| Nande | |
|---|---|
| Yira | |
| Konzo | |
| Native to | Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Region | Nord-Kivu province |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | nnb |
| Glottolog | nand1264 |
JD.42[1] | |
Nande (Yira) is aBantu language spoken in the east of theDemocratic Republic of Congo in the territories ofBeni andLubero. The Yira constitute more than 60% of the population of the province ofNorth Kivu. The language is also spoken inUganda by theKonjo (seeKonjo language).
The Yira are subdivided into 14 clans including the Baswagha, Basu (Basukali for female), Bamate (just a family name), Bahira, Bakira, Bahambo, Bito, Batangi, Basongora, Bakumbule, Batike, Babinga, Balhumba and Balegha. The 14 clans are subdivided into families, and each clan is ruled by its own family head, also called clan chief (Omukulhu wolhughanda). The king of the Yira is called Omusinga (the leader).
The Nande of Congo and theKonjo people of Uganda are a single ethnic group, which they call Yira (Bayira). They trace their origins to theRuwenzori Mountains between the two countries. The languages Nande andKonjo are close enough to be considered divergent dialects. Nande has a number of dialects of its own: Nande proper, Kumbule, Mate, Tangi, Sanza, Shu, Songola (Songoora, Nyangala), Swaga / Kira (in Nande, all of these are prefixed witheki-).
Their language isOlhuyira, aBantu language whose number of speakers in theDRC was estimated at more than 10,000,000 in 2022 and nearly 1,000,000 inUganda.
For the varieties of this language known as Shu we are given the information[2] that another language, "EkiShukaali" was formerly spoken by the women, theAvaShukaali. This may be a specific reference to some kind of "secret jargon" into which the girls, and not boys, were initiated.
Some of the Nande of Congo have a patron–vassal relationship with theEfé Pygmies.
| Bilabial | Dental | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | voiceless | p | t̪ | t | k | ||
| prenasal | ᵐb | ⁿd | ᵑɡ | ||||
| Affricate | t͡s | ||||||
| Fricative | plain | β | s | ɣ | h | ||
| prenasal | ⁿz | ||||||
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ||||
| Rhotic | trill | r | |||||
| tap | ɾ | ||||||
| Approximant | l | (j) | (w) | ||||
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u | |
| Near-close | ɪ | ʊ | |
| Close-mid | ɛ ~ e | ɔ ~ o | |
| Open-mid | |||
| Open | a |
Among the Nande people there is a lot of trade. Historically, the Nande people traded salt fromLake Katwe inUganda. Thanks to the evolution of trade among the Nande and following their strong economic relations withEast Africa, theMiddle and theFar East, villages have now become cities:Butembo,Beni,Oicha, Luholu,Kasindi ... and neighboring agglomerations have become towns:Goma,Kisangani,Bunia,Isiro, etc.
Despite the economic crisis that hit the whole country during the time of theRepublic of Zaire, the region ofBeni-Lubero and the city ofButembo have maintained a flourishing economic activity and until today despite the wars. Industrialization had started in the region at the initiative of the local economic elite with the special economic zone of Musienene. The Nande people have also produced an intellectual elite who have distinguished themselves in all areas of national and international life, and particularly:
The Nande people are above all farmers and breeders of small livestock, cattle breeding being a particularity of certain large families only. They have become the major producers and exporters ofcoffee,cocoa,cinchona andtea throughout theDemocratic Republic of Congo.Plantains,tubers,cereals,... are otherfoodstuffs most cultivated among this people. They practicefishing inLake Edward (Lake Mutsyamiria) with a production of 16,000 tons of fish per year also in the riversSemuliki, Tayna, Talhya, Luholu, etc.
Following this evolution of agriculture for centuries among this people, several organizations have just emerged locally to sustainably support these peasant farmers.
The following Yira names have become very popular throughout the world, because of a great increase in the birth rate among this people and their strong representations in the various fields of life, these names form one of their particularities , these names are in each restricted family, here are their meanings:
The term "KYAGHANDA" designates the hut with two and sometimes three entrances, generally located in the middle of the village. It is there that the inhabitants of the village usually meet to solve their vital problems and provide, in all solidarity, solutions deemed appropriate. The Kyaghanda currently operate in several towns and villages around the world where the Yira meet.
The term “ISUMBA” designates both secret societies and the clay statuettes used in initiation rites. These closed societies were reserved for men, who had to recognize each figurine and arrange them in a precise order.
Dance in Olhuyira: “amasata, amavina, amahotole” is a gesture par excellence reflecting the various feelings of man developing both as a rhythm in time and in space. The position and movement of the body in the Yira dance translates prayer.
Here are some Yira dances according to the circumstances of exhibition and then according to the instruments of execution:
a) The dances according to the circumstances of exhibition
The dances can be current, ancestral according to joyful and sad events or picturesque circumstances. The art of dance being sacred or profane, we distinguish between show dance and entertainment dance.
We distinguish among the Yira:
Popular celebration dances: Omunde, Amalembo, Amangudu, Amatakiyo, Ebwaya, Ekila, Endara, Enduku and Erisole.
The enthronement or investiture dances: Emburura, Endungulu and Erighomba.
Initiation dances: Amaghengeleghengele, Engyengo, Omukumo w'avakali n'ow'avalume, Omumbitili and Omutetere.
The funeral dances: Amasindula, Engwaki, Omukonga, Omukovo and Ovusingiri.
Recreational or entertainment dances: Akasambi, Akasayi, Dahudahu, Ekibaliya, Ekidali, Ekimbati, Ekimbakisi, Ekipulenge, Ekituta, Ekiyamba, Ekururu, Emikalihyo, Enanga, Endeku, Epuli, Eriduku, Erikembe, Olusengo, Oluveve, Omughoviro, Omusayi and Ovurwani.
b) Dances according to instruments
The myth of the Great Drum begins with the story of the couple and the human family. He says that: “Up there, on the hill of creation, higher than the clouds ofRwenzori, God Nyamuhanga the Creator gave each creature a mission.
The Ende (cow) carried between its horns a large Risingi (drum). God Nyamuhanga had placed two human beings there: Kisi the Great Sun and Nyabhandu, the mother of men. Each was seated in his royal E'ndeve (chair) and inhaled the scent of O'Bhukwa incense; to see each other in this darkness God Nyamuhanga had given Kisi and Nyabhandu an o'bhulhengekania (consciousness) and bio-efflorescent hair that shone like the firefly (e'ngununu). This great Drum was the land of great peace O'bhuthekane.
One day, the cow wanted to relieve herself. She looked down and dropped the great Drum. She ran to God Nyamuhanga to be forgiven for losing her royal office. God Nyamuhanga sent him to reconcile with those who were seated in the great Drum which became a canoe when it crashed on Lake Mutsyamiria (Lake Edward today). While the great Drum swooped down, Kisi the Great Sun jostled Nyabhandu the mother of men. This one emitted the first word of the men which is a questioning: “what are you doing Ukayira uthi? Hence the ethnonym Yira given to the Nande to designate the people of those who were born after the first word of our Ancestors Nyabhandu and Kisi. The village they founded is called Bhuhikira, the place where they landed; the child born there is called Mukira, the ancestor of the Bakira clan; they had many children, who are the founding Ancestors of all the YIRAclans with all its ramifications”.
Thus, according to the mythology transmitted from father to son, the nande crossed theSemliki river, on the back of the dragon to reach the other bank in theCongo. To tell the truth, the passage was made at the ford of Kapanza. At times of drought, the stones emerge from the water so that one can easily cross the river.
It is these stone points that have been compared to the scaly back of the dragon that the narrative tradition conveys from father to son as a mythology, with an underlying religious idea. This mysterious crossing was made possible thanks to the intervention of the spirit Katulikanzira, who preceded the convoy of immigrants and settled them in the place of his choice. Nevertheless, during the crossing, part of the Nande remained inUganda on the east coast of theRuwenzori mountains and theSemliki river which separate theCongo fromUganda. These are currently calledKonzo. They were geographically and administratively separated from their Nande brothers during thedivision of Africa between the great European powers in 1885. They keep, however, the same habits and customs as the Nande apart from the linguistic nuances inLhukonzo.
The Yira tradition relates that one day on the hill of creation, the Creator God O'Muhangitshi answered the prayer of the Nande who were threatened with famine due to a very incendiary drought. He summoned all the heavenly Bhalhimu deities found in the world to protect him. He ordered them to transport theRuwenzori mountain to plant it in the middle of the Nande country which was terribly short of water.
Hangi the Spirit of Providence and Luck was in the front row followed by Mbolu the protector of female youth and Lusenge the protector of male youth. The Kapipi Spirit, the Master of the forest and of the initiation to wisdom, was in the last row surrounded by his pack of seventy-seven sacred dogs of the hunt. The convoy also included all the goddesses in charge of gifts to be offered as gifts to God Nyamuhanga the Supreme Being as soon as they arrived in the land of the Nande. As the Providence Hangi was walking very fast, the Spirit Muhima the Great Celestial Seer, claimed that he alone carried theRuwenzori Mountain. The other deities got angry and let go of theRuwenzori mountain to make the Great Seer Muhima understand that he alone was unable to accomplish this heavy task of transporting a mountain.
To calm their anger, the Spirit of Providence Hangi caused rain to fall on the whole country where the drought was raging. He reconciled all the members of the procession by inviting them to dialogue where everyone was given the floor by the Spirit Mulhekya the Peacemaker, happy to have been refreshed by the celestial shower. When it was the turn of the animals to speak, the smallest of the dogs of the last pack of the deity Kapipi addressed this famous word to the Great Seer Muhima: "you have to know how to count on others". This is why theRuwenzori massif is still where the gods left it. He has not moved, he continues to make the fresh water of Providence Hangi flow there.
This is the reason why all the rites of reconciliation between the clans begin with the gestures of sprinkling the shoulders and ablution of the feet and the hand with water drawn from theRuwenzori glacier or Tsithwa -tsya-Nzururu which means the big hill with eternal snow in the local language Kinande.
Yira literature is so vast with many authors mostly priests from the Diocese of Butembo-Beni. Here are some proverbs of wisdom:
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