THE LENJE PEOPLE OF CENTRAL PROVINCE
By Kenneth Ngalamika
The Lenjes of central province of Zambia at times called Bene Mukuni, and they praise themselves as ba Lenje bantanshi or bene chishi, are the indigenous of the Southern part of the Central province as the northern part is occupied by the Lala speaking people.
It is believed that the Lenjes were among the first people to come to the present day Zambia from the Cameroon. At one time Lenjes and Solis lived together for a long time, both are related to their neighboring Tonga speaking people.
The Lenjes were led by a woman whose five of her children are now Lenje chiefs, and among the chiefs there is a grand child who is also a chief. They are Senior Chief Mukuni Ng’ombe and at times called Chipepo, Chief Liteta, Chief Mungule, Chief Chitanda, Chief Mukubwe.
The grand child was Ngabwe whose father was a son of Senior Chief Mukuni Ng’ombe making Ngabwe a grandchild to the five chiefs, the Lenje chiefs related to one another. Chief Chamuka was bestowed with the Chieftainship due to the loyalty he had rendered to the bamwana Nkanga who are the five chiefs.
The great woman is believed to have been buried at the place called Likonde Lyaba Nkanga in Chibombo District of Central province. Lenjes mostly are found in Central province but there are Lenjes in Lusaka province as well, Lenjes are in the following Districts; Chisamba, Chibombo, Kapiri-mposhi and Ngabwe. Kabwe is a cosmopolitan place because all tribes of Zambia are found there despite the fact that it is also part of the Lenjeland.
Lenjes are proud of their cattle keeping and their main crops are millet and maize, Lenjes believe in ancestral powers, though a lot more now have become Christians. They believe in treating other people fairly well, fearing that if you mistreat another person then you can be punished by the powers of the ancestral sprit. They believe in unity and love for mankind in general.
Kulamba ku Bwalo is the traditional ceremony of the Lenje speaking people of the Central province of Zambia, which is held in October every year, at a place called Likonde Lya Ba Nkanga shrine. This is the burial place of the mother for the five Lenje chiefs, Chipepo, Mukubwe, Liteta, Chitanda and Mungule.
The ceremony is held to give homage to Senior Chief Mukuni Ng’ombe and other Lenje Chiefs for their good leadership. It is also a time of thanks giving to God for the good harvest and to help the Chiefs to evaluate the food security in the Lenjeland.
The Lenje food is displayed at this ceremony following the singing and dancing, and this is done both day and night. Among the outstanding dance is the Mooba dance which is associated with Spiritism. In general the Kulamba ceremony is the unifying moment among the Lenje speaking people of Central province of Zambia.
During the ceremony the cultural village has 8 huts built to accommodate the Lenje chiefs, for Mukuni Ng’ombe or Chipepo, for Chief Liteta, for Chief Chamuka, for Chief Chitanda, for Chief Mungule, for Chief Mukubwe and for Chief Ngabwe. The last hut is built for Senior Chief Mukuni of the Toka-leya of Kazungula District in Southern province; he is part of the Bene Mukuni.
The last 2 are built for the visiting Chiefs, all together 11 huts are built.
At this ceremony Senior Chief Mukuni Ng’ombe represents the Lenje speaking people of central province of Zambia. On Behalf of the Lenje people he enters his hut He makes request to God for the rains, he requests for abundant water supply, he requests for the good harvest.
Thereafter, he invites other chiefs to give their homage to Nkanga, to Liteta, to Chamuka, to Chitanda, to Mungule,to Mukubwe and to Ngabwe, and they all enter into their makeshift huts.
The provincial capital for the Lenje speaking people of Zambia before was called Broken Hill and later Kabwe, the significance of this town is the finding of the Broken Hill man which is the first historically significant human fossil found in Africa.
This was discovered in 1921 by the workers working in the mines. Mr. Broken Hill Man was initially named Homo Rhodesiensis, and he was besides another ancient species called Homo Heidelbergensis.
In Broken Hill of the North Western Rhodesia lead and Zinc was discovered in the year 1902 and the larger scale mining operations started in the 1905 making Broken Hill first mining town in Zambia.
This was before the largest copper mining started in Western province now Copper belt (because the province was renamed copper belt in 1969 by Dr. Kenneth Kaunda and before it was western province).
In closing what do the Lenje people now want? Well the Lenjes now need good education, and more of the word of God which is the gospel about God, also lastly let the Lenje Language be heard in Kabwe town.
In the pics: Chief Liteta of the Lenje people and lenjes dancing the mooba dance.
SOURCE: Zambian history in pictures
