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The Hutu People

 


The Hutu people are primarily from Rwanda, Burundi, and parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

They’re the second inhabitants of Rwanda and Burundi after the Twa people. They came as cultivators, while the Twa were hunters and gatherers. 

The Hutu, Twa, and Tutsi were traditionally social classes sharing the same language, religion, and culture. Later on, they separated through clashes.

Here’s an overview of the Hutu people.

Hutu Family Structure

They lived in nuclear family settings. The Hutu are Patrilineal, and they practiced polygamy. A family consisted of a husband and several wives. 

Each wife is entitled to her hut together with her children. The husband did not live alone but took turns in visiting each wife. 

The wives possessed equal status, but the first wife was indispensable in the ritual domain. 

The Hutu household also included unmarried sisters and brothers of the man of the house. All children belonged to the father’s lineage unless bridewealth ought to be paid.

Hutu Clans

Traditionally, the Hutu had 15 to 20 known clans. The clans are divided into sub-clans (Amashyanga), lineages (Umuryango), and nuclear families (Ingo), which finally make the clan a social identity. 


The three main clans are the Abagesera, Abazigaba, and Abasinga.  

The other clans included the Abacyaba, Abungura, Abashambo, Abatsobe, Abakono, Abaha, Abashingo, Abanyakarama, Abasita, Abongera, and n'Abenengwe.

Dynastic (Ibibanda) clans included the Abakono, Abega, Abagesera, and Abaha.

Hutu Totems

Traditionally, the main clans had totems represented by animals, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. 

They are;

  • Abanyiginya (Crested Crane, Umusambi)

  • Abega (Frog, Igikeri)

  • Abazigaba (Leopard, Ingwe)

  • Abagesera (Wagtail, Inyamanza)

  • Abasinga (Eagle, Sakabaka)

  • Abacyaba (Hyena, Impyisi)

  • Ababanda (Crow, Igikona)

Hutu Dialects 

The Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa speak variants of the Kinyarwanda language in Rwanda and Kirundi in Burundi. 

These are best considered two dialects of a particular language that fall into the Central Bantu family. 

They are mutually intelligible but vary in terms of pronunciation and vocabulary.

Kinyabwisha and Kinyamulenge are other dialects close to Kirundi, spoken in Burundi.

Read Also:

The Chagga People of Tanzania

The Bagisu People of Uganda

The Kuria People

Hutu Naming System

Traditionally, Hutu’s first rite of passage is the naming ceremony seven days after a child’s birth. 

The first week involved the seclusion of the mother and child. The naming process starts on the seventh day when the mother and the child are brought out to the public for the first time.

A feast is prepared, and people come together to celebrate. Different people of all ages are allowed to give names to the baby. 

The mother is given a chance to name the baby, but the father is the last to name the child.

Hutu Kinship

Traditionally, the Hutu value kinship and family to continue their norms and customs. Since they are patrilineal, only males exercise total power, and inheritance passes from father to son.

The kinship groups are split into three areas; the Inzu (household), the Umuryango (lineage), and the Ubwokoa (patriclan). 

The patriarchal system is practiced in which men exercise full powers over other family members, and inheritance passes from father to son.

The Hutu lineage is headed by the Umukungu, the most influential male, who is rich but exercises little or no political power.

Hutu Marriage/Courtship

Traditionally, a father to a young man chose a wife for his son. However, marriage by elopement was also practiced. 

The young man's father then negotiated with the woman’s family for an engagement.

Culturally, bridewealth was negotiated through long conversations with the father and lineage relations of the woman.   

Bridewealth was mostly cows and beer, among other gifts. It was either paid once or in installments. The marriage ceremony occurred at night at the fiancé’s father’s house.

Later, the woman went to her future husband’s home accompanied by her friends, relatives, and paternal aunt, who played a vital role. 

To conclude the ceremony, the husband was crowned with a wreath and spits a mixture of herbs and milk onto his wife’s face and chest.

Traditionally, Hutu men were not prohibited from court and marrying Tutsi women; however, the Twa men and women were looked down upon and not considered acceptable mates to the Hutu and Tutsi.

The bride may be secluded at the father-in-law's house for several days after marriage. Her transition to full marital status was signified by the end of this seclusion.

Polygamy

The Hutu were less wealthy and, therefore, less likely to practice polygamy because Hutu men lacked the means to support multiple households. 

However, polygamy was encouraged by the practice of levirate unions whereby the widow of a deceased husband would be married to her dead husband’s brother. 

If the woman could still bear children with her husband’s brother, the children belonged to the deceased.

Gender Roles in Marriage

Hutu men and women had complementary, culturally defined roles within the household. Men took the heavy labor while women did the light work around the house.

Historically, the women of the family are responsible for the household duties and for planting, hoeing, and weeding the crops. 

According to custom, women were expected to be subordinate to their husbands; those who disobeyed could be punished severely.

Single Mothers, Widows, and Widowers

Single mothers were banished from the community since pregnancy before marriage among the Hutu was considered a crime. 

Widows were inherited by the deceased brother to ensure the continuity of the family line. 

Widowers had the option of marrying another wife since polygamy was the order of the day.

Divorce

Traditionally, divorce was initiated by either the husband or the wife. There had to be socially recognized reasons for the divorce to be granted. 

Some reasons included infidelity, negligence of domestic work by the wife, maltreatment, incapacity of the husband to support a wife, and refusal to cohabit.

Couples separate during the divorce to allow reconciliation by a mediator or a neutral third person. No bridewealth is returned if children are involved.

Inheritance

Since the Hutu were a patrilineal society, women had no property rights. Women were dependent on men upon marriage. 

Women only gained access to the land through their husbands. Inheritance was passed down from the father to sons only.

Death

Among the traditional Hutu people, death was marked by purification rituals and restrictions. 

People were expected not to involve themselves in certain activities, such as cultivation and sexual relations, during the mourning period.

They believed in life after death. They worshipped ancestors, one of the hallmarks of the traditional religions in Rwanda. 

Additionally, they perceived that the dead person's spirit was actively living among them. They offered to appease sacrifices to the spirits to avoid their wrath.

The passing of an elderly person was a celebration on its own. Members of the community would mourn for seven days while lighting a fire. 

After the burial, family members remain silent for the departed soul.



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