Mbole people
Encyclopedia
The Mbole people are an ethnic group of about 100,000 people as of 1971 living in the Orientale Province, southwest of Kisangani
in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
.
belongs to the Mongo
group of Bantu languages
.
The Mbole culture is close to that of the Mongo people
and related to those of the Yela and Pere peoples.
They live in the equatorial forest on both sides of the Lomami River
.
They once lived to the north of the Congo River
. They crossed this river upstream from the point where the Lomami joins the Congo, near present day Basoko
, and then moved south to their present location.
They split into five smaller groups in the 18th century due to pressure from the Bombesa people.
During the colonial era of the Belgian Congo
, the Mbole were active in attacking the colonial factories in Lokilo
. They called the Belgians atama-atama, or slave traders, and made no distinction between the Belgians and the earlier Arab slave traders.
The Lomami Company forced the Mbole to collect large amounts of rubber. They vividly described their view of the effect of this work with the phrase wando wo limolo, meaning "tax-caused loss of weight".
The men hunt or trap game, and use nets to catch fish in the river.
Local weavers and blacksmiths provide most of artifacts needed for daily life.
Both men and women practice weaving, men making fish traps and wall and roof mats, and women making sleeping mats, small rectangular mats and baskets.
Men typically move to their wife's village on marriage.
Villages are headed by a chief who has reached a senior position in the Lilwa society, which educates young men and some women and conducts initiation ceremonies.
A group of villages may elect an area chief to represent them in a matter of shared concern, but villages are otherwise autonomous.
Women and elders, both living and dead, are to be respected.
Theft, adultery and lying are prohibited.
A person who breaks the law is subject to public reprimand and may suffer further punishment.
In the most severe cases the wrong-doer is hung and buried in an unmarked grave.
Mbole wooden carvings often represent these individuals with sunken faces, concave torsos and ropes around their necks.
One example of a crime punishable by death is that of revealing the secrets of initiation.
The image serves as an example of what will happen to the person who breaks the laws.
The Lilwa society has four levels. The highest are the Isoya, the religious leaders. The wives of the Isoya are usually initiated into the Lilwa society and wield considerable power.
When an Isoya dies he is buried in a tree and his house is left empty as a reminder that he is still present in the community.
The Mbole make wooden figures that are used in healing ceremonies or that represent ancestors.
They also make elaborate mats, and make brass bracelets of great beauty.
Kisangani
Kisangani is the capital of Orientale Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the 3rd largest urbanized city in the country and the largest of the cities that lie in the tropical woodlands of the Congo....
in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
.
Origins
The Mbole languageMbole language
Mbole is a Bantu language of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.It is spoken by the Mbole people, with a population of about 100,000 as of 1971 living in the Tshopo District, southwest of Kisangani in the Democratic Republic of the Congo....
belongs to the Mongo
Mongo language
Mongo, also called Nkundo or Mongo-Nkundu, is a language spoken by several of the Mongo peoples in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mongo speakers reside in central DRC, mostly south of the Congo River. Mongo is a tonal language....
group of 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...
.
The Mbole culture is close to that of the Mongo people
Mongo people
The Mongo are the most numerous ethnic group of the Democratic Republic of Congo. They are a diverse collection of peoples living in the equatorial forest, south of the main Congo River bend and north of the Kasai and Sankuru Rivers...
and related to those of the Yela and Pere peoples.
They live in the equatorial forest on both sides of the Lomami River
Lomami River
The Lomami River is a major tributary of the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The river is approximately long. It flows north, west of and parallel to the upper Congo....
.
They once lived to the north of the Congo River
Congo River
The Congo River is a river in Africa, and is the deepest river in the world, with measured depths in excess of . It is the second largest river in the world by volume of water discharged, though it has only one-fifth the volume of the world's largest river, the Amazon...
. They crossed this river upstream from the point where the Lomami joins the Congo, near present day Basoko
Basoko
Basoko is a town on the Congo River in Tshopo District of northern Democratic Republic of the Congo. As of 2009 it had an estimated population of 47,970....
, and then moved south to their present location.
They split into five smaller groups in the 18th century due to pressure from the Bombesa people.
During the colonial era of the Belgian Congo
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...
, the Mbole were active in attacking the colonial factories in Lokilo
Lokilo
Lokilo is a community in the Opala Territory of Tshopo District in the Democratic Republic of Congo.In the colonial era of the Belgian Congo, Lokilo was one of the areas from which the Lomami Company collected large amounts of rubber...
. They called the Belgians atama-atama, or slave traders, and made no distinction between the Belgians and the earlier Arab slave traders.
The Lomami Company forced the Mbole to collect large amounts of rubber. They vividly described their view of the effect of this work with the phrase wando wo limolo, meaning "tax-caused loss of weight".
Economy and organization
The Mbole women grow manioc, bananas and rice and raise ducks, chickens and goats.The men hunt or trap game, and use nets to catch fish in the river.
Local weavers and blacksmiths provide most of artifacts needed for daily life.
Both men and women practice weaving, men making fish traps and wall and roof mats, and women making sleeping mats, small rectangular mats and baskets.
Men typically move to their wife's village on marriage.
Villages are headed by a chief who has reached a senior position in the Lilwa society, which educates young men and some women and conducts initiation ceremonies.
A group of villages may elect an area chief to represent them in a matter of shared concern, but villages are otherwise autonomous.
Culture
The Lilwa society teaches both morality and religion.Women and elders, both living and dead, are to be respected.
Theft, adultery and lying are prohibited.
A person who breaks the law is subject to public reprimand and may suffer further punishment.
In the most severe cases the wrong-doer is hung and buried in an unmarked grave.
Mbole wooden carvings often represent these individuals with sunken faces, concave torsos and ropes around their necks.
One example of a crime punishable by death is that of revealing the secrets of initiation.
The image serves as an example of what will happen to the person who breaks the laws.
The Lilwa society has four levels. The highest are the Isoya, the religious leaders. The wives of the Isoya are usually initiated into the Lilwa society and wield considerable power.
When an Isoya dies he is buried in a tree and his house is left empty as a reminder that he is still present in the community.
The Mbole make wooden figures that are used in healing ceremonies or that represent ancestors.
They also make elaborate mats, and make brass bracelets of great beauty.