the zambian kingdoms series: the swaka people
the swaka — baswaka — are a bantu people of central province, found primarily in mkushi, kapiri mposhi, and luano districts. close relatives of the lala, sharing luba-empire origins, the same broad linguistic and cultural tradition, and the ichibwela mushi ceremony. together they form the group traditionally known as ba kankomba-we-lala — the collective identity that brings 19 lala and swaka senior chiefs together for the ichibwela mushi ceremony each year.
the swaka chiefs: chief mukonchi and chief nkole in kapiri mposhi district; chief chitina in mkushi district; chief chikupili in luano district.
the ichibwela mushi ceremony — held every september or october in mkushi at the chalata arena, hosted by senior chief shaibila of the swaka — is the annual gathering at which lala and swaka communities return home after the farming season to celebrate the new agricultural harvest. the name means: members of the lala and swaka communities returning home.
what makes ichibwela mushi distinctive: nineteen chiefs from luano district to serenje district to mkushi to kapiri mposhi attend together. illustrious sons and daughters of lala-swaka land return from the copperbelt, from lusaka — the ceremony bridges the rural-urban divide that modern zambian life has created.
mkushi district is mineral-rich: manganese, gemstone, and copper deposits have attracted mining development, including the fishtie copper project at kashime. the swaka chiefs govern territory that sits on resources whose development will shape the economic future of their communities.
the people of the central province plateau. the ceremonial hosts of nineteen chiefs. the hunters who shared their land with the lala and kept their own name.
the zambian kingdoms series continues. 🇿🇲
