Nyamwezi people

Nyamwezi

Nyamwezi people in German East Africa, 1914
Total population
4 million
Regions with significant populations
Tanzania
Languages
Nyamwezi
Religion
Christianity, Islam, African Traditional Religion
Related ethnic groups
Sukuma people

The Nyamwezi, or Wanyamwezi, are one of the Bantu groups of East Africa. They are the second-largest ethnic group in Tanzania.^{[citation needed]} The Nyamwezi people's ancestral homeland is in parts of Tabora Region, Singida Region, Shinyanga Region and Katavi Region. The term Nyamwezi is of Swahili origin, and translates as "people of the moon" or "people of the west", the latter being more meaningful to the context.

Historically, there have been five ethnic groups, all of which referring to themselves as Wanyamwezi to outsiders: Kimbu, Konongo, Nyamwezi, Sukuma, and Sumbwa, who were never united. All groups normally merged have broadly similar cultures, but it is an oversimplification to view them as a single group.^[1] The Nyamwezi have close ties with the Sukuma and are believed to have been one ethnic group up until the Nyamwezi started their forrays to the Coast for long distance trade. The Sukuma would refer to the Nyamwezi as the Dakama, meaning 'people of the south', and the Dakama would refer to the Sukuma as 'people of the north'. Their homeland is called Unyamwezi, and they speak the language Kinyamwezi, but many also speak Swahili or English.

Ancient Indian texts refer to the Nyamwezi, or 'the men of the moon', a term still in use to identify the Nyamwezi people in Tanzania.^[2]

It was only in the 19th century that the name could be found in European literature; the term might include almost anyone from the western plateau. Travel taught them that others called them Nyamwezi, and almost all men accepted the name given to them by the coastal people indicating that the Nyamwezi came from the west. A century later, their land is still called "Greater Unyamwezi", about 35,000 square miles (91,000 km²) of rolling land at an elevation of about 4,000 feet (1,200 m).