Bakiga Traditional Economy, Bakiga People Utencils,Bakiga Political Set UpTraditional economy of Bakiga people
The Bakiga were basically agriculturalists growing mainly sorgum, peas, millet, and beans. They also reared some cattle, sheep and goats.
Among them were excellent iron- smiths who made hoes, knives, and spears. They were great porters and produced a wide assortment of pottery. Besides, they made a wide range of carpentry object baskets and mats and they reared bees and produce honey. The Bakiga lived and worked communally. Most economic activities were dome on a communal basis. Grazing, bush clearing, cultivation and harvesting were done communally. The men cleared the bush while the women tiled the land. Men worked together to erect round, grass-thatched huts for shelter. They practiced barter trade amongst themselves and between their neighbors. The stable foods of Bakiga were sorghum, beans and peas. They supplemented them with pumpkins, yams, meat and a variety of green vegetables. Sufficient food was prepared so that every one could ear his fill. It was considered goof manners to join in whenever one found a given family at a meal. One would just wash one’s hands and join the others without waiting to be invited.
If a man had more than one wife, all his women had to serve him at each meal. He could ear the most delicious share of the food among the lot, or all of it if he so wished. The Bakiga made beer, omuramba, played a significant social role. It had a food component and was an alcoholic drink necessary for social gatherings. Omuramba was normally taken from a pot placed in a convenient place. The men would sit on wooden stools surrounding it and by means of long tubes; they would drink as they discussed matters affecting their country. The elders would also settle disputes, recite their heroic deeds and their history, and sing and dance around a pot of omuramba. The Bakiga were and still are very good zither (enanga) players. They played it alone or in groups. Learn about traditional utencils of Bakiga peopleThe Bakiga‘s domestic utensils included baskets, pots, wnnowingtrays, stools, grindingstones, woodenpestles, mortars and mingling ladles. The other household items were drums and harps for entertainment; spears, bows and arrows for defense and hunting; grassmats (ebirago) for sleeping on and emishambi for sitting on. Previously the Bakiga women dressed in cow hides known as ebisahto or enkanda. They wore bangles on their legs and arms. The Bakiga were a segmentary society. Political authority rested in the hands of lineage leaders, Abakuru b’emiryango, many of whom had excellent oratory as well as military skills. They were supposed to be impartial in administering justice. Some leaders such as Basubi emerged to prominence because they had mystical skills. They were rain makers. Others were Baigirwa, the mediums of Nyabingi cult.The Bakiga were warlike. They resisted the Batutsi and Bahima incursions. As a politically segmented society, they did not have a standing army. However, they had warlords who would mobilize and lead the people to war in the event of invasion. The warlords were men who had killed a large number of enemies in wars without losing any of their men or weapons. Every able-bodied male was culturally obliged to be a soldier The Bakiga abhorred anti-social activities and if any one was caught he was heavily punished. Such activities included stealing, blocking paths, murder, sorcery and night dancing. In the case of murder for example, the murderer was buried alive in the same grave with the victim. Virginity was highly esteemed and it was a very serous offense for a girl to get pregnant before marriage. If an unmarried girl became pregnant, she would either be taken to a forest or tied to a tree feet and arms and down over a cliff. Most pregnant girls among the Bakiga people were taken to the Kisizi falls They would drown in the falls. The lucky ones were simply cursed and disowned by their people. Back to Uganda Visit and Travel Guide Home Page
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