brian (1993). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia". The International Journal of African Historical Studies. 26 (2): 405–406. JSTOR   219560.
7. Roberts, A. D. (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies. 57 (2): 452. JSTOR   620660.
8. Jeater, Diana (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia". Journal of Southern African Studies. 20 (4): 669–672. JSTOR   2636980.
9. Papstein, Robert (1993). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia". The Journal of African History. 34 (1): 156–158. JSTOR   183044.
10. Gann, L. H. (1994). "Review of Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia". The Journal of Interdisciplinary History. 24 (4): 780–781. JSTOR   205688.
11. van Binsbergen, Wim (2015). Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and Histories of Violence. Routledge. ISBN   9781138996816.
12. van Binsbergen, Wim (2016). Tears of Rain: Ethnicity and History in Central Western Zambia. Routledge. ISBN   9781138996816 . Retrieved 1 June 2025.
13. "Wim M. J. van Binsbergen". NIAS. Retrieved 2 June 2025.
14. "Wim M.J. van Binsbergen". African and Middle Eastern Studies at Columbia University. Retrieved 2 June 2025.

External links

• Tears of Rain, Google Books.
• Tears of Rain, Routledge