Historically, the Tutsi werepastoralists and filled the ranks of the warriorcaste. Before 1962, they regulated and controlled Rwandan society, which consisted of Tutsi aristocrats and Hutu commoners under a clientship structure. The Tutsi occupied the dominant positions in the sharply stratified society and constituted the ruling class.[5]
American historianChristopher Ehret believes that the Tutsi mainly descend from speakers of an extinct branch ofSouth Cushitic he calls "Tale South Cushitic". The Tale Southern Cushites entered the Great Lakes region sometime before 800 BC and were pastoralists who relied only on their livestock and conceivably growing no grains themselves. They did not practice the hunting of wild animals, while the consumption of fish was taboo and heavily avoided. The Tale Southern Cushitic way of life shows striking similarities to the Tutsi, who rely heavily on the milk, blood, and meat of their cattle and traditionally shun the cultivation and consumption of grains, look down on pottery and hunting, and avoid eating fish. A number of words related to pastoralism in theRwanda-Rundi languages areTale Southern Cushitic loanwords, such as "bull", "cow dung", and "lion" (a livestock predator).[6][7][8][9]
This late continuation of Southern Cushites as important pastoralists in the southern half of the lacustrine region raises the intriguing possibility that the latter-day Tutsi andHima pastoralism, most significant in the southern half of the region, is rooted in the Southern Cushitic culture and so derived from the east rather than the north.
— Christopher Ehret, UNESCO General History of Africa: Africa from the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century,[10]
The Tutsi also derive a significant amount of their ancestry from theSog Eastern Sahelians (a long-extinctNilo-Saharan group). The Sog were agro-pastoralists who entered Rwanda and Burundi in 2,000 BC, mostly settling in southern Rwanda and to the east and west of the Ruzizi River. According to Ehret, they spoke aKir-Abbaian language that was related to, but distinct from,Nilotic andSurmic languages. TheWestern Lakes Bantu languages spoken by the Tutsi have manySog Eastern Sahelian loanwords, such as the word for cow (inka), which originally meant "cattle camp" in the Sog language, demonstrating their contribution to Tutsi pastoralism.[11][12][13][14]
Central Sudanic peoples likely form another part of the ancestry of the Tutsi. Central Sudanic farmers and herders entered Rwanda and Burundi in 3000 BC, and some of their cultural practices have remained following their assimilation by the Bantu. For example, inCentral Sudanic–speaking societies, women are kept away from cattle. Among the Tutsi (and the neighbouringHima people to the north), women are strictly forbidden to milk cows (especiallymenstruating women).[15][16][17][18]
The definition of "Tutsi" has changed through time and location. Social structures were unstable throughout Rwanda, even during colonial times underBelgian rule. Generally, the Tutsi elite or aristocracy was distinguished from Tutsi commoners.
When the Belgian colonial administration conducted censuses, it identified the people throughout Rwanda-Burundi according to a simple classification scheme. The "Tutsi" were defined as anyone owning more than ten cows (a sign of wealth) or with the physical features such as a longer, thin nose,high cheekbones, or being over six feet tall, all of which are common descriptions associated with the Tutsi.
Tutsi are considered by some[who?] to be ofCushitic origin, although they do not speak aCushitic language, and have inhabited the same areas for 400 years, leading to considerable intermarriage with Hutu in the area. Due to the history of intermingling and intermarrying of Hutu and Tutsi, some ethnographers and historians believe that the Hutu and Tutsi cannot be called distinct ethnic groups.[21][22][23]
Modern-day genetic studies of theY-chromosome generally indicate that the Tutsi, like the Hutu, are largely of Bantu extraction (60%E1b1a, 20%B, 4%E-P2(xE1b1a)).
Paternal genetic influences associated with theHorn of Africa andNorth Africa are few (under 3%E1b1b-M35), and are ascribed to much earlier inhabitants who were assimilated. However, the Tutsi have considerably more haplogroup B Y-DNA paternal lineages (14.9% B) than do the Hutu (4.3% B).[24]
In general, the Tutsi appear to share a close genetic kinship with neighbouring Bantu populations, particularly the Hutu. However, it is unclear whether this similarity is primarily due to extensive genetic exchanges between these communities through intermarriage or whether it ultimately stems from common origins:
[...] generations ofgene flow obliterated whatever clear-cut physical distinctions may have once existed between these two Bantu peoples – renowned to be height, body build, and facial features. With a spectrum of physical variation in the peoples, Belgian authorities legally mandated ethnic affiliation in the 1920s, based on economic criteria. Formal and discrete social divisions were consequently imposed upon ambiguous biological distinctions. To some extent, the permeability of these categories in the intervening decades helped to reify the biological distinctions, generating a taller elite and a shorter underclass, but with little relation to the gene pools that had existed a few centuries ago. The social categories are thus real, but there is little if any detectable genetic differentiation between Hutu and Tutsi.[25]
Prior to the arrival of colonists, Rwanda had been ruled by a Tutsi-dominated monarchy since the 15th century.[29][30] In 1897,Germany established a presence in Rwanda with the formation of an alliance with the king, beginning the colonial era.[31] Later,Belgium took control in 1916 duringWorld War I. Both European nations ruled through the Rwandan king and perpetuated a pro-Tutsi policy.[citation needed]
In Burundi, meanwhile, a ruling faction known as theganwa emerged and quickly assumed effective control of the country's administration. Theganwa, who relied on support from both Hutu and Tutsi populations to rule, were perceived within Burundi as neither Hutu nor Tutsi.[32][33]
Rwanda was ruled as a colony by Germany from 1897 to 1916, and by Belgium from 1922 to 1961. Both the Tutsi and Hutu had been the traditional governing elite, but both colonial powers allowed only the Tutsi to be educated and to participate in the colonial government. Such discriminatory policies engendered resentment.[citation needed]
When the Belgians took over, they believed the areas, which were formerly under German colonial control, could be better governed if they continued to identify the different populations as they had been previously identified. In the 1920s, the Belgian authorities required the population to identify with a particular ethnic group and the authorities classified them accordingly in censuses.[34][35]
In 1959, Belgium reversed its stance and allowed the majority Hutu to assume control of the government through universal elections after independence. This partly reflected internal Belgian domestic politics, in which the discrimination against the Hutu majority came to be regarded as similar to oppression within Belgium stemming from the Flemish-Walloon conflict, and the democratisation and empowerment of the Hutu was seen as a just response to the Tutsi's domination. Belgian policies wavered considerably during this period leading up to the independence of Rwanda and Burundi.[citation needed]
The Hutu majority in Rwandarevolted against the Tutsi and was able to take power. Many Tutsi fled and created exile communities outside Rwanda, inUganda andTanzania.[36][37][38][39][40] Overt discrimination from the colonial period was continued by different Rwandan and Burundian governments, including identity cards that distinguished between Tutsi and Hutu.[citation needed]
In 1993, Burundi's first democratically elected president,Melchior Ndadaye, a Hutu, was assassinated by Tutsi officers, as was the person[who?] entitled to succeed him under the constitution.[41] This sparkedethnic violence in Burundi, in which "possibly as many as 25,000 Tutsi" – including military, civil servants, and civilians[42] – were murdered by Hutu and "at least as many" Hutu were killed by Tutsi.[43][44] Since the2000 Arusha Accords, Burundi's Tutsi minority shares power in a more or less equitable manner with the Hutu majority. Traditionally, the Tutsi held more economic power and controlled the military.[45]
A similar pattern of events took place in Rwanda, where the Hutu came to power in 1962. They in turn often oppressed the Tutsi, who fled the country. After the anti-Tutsi violence of theRwandan Revolution (1959–1961), Tutsi fled in large numbers.[citation needed]
These Tutsi communities in exile gave rise to Tutsi rebel movements. TheRwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), mostly made up of exiled Tutsi living in Uganda, attacked Rwanda in 1990 with the intention of taking back power for the Tutsi. The RPF had experience in organised irregular warfare from theUgandan Bush War and received support from the Ugandan government. The initial RPF advance was halted by a lift of French arms to the Rwandan government. Attempts at peace culminated in the1993 Arusha Accords.[citation needed]
In Rwanda, from the 15th century until 1961, the Tutsi were ruled by a king (themwami). Belgium abolished the monarchy, following the nationalreferendum that led to independence. By contrast, in the northwestern part of the country, which is predominantly Hutu, large regional landholders shared power, similar to the society ofBuganda (in present-day Uganda).
Under their holy king, Tutsi culture traditionally revolved around administering justice and government. They were the only proprietors of cattle, and sustained themselves on their own products. Additionally, their lifestyle afforded them plenty of leisure time, which they spent cultivating the high arts of poetry, weaving, and music. Due to the Tutsi's status as adominant minority vis-a-vis the Hutu farmers and the other local inhabitants, this relationship has been likened to that between lords and serfs in feudal Europe.[52]
According to British historian John Fage, the Tutsi are serologically related to Bantu andNilotic populations. This in turn rules out a possible Cushitic origin for the founding Tutsi-Hima ruling class in the lacustrine kingdoms. However, the royal burial customs of the latter kingdoms are quite similar to those practised by the former Cushitic Sidama states in the southernGibe region ofEthiopia. By contrast, Bantu populations to the north of the Tutsi-Hima in the mount Kenya area such as the Agikuyu were until modern times essentially without a king (instead having a stateless age set system which they adopted from Cushitic peoples) while there were a number of Bantu kingdoms to the south of the Tutsi-Hima in Tanzania, all of which shared the Tutsi-Hima's chieftaincy pattern. Since the Cushitic Sidama kingdoms interacted with Nilotic groups, Fage thus proposes that the Tutsi may have descended from one such migrating Nilotic population. The Nilotic ancestors of the Tutsi would thereby in earlier times have served as cultural intermediaries, adopting some monarchical traditions from adjacent Cushitic kingdoms and subsequently taking those borrowed customs south with them when they first settled amongst Bantu autochthones in the Great Lakes area.[52] However, little difference can be ascertained between the cultures today of the Tutsi and Hutu; both groups speak the sameBantu language.[53] The rate of intermarriage between the two groups was traditionally very high, and relations were amicable until the 20th century. Many scholars have concluded that the determination of Tutsi was and is mainly an expression of class or caste, rather than ethnicity. Rwandans have their own language,Kinyarwanda. English, French and Swahili serve as additional official languages for different historic reasons, and are widely spoken by Rwandans as a second language.[54]
Scholars[who?] have long recognised that the Tutsi presence in the modernDemocratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is best understood by distinguishing between two principal groups, whose histories have been significantly shaped—and often distorted—by colonial policies and later political struggles.[citation needed]
A second Tutsi presence is found among the broaderBanyarwanda community in parts ofNorth Kivu. This community, which includes both Tutsi and Hutu, is largely the result of multiple migratory waves from neighbouringRwanda, occurring over the pre-colonial, colonial, and post-genocide periods. In particular, the mass exodus during and after theRwandan Genocide of 1994 is well documented and has significantly reshaped the ethnic landscape in eastern Congo.[55][56] The academic consensus holds that these migratory processes, far from being a single exogenous event, have complex historical antecedents that continue to influence regional politics.[citation needed]
The eastern DRC has been a hotspot of conflict for decades, involving numerous armed groups. Some of these, notably those evolving from the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) into what became known as theM23, have been led by individuals of Tutsi background. However, the portrayal of these groups solely through an ethnic lens oversimplifies the situation. Academic studies agree that the roots of the conflict lie in a mixture of colonial legacies, competition over valuable resources such ascobalt, and deep-seated political and social grievances.[57] Reports from international organisations have documented serious human rights abuses—including the recruitment of child soldiers and illegal exploitation of mineral wealth—but these are best understood within the broader framework of state fragility and international economic pressures rather than as a straightforward ethnic conflict.[58]
^Michael Bowen,Passing by;: The United States and genocide in Burundi, 1972, (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1973), p. 49
^René Lemarchand,Selective genocide in Burundi (Report – Minority Rights Group; no. 20, 1974)
^Rene Lemarchand,Burundi: Ethnic Conflict and Genocide (New York: Woodrow Wilson Center andCambridge University Press, 1996)
Edward L. Nyankanzi,Genocide: Rwanda and Burundi (Schenkman Books, 1998)
^Christian P. Scherrer,Genocide and crisis in Central Africa: conflict roots, mass violence, and regional war; foreword byRobert Melson. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 2002
^International Commission of Inquiry for Burundi: Final Report, Part III: Investigation of the Assassination. Conclusions atUSIP.orgArchived 1 December 2008 at theWayback Machine
^René Lemarchand (2004)."The Burundian Genocide". In Totten, Samuel; Parsons, William S.; Charny, Israel W. (eds.).Century of Genocide: Critical Essays and Eyewitness Accounts (Second ed.). Routledge. p. 331.ISBN978-0-415-94430-4.
^International Commission of Inquiry for Burundi (2002)
^Guichaoua, André (2020). "Counting the Rwandan Victims of War and Genocide: Concluding Reflections".Journal of Genocide Research.22 (1):125–141.doi:10.1080/14623528.2019.1703329.S2CID213471539. 500,000–800,000 is the range of scholarly estimates listed on the third page of the paper.
^Meierhenrich, Jens (2020). "How Many Victims Were There in the Rwandan Genocide? A Statistical Debate".Journal of Genocide Research.22 (1):72–82.doi:10.1080/14623528.2019.1709611.S2CID213046710.Despite the various methodological disagreements among them, none of the scholars who participated in this forum gives credence to the official figure of 1,074,107 victims... Given the rigour of the various quantitative methodologies involved, this forum's overarching finding that the death toll of 1994 is nowhere near the one-million-mark is – scientifically speaking – incontrovertible.
The death of 'more than a million' Tutsi became the foundation of the new Rwanda, where former exiles hold a monopoly on power. It also created the socio-political environment for the mass criminalisation of Hutu. Gacaca courts eventually tried more than a million (Nyseth Brehm, Uggen, and Gasanabo 2016), which led President Kagame to suggest that all Hutu bear responsibility and should apologise (Benda 2017, 13). Thus the new Rwanda is built not only on the death of 'more than a million" Tutsi but also on the collective guilt of Hutu. This state of affairs is in no one's interests except the regime's.
^Uvin, Peter. "The Congo and the Rwandan Tragedy: Politics, Ideology and the Struggle for Power."Journal of Eastern African Studies, vol. 1, no. 2, 2007, pp. 281–300.
^Reyntjens, Filip.Political Awakening in the Belgian Congo: The Early Phase, 1908–1945. Cambridge University Press, 2019.
^Nzongola-Ntalaja, Georges.The Congo: From Leopold to Kabila: A People's History. Zed Books, 2002.
^Human Rights Watch. "Breakdown of the State in the Democratic Republic of the Congo." Human Rights Watch Reports, 2010.
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