Chokwe people
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Artwork of Chokwe people
|
|
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (1.3 million) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Angola, Congo DR, Zambia | |
| Languages | |
| Chokwe, many also speak French, Portuguese or English | |
| Religion | |
| Christian, Animist | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Luba, Lunda, Lwena, Ovimbundu, Songo |
The Chokwe people, also called Ciokwe, Cokwe, Tchokwe, Bajokwe or Badjok, are an ethnic group of Central and Southern Africa. They are found primarily in Angola, south-western parts of Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa to Lualaba), and northwestern parts of Zambia.
Estimated to be about 1.3 million, their ancestry is likely mixed and traced to aboriginal Mbundu and Mbuti Pygmies. Their language is usually referred to as Chokwe (or Kichokwe, Tshokwe), a Bantu language in the Benue-Congo branch of Niger-Congo family of languages.
Many also speak the official languages of their countries: English in Zambia, French in Democratic Republic of Congo, and Portuguese (as first or second language) in Angola.
The Chokwe were once one of the twelve clans of the great Lunda Empire of 17th- and 18th-century Angola. They were initially employed by Lunda nobles, eventually became independent when they refused to continue paying tribute to the Lunda emperor. Their successful trading and abundant resources caused them to be one of the wealthiest groups in Angola. By 1900, the Chokwe had dismantled the Lunda kingdom (also called the Mwata Yanvo) altogether, using guns they had received in trade from the Ovimbundu. Chokwe language and influence then began to dominate northeastern Angola and spread among the Lunda peoples. As the wars and conflicts grew during the colonial era of the 19th and 20th centuries, both from Europeans from their west and the Swahili-Arabs from their east, they militarily responded and expanded further into northern Angola, Congo and into western Zambia.
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