The Kaonde tribe are a Bantu-speaking people who occupy the northwestern regions of present-day Zambia. A number of these tribesmen can also be located in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Kaonde are a matrilineal tribe from north-western Zambia who is known for their salt-making practices and unique houses. The Kaonde trace their origins to the Luba Kingdom in Katanga in the present-day Democratic Republic of Congo – the birthplace of many Zambian tribes.
The Kaonde migrated to present-day Zambia from the 16th to the 18th centuries. The Kaonde is made up of three main sub-groups who possess their own unique identities.
The Kaonde share many cultural traits with other Central Bantu speakers. For example, the Kaonde entreat the mediation of ancestral spirits, as do many peoples throughout northern Zambia and the southern DRC. The Kaonde also observe a traditional first-harvest ceremony called Juba ja Nsomo.
During that annual festival, usually held on or about July 6, the chief is presented with and blesses the first harvest. Many Kaonde men work in mining centers of the Copperbelt.
The Kaonde language is one of the seven official vernacular, or “local,” languages of Zambia, and it is used in Radio Zambia broadcasts. . They trace their race along the mother’s family tree and are exceptional farmers who grow corn, millet, cassava and sorghum to mention but a few.
The Kaonde tribesmen carry a charm with them as they go about their daily duties. This charm is named; ‘muchi wa kongamato’. As opposed to a charm to be used in wooing women, this charm is carried by the Kaonde tribesmen to help them ward off a rare bat-like flying creature the locals call; ‘kongamato’.
Kongamato amongst the Kaonde tribesmen roughly means; ‘over-turner of boats’. The creature is so named because the Kaonde locals who cross the swampy areas where Kongamato resides report that it causes disturbances on the surface of the water which in turn causes their boats to overturn, allowing Kongamato the opportunity to feed on the drowning Kaonde tribesmen.
Like many other Zambian tribes, the Kaonde name their children based on circumstances that take place when the child was born or name them in honor of an ancestor or living relative.
Typical Kaonde names include Butemwe, which means ‘love’, and Kapijimpanga, which means ‘hunter’. Traditional salt-making is unique to the Kaonde people and is a skill passed on to younger generations.
According to Guhrs: “The women who know this art have gathered soil from Kaimbwe Salt Pan. They burn the earth and put the ash through a dish with holes.
Water is then sieved through until it comes out clean. They then boil the mixture on the fire until all the moisture evaporates, leaving the salt. The salt is then made into cone shapes and heated until it is solid, making a type of salt rock called nsumba.”
