Ikembe
Encyclopedia
Ikembe, Chisanji, Kisanji
and Eleke all refer to a type of lamellaphone
common amongst the Bahutu of Rwanda
, Burundi
and the Congo
.
In Swahili
the word imba means song. Kuimba means to sing, as in the phrase "nitakwenda kuimba" (I go to sing). Mama means mother. Swahili
, as is true of many languages, uses a type of binomial nomenclature
to create new words to describe unfamiliar or new objects, occurrences and or people, based on existing words and or concepts. By combining part of the word for mother
= ma with the word for song
= imba using r as a connector we come up with the word marimba
= mother of song. According to Credo Mutwa Vusamazulu this identifies the ancient queen of the Wakamba to the tee. We can then extrapolate from the research of A.M. Jones, quoted by Osborne that ka = small combined with the word imba = song should mean little mother of song. Another example of this is the use of the suffix -ita in Spanish
as a diminutive. Thus, marimba
becomes marimbita, or little marimba
, which according to Credo Mutwa is exactly what a karimba
is in the minds of a large number of peoples in Africa and the Americas
.
Osborne cites examples of various names for these mbira
from all over the continent, which have the Swahili
word for song as their root. Admittedly, Swahili
, like English, is not a virgin language, but rather a combination of a variety of languages making it useful for trading purposes. However, at the root it's still based on the Bantu languages
of the peoples of Central and East Africa
, which again is why it is so useful as a language of trade. A cursory examination of the root of these words gives us these common variations: imba, imbe and embe.
From the three variants listed above we get the following variations: marimba
(Tanzania
and Mozambique
), malimbe
(Nyamwezi
of Tanzania), likimbe, likembe (Amba of Uganda
and the Tabura of the Congo
), (lulimba Yao of Malawi
, Tanzania and Mozambique), lukembe (Alur
and Acholi of Uganda), irimba and kajimba (Makonde of Tanzania and Mozambique), itshilimba (Bemba
of Zambia
), karimba
(Zimbabwe
), kalimba and ikembe (Bahutu of Rwanda
and Burundi
. There are many other names for these instruments, but the predominance of names with this root is undeniable. The spelling is not as important as the sound that is made in vocalizing the names.http://www.arcmusic.org/begin.html
In general the further we get from Central and East Africa the more varied the nomenclature, until the most common form of the name appears to have Francophone
roots or influence. Hence, we get balafon
and Gyil for xylophones and prempensua
, kongomahttp://www.afropop.org/multi/interview/ID/105/Reuben+Koroma-Refugee+Alls+Stars-2006, gongoma http://www.alpharhythmroots.com/Gongoma.html, agidigbo
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=372069 and ubo-akahttp://books.google.com/books?id=rHk3zRpjD68C&pg=PA14&lpg=PA14&dq=ubo-aka+instrument&source=web&ots=jZur44KQe6&sig=TpCIUig4F0n2lwsIVJWL8CiqUZk&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=7&ct=result#PPA14,M1 for mbira
type instruments all over West Africa
.
If an instrument is used for a particular dance or group of songs the instruments will take on the name of this dance or musical genre. Hence, we have ashiko
, samba
, kpanlogo
, rada
, petwo
, gumbe
and conga
drum
s, each with their own particular dances, rhythms and songs.
Kisanji
Kisanji is the name given to the lamellaphone of the Ngala in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is also known as sanza and is played by holding the instrument in both hands and plucking the keys with the thumbs. The pitch of each metal key is determined by the width of the key...
and Eleke all refer to a type of lamellaphone
Lamellaphone
A lamellophone is any of a family of musical instruments. The name comes from the Latin word "lamella" for "plate" and the Greek root "phonos" for "sound"...
common amongst the Bahutu of Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
, Burundi
Burundi
Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
and the Congo
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
.
In Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
the word imba means song. Kuimba means to sing, as in the phrase "nitakwenda kuimba" (I go to sing). Mama means mother. Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
, as is true of many languages, uses a type of binomial nomenclature
Binomial nomenclature
Binomial nomenclature is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, although they can be based on words from other languages...
to create new words to describe unfamiliar or new objects, occurrences and or people, based on existing words and or concepts. By combining part of the word for mother
Mother
A mother, mum, mom, momma, or mama is a woman who has raised a child, given birth to a child, and/or supplied the ovum that grew into a child. Because of the complexity and differences of a mother's social, cultural, and religious definitions and roles, it is challenging to specify a universally...
= ma with the word for song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
= imba using r as a connector we come up with the word marimba
Marimba
The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...
= mother of song. According to Credo Mutwa Vusamazulu this identifies the ancient queen of the Wakamba to the tee. We can then extrapolate from the research of A.M. Jones, quoted by Osborne that ka = small combined with the word imba = song should mean little mother of song. Another example of this is the use of the suffix -ita in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
as a diminutive. Thus, marimba
Marimba
The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...
becomes marimbita, or little marimba
Marimba
The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...
, which according to Credo Mutwa is exactly what a karimba
Karimba
Karimba is a small village in the Palakkad district of Kerala State in India.Situated on National Highway 213 between the towns of Palakkad and Mannarkkad, Karimba is well connected to three airports of Kozhikode, Coimbatore and Kochi...
is in the minds of a large number of peoples in Africa and the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
.
Osborne cites examples of various names for these mbira
Mbira
In African music, the mbira is a musical instrument that consists of a wooden board to which staggered metal keys have been attached. It is often fitted into a resonator...
from all over the continent, which have the Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
word for song as their root. Admittedly, Swahili
Swahili language
Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
, like English, is not a virgin language, but rather a combination of a variety of languages making it useful for trading purposes. However, at the root it's still based on the Bantu languages
Bantu languages
The Bantu languages constitute a traditional sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 250 Bantu languages by the criterion of mutual intelligibility, though the distinction between language and dialect is often unclear, and Ethnologue counts 535 languages...
of the peoples of Central and East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
, which again is why it is so useful as a language of trade. A cursory examination of the root of these words gives us these common variations: imba, imbe and embe.
From the three variants listed above we get the following variations: marimba
Marimba
The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...
(Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
and Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
), malimbe
Malimbe
The malimbe is a type of xylophone from the Congo which is described as having both male and female counterparts; the former has 15 wooden bars, the latter has nine. "Malimbe" also refers to a lamellaphone or mbira type instrument amongst the Nyamwezi of Tanzania.See Mbira and...
(Nyamwezi
Nyamwezi
The Nyamwezi, or Wanyamwezi, are the second-largest of over 120 ethnic groups in Tanzania. They live in the northwest central area of the country, between Lake Victoria and Lake Rukwa...
of Tanzania), likimbe, likembe (Amba of Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
and the Tabura of the Congo
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
), (lulimba Yao of Malawi
Malawi
The Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
, Tanzania and Mozambique), lukembe (Alur
Alur
Alur may refer to:*Alur people of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.*Alur language, the language spoken by the Alur people*Alur, Afghanistan, a town in AfghanistanAlur may also refer to several Panchayat and villages in India,...
and Acholi of Uganda), irimba and kajimba (Makonde of Tanzania and Mozambique), itshilimba (Bemba
Bemba language
The Bemba language, ChiBemba , is a major Bantu language spoken primarily in north-eastern Zambia by the Bemba people and as a lingua franca by about 18 related ethnic groups, including the Bisa people of Mpika and Lake Bangweulu, and to a lesser extent in Katanga in the Democratic Republic of the...
of Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
), karimba
Karimba
Karimba is a small village in the Palakkad district of Kerala State in India.Situated on National Highway 213 between the towns of Palakkad and Mannarkkad, Karimba is well connected to three airports of Kozhikode, Coimbatore and Kochi...
(Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
), kalimba and ikembe (Bahutu of Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
and Burundi
Burundi
Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
. There are many other names for these instruments, but the predominance of names with this root is undeniable. The spelling is not as important as the sound that is made in vocalizing the names.http://www.arcmusic.org/begin.html
In general the further we get from Central and East Africa the more varied the nomenclature, until the most common form of the name appears to have Francophone
Francophone
The adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....
roots or influence. Hence, we get balafon
Balafon
The balafon is a resonated frame, wooden keyed percussion idiophone of West Africa; part of the idiophone family of tuned percussion instruments that includes the xylophone, marimba, glockenspiel, and the vibraphone...
and Gyil for xylophones and prempensua
Prempensua
The prempensua is a large lamellophone used in the music of Ghana, similar to the marímbula or rumba box. The word prempensua is in the Akan language, although similar instruments are played by other ethnolinguistic groups in Ghana.-External links:...
, kongomahttp://www.afropop.org/multi/interview/ID/105/Reuben+Koroma-Refugee+Alls+Stars-2006, gongoma http://www.alpharhythmroots.com/Gongoma.html, agidigbo
Agidigbo
The agidigbo is a large traditional plucked lamellophone used by the Yoruba people of Nigeria. Its appearance is piano-like; a rope is worn round the neck of the player who then supports or braces the instrument, whose body is a rectangular wooden box, by his chest or thoracic region...
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=372069 and ubo-akahttp://books.google.com/books?id=rHk3zRpjD68C&pg=PA14&lpg=PA14&dq=ubo-aka+instrument&source=web&ots=jZur44KQe6&sig=TpCIUig4F0n2lwsIVJWL8CiqUZk&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=7&ct=result#PPA14,M1 for mbira
Mbira
In African music, the mbira is a musical instrument that consists of a wooden board to which staggered metal keys have been attached. It is often fitted into a resonator...
type instruments all over West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
.
If an instrument is used for a particular dance or group of songs the instruments will take on the name of this dance or musical genre. Hence, we have ashiko
Ashiko
An ashiko is a kind of drum shaped like a truncated cone and meant to be played with bare hands. The drum is played throughout sub-Saharan Africa and the Americas....
, samba
Samba
Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival...
, kpanlogo
Kpanlogo
Kpanlogo is a recreational dance and music form from Ghana, West Africa. It was first played by the Ga ethnic group, most of whom live in and around the capital city, Accra, but is now performed and enjoyed throughout the country...
, rada
Rada
Rada is the term for "council" or "assembly"borrowed by Polish from the Low Franconian "Rad" and later passed into the Czech, Ukrainian, and Belarusian languages....
, petwo
Petwo
The Petwo are a family of loa in Haitian Vodou religion. The story is that they originated in Haiti, under the harsh conditions of slavery. The term petwo can also refer to a drum used in the music of Haiti...
, gumbe
Gumbe
Gumbe is a style of music from Guinea-Bissau. Gumbe is a specific genre, mostly influenced by zouk music . True gumbe is a fusion of several Bissauan folk traditions. Gumbe is the genre most closely associated with Guinea-Bissauan music worldwide...
and conga
Conga
The conga, or more properly the tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed Cuban drum with African antecedents. It is thought to be derived from the Makuta drums or similar drums associated with Afro-Cubans of Central African descent. A person who plays conga is called a conguero...
drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s, each with their own particular dances, rhythms and songs.
Journal Articles
- Tracey, HughHugh TraceyHugh Tracey was an important twentieth century ethnomusicologist. He and his wife collected and archived music from Southern and Central Africa. He began making field recordings of music in the early 20's, through the 70's....
, 'A Case for the Name MbiraMbiraIn African music, the mbira is a musical instrument that consists of a wooden board to which staggered metal keys have been attached. It is often fitted into a resonator...
' in the African Music Society Journal, no. 3 (1964)
External links
- World Musical Instrument Database. New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
: Archive of Contemporary MusicARChive of Contemporary MusicThe ARChive of Contemporary Music is a non-profit music library and archive based in New York City. It contains over 5 million items.-People:The ARC was founded in 1985 by current Director, B. George and David Wheeler in Lower Manhattan... - World Music and Percussion, Frame Drums, Riq, Tambourines, by N. Scott Robinson
- Origin of Southern African marimbas, by Andrew Tracey
- The ku-marker in Swahili, by Anna-Lena Lindfors
- Ethnologue.com - languages
- Soundclick artist: Fatai Rolling Dollar
- The Royal Museum for Central Africa's ethnomusicological archive of instruments and recordings from Central Africa.