The Mwanga (also Namwanga or Nyamwanga) are an ethnic group based in northern Zambia and southwestern Tanzania. Their language is Nyamwanga. In 1993 the Mwanga population was estimated to number 256,000, with 169,000 living in Zambia and 87,000 in Tanzania http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=TZ.

The Mwanga are said to have originally migrated from the Tanzania north of Zambia. They are pastoral patrilineal people. This is a system in which one belongs to one's father's lineage; it generally involves the inheritance of property, names or titles through the male line as well. Modern Mwanga tend to overlook some of traditional requirements.

The senior chief of the Namwanga people is known as Nawaitwika based in Nakonde district. The current Waitwika is a woman, therefore, referred to as chieftainess. Other chiefs are Kafwimbi, Muyombe and Mwenechifungwe are all based in Isoka District. The main traditional ceremonies practiced by the Namwangas is called Vikamkanimba, Ng?ondo, Chambo Chalutanga and Mulasa.

Unique names

Mwanga have unique surnames. All the female surnames begin with Na while all the male names begin with Si. Unlike other tribes in Zambia who use such names prefixes to mean 'father-of' or 'mother-of', the Mwanga have the prefixes fixed with their surnames. Therefore common surnames are Siwale with Nawale and Namwila for females, Simukonda and Namukonda, Sikapizye and Nakapizye, Sichalwe etc. Similar names such as Sikazwe may also be found amongst the Mambwes of Mpulungu and Mbala districts.

Food

Mwanga are agriculturalists who grow millet, peanuts, beans, maize and are pastoralists who keep cattle, sheep, goats, poultry and pigeons. Traditionally, the Mwanga are fondly known for their love for a slippery vegetable prepared with baking soda or charcoal ashes which is called kumbi in Nyamwanga or delele in other Zambian languages like Nyanja. The 'Kumbi' is usually mixed with beans and is served with Nsima (a thick maize meal porridge) or as a snack to visitors.

Courtship and marriage

The concept of courtship before marriage is traditionally non-existent but in reality it happens as a secret affair. Traditionally, a Mwanga man is the one who seeks out a woman to marry. It is a taboo for a woman to seek out a man for marriage. The intending man will give a girl/woman some money or beads commonly referred to as 'Insalamu'.^[1] The girl who accepts the nsalamu agrees to be married. If the parents of the man disapprove his choice, the man is forced to look for another suitor. In the case where a man gets a girl pregnant before marriage, the man is required to pay damages on top of regular dowry payments. These payments are in the form of cattle or the cash equivalent.

Religion

Most Mwanga are evangelicals belonging to the United Church of Zambia (UCZ). Others belong to common religious groups such as the Catholic Church, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and the African Methodist Church.

References

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