bemba kingdom essay pdf

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A history of the Bemba; political growth and change in north-eastern Zambia before 1900

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Bemba Online Project

A digital bemba language archive.

Bemba, A Linguistic Profile

This page is an update d version of: Spitulnik, Debra and Mubanga E. Kashoki. 2001. “Bemba.” In Facts about the World’s Languages: An Encyclopedia of the World’s Major Languages, Past and Present . J. Garry and C. Rubino, eds. Pp. 81-85. New York and Dublin: H. W. Wilson. Click here for the original 2001 article. How to cite this page .

Debra Spitulnik Vidali Department of Anthropology, Emory University

Mubanga E. Kashoki Institute of Economic and Social Research, University of Zambia

Language Name: Bemba. Autonym: iciBemba. Alternate spellings: ciBemba, ChiBemba, ichiBemba.

Location: Principally spoken in Zambia, in the Northern, Copperbelt, and Luapula Provinces; also spoken in southern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and southern Tanzania.

Family: Bemba is a Central Bantu language. The Bantu language family is a branch of the Benue-Congo family, which is a branch of the Niger-Congo family, which is a branch of Niger-Kordofanian.

Related Languages: Most closely related to the Bantu languages Kaonde (in Zambia and DRC), Luba (in DRC), Nsenga and Tonga (in Zambia), and Nyanja/Chewa (in Zambia and Malawi).

Dialects: Principal dialects are: Aushi, Bemba, Bisa, Chishinga, Kunda, Lala, Lamba, Luunda, Ng’umbo, Swaka, Tabwa, and Unga.

Each of these dialects is distinguished by its association with a distinct ethnic group, culture, and territory of the same name. Each dialect exhibits minor differences of pronunciation and phonology, and very minor differences in morphology and vocabulary. Because Bemba is such a widely used lingua franca , varieties of the language exist in urban areas. Urban varieties exhibit large lexical input from English and have several names, including: chiKopabeeluti [chiCopperbelt], chiTauni [chiTown], and Town Bemba ( Spitulnik 1998 ).

Number of Speakers: 5 – 6 million. An estimated 3.7 million people speak Bemba and related dialects as a first language; other speakers speak Bemba as a second language.

Origin and History

The Bemba people in Zambia originated from the Kola region in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC, formerly Zaire), and are an offshoot of the ancient Luba empire. Oral historical accounts differ slightly, but there is general agreement that the Luba immigrants arrived in the high plateau area of north-eastern Zambia (extending from Lake Bangweulu to the Malawi border) sometime during the mid 17th century. This area was already settled by agriculturalists, but by the end of the 18th century the Bemba people had established a powerful kingdom under the central authority of Chitimukulu, the paramount chief. Bemba rule continued to expand widely throughout north-eastern Zambia up until the end of the 19th century, when the first European missionaries and entrepreneurs began to vie for power in the area. In 1898-89, the British South Africa Company’s army wrested control of the Bemba territory, and in 1924 the British colony of Northern Rhodesia was established across the entire region of what is now present-day Zambia. Zambia gained independence from British domination in 1964.

In contemporary Zambia, the word “Bemba” actually has several meanings. It may designate people of Bemba origin, regardless of where they live, e.g. whether they live in urban areas or in the original rural Bemba area. Alternatively, it may encompass a much larger population which includes some eighteen different ethnic groups, who together with the Bemba form a closely related ethnolinguistic cluster of matrilineal-matrifocal agriculturalists known as the Bemba-speaking peoples of Zambia (see Dialects).

Because of the political importance of the Bemba kingdom and the extensive reach of the Bemba language, Bemba was targeted as a major language for the production of religious and educational materials in the early 1900s. The White Fathers missionaries published the earliest written texts on and in Bemba, including the first Bemba grammar in 1907 and the first Bemba translation of the New Testament in 1923. Bemba was also selected by the colonial administration as one of the four main indigenous languages (along with Lozi, Nyanja, and Tonga) to be used in education and mass media. With the extensive migration of Bemba-speaking peoples to the mining areas of the Copperbelt from late 1920s onward, the language’s range expanded further. By the late 1940s, Bemba — and specifically an urban variety known as Town Bemba — had become well-established as the lingua franca of the Copperbelt region (Spitulnik 1998a , 1998b ). Extensive urban-urban migration, interethnic marriage, and the high degree of multilingualism in the country have yielded a situation where over half of the national population currently speaks Bemba. While Nyanja is still the primary lingua franca of the capital city of Lusaka, Bemba is spoken widely there as well.

Orthography

Until the publication of Zambian Languages: Orthography Approved by the Ministry of Education (1977), itself the culmination of efforts over a five-year period, previous attempts at orthographic reform had remained sporadic, uncoordinated, and not officially backed. Among the orthographic rules now officially approved for Bemba, the most notable include: (a) the use of Roman characters (as shown in the charts below); (b) the symbolization of long vowels with doubled vowel graphemes; (c) the non-symbolization of tone, despite its semantic functions; and (d) the adoption of a conjunctive mode of spelling nouns, verbs, adjectives and other grammatical forms which represents them with their bound affixes (e.g. ífyakulya ‘foodstuffs’, comprised of ifi-a-ku-lya ‘things-of-to-eat’).

With respect to consonants, the alveopalatal voiceless affricate [tS] is written as c , except in the case of proper nouns where it is represented as ch . The voiced bilabial fricative [ß] is represented as b , and the velar nasal [ng’] as ng’ , except before [k] and [g] when n is used, as in íng’andá ‘house’, nkaya ‘I shall go (near future)’ and íngála ‘finger nails’. [S] is represented orthographically as s or sh , and [ñ] is represented as ny .

Basic Phonology

There is a contrastive semantic distinction between short and long vowels (the doubling of vowels represents vowel length):

Long vowels may also result from the fusion of two vowels across morpheme boundaries. For example, umwééní ‘stranger, guest’ is derived from umu – + – eni (class 1 singular + stem), and its plural abééní ‘strangers, guests’ from aba – + – eni (class 2 plural prefix + stem).

Outcomes of Vowel Fusion

The sounds [b], [d], and [S] (represented above in parentheses) are allophones of the phonemes /p/, /l/, and /s/ respectively. The consonant [b] occurs only when preceded by the homorganic nasal [m] as in mbwééle ‘should I return?’ (derived from N – (1st pers. sg.), – bwel – (verb root), – e (Subjunctive); where N – becomes m – in homorganic harmony with the following b ). The consonant [d] occurs only when preceded by the homorganic nasal [n], as in ndééyá ‘I shall go’ (derived from N – (1st pers. sg.), – lee – (tense/aspect), – ya (verb root)). The alveopalatal [S] occurs before [i]. In addition, the consonants [dZ] and [g] never occur word initially or between vowels; they are always preceded by a homorganic nasal in nasal clusters represented orthographically as nj and ng (e.g. njebá ‘tell me’ and ngupá ‘marry me’).

Bemba is a tone language, with two basic tones, high (H) and low (L). H is marked with an acute accent while L is unmarked. As with most other Bantu languages, tone (a kind of musical pitch at the syllabic level) can be phonemic and is an important functional marker in Bemba, signaling semantic distinctions between words.

Tonal contrasts also exist at the grammatical level, e.g. in signaling different tenses:

In actual speech, tonal patterns are more complex than these examples suggest as they interact with other morpho-syntactic, morpho-phonological, and prosodic processes. For example consider these two sentences:

In the first sentence, the tense/aspect marker – lee – carries a high tone, and in the second sentence it has a falling tone (H followed by L). Moreover, a high tone can become a low tone at the end of a declarative sentence.

Syllable Structure

As with many other Bantu languages, syllables in Bemba are characteristically open and are of four main types: V, CV, NCV, and NCGV (where V = vowel (long or short), C = consonant, N = nasal, G = glide (w or y)). These types are illustrated by isá ( i-sa ) ‘come!’, somá ( so-ma ) ‘read!’, yambá ( ya-mba ) ‘begin!’ and ímpwa ( i-mpwa ) ‘eggplants’.

Basic Morphology

Bemba, like most Bantu languages, has a very elaborate noun class system which involves pluralization patterns, agreement marking, and patterns of pronominal reference. There are 20 different classes in Bemba: 15 basic classes, 2 subclasses, and 3 locative classes. Each noun class is indicated by a class prefix (typically VCV-, VC-, or V-) and the co-occurring agreement markers on adjectives, numerals and verbs.

The noun consists of a class prefix and a stem: umú-ntú ‘person’ (Class 1), abá-ntú ‘people’ (Class 2). Noun classes have some semantic content, and there are regular patterns of singular/plural pairing and non-count classes. Class 1/2 nouns denote human beings; Class 3/4 nouns tend to be animate, agentive, or plant-like ( úmu-tí ‘tree’, ími-tí ‘trees’); and Class 9/10 nouns represent wild animals ( ín-kalamo ‘lion’, ín-kalamo ‘lions’). Things that occur in pairs or multiples are denoted by Class 5/6 nouns ( i-lúbá ‘flower’, amá-lúbá ‘flowers’); nouns for long objects are in Class 11/10 ( úlu-séngó ‘horn’, ín-sengo ‘horns’); and diminutives are in Class 12/13 ( aká-ntú ‘small thing’, utú-ntú ‘small things’). Class 7/8 is the general class for inanimate nouns ( icí-ntú ‘thing’, ifí-ntú ‘things’) and also augmentatives; abstract nouns occur in Class 14 ( ubú-ntú ‘humanity’); and verbal infinitives occur in Class 15 ( úku-lyá ‘eating, to eat’).

Some class prefixes have a derivational semantic function; they either replace the basic class prefix or occur as a secondary prefix on the noun form. The locative class prefixes function in an analogous manner. Here are some examples:

úmu-tí ‘tree’ (Class 3) áka-tí ‘medicine’ (Class 12) aká-mu-tí ‘a bit of medicine’; ‘little tree’ (Class 12) icí-mu-ti ‘stick’, ‘pole’, ‘big tree’ (Class 7) pá-ci-mu-tí ‘on the pole’, ‘on the big tree’ (Class 16)

íng’-ng’andá ‘house’ (Class 9) kú-ng’andá ‘to/from the house’, ‘at home’ (Class 17) mú-ng’andá ‘in the house’ (Class 18)

The Bemba verb has the following basic structure:

Subject Marker + Tense/Aspect/Mood Marker + Object Marker + Verb Root + Extension + Final Vowel + Suffixes

The only obligatory morphemes are the subject marker (except in imperatives), the root, and the final vowel. The final vowel (indicated as FV) marks tense and/or mood, and sometimes co-varies with the preceding tense marker. Some past tense forms are represented by – ile or a modified root instead of a single FV. Bemba distinguishes numerous different tenses on the verb form, including: Today Past, Recent Past, Remote Past, Present, Today Future, Later Future.

Basic Syntax

Bemba is an SVO language. The situation is more complex, however, because verb forms themselves must be marked for the subject and may be marked for the object. There is no case marking on nouns. Objects can be pre-posed for emphasis, in which case an object marker (which would be absent in an SVO sentence) co-occurs on the verb form.

Verbal extensions have syntactic functions (e.g. indicating a relation to an indirect object) and derivational semantic functions, as in these illustrations of the applicative, intensive, and passive extensions:

Contact with Other Languages

In the early 1800s, Portuguese and Arab traders were quite active in Bemba-speaking regions, and as a result, present day Bemba has a number of loan words from these languages. Over the past two centuries, many Swahili words have entered into Bemba through direct contact with Swahili-speaking peoples and also through Arab and missionary contact. In addition, words originally deriving from Portuguese and Arabic have entered into Bemba via loans from Swahili. Contact with English-speaking people began to intensify in the late 1880s, and since that time a very large number of English-derived words have entered Bemba. Christian evangelization, and specifically Bemba Bible translations, have also resulted in the incorporation of some Latin words into Bemba. In addition, Bemba has incorporated numerous loan words from Afrikaans and Zulu, via mine workers’ pidgins known variously as Fanagalo, Kabanga, Fanakalo, Silunguboi, Isilolo, and Chilapalapa.

Urban varieties of Bemba reflect the very dynamic language situation in Zambia, where multilingualism is high and where Bemba exists side-by-side with several other languages, most prominently English and Nyanja. Town Bemba exhibits an extremely high number of linguistic innovations and adoptions from varieties of British English and American English, which enter into the Zambian arena primarily through international business and imported media such as television programs and recorded music.

From Swahili : umú-shikáále/abá-shikáále ‘soldier/soldiers’ (< askari or askikari < Arabic) in-sá ‘clock; hour’ (< saa < Arabic)

From Portuguese : in-sápátó ‘shoe/shoes’ (< sapato) i-péélá/amá-péélá ‘guava/guavas’ (< peera )

From English: áka-etulo/útu-etulo ‘kettle/kettles’ í-lámpi/amá-lámpi ‘lamp/lamps’ ínsóókoshi ‘socks’ shuga ‘sugar’ amá-kálashi ‘glasses’

From Afrikaans (via miners’ pidgin): pasóópo ‘beware!’ (< pas op ) bulúlu (pl. ba-bulúlu ) ‘relative, relation’ (< broer ) fúseeke ‘go away!’ (< voetsak )

From Latin : im-mínsá ‘liturgical mass/masses’ katoolika/bakatoolika ‘Catholic/Catholics’

English loans in Town Bemba exist alongside standard Bemba equivalents (indicated in parentheses): kaa-géélo ‘girl’ ( úmu-káshána ) kaa-bébi ‘baby’ ( úmu-aná ) áma-guys ‘guys’ ( ába-lúméndo ) cééya ‘chair’ ( íci-púná )

Common Words

Example Sentences

Mutálé a-0-fwáy-a ukú-y-á kú-ng’andá kú-á Chanda . Mutale 3sg-PRES-want-FV INF-go-FV to(17)-house 17-POSS Chanda. ‘Mutale desires/longs to go to Chanda’s house.’
Bá-áá-ilé kwíi uyú mulungu u-aa-pít-íle? 3pl-PAST rc -go[mod. stem, PAST rc ] where DEM(3) week(3) 3-PAST rc -pass-PAST rc ‘Where did they go last week?’ [Lit. ‘the week that just passed’]
Naa-tú-lee-y-a nóombá ! PRES-1pl-PROG-go-FV now ‘Let’s go now!’

Efforts to Preserve, Protect, and Promote the Language

Bemba is one of the seven official Zambian languages (along with Kaonde, Lozi, Lunda, Luvale, Nyanja, and Tonga). These are the only Zambian languages sanctioned for use in education, mass media, and government documents. English is the official national language, and is the primary language of government, business administration, and higher education. In the Northern, Luapula, and Copperbelt Provinces, Bemba is the primary medium of instruction in Grades 1 – 3, and is taught as a subject in Grades 4 – 12. The Zambian Ministry of Education is very active in Bemba language curriculum development. Other efforts related to preserving and promoting the language include the regular publishing of religious texts; the periodic publishing of novels, poetry, and cultural commentary; and the occasional audio recording of traditional songs. There is no official Bemba language organization, but the dominance of a specific dialect (central Bemba) in educational texts, print media, and radio newscasting serves to create a national standard.

As one of Zambia’s major lingua francas (in addition to English and Nyanja), Bemba is an extremely widely spoken language across different regions of the country and across different ethnic groups. The rate of multilingualism is quite high in Zambia. Bemba is in no danger of losing speakers, but recent history has seen some changes (e.g. English-derived vocabulary) in the language due to its widespread use as an urban lingua franca . Language purists express concern over this “corruption” of Bemba and the rise of the high prestige urban variety. Others point to the bivalent status of urban and rural varieties — both are positively and negatively valued, depending on context — and argue that urban and rural varieties will continue to co-exist.

Select Bibliography

Givón, Talmy. 1969. Studies in ChiBemba and Bantu Grammar. Studies in African Linguistics, Supplement 3.

Hoch, E. 1983 [1960]. Bemba Pocket Dictionary: Bemba-English and English-Bemba. Lusaka: National Educational Company of Zambia.

Hyman, Larry M. 1995. Minimality and the Prosodic Morphology of Cibemba Imbrication. Journal of African Languages and Linguistics 16(1):3-39.

Kashoki, Mubanga E. 1968. A Phonemic Analysis of Bemba. Zambian Papers, No. 3. Institute for Social Research, University of Zambia. Manchester: Manchester University Press.

Kashoki, Mubanga E. 1972. Town Bemba: A Sketch of Its Main Characteristics. African Social Research 13:161-86.

Kashoki, Mubanga E. 1978. The Language Situation in Zambia. In Language in Zambia, ed. Sirarpi Ohannessian and Mubanga E. Kashoki, 9-46. London: International African Institute.

Kashoki, Mubanga E. 1990. Sources and Patterns of Word Adoption in Bemba. In Language Reform: History and Future, Volume V, ed. Istvan Fodor and Claude Hagege, 31-57. Hamburg: Helmut Buske.

Kasonde, Makasa. 1985. Contribution á la Description du ChiBemba (Bantu M.42): Aperçu sur le Système verbal. Paris: Université de la Sorbonne nouvelle.

Mann, Michael. 1977. An Outline of Bemba Grammar. In Language in Zambia: Grammatical Sketches, Volume I. Lusaka: University of Zambia, Institute for African Studies.

Mann, Michael, ed. 1995. A Vocabularly of Icibemba (compiled by Malcolm Guthrie). African Languages and Cultures, Supplement 2. London: School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

Ministry of Education (Republic of Zambia). 1977. Zambian Languages: Orthography Approved by the Ministry of Education. Lusaka: NECZAM.

Oger, Louis. 1982. Learn Bemba the Easy Way. Ilondola, Chinsali, Zambia: Language Centre.

Sharman, John C. 1956. The Tabulation of Tenses in a Bantu Language (Bemba: Northern Rhodesia). Africa 26:29-46.

Spitulnik, Debra. 1987. Semantic Superstructuring and Infrastructuring: Nominal Class Struggle in ChiBemba. Studies in African Grammatical Systems, Monograph No. 4. Bloomington: Indiana University Linguistics Club.

Spitulnik, Debra. 1988. Levels of Semantic Structuring in Bantu Noun Classification. In Current Approaches to African Linguistics, Volume 5, ed. Paul Newman and Robert D. Botne, 207-20. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Foris.

Spitulnik, Debra. 1998. The Language of the City: Town Bemba as Urban Hybridity. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology 8(2). pdf.

Van Sambeek, J. 1955. A Bemba Grammar. London: Longmans, Green and Company.

White Fathers. 1991. White Fathers’ Bemba-English Dictionary. Ndola: Mission Press by the Society of the Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers). Reprint of 1954 edition by Longmans, Green and Company (London).

Additional references and resources for the Bemba language.

Click here for the original 2001 article.

How to cite this page: Vidali, Debra Spitulnik and Mubanga E. Kashoki. 2014. “Bemba, A Linguistic Profile.” Bemba Online Project. Published June 30, 2014: https://scholarblogs.emory.edu/bemba/?p=68

Visit the Bemba Online Project on Facebook

An Introduction to Zambia’s Bemba Tribe

Freelance Writer

The nation of Zambia has 73 tribes with the Bemba being the largest, making up approximately 36 per cent of the population. They have a unique history and a fascinating culture. This is an introduction to Zambia’s Bemba tribe.

The Bemba tribe migrated into Zambia from the Luba Kingdom (present day Democratic Republic of Congo) during the Bantu Migration, which took place between the 15th and 17th centuries. Legend has it that the chief of the Luba tribe, Mukulumpe, married a woman named Mumbi Lyulu Mukasa who was of the crocodile clan (known as the Ng’andu clan). She had sons called Chiti, Nkole and Katongo who fled the Luba kingdom after a dispute. They took with them followers and their sister Chilufya.

In order to expand their kingdom, the Bemba raided smaller tribes, taking their land, resources and women. Nkole and Chiti eventually died and were buried at a place called Mwalule, which is now a royal burial ground where all Bemba chiefs (addressed as Chitimukulu) are buried. Chilufya’s son was crowned the new chief, starting a matrilineal form of royal succession that continues today. The Bemba eventually settled in present-day Northern Province after they spotted a dead crocodile that they took to represent a good omen. They named the capital Ngwena. Present-day Bemba society consists of 40 clans with different identifiers.

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Agriculture

Due to degraded soil in their homeland, the Bemba have historically practiced a farming system called ‘chitemene’. It is a slash and burn system where trees are cut down and burnt and the ashes are then used to reduce the acidity of the soil. Once the land has been overworked (after three or four years), the Bemba tribe will move to another patch of land. Due to increased population, which leads to pressure on the land, the chitemene system is slowly being practiced less often.

Traditional ceremony

The Bemba recreate their migration to Zambia in the annual Ukusefya Pa Ngwena traditional festival that takes place in Mungwi District. During the ceremony, the Chitimukulu (Chief) is carried on a throne made of a paper mache crocodile. There is drumming and dancing, and traditional food and drink is served. The Ukusefya Pa Ngwena takes place in August. The Bemba of Luwingu district in Northern Province celebrate the Mukula Pembe traditional ceremony, which also takes place in August.

Like many other Zambian tribes, initiation ceremonies were held when a males and females reached puberty. The female initiation ceremony is called ‘Chisungu’. Due to Westernisation, particularly the spread of Christianity, many traditional practices do not take place anymore, or only take place in rural areas. Some initiation ceremonies only take place before a man and woman are married. For instance, women prepare for marriage by hiring a ‘ chimbusa ‘, who are traditional counsellors that offer advice on sex, chores etc. Men also have an equivalent called a ‘Shibukombe’. An official ‘coming out’ ceremony is held for a woman before marriage called a ‘Kitchen Party’ where the bride-to-be (‘ nabwinga ’) is showered with gifts to start a new life.

When a man is interested in marrying a woman, he must take plates called ‘ tumbale ‘ filled with money , or ‘ insalamu ‘, to her family home. This is similar to the process of asking for a woman’s hand in marriage in Western culture. When the offer of marriage is set, the plates are taken back to the man and are filled with food. This process is called ‘Chisekele Nsalamu’. A bride price, or ‘ mpango ’, is then agreed upon.

A pre-wedding buffet called ‘Icilanga Mulilo’ is held for the groom. This literally translates to ‘show the fire’, referring to the fact that meals were cooked on a traditional hearth. The purpose of the event is to show the groom’s family that his bride is adept at cooking a wide variety of meals. It also signifies that the groom is free to eat in the home of his in-laws. After a Bemba couple has been happily married for several years, a woman’s family is meant to show her appreciation to her husband by organising a ‘Matebeto’, which is similar to the pre-wedding buffet but with larger quantities of food. The last of the pre-wedding food-related traditions is the ‘Ukonkola’ meaning ‘granting authority’. It is a meal prepared by the parents of the bride for the groom, and gives him the authority to make decisions on behalf of the elders of the bride’s family.

Identity and Naming

Historically, members of the Bemba tribe could be identified by scars on their faces called ‘ mpoloto ’. A sharp blade is used to mark the temples of a baby. This was meant to protect the child from evil spirits.

Bemba names are generally unisex with common names including Musonda, Mulenga, Bwalya etc.

The Bemba have many myths, mostly associated with water bodies. For instance, the residents near the Chishimba Falls believe that there is a spirit called Mutumuna comprised of a brother and sister who are believed to have fallen from the sky.

The Bemba believe that the Chishimba Falls are sacred due to the presence of a spirit called ‘Mutumena’

Like many other Zambian tribes, the Bemba use proverbs and stories to impart lessons to children. Mulenga Kapwepwe, an expert on Bemba culture, compiled a book on Bemba proverbs titled Insoselo na Mapinda: Ancient Bemba Wisdom For Modern Living . She also delivered a TEDx Talk on African proverbs as life hacks.

Food and Drink

Like all other tribes in Zambia, the Bemba eat the staple national dish of ‘ nshima ’, which is maize meal accompanied by vegetables and a protein. The dish is accompanied by a beverage made from fermented roots and maize meal called ‘ munkoyo . This is served in place of juice or water to guests. The Bemba also brew beer called ‘ katubi ’, or ‘ Chipumu ’.

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State formation in Pre-Colonial Zambia

if there were any major factors in state formation in Zambia, it was ecology and trade discuss.

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Joseph M. Mwansa 3

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Bemba (M42) (iciBemba) is the most widely spoken Bantu language in Zambia. Some 50 per cent of the population use it as either a first or second language. It is used in local courts, churches and as a medium of instruction in the first four grades of primary school in regions where it is the official regional language. The language is also used in both the official and private media, and because of the huge number of speakers, it is the most popular language in the entertainment industry. Native speakers of this language played a pivotal role in the independence struggle from British colonial rule. In post-independent Zambia, three of the six presidents who have ruled Zambia have come from the Bemba language group.

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Bibliography of Some Works in Bemba

Folk tales and fables.

Mushindo, P. M. B. (1957). Imilumbe ne Nshimi ‘Fables and tales’. Lusaka: Oxford University Press.

Mushindo, P. (1958). Amapinda mu lyashi ‘Proverbs in conversations’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Sefuke, E. (1953/2009). Kalulu na Sunkuutu wa Milimo ‘Kalulu and Sunkutu, the worker’. Lusaka: Zambia Educational Publishing House.

Sefuke, E. (1955/1967) . Umukwa pa Mukonso ‘A bark cloth on the leg.’ Lusaka: Neczam.

General Works

Chibesakunda, K. (1971). Umulabasa ‘Broadcasting.’ Lusaka: Neczam.

Chilamo, S. L. (1972). Imisango isuma ku Babemba ‘Good behaviour among the Bemba.’ Lusaka: Neczam.

Kapwepwe, S. (1962). Utumyonga ndimi ‘Tongue twisters’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau Lusaka.

Kapwepwe, S. (1994). Icuupo no Buyantanshi ‘Marriage and development.’ Lusaka: Zambia Educational Publishing House (About marriage, morality and development).

Kashoki, M. E. (2009). Icibemba Ifyo Cifwile Ukulemba ‘How Bemba should be written.’ Lusaka: University of Zambia Press.

Kasonde, E. (1953/2003). Imilimo ya Bena-Kale ‘Old crafts’. Lusaka: Zambia Educational Publishing House.

Kazembe, M. (1978). Ifikolwe Fyandi Na Bantu bandi ‘My ancestors and my people.’ Lusaka: Neczam (A history of the Luunda Kingdom of Kazembe).

Lumbwe, C. M. (2011). Ukuli Nsoke Takufwa Muntu ‘Where there is a warning, nobody dies.’ Lusaka: Maiden Publishers (A book about the prevention and treatment of diseases especially where there is no doctor).

Makanga, M. (1999). Ubupalu bwe Sabi ‘Catching fish.’ Ndola: Mission Press.

Mpashi, S. (1950). Ubusuma bubili ‘Two types of beauty’ (1st ed.). Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Mpashi, S. (1952). Ukupoke Cinsenda ku nkoko ‘To extract a worm from a chicken (one has to be gentle)’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau Lusaka/Neczam.

Mpashi, S. (1955/1976). Icibemba na mano ya ciko ‘Bemba wisdom’. Lusaka: Oxford University Press.

Mpashi, S. (1956/1968). Abapatili bafika ku Lubemba ‘The arrival of Catholic Priests in Bemba land.’ Lusaka. NECZAM (Zambia Publishing House).

Mpashi, S. (1958). Bakutemwe ’ ‘Make yourself lovable’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Mpashi, S. (1962). Ifyo balemba amabuku ‘How books are written’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau Lusaka.

Mpashi, S. (1973). Tumone Icibemba ‘Let’s study Bemba’. Lusaka: Longmans.

Mukonge, L. C. (1973). Imfwa Shonse ‘All types of deaths.’ Lusaka: Neczam (The interpretations of different types of deaths in Bemba culture written by a Medical doctor).

Mulenga, S. S. (1982). Ubulungu tabupita pa kafundo ‘A beat cannot pass over a knot.’ Lusaka: KKF (A book of sayings and proverbs in Bemba).

Munali Bemba Literary Society. (1957). Amashinte ya nsoselo shimo ‘The origins of some sayings’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Mushingeh, A. C. S. (2007). Disease illness and causation in traditional healing in Zambia. Lusaka: Publisher unknown (This is a Bemba-English dictionary of diseases and illness treated by traditional healers).

Ng’andu, K. (1993). Ulubafu Lwandi ‘My limb’. Ndola: Mission Press.

Ngulube S. J. (1957). Nga capusa Mpunga . ‘Perhaps or possibly (about the origin of the expression)’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Tanguy, F. (1966). Imilandu ya Babemba ‘History of the Bemba’. Nairobi: Oxford University Press.

Prose Fiction (Novels, Novellas, Short Stories)

Bwalya, J. M. (1971). Umupushi na Bambi . ‘The beggar and others’. Lusaka: NECZAM.

Bwalya, E. (2002). Ilyashi lya Mutatakuya ilyakwa Kaleya Mateyo ‘An endless story of Kaleya Mateyo (or An episodic tale of Kaleya Mateyo).’ Lusaka: Grand Designs.

Chibamba, A. R. (1962). Uwakalema Takaleka. ‘Bad habits die hard’. Lusaka: Neczam.

Chibesakunda, L. (1970). Teshamo ‘It’s not ill luck’. Lusaka: Neczam.

Chifwaila, M. K. (1960). Ululumbi lwamulanda kukakaata ‘The fame of a poor person depends on being stubborn’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Chilangwa, W. B. (1961). Sheli . Lusaka: NECZAM.

Chilangwa, W. B. (1991). Sheli wa Cibili ‘Sheli part two’. Lusaka: KKF.

Chilundo, M. C. (1989a). Imbila ya Bulanda. ‘Sad news’. Lusaka: Kenneth Kaunda Foundation.

Chilundo, M. C. (1989b). Ubukwebo bwa Nkaki ‘Shady business’. Lusaka: Kenneth Kaunda Foundation.

Chipungu, I. H. (1956). Uluse lwaliile Nkwale ‘Mercy killed a francolin or mercy brought misfortune’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Chishimba, U. C. (1963). Bamusha Ulweko ‘To leave one salivating’. Lusaka: Publication Bureau Lusaka.

Chota, C. L. (1968). Umutemwikwa ‘Beloved’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau Lusaka.

Kabonga, E. M. (1964). Ako usuulile ‘What you despise’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau Lusaka.

Kambole, R. M. (1974). Nkobekela, te cuupo ‘Betrothal is not marriage’. Lusaka: NECZAM.

Kapindula R. M. (1974). Noko nkalola, nkaya nalyo ‘Ill-luck will follow me’. Lusaka: NECZAM.

Kapwepwe, S. M. (1967). Shalapo, Canicandala ‘Remain well, Canicandala’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Kasonkomona, C. (1983). Ubuseko Mubulanda ‘Joy in sadness’. Lusaka: Neczam.

Kombe, J. (2014). Noushalimo Akabamo ‘All will be involved’. Lusaka: Zambia Educational Publishing House.

Mpashi, S. (1955a). Uwakwesha Bushiku ‘He/she who leads you in the night (you praise him/her when it dawns’. Lusaka: Northern Rhodesia Publications Bureau.

Mpashi, S. (1955b). Uwauma nafyala ‘He who beats his mother- in-law’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Mpashi, S. (1956). Pano calo ‘Here on Earth’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Mpashi, S. (1968). Pio na Vera ‘Pio and Vera’. Lusaka: Oxford University Press (This seems to be a revised version of Uwakwensha ubushiku ).

Mpashi, S. (2008). Cekesoni aingila Ubusoja ‘Jackson joins the army’. Lusaka: Zambia Educational Publishing House.

Mubanga, P. M. (1975). Musalu walipesamba ‘The relish that was at the bottom (gets to the top) or from rags to riches’. Lusaka: NECZAM.

Mulalambuka, J. (1958). Shamitombo . Lusaka: Longman.

Mulenga, G. J. (1971). Mulenga ne misango yakwe ‘Mulenga and his manners’. Lusaka: NECZAM.

Musonda, M. (1957). Shilungafye atandala mu Congo ‘ Shilungafye visits the Congo’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Musonda, A. F. C. (2000). Imamba taifyala Mamba Mbiye ‘A Black Mamba does not beget another Black Mamba.’ Lusaka: Grand Designs.

Musonda, A. F. C. (2002). Imisango ya kwa Shimaini ‘The behaviour of a miner’. Lusaka: Grand designs.

Mutale, J. (1958). Uwaingile mu mushitu ‘He/she who enters a forest’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau Lusaka.

Mwitwa, J. K. (1990). Ubukota Bufuma na Kunuma. Lusaka: Kenneth Kaunda Foundation (Zambia Educational Publishing House).

Nkonde, I. B. (1966). Supuni Aleta imisoka ‘Supuni brings trouble’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Temba, D. (1957). Umupashi wa mwaice ‘The spirit of a child’. Lusaka. Publication Bureau.

Chitula, M. (1989). Amalumbo ne Mishikakulo. ‘Praise poetry’. Lusaka. KKF.

Kambole, R. M. (1980). Ukufunda Umwana kufikapo ‘Teaching a child requires thoroughness’. Lusaka: Zambia Educational Publishing House.

Kambole, R. M. (1989). Amasuku yakutoolelwa Maapompo ‘Masuku fruits that are picked for one are (usually) unripe’. Lusaka: Kenneth Kaunda Foundation.

Kapwepwe, S. M. (1970). Africa kuti twabelela uluse, tekuti tulabe ‘Africa we can forgive but not forget’. Lusaka: NECZAM (poetic history of slavery).

Kapwepwe, S. M. (1991). Africa Twasebana ‘Africa we are disgraced’. Lusaka: KKF.

Musapu, J., & Mpashi, S. (1962). Amalango ‘Poems’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau Lusaka.

The only published. full-length play in Bemba is an adaptation of Wole Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel below:

Chishimba, M. (1977). Kancule na Lona ‘Kanchule and Lona’. Lusaka: Neczam.

Some Works in Translation

Culwick, A. T. (1948/1973). Hanahela . Lusaka: Neczam (originally published by United Society for Christian Lutherworth Press. Translated into Bemba by Tanguy, F.)

Dugarde, L. P. (1964). Florence Nightingale, uwatampile ubuleshi mu fipatala. In Florence Nightingale who started nursing in hospitals . Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Kesta, M. (1964). Ukwibe cabu, ifya kwa Robin Hood ‘Stealing the ford, Robin Hood’. Lusaka: Publications Bureau.

Internet Resources

Umubemba.org . https://www.facebook.com/Umubemba/

Vidali, D. S., & Kashoki, M. E. (2014). Bemba, a linguistic profile . Bemba Online Project. Published June 30, 2014. http://scholarblogs.emory.edu/bemba/?p=68

Wikipedia URL for Bemba. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bemba_language

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Mwansa, J.M. (2018). Bemba. In: Kamusella, T., Ndhlovu, F. (eds) The Social and Political History of Southern Africa's Languages. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-01593-8_3

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Culture & Tourism

BEMBAS IN ZAMBIA – A SHORT TIMELINE HISTORY

The Bemba tribe are mainly found in the Northern, Luapula, Muchinga, Central and Copperbelt provinces. There are other tribes such as the Ushi, Lamba, Bisa, Chishinga, Kunda, Lala, Lunda, Ng’umbo, Swaka, Tabwa and Unga who speak dialects of Bemba and are loosely affiliated with the Bemba tribe, but are considered independent tribes. With urbanisation, Bemba speakers can be found everywhere in Zambia including the capital city, Lusaka. Due to degraded soil in their homeland, the Bemba have historically practiced a farming system called ‘chitemene’. It is a slash and burn system where trees are cut down and burnt and the ashes are then used to reduce the acidity of the soil. Once the land has been overworked (after three or four years), the Bemba tribe will move to another patch of land. Due to increased population, which leads to pressure on the land, the chitemene system is slowly being practiced less often.

The Bemba recreate their migration to Zambia in the annual Ukusefya Pa Ngwena traditional festival that takes place in Mungwi District. During the ceremony, the Chitimukulu (King of the Bembas (though politically called paramount Chief)) is carried on a throne made of a paper mache crocodile. There is drumming and dancing, and traditional food and drink is served. The Ukusefya Pa Ngwena takes place in August. The Bemba of Luwingu district in Northern Province celebrate the Mukula Pembe traditional ceremony, which also takes place in August.

Credit: theculturetrip

In the pic: The Bemba King Chitimukulu Kanyanta Manga II being carried by his subjects during the ‘Ukusefya pa Ng’wena’ traditional ceremony in 2015.