Zande people

The Zande, also known as the Azande, which means "the people who possess much land," are a large group of ethnically diverse people from Central Africa. The Zande live in northeast Central African Republic and regions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and South Sudan. Once numbered at 3.8 million at the turn of the twentieth century, population estimates from the mid-2010s to the mid-2020s ranged from one to four million Zande people worldwide, with most Zande concentrated in the DRC. Smaller populations lived in South Sudan and the Central African Republic. The Zande speak a language called Pa-Zande, which belongs to the Eastern-Adamawa-Ubangi branch of the language group called Niger-Congo. Historically, wars between neighboring Zande kingdoms were commonplace. In the twenty-first century, the Zande across Africa, particularly in South Sudan, face great violence in the continuing Sudanese civil war and attacks from other ethnic groups in the region. Many Zande have left their homes to seek security elsewhere.

Brief History

The Zande people come from a conquering people who lived near the Mbomou River, a natural border between the present-day Central African Republic and the DRC, over three hundred years ago. Known as the Ambomou, these people conquered neighboring regions around the Mbomou River; the conquered people would become known as the Zande. Some of these people retained their own language, while many began to share the common Zande language.

In the mid-nineteenth century, Arab and European traders came into contact with the Zande people. The Zande subsisted on agriculture and hunting, but were also active in the ivory and slave trades. The slave trade, in particular, allowed Zande society to expand and thrive. Following British colonization of the region around the turn of the twentieth century, the slave trade was restricted. This greatly affected the Zande, who lost income and power in the region. Raids on the Zande by northern Sudanese slave traders also halted the expansion of their power.

In the 1920s, the Sudanese government resettled the Zande population near roads. This also had a great effect on the Zande, who had long lived in family homesteads. In the 1940s, the Zande Scheme began, which introduced cotton farming to the Zande. The government hoped that this would provide more income to the Zande, who farmed traditional agricultural products that did not have a large international market. Zande society was largely reorganized around the needs of the cotton farming industry.

Before the establishment of sovereign countries known in the twenty-first century, the Zande lived through many periods of civil conflict in Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the DRC. The Zande people fought in the first Sudanese civil war, from 1955 to 1972, for greater autonomy and formed a separatist coalition against the Sudanese government. From 1983 to 2005, the second Sudanese civil war brought additional strife to the region, although the Zande did not actively fight in this conflict. South Sudan gained independence from Sudan in 2011. However, in 2023, a third civil war began in Sudan. Since then, many Zande have left South Sudan due to the continuing civil war, inter-ethnic conflicts, and food shortages.

Overview

Zande society is organized under a mutually recognized king into 180 non-royal clans. Lineage is patrilineal and, since the 1700s, the Zande have been ruled by a royal dynasty called the Avangara. Although the king is the central authority, he delegates regional governing to his sons or to Zande nobles. The Zande kingdom is highly organized, with provincial courts and governors who collect tributes for the king. Zande clans are widely scattered because of historic resettlement schemes and modern civil conflicts. Family homesteads were traditionally spread out along riverbanks that ran across regions of savannah in the north and rainforests in the south. The Zande traditionally farmed millet, sorghum, and corn; in the twenty-first century, they also farm peanuts and cassava.

While little is known about the early history and ethnic ancestry of the Zande people, their art and culture is better known. Many Zande have been converted to Christianity since the late nineteenth century. Approximately 85 percent of Zande in South Sudan consider themselves Christian, with over half self-identifying as Roman Catholic. Fifteen percent follow their traditional religion. The Zande believe in an omnipotent god named Mboli, although many also revere their ancestors. They also have strong beliefs in magic and witchcraft, called "mangu." In Zande culture, sons inherit magical powers from their fathers and witches are predominantly male. Death and misfortune is almost uniformly attributed to the work of witches, and witchcraft is seen as a natural—not a supernatural—phenomenon. Those who believe they are possessed by magical powers seek cure from female diviners. The king’s diviner is viewed as the authority in these matters. Diviners’ ceremonies were the most important events in traditional Zande society. In preparation for divination, the Zande dressed in colorful clothes and danced to traditional music. Instruments such as wooden gongs, skin drums, whistles, xylophones, and harps accompanied these musical celebrations.

The Zande are famous for their art, especially for a throwing knife called the "shongo." The shongo is curved and multi-bladed and shows the skill of Zande metal workers. Sansas, or thumb pianos, are carved musical instruments that can take the shape of people, animals, or abstract figures. These musical instruments accompany ceremonial dances at divinations, marriages, and other important celebrations.

Wood or clay sculptures depicting ancestors or animals are also important in Zande culture. Sculptures that are used in magical ceremonies and depict women are called "yanda." The Zande attribute magical characteristics to the yanda and believe they can protect people from illness or evil spirits. Often, these statues show enlarged heads and protruding eyes. The Yanda, in particular, were used by a secret religious cult called Mani, which began in the nineteenth century. Non-royal Mani members used magic to create social advantages and protection for themselves and their loved ones. Zande scholar Edward Evans-Pritchard has stated that the Mani society developed in response to European colonization of the region and the breakdown of traditional Zande society.

While Zande society has changed since European colonization in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, as well as throughout the civil conflicts of Central Africa since then, the Zande remain a people with a unique culture, ancient religious beliefs, and a strong tradition of art and music.

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