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Kunama

Introduction

Kunama are Nilotic people living in Eritrea, Ethiopia and Sudan 80% of Kunama live in Eritrea yet make up only 2 percent of the total population of Eritrea, where they are one of the smallest ethnic group. Most of the estimated 100,000 Kunama live in the remote and isolated area between the Gash and Setit River near the border with Ethiopia.

Language the Nile –Saharan Languages are a family of Africa a language spoken by some 50 million people; mainly in the upper parts of the Chari and Nile river (hence the term “Nilo”) including historic Nuba north of where the two tributaries of the Nile meet. The Language s extend through 17 Nation in the northern half of Africa from Mali in the west to Benin,Niagera and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the South, and  Sudan to Tanzania in the east. Eight of its proposed constituent division (excluding Kunama, Kuliak and Songhay) are found in the modern Nation of Sudan. Through which the Nile River Flows. As indicated by its hyphenated name, Nilo-Sahara is a family of the Africa interior, including the greater Nile basin and the central Sahara desert.

A tribe of Kunama is divided in to four clans or groups these are; Gu-maa Serma Shu-waa Kar-waa Also each major class have divided in to many sub divisions for example –Abina,Momoda, Sila Nataka, Jula,Alaka, Agartakara, Bosa and Sogoua so on… Within these major classes the Kunama tribe divided in to seven groups.

Kunam Itanaor Koita Kunama Imasa Kunama Taguda Kunama Tekaa Kunama El-etaa Kunama Sokodasa Kunama Barka

As I said this tribe live between Gash and Setit but Eritrean government change from Gash –Setit to Gash Barka 1995 name of Gash given by Sudanese but by Kunama called Sona Suba. And Setit also given by Ethiopian but by Kunama called Tika Suba/Bahara. Some Area which Kunama live in Eritrea: - Sub Regions Barentu, the capital city of kunama Hikota, Gogne, Shambuko Tukumbeya Tesseney Galuj Umhajer In Ethiopia Sheira, Helagin and Shimleba refugee camp In Sudan: - Most of them they live in Kassala state: - Hafer is the border of Sudan and Eritrea but in side Sudan, Wadsharfey(Shanda-Fog) Helat-Bushara,Tajuj, Helat-Fatu and Wedle-hilew. Some of them they live in Refugees camp like Shagrab and Abuda. In Gedarif State Hashaba this is near to Houmera Ethiopia. Berantu has been established as a Kunama regional capital town and seat of the first Italian colonial administrator of the Kunama land in 1937 ,and is known and has been kept as the Kunama regional capital town ever since.

Most of the Kunama people they live in Remote area no schools, no market and spent their life With animals and farming this is one of Kunama lady around Barentu area.

Religion within a tribe it divided in to three that mean

Muslim	Christian	Traditional believers Kunamma Itana- Koita	25%	25%	50% Kunamma Imasa	70%	25%	5% Kunamma Taguda	93%	2%	5% Kunamma Tea-kaa	85%	10%	5% Kunamma Ele –taa	96%	0%	4% Kunamma Sokadasa	97%	0%	3% Kunamma Barka	20%	35%	45%

This is the estimated figure according to information provided by Idris Sisto Michael Lubab and Mohamud  El Hassen. Some priests of Evangelical church Yosef Mati			                    some priests of Catholic Church Daniel, 						Attilo Alibo Abel Fagi						Egidio Ezikiel Gulay				               Corrado Yohanne					               Sebostiano

Wedding: - within a tribe by love after 18 years old girl the parents make for her own tukul inside the family compound any man youth if you want to talk to her first ask permission from the parents to chat with her outside from tukul then when she love then she will inform her parents. But some time, family they chose two family members they should agree, the family of the bride groom they prepare the wedding things. After Festival or party done the bride groom must live with his wife compound for one year then after one year he will choose what he want to do. Most people only have one spouse but may have multiple partners and may have children with those multiple partners and that called Goda-gode. Dancing this tribe it has many kind of dancing during death, wedding and time of war, War dancing Harvest dance and circumcision dance. This is wedding dancing.

During death (Uleda, Shila-Kubula, Anana-Kubula Kududa, Kawana, Sandoda, Goda-Anana and Sokokoda) Wedding dance (Marda-Kubula Anana-Kubula Anaudila and Guja-kubula) during the war time most dance (they use Kawena) Harvest dance (Sidiba and Asha-anana) so on. Special celebration this tribe  it has special  annual celebration these annual celebration is only in particular area  that is in kona and Taguda ,(Kundura) and (Shatta or Galli-Galla)in Sosona this ceremony is specially death with the  followings:- The annual birth and death in the area The annual harvest in that area The annual health situation with in that area

Shatta during the celebration of this culture event the young men dance wearing only local pants, which are in fact forbidden but they would instead deliberately wear, and challenge the Shatta manna( chief Shatta ) an elderly man who would punish the culprits, whipping them on their naked upper- bodies. The more upper bodies of the young men bleed, the more cheers do they get their female admirers.”Shatta” is only a feast of display of endurance, courage and bravado.

Death in Kunama God believers is little bite different I will try to explain how death treats among these believers. If someone dies among believers at age 0-60 they will cry and they will become very sad, but for old person 80 years on ward they close family will cry but other relative they will not cry. Because they think that old person had seen enough in the world and only chance it waiting for him is death, so they hold a big party for 2-3 days eating and drinking Local beer (Kina Ai fa) and dancing, some people use Dress of dead body for dancing.

Within a god believers some rich people prepare food and drink for relatives in order to dig  a family  grave this family grave only for close family members  this grave it take about 50 -100 people   if someone die  they will take to family grave and buried in this grave.

Once a year some family members take a piece of food, tobacco, milk, Aifa to the cemetery (that according the dead body favourite food or habit which  he had been addicted when he was a live ) and put on the grave with believe that the spirit  of dead person will eat and drink.


 * Giving Name*

Giving Names within Kunama with event which it happen during the time; and everybody in the family they give you a name like uncle, aunt sister brothers and so on… Tabila: - mean when the father started doing something and not finished or going on tripe and not reach the place and when the child born then called Tabila this mean still on way not ended Medinu: - When the father return back from his tripe and when child born at that time they called Medinu Adaga: - When the father went to the market if a child born at that time called Ada-ga Baduma: - when the child born in field of farm or the father went to field for farming Shandi/Tugi If a mother give birth and many children died at infant and one child grown up they parent took the child and tie up by rope she/he on the leg and the kept area which donkey tided place for minutes and they give this name.

Ada-de:-As you know people they live in small villages and have animals Cows, goats sheep and camels so sometime people from another tribe they came steal their animals at that time all men they took spear, sword, axes, knife and walking sticks in order to get back their animals so the group of the men called Ada da so when the child born during that time called Ada-de Le le when the child born during drought or poverty called Le le and if the child born during the war called Ma-see

Work within a tribe Kunama tribe are very hard worker people and at the same time very co-operative and most of them they help each other this tribe most of them farmers to plough the farm land by oxen, donkey and camel. During the work time they prepare local drink it called Kina- Ai-fa and this they use to give them energy not to get drinker

Kunama ladies carry things on their shoulder for long journey they use long stick called Bashingela and things made of Rope that called Assama it has more than teen(10) strips on one side to carry basket and some water container like (Jarecan, goat skin water bag and sorghums they put inside the baskets and walk for long tripe.

Bashingela and Assama it must be balance weight or load in order to help the woman to walk easy. Sometime if she not gets things it makes balance on other side then she put some stones to make balance.

Special food within a tribe is called Tukusha it is made of sorghum (Dura) first ground the sorghum and mixed the flour with water for three or four hours then after that they start cook until it become thick and add some salt and they eat, tukusha it stay at least three days and they used it also the use different kind of sauces Tukusha is very know with in this tribe the shape of Tukusha is                                               Baobab tree (A-saa) Baobab tree leaf the use for food they pick the soft leaf and cut in pieces wash well and put in boil water then they cook well and mixed flour of sorghum until well cook then when it became thick then they eat. This is called Shofa( Eshofa)

Dom (palm tree (Omaa)

This is also they use for food the fruits they called Omaa(Dom-palm tree take of the skin of the fruits and they eat some time they put in the water in order to get wet then when it get wet the eat.

Education problem within a tribe education and economical very poor most of them they live in Villages remote area so a chance of education missed, if you see educated people by percentage 30% Educated and non-educated 70% so very hard to support their family members, also very difficult to find a job, Most educated people in Kunama they are Christian because built some churches in the area which they live. So those people they get a chance of attended school but most of them are farmers and live in village’s remote area.

*Challenges* Challenges between Kunama and the Government of Eritrea have tense since the country is independence in 1993. Kunama have accused the Eritrean government of expropriating Kunama land for the Returnees of Eritrean refugee from Sudan (Eritrea Kunama may 2002). There have been various incidents including the killing of two Kunama brothers by a Tigrinya policeman in Shambako in 1995 that have increased tension between the Kunama and Eritrea authorities.

Some Kunama have come out in opposition to the Eritrea government and formed the Eritrea Kunama Democratic liberation Movement (EKDLM) and the Eritrea Democratic Resistance movement Gash –Setit. Both Groups are listed among 11 signatories to the 6 march 1999 political chapter of the Alliance of Eritrea National Forces.

Kunama people are not only suffering from Eritrean government also from DMLEK’s Leader Kornelios Adolay Osman We all know the DMLEK’s leader, Kornelios Adolay Osman, as “The Man Of All Evils”, who has been kidnapping, imprisoning, torturing and killing a lot of innocent, educated and knowledgeable ethnic-Kunama members, for no reasons at all. Due to this, many DMLEK’s members abandoned it and went either to Shimelba’s refugee-camp or to Sudan. Some of them had even gone back to their enemy, the Shabia’s regime. And no one was willing to struggle alongside the DMLEK. Currently, the DMLEK’s members and the Kunama refugees are finding themselves in very critical conditions. The DMLEK’s members are abandoning the struggle and trying to get to the Shimelba’s refugee-camp, but on their way, they are being intercepted by the Ethiopian police and handed back to the DMLEK, We Kunama are totally unable to understand and explain regarding the sad state of the Kunama refugees in Shimelba refugee camp. In January 2004 Kornelos Adolay Osman came to Waalanihbi refugee camp and ordered to Kunama elderly individuals’ .Adam Musa and Lager Gaia and some youth to kill certain Kunama individuals assuring them that the Ethiopian government would not say anything.

Between Kunama and the Government of Eritrea have tense since the country is independence in 1993 after that they left country and went Ethiopia and Sudan and they became Refugees, in 2007 from Ethiopia Shimliba refugee camp they resetting to UAS around 700 refugees but it become very difficult life for them because they left their proud rich culture and facing them a new challenges Language, culture, social life and job even the way of eating Imagine from Shambako to Ethiopia and to UAS very hard, in 2009 one Kunama man killed himself because very difficult to live with this life condition so he choose to lose his life