• Source: Gisu people

The Gisu people, or Bamasaba people of Elgon, are a Bantu tribe and Bantu-speaking ethnic group of the Masaba people in eastern Uganda, closely related to the Bukusu people of Kenya. Bamasaba live mainly in the Mbale District of Uganda on the slopes of Mount Elgon. The Bagisu are estimated to be about 1,646,904 people making up 4.9% of the total population according to the 2014 National Census of Uganda.




Religion


The majority of the Bagisu people are Christians mainly Anglican (Church of Uganda) estimated at 45.7% while a significant percentage are Roman Catholic estimated at 29.1%. Around 14% of the Bagisu people follow Islam according to the 2002 Census of Uganda and 5.3% are Pentecostal.




Ancestor



The Masaba, Bukusu and Luhya people believed that their ancestors were Mundu and Sera. The people of Ethiopia and the Ethiopian Highlands have no name for Kundu, except that it is a mountain peak in Oromiya.
The Bamasaba ancestor, Masaba migrated from the Ethiopian Mountains traveling via Lake Turkana to Sironko and settled around Bududa where he fell in love with a Maasai girl who was known as Nabarwa. The family of Nabarwa demanded that in order for Masaba to marry their daughter he had to undergo their rite of circumcision. He agreed to do so.




Culture



Circumcision in Africa is an old culture as practiced by the Bamasaaba in Eastern Uganda.The culture of circumcision was adopted by the Bamasaba from their in-laws the Maasai people. The men among the Bagisu tribe undergo initiation ceremonies known as Imbalu. The initiation ceremonies among the Bamasaaba are held every two years during August.
Banana is the staple food for the Gisu people. Its commonly referred to as "Matoke"
The Bamasaaba ancestors lived on bamboo shoots also known as Malewa in the Lumasaba language. These bamboo shoots are collected from bamboo trees on top of Mt. Elgon.




Origin of the name Bagisu


Maswahaba's first son with Nabarwa was Mwambu who was nicknamed Nkisu by his Maasai uncles who had stolen his father's cows from him. Masawahaba failed to pronounce the nickname of Nkisu meaning a bull in Maasai language, given to his son his uncle and he pronounced it as Mugisu.
The name Bagisu originated from the nickname Nkisu given to Mwambu by Maswababa's Maasai Brother-in-law.
The Bamasaba speak a dialect of the Lumasaba language called Lumasaba, which is fully understandable by other dialects, and is also understood by the Bukusu. The Bamasaba share a lot of things with the Bukusu from Kenya. They share culture and according to the Bukusu the Bamasaba are their real brothers its only the border that divides them.




Economy


The Bagisu communities are agriculturalists. Those who stay as far as 5000 ft above sea-level grow Arabica coffee, the biggest portion of it being sold to Bugisu Co-operative Union.They also grow other crops like cotton and tobacco, maize, beans, millet, sorghum, yams and cassava.




See also


Buganda People
Ugandan Folklore
Samia Tribe




References






= Notes

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= Bibliography

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Mwakikagile, Godfrey (2009). Ethnicity and National Identity in Uganda: The Land and Its People. New Africa Press. ISBN 9789987930876.




Further reading


Imbalu: Initiation Ritual Among the Bamasaba of Uganda, 2000
Mayegu, Andrea Kauka, (1952). The Bamasaba Tribal History
Transafrican Journal of History, 1982, Volumes 11-13 - Page 190
Placid, John & Wotsuna Khamalwa, (2004). Identity, power, and culture: Imbalu: Initiation ritual among the ...
Deuxième Colloque International Folklore en Afrique D'aujourd'hui, 1984
Godfrey Mwakikagile, (1969), Safari, Volume 1, Page 28
Kenya Historical Review, 1974, Volume 2, Page 44
Were, Gideon S., (1967). A history of the Abaluyia of western Kenya: c. 1500-1930, Page 43
Dipio, Dominica & Stuart Sillars, (2014). Performing Wisdom: Proverbial Lore in Modern Ugandan Society
Nwaogwugwu, Cletus Chukwuemeka, (2011). Ancestor Christology: a Christian Evaluation of the Ancestral Cult in the Traditional Religion of the Sub-Saharan Africa
Heald, Suzette, (1989). Controlling Anger: The Sociology of Gisu Violence, Page x
Paul Nakitare. I Shall Walk Alone, Page 107
Solomon, Thomas, (2015). African Musics in Context: Institutions, Culture, Identity, Page 314
Kyeyune, Pastor Stephen, (2012). Shaping The Society Christianity And Culture: Special Reference to ...
Nannyonga-Tamusuza, Sylvia A. & Thomas Solomon, (2012). Ethnomusicology in East Africa: Perspectives from Uganda and Beyond
Kyewalyanga, Francis-Xavier Sserufusa, (1976). Traditional Religion, Custom, and Christianity in Uganda: As ...
Else, David, (1998). Trekking in East Africa, Page 270
Abuso, Paul Asaka, (1980). A Traditional History of the Abakuria: C.A.D. 1400-1914, Page 27
e Uganda Journal, 1980, Page 46
Tripp, Aili Mari. Women and Politics in Uganda, Page 127
Fleisch, Axel& Rhiannon Stephens, (2016). Doing Conceptual History in Africa, Page 133
Library of Congress Subject Headings, 2012, Page B-41
May, Elizabeth, (1983). Musics of Many Cultures: An Introduction, Page 189
Bender, John B. & David E. Wellbery, (1991). Chronotypes: The Construction of Time, Page 251
Cohen, David William, (1994). The Combing of History, Page 218
Souchon, Duncan & Michael Walton, (2007). Mountains of Africa, Page 125
Small, Christopher, (2011). Musicking: The Meanings of Performing and Listening
The Sphere: An Illustrated Newspaper for the Home, 1906

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• Gisu people
• Mbale
• Masaba language
• Bukedi District
• Bugisu sub-region
• Circumcision in Africa
• Bukusu dialect
• Okeme
• Banyole
• Culture of Uganda