More Information
Child Rearing and Education
At about the age of 5 for boys and until adolescence for girls children have the most contact with their mother, sisters, and other female relatives. Boys and girls attend school only if the parents can afford to send them.If both cannot attend because of short funds the boy is usually favored and the girl stays home to help her mother around the community until she gets married and moves away.
During school, students are supposed to respect their teachers and corporal punishment is enforced but now to lesser extent.
Higher Education
Since the pay for school has risen the families are having a hard time sending their children to secondary schools. The wealthy send their children to boarding schools within and outside the country even though they believe that the influences of the modern world and lack of family supervision and support will have a negative affect on them.
Traditional Music of Mambwe People
Music is the most widely practiced art in their community. The music served as a functional purpose for thing such as ceremonial,religious,political, or incidental purposes.Music was performed during funerals to express pain and agony and to praise the departed.Work songs are also apart of their tradition, there is music for communal work such as building and weeding and music for individual work like pounding cereal ,winnowing.
Music is used for ritual purposes like chasing away evil spirits who visit the village at night, in rain making, and during divination's and healing. Music for the Mambwe is shaped by the total way of lifestyles and lifestyle patterns of each individual within the community separating it from music of other communities.
Content of the Music
Melodies within the music are lyrical with vocal ornamentation's. The rhythm of the music can be described as having a lot of syncopation and songs like these would usually be performed solo. The most common form of a solo performance are chants which are recitatives with irregular rhythms and phrases, carrying serious messages.
Traditional/Modern Clothing and Dressing Ettiquette
The Mambwe people wore minimal clothing and they used animal hides to cover up their private parts but there was no stigma towards nudity.Today, their clothes are Western in origin, which varies from social class and and lifestyle choices. It would not be uncommon to see remote rural areas fashionably dressed to the latest styles. People in cities wear clothing similar to clothing worn in Paris and New York. In rural areas, the majority of people will dress to their daily work routines.Example: Women would wear loose fitting dresses made of solid or printed cotton fabric while attending the market or farming.Also wearing sandals or being barefoot are typical when working. Men wear jeans as work pants while farming. In general the Mambwe people enjoy dressing up for weddings and funerals.
The Mambwe People
Population, Background, and Language
Living in between the countries of Tanzania and Zambia, the Mambwe people have a population of a little less than 300,000 people. Since they live along a junction of routes, Mambwe people have been exposed to many different forms of culture, especially trade.
This is partially due to British law including them into a "world-wide economic and political system." (http://dice.missouri.edu/docs/niger-congo/Mambwe.pdf) Their tribe has since been referred to by 'Westerners' as not true people but instead a collection of run-away slaves.They are also often grouped and known as "Bemba" which is a near by tribe.
History of the Mambwe include long lasting disputes and wars with the Bemba. Bemba have raided, started wars, and made slaves of the Mamwe people. They have considered the Lungu, who share their western border, an ally against the Bemba. In fact, the Mambwe and Lungu people share a common language, although their are many dialects spoken. Their language is commonly referred to by geographic location. If spoken by Mambwe and Lungu people it's called Mambwe-Lungu. Likewise, if spoken by the Fipa, it's known as Fipa-Mambwe.
Marriage and Kinship
In Mambwe families, if the parents of a man have not pre-arranged a marriage for him, he will seek a wife himself. Interestingly, though, marriages can also be formed when two individuals are attracted to each other.
The man uses a friend called a 'love messenger' who goes to the girl's parents with a gift and tries arranging the marriage, but the decision cannot be immediately made. The parents must discuss it with Uncles and Aunts, for the families thrive together as a larger extended unit.
The Mambwe people have a system of distinguishing males and females by their last names: Males have last names starting with the letters "Si" and females have last names starting with the letters "Na".
Gender Roles
The Mambwe men are involved in a system of migrant labor. Although their primary
source of sustenance is agricultural, active men are now accustomed to
going out and looking for work by European accounts in mines or other
fields. Women who display such independence (to seek work) are
considered immoral in their community. If a married woman wants to go
into town she must carry with her a marriage license. There are times
when women look for husbands in town so that they are not bound to just
the fields.
Nutrition and Diet
The Mambwe diet consists mainly of carbohydrates and protein.The primary crops of the Mambwe people are corn (maize), millet, sorghum,sweet potatoes,pumpkin, and bananas. While coffee, tobacco, cotton, and sugarcane are their main cash crops. The people also use sheep, goats, chickens, and cattle for bride wealth. A staple food in the Mambwe diet is ugali. It is eaten several times a day, and is made from maize meal stirred in boiling water until it becomes a thick and smooth porridge; it is typically consume with green vegetables such as Okra. Another staple in the Mambwe diet is the finger millet which is also made into porridge. This millet is prepared by the women who grind it into a flour and then it is eaten hot.They buy sugars, bread, and butter to eat with their tea (known as "tea time").
Living in between the countries of Tanzania and Zambia, the Mambwe people have a population of a little less than 300,000 people. Since they live along a junction of routes, Mambwe people have been exposed to many different forms of culture, especially trade.
This is partially due to British law including them into a "world-wide economic and political system." (http://dice.missouri.edu/docs/niger-congo/Mambwe.pdf) Their tribe has since been referred to by 'Westerners' as not true people but instead a collection of run-away slaves.They are also often grouped and known as "Bemba" which is a near by tribe.
History of the Mambwe include long lasting disputes and wars with the Bemba. Bemba have raided, started wars, and made slaves of the Mamwe people. They have considered the Lungu, who share their western border, an ally against the Bemba. In fact, the Mambwe and Lungu people share a common language, although their are many dialects spoken. Their language is commonly referred to by geographic location. If spoken by Mambwe and Lungu people it's called Mambwe-Lungu. Likewise, if spoken by the Fipa, it's known as Fipa-Mambwe.Marriage and Kinship
In Mambwe families, if the parents of a man have not pre-arranged a marriage for him, he will seek a wife himself. Interestingly, though, marriages can also be formed when two individuals are attracted to each other.
The man uses a friend called a 'love messenger' who goes to the girl's parents with a gift and tries arranging the marriage, but the decision cannot be immediately made. The parents must discuss it with Uncles and Aunts, for the families thrive together as a larger extended unit.The Mambwe people have a system of distinguishing males and females by their last names: Males have last names starting with the letters "Si" and females have last names starting with the letters "Na".
Gender Roles
The Mambwe men are involved in a system of migrant labor. Although their primary
source of sustenance is agricultural, active men are now accustomed to
going out and looking for work by European accounts in mines or other
fields. Women who display such independence (to seek work) are
considered immoral in their community. If a married woman wants to go
into town she must carry with her a marriage license. There are times
when women look for husbands in town so that they are not bound to just
the fields.Nutrition and Diet
The Mambwe diet consists mainly of carbohydrates and protein.The primary crops of the Mambwe people are corn (maize), millet, sorghum,sweet potatoes,pumpkin, and bananas. While coffee, tobacco, cotton, and sugarcane are their main cash crops. The people also use sheep, goats, chickens, and cattle for bride wealth. A staple food in the Mambwe diet is ugali. It is eaten several times a day, and is made from maize meal stirred in boiling water until it becomes a thick and smooth porridge; it is typically consume with green vegetables such as Okra. Another staple in the Mambwe diet is the finger millet which is also made into porridge. This millet is prepared by the women who grind it into a flour and then it is eaten hot.They buy sugars, bread, and butter to eat with their tea (known as "tea time").
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