African Traditional Marriage; Two Ugandan Tribes at a Spotlight 

Customs, art, events, and social institutions of a group of people make up their culture. Like in organizational culture, societal culture influences a person’s behavior.  When you understand someone’s culture you understand their school of thought and improve your interpersonal relationships. African culture makes a unique identity for the African people. A small region can have different cultures and languages. Uganda, one of the smallest countries in East Africa has over 20 tribes and each tribe has its own language and culture.  Rose (20) lists 14 tribal regions only central. Western, Eastern and Central Uganda is occupied by the Bantu tribes.  These include the Baganda, Banyankole, Basoga, Bakiga, Batoro, Banyoro, Banyarwanda, Bagishu, Bagwere and Bakonjo.. Culture events in Uganda include food, dress code, burial ceremony, child discipline, music, dance, marriage, housing, and language. We will explore the Ganda and Gishu cultures looking at their matrimonial cultural events. This essay starts with a preamble about cultural benefit, looks at the Ganda and the Gishu marriages, compares them and concludes with a general view about Marriage.

The name “Uganda” is derived from Buganda, which is a Kingdom located in central Uganda. It was and still is an organized kingship with specific traditional norms. Baganda are people who came from different parts of the world and settled in Central Uganda at the shores of Lake Victoria from which name “Ganda” meaning “bundle” or coming together is derived.  Baganda culture has many themes. I will discuss the Kiganda Marriage Ceremony as narrated by My Mother Cissy and Sister Joyce. Long ago in Buganda the only marriage ceremony was “Okwanjula” translated as “The Introduction”. Parents choose partners for their children.  As the fathers were out in the evening at their communal local bear drink gatherings, they talked about their grown-up children. Kept watching these children as they grow up and the parents did  their best to know all possible details about the families that they wished their children to marry from. They did not want their children to marry into families that practiced bad rituals like witchcraft or families with bad diseases such as epilepsy, polio, or any other congenital disease.   That is where the word “kwogereza” (to talk about) came from. At the age of 15 to 17 years, the girls would be ready for marriage. The age of the men is not emphasized so much because even older men would marry younger girls if the parents have agreed.

After the two parents(fathers) had agreed, they prepared a day for the marriage to take place. It was secretive, only between the two involved families.  Since the girl was young, she was taken to her auntie (sister to the father) for marriage training where she learnt about marriage roles, from the bedroom, kitchen, and general home management. This girl was told that she was going to get married, and divorce was not an option. She had no idea who her fiancée was. On the day the girl was to be given away, the husband to be came with his sisters and some elderly people to receive her. They brought gifts to the girl’s family which included the dowery (as decided by the girl’s father), the father’s “kanzu” (a cultural dress for men), the mother and auntie’s “gomasi” (women traditional wear in Buganda). They feasted together, made a commitment to protect the girl and then the girl is given away. Because the girl was young, she would go with her auntie to the palace where she was getting married to. The auntie would stay for a night. If the girl was found to be a virgin, the auntie would be given a goat in appreciation which was slaughtered and cooked without salt when she went back to the girl’s father. She also brought a backcloth to indicate that the girl was a virgin. If the girl was not a virgin, there would be no goat, and a hole would be cut in the middle of the backcloth, then sent back to the father. The bride stayed in the bedroom where she was looked after and fed for about a month. After which another ceremony called “okujja omugole mu kisenge” translated as “getting the bride out of the bedroom” would be done. On that day a special meal was cooked, usually prepared by the groom’s sisters. They give the bride gifts, one of them being the kiganda knife and baskets indicating that you are welcome and ready to take over your roles. After the bride is out of the bedroom officially, she also takes gifts back to her parents, referred to as “okuza omuzigo”. From that day the lady starts her official marital duties as a wife. The villagers never knew the woman’s name so they would refer to her by the husband’s name like Mukyala Kasozi meaning Mrs Kasozi, Kasozi being the husband.

Today things have changed, the Introduction Ceremony is extremely exaggerated. First the children marry when they are way above 18years, and they look for their own spouses and introduce them to their parents. By the time they come to the parents, some have already co-habited. They bring expensive gifts like cars, cows, and others. The function is no longer secretive, it is announced, and people are invited. It is a public function. It is no longer common for girls to marry when they are virgins, although some do. There is a lot of music and dancing during these functions. Special spokes men are hired. Certificates are given by parents as proof that they have married off their daughter. The function is divided into 3 stages, visiting the auntie, then writing the letter to the father indicating the intention of going for the introduction at his home and lastly the Introduction ceremony itself. The issue of weddings and after parties is adopted from Western culture. Church weddings were not part of the marriage Ceremonies.  In my opinion, much as a lot has changed, someone taking time and respecting your culture means they respect your identity and that is what makes it beautiful.  Presence and recognition are what humanity is fighting for in global space.

The Bagishu also known as the Bamasaba are people residing in Eastern Uganda and Western Kenya around Mount Elgon.  Humphry a Mugishu by Tribe, boasts that the Bamasaba  are the only race with “Basani” meaning men, and other un-circumcised tribes are called “Basinde” meaning boys. Emphasized by Heald, Circumcision known as “Imbalu”, is their signature ritual as transition from boys to men. The Bagishu believe that they are descendants of Muntu (Mundu), the first man to leave on Mountain Elgon (Beierle p8,47). The boys were circumcised at of 14-18 years and received teachings from elders on courtship, sexuality, the responsibilities of a husband, and wealth creation. Consultation from the elders was necessity to preserve cultural traditions and pass them on to the next generation. They relied on their families to provide bride-wealth which was in the form of cows, goats, chicken, and local brews (Humphry).  The dependance on the elders and parents for marriage was to instill the cultural norms and create a socialistic culture in the upcoming family. Similarly, young women at the age 14-18 years were coached by older women about the social values of the Bamasaba. They learned how to conduct themselves in marriage, communicate with their husbands and elders, how to sexually satisfy their husbands, and maintain harmony in the home. Such training helped to strengthen families and divorce was unheard of until modernization, The social roles in a family were clear and distinct. The only challenge was that the men had too much power over women.

Immaculate reports that at the “Inemba”, a merry making ceremony is where the circumcised men would meet the girls. The initiatives “Newly circumcised” men would meet to celebrate their elevation to manhood. Girls of the marriageable age attended these cerebrations. When a young man identified a potential spouse, he informed his father, who would then consult the clan elders. Through an intermediary a team would discuss with the girl’s parents to delve into the ancestral lineage of both parties to ensure they were not related. Once this was confirmed and both families agreed, the girl would be escorted to the boy’s home by her young sisters and a paternal aunt. The girl’s relatives would stay overnight. They returned home with gifts such as goats, sheep, and chickens, and a formal invitation for the girl’s family to visit within weeks. On the appointed day, the man’s relatives prepared a lavish feast for the girl’s family. Elders from the girl’s side arrived, and the two groups sat separately, sipping on “Malwa”, a millet or maize alcoholic beverage, while intermediaries from each camp negotiated dowry and bride-wealth, a process that took several hours. Once an agreement was reached, the families united and shared a meal. Then the girl was given over to begin her new family. These traditional marriage practices are undergoing rapid change due to factors such as urbanization, migration, intermarriages, and formal education. “Imbalu” is one custom that has been maintained in the Gishu culture to date.

Looking at the Gishu type of dating, it uses the same basics and principles used in online dating, The difference is that online dating is digital and the Gishu culture was more practical because you would meet with real people. With the difficulty in today’s culture of finding a spouse, I wish such a culture would be brought back.  It would help us a lot. The coming of Western culture has changed a lot of things; Children involve their parents after they have already confirmed their choice. Parents have little to say apart from accepting. It’s both good and bad, good because you entirely make your own choice and have no one to blame, On the other hand it’s bad in case you make an error especially these extended families, you can end up dating your own cousin which is called incest in the African Tradition culture. On the other hand, not involving the elders early enough has led to abuse especially for the girl child and increase of rape cases. Respect for the parents has also deteriorated because the boy may perceive the father or mother as a single person not as a unit. It worsens when it is a single mother. To some extent African Tradition Marriages would help to preserve morals and build good societal behavior., however for the Gishu culture, I am still wondering how they would control sexual morality among the youth at the “Inemba” Cerebrations!

Culture is the media through which traditional practices are passed on to the next generation. The Kiganda and the Gishu traditional marriages are similar in such a way that the elders of the village were involved in the initial union of the couple. The boy had to consult the elders.  The girl is handed over to a family, not an individual. In both marriages the girl had no decision power on who to marry. The man’s family took over the responsibility of looking after the girl. There were cerebrations in the form of union feasts that make the two families unite. They both had a bride’s price; it would have been in the form of animals or anything that the parents of the bride to be would decide. The siter to the father of the girl (paternal auntie) had a big role in naturing the girls and preparing her for marriage. On the contrary these two traditional marriages are different in the way they choose partners. Whereas in the Kiganda culture the boy and the girl had no idea who they were going to marry, the Bagishu the boy spotted the girl during the “Inemba”.  Circumcision is not an issue among the Baganda, on the other hand it is an icon for men among the Bagishu. Furthermore, there was no meeting function among the Baganda. Among the Baganda, the boys would meet girls at the well when they have gone top fetch water, but the elder girl would move with a brother who would be like a bodyguard as narrated by my Mother Cissy. Among the Baganda the type of bride wealth given was not standard but rather the backcloth brought for the parents as gifts were the most important, on the other hand, the Gishu culture where giving cows and goats as a bride-price was a must. In African traditional marriage, parental involvement was vital to their children’s marriage initiation.

When you go to a particular region you are expected to respect and behave like that culture. Not only in the two selected tribes, but marriage is also an important aspect of life for many people because it provides emotional support, companionship, and a sense of belonging. Children are groomed in their culture, which models their lifestyle Family, whether nuclear or extended, is where we all belong. Although not all families begin with marriage or ever get married, marriage is still respected in society. It is pride to belong to any kind of origin. People spend thousands of dollars to know their origin in case they are not certain. To date we have communities outside Africa where people uphold their culture. In America we have the Buganda Community where occasionally the royal team visits. People are proud of who they are and preserve their culture. Respect for culture will help us prevent racial and ethnic divisions. We need to learn beyond our own culture so that we respect the beauty of diversity.

Works Cited

Beierle, John. 2004. “Culture Summary: Bagisu.” New Haven, Conn.: HRAF. https://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=fk13-000.

Cissy Nandawula Mbazira and Joyce Nayonjo, Phone interview on 2/17/2024

Driberg, J. H. (1923). The Lango, a Nilotic tribe of Uganda. T. F. Unwin, ltd.

Heald, Suzette. Manhood and Morality : Sex, Violence and Ritual in Gisu Society, Taylor & Francis Group,1999. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://www.proquest.com/legacydocview/EBC/169006?accountid=1553.

https://allafrica.com/stories/201301291567.html accessed on 2/11/2024

https://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/cultures/fk13/summary , accessed on 2/11/2024.

https://www.semanticscholar.org/author/J.-Roscoe/80581472

Humphry Masaba, Bunawodya Clan Elder, Phone Interview on 2/9/2024

Immaculate Wanyenze, Uganda: Inemba, the Hunting Ground Where Newly Circumcised Gishu Men Find Wives .1 The Observer, Kampala /29/2013

John Roscoe. “The Baganda: An Account of Their Native Customs and Beliefs”, Kessinger Publishing, Sept 10, 2010.

Purvis, Rev. J.B. (1909) Through Uganda to Mount Elgon. London: T.Fisher Unwin.

Heald, Suzette. Manhood and Morality : Sex, Violence and Ritual in Gisu Society, Taylor & Francis Group, 1999. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/lwtclearningcommons-ebooks/detail.action?docID=169006.
Created from lwtclearningcommons-ebooks on 2024-02-12 00:08:27.

Roscoe, J. (1915). The northern Bantu; an account of some central African tribes of the Uganda Protectorate, by John Roscoe. The University Press, 1915.