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The Gorwaa people, also known as the Gorowa or Gweno, are an indigenous Cushitic ethnic group residing primarily in the northern regions of Tanzania, particularly in the Arusha and Manyara regions.
They traditionally practiced agriculture, livestock herding, and trade.
Their cultural traditions, including music, dance, and unique oral literature, reflect their history, beliefs, and social organization.
Here’s a brief overview of the Gorwaa people.
Family Structure
Traditionally, the Gorowa people are of patrilineal descent. Children born in a marriage follow their father’s clan and kinship.
Males are heads of the family in that the father or eldest sons have the power to control a household.
Gorwaa Clans
The Gorwaa recognized several clans associated with a particular function in society. The clans included;
Qooloo
Harna’aa clan (paramount chief, wawitumo)
Haryaambi clan
Gilawee clan
Gaytu clan
Sumaye clan
Har’iwaay clan
Harahama clan
Harsule clan
Totems
Clans among the Gorowa had totems that animals and birds represented. It was taboo to harm or kill and eat the clan totems.
They believed that it’d result in misfortunes and calamities in the community.
Dialects
They speak Gorowa, a South Cushitic language spoken in north-central Tanzania.
The Gorowa language is mutually intelligible to other Cushitic languages of Tanzania, like Iraqw, Alagwa, and Burunge.
More so, they also speak Swahili in their communication and socialization.
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Age Sets
Traditionally, the Gorowa delivered education based on age sets.
There was a progressive age-set system into which young men and women got initiated upon reaching puberty.
During this initiation period spent together in the forest, older women and men bestowed a series of secret teachings.
Successful initiates were then into the ranks of the junior generational age set that existed at a go.
The age set was arranged from the oldest to the newest as follows;
Baamút
Sarwaat
Lagen
Baashumt
Mayangalda
Ireqwaán
Saanqurda
Duuyeet
Baashumtó Hayaa
Hibileét hibÃl - ( the only age-set with living members, all very old).
Naming System
The Gorowa people held childbirth as an important event in the community. Newborns were celebrated, and a naming ceremony took place.
They named their children according to various ways. For one, after notable events like Rainfall or Earthquake.
They were also named according to their place of birth or after a situation that occurred. Consequently, they also used names of animals or trees.
Traditionally, names in the Gorowa community were given to dedicate several things like marking the timing of significant events, place of birth, names of trees/animals situations surrounding the birth process, and a mark of respect for the honor of ancestors.
Marriage/Courtship
Marriage involved a neutral go-between because the negotiations were intense and unfolded over many years.
The groom’s family initiated the negotiation process with the bride’s family. Cattle are the primary item given in the bride price.
In determining the value of a prospective bride, her family considers her health and appearance.
Traditionally, Gorwaa marriages were arranged with the help of parents and other relatives.
Marriages inspired by love are neither uncommon nor seen as less appropriate.
However, before betrothal proceeds, elders are consulted to ensure that the prospective couple may be wed.
That mainly concerns not marrying individuals too closely related to each other, and much time is spent on determining lineage and family history.
Bride price was the first step into marriage. It involved several cattle, sheep, and goats. The next step was the wedding ceremony which was highly ritualized.
Lastly, there is the giving of gifts to the newlywed. The couple is then considered married, and the bride loses her childhood-given name and adopts a new wedded name.
Polygamy
They practiced polygamy to ensure every girl in the community was married, and every man ready to marry got a wife.
Gender Roles in Marriage
Division of labor according to gender was clearly defined among the Gorowa people.
Women and girls did all home chores, such as cooking and fetching water and firewood. They also gave birth to children and took care of them.
Men were responsible for providing security and maintaining law and order in the household.
They also, together with young boys, took care of farm activities.
Since Gorowa practices a patriarchal system, the father is the first and, in most cases, the only person to be consulted on how the family properties are spent.
Divorce
The Gorowa believe divorce cannot occur after the bride's wealth has been exchanged, and children are born.
After separation, the couple is still considered to be married. Failure to have children, however, is thought to be the wife's fault; thus, she is divorced or replaced by another wife.
Inheritance
Since the Gorwaa is patrilineal, property and ancestral identity are inherited through the father’s lineage, and upon marriage, a couple takes up residence at or near the husband’s father’s home.
When it comes to the distribution of family properties, girls are considered less as the family thinks of them as belonging to another clan when they get married.
Death
Death was a bad omen among the Gorowa.
When a person dies, their bodies are thrown out in the wild to be devoured by wild animals.
Rituals were then performed to ensure that their spirit did not come back to haunt the living family members.
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