TOPIC ONE
Social and Economic
Factors for Interactions
Interaction
can be defined as the way in which people from a given community came into
contact with another community. As humans cannot fully live alone due to the
progressing day to day needs; interaction is inevitable among people because
through interaction we was able to access different requirements. However,
aspects of socio-economic development further strengthened the need for
interaction.
The Social Factors which gave Rise to Interactions among the
People of Africa
Explain
the social factors which gave rise to interactions among the people of Africa
Political
and social factors
·
War: Some
interactions were brutal and hostile as some strong communities attacked the
weaker ones in order to control them. Some societies succeeded in their
struggle while others failed. For example, from 1820s Egypt was in constant
attacks to control the North-east and East Africa.
·
Migration: As
communities grew in number this lead to a scarcity of resources, which forced
others to migrate in search of resources that were and meeting other people
with whom they created new social relations for example the Bantu migration and
the Ngoni migration.
·
Intermarriage: This
occurs when two people of different groups married and can be seen in the
broader context of mixing of different groups in marriage, cohabitation or
sexual relations. Therefore, this made African people interact and begin new
communities.
·
Religion:Africans
had their traditional African religions which acted as a symbol of unity and
togetherness. Their religions brought them together.
·
Music and games:African
societies had a rich history of music and games, as people from different
communities interacted on different occasions sharing their experiences; this
was mainly for entertainment and recreational purposes.
The Economic Factors that gave Rise to the Interactions among
the People of Africa
Explain
the economic factors that gave Rise to the interactions among the people of
Africa
Economic factors
·
Trade: Different
societies had to move in search of commodities which led to interaction. For
example, people of Zambia, Mozambique and Rwanda had trade links with people of
East Africa and in North Africa people interacted with West Africans through
Trans-Saharan trade.
·
Search for new
land: Areas that were not conducive for human settlement and
production activities were left behind and those that with conducive conditions
like fertile soil and good climate did attract many people. For example
agricultural community did shift from areas that were infertile to those areas with
reliable rainfall and fertile soil.
The Impact of the Economic Interactions
Explain
the impact of the economic interactions
The
economic impacts of the interaction can be grouped into two as positive and
negative impacts as elaborated below:
Positive
economic impacts
·
Development of technical
skills and new ideas: Interaction led people of Africa from
different communities to share their skills and ideas for economic growth.
·
Growth of new towns and
cities:Interaction among African people led to the development of new
towns as most of the populated areas grew economically due to the population
increase and production activities such as trade and agricultural activities.
·
Foundation for future
economic development:The foundation was made through improvement of infrastructures
and social services which aimed to meet the socio-economic demands of the
growing population.
·
Intensification of
agricultural production to meet the demand on the market: Following
the market demands for agricultural products as they were highly demanded then
intensification of agricultural production was inevitable.
Negative
economic impacts
·
Overexploitation of
African resources: Interaction among African people resulted in
overexploitation of African resources through trade which was unequal in
nature.
·
Emergence of classes
among the Africans: Classes emerged dividing poor Africans from rich Africans who
accumulated wealth from different economic, social and political activities.
·
Exposure of Africa to the
outside world:African country and its resources came to be exposed to the
outside world due to interaction.Decrease
of productive manpower due to slave trade; through
interaction the outsiders started to take slaves from Africa to their mother countries
as labor power.
Impacts
of social interaction
·
Population increase: Areas
that attracted large numbers of people became highly populated, especially
productive areas. The increased population resulted into socio-economic
development in the given areas which facilitated immigration.
·
Emergence of new
languages: Asdifferent people interacted new languages emerged. For example,
the Swahili language emerged due to interaction between Arabs, Africans and
Europeans.
Who were the Ngoni?
The
Ngoni were Bantu-Nguni speaking people of Northern Zululand in South East
Africa. They were originally Ndwandwe people under Zwide’s leadership. But when
Shaka defeated Zwide, one part of his group in 1840s moved to East Africa into
two groups of the Maseko and Tuta under Zwangendaba. They moved to Tanzania
from Natal and Swaziland between 1840s due to “Mfecane” (time of trouble). They
are currently settled in south west Tanzania around Songea town.
The
Ngoni invasions illustrate the influence of external forces on the lives of the
indigenous people. However, the Ngoni brought innovation and changes such as
military techniques, skill and weapons. A study of the Ngoni will enable
students to appreciate the current settlement patterns and way of the life of
the southern Tanzania.
The Causes of the Ngoni Migration
Explain
the causes of the Ngoni migration
Reasons
for the Ngoni migration
·
The Ngoni migrated due to
the tyrannical and dictatorial rule of Shaka: The
Zulu ruler was cruel in nature as he severely tortured people and those who
failed to respond to his order were killed. Due to this some people decided to
seek refuge by migrating to other areas.
·
External pressure from
the British and Boers: They moved because of
external pressure from the British and Boers in the South who were moving
Northwards occupying their land.
·
It was due to
overpopulation: Thiswas caused by the fertility of soils and the reliability of
rainfall between Drakensberg Mountains and the Indian Ocean.
·
Pastoralism reason: Some
Ngoni people owned large herds of cattle and northwards looking for pasture and
water for their animals. So they wanted to look for more fertile land for their
cattle. They also experienced famine and drought that led to lack of food and
water.
·
The influence of their
leaders: Men like Zwangendaba, Maputo and Zulugama provided good
leadership. This encouraged them to move onwards.
·
Overstocking: It
could also have been due to overstocking of their animals as they were having
spirit of cattle rustling, i.e. they had great desire to steal other people’s
cattle. For example they went on driving away and confiscating other people’s
cattle during their conquest and expansionist wars.
·
Increased knowledge of
military tactics by the age regiments:These were powerful
military forces and dedicated to professional war, which was their livelihood.
They believed that they could have other territories through migration.
Movement
and settlement of the Ngoni to East Africa
They
began their movement from South-East Africa in Northern Zulu land under the leadership
of Zwangendaba in 1820. The Ngoni migration took place in the 19th century, and was the last major movement of Bantu people into
East Africa
There were three groups of the Ngoni in East Africa as:-
·
The Ngoni Tuta
·
The Ngoni Ngwangara
·
The Ngoni Maseko
They
then crossed river Zambezi and river Limpompo and moved northwards in search of
new land. Later in 1835 they divided into two groups. The one group under the
leadership of Zwangendaba passed west of Lake Malawi and settled at Ufipa in
1840. They were attracted to this area here because of the many herds of cattle
around.
Zwangendaba
led the biggest Ngoni group that entered in East Africa. They crossed the
Zambezi River, moved through Malawi and Zambia until they reached the fipa
plateau in around 1840’s. Zwangendaba died here in around 1845, and his
followers splint up into five sections.
Three
sections returned south to Zambia and Malawi while the other two such as Tuta
and Gwangara sections remained at ufipa. Another group under the leadership of
Induna Maputo (Maseko Ngoni) passed East of Lake Malawi and settled at Songea.
When Zwangendaba died around 1845, the Ufipa Ngoni disagreed and split into
five groups.
Whereby
the two groups remained in East Africa such as Tuta and Gwangara Ngoni, three
groups moved out of East Africa that is to say, one group moved to Malawi and
the two moved back to Zambia.
The
Tuta Ngoni, the smallest group left in Ufipa, moved northwards fighting and
crashing with the Holoholo near Lake Tanganyika, they disrupted the trade route
between Tabora and Ujiji. In the1850s they invaded the Nyamwezi capturing many
and incorporating them in their ranks. They finally settled at Kahama South of
Lke Victoria.
The
Gwangara Ngoni under the leadership of Zulugama moved eastwards to Songea where
they met the Maseko Ngoni. The two groups fought and the Maseko Ngoni were
defeated and pushed out of Songea in 1860’s.
Some
Maseko moved back to Mozambique while others moved to Kilombero valley where
they became known as the Mbunga. Another splinter group moved to Newala, Masasi
and Tunduru. From Songea the Ngoni raided widely, finally settling southern
Tanzania among the Bena, Hehe and Sangu. The Ngoni migration which started
around 1820s had ended by the year 1860s.
Why
were the Ngoni successful in defeating/conquering the people of East Africa
The Ngoni came in big numbers and were strong:On
their way they absorbed or fought off the people they encountered, capturing
the young for worries and young women for wives.They had good military organization
with age-regiments calledimpis” (strong army).
The
Ngoni had a large, well trained and disciplined army; they were grouped in
age-regiments which were maintained for long periods.The Ngoni did not
cultivate but rather lived by plundering from others this enabled them to have
a standing army always ready for battle.
They
had superior weapons such as the short stabbing spear (Assegai) and big cowhide
shields, which only left soldiers face exposed to the enemy, protected the
worriers. Instead of the long throwing spears which had to be thrown one by
one, the Ngoni adopted short stabbing spears and clubs known as Assegai, copied
from Shaka the Zulu.
On the
other hand their enemy used the long throwing spear. They used this for close
hand to hand combat, and the warriors could be protected by the large cow-hides
shields which left only the warrior’s face exposed to the enemies.
They
had superior military tactics such as cow horn method (semi-circle), which was
unfamiliar in East Africa. They fought in organised age regiments and could
attack their enemies using the cow horn formation. They also chose clear open
spaces for fighting and liked attacking their enemies during nights.
They
met small and fragmented societies, which were unable to challenge their
military organisation. Slave trade had undermined most of the communities of
southern Tanzania.The Ngoni were successful due to their determination. They
were determined to conquer and obtained places for settlement. This was due to
the fact that they were already chased away from their homeland, and their only
alternative was to get determined and fight any people they came across.
The
East African people were caught unaware and therefore did not offer much
resistance. The Ngoni were successful because the local people whom they were
fighting with were so weak ad lived in small groups, which could not
resist/challenge the sudden and unexpected Ngoni invasion.
Disunity
among the East African peoplewholived in isolated societies, made it easy for
Ngoni to defeat them.
The
Ngoni were fully united under their commanders. They were successful because of
their unity and solidarity. They mixed freely with the non-Ngoni speaking
people.They had strong military leaders for example, Zwangendaba, Induna and
Maputo who were able to unite and command the Ngoni.
They
used assimilation policy, i.e. they absorbed the people they defeated. They
would force the captured men from other tribes to join them and became Ngoni
warriors.They also made themselves fearful to their enemies by wearing the
skeletons of their victims.
The
Ngoni military organisation
The
Ngoni were small group of people but were able to make their presence and
authority fell by the local people because of their leadership, outstanding
military efficiency and their capacity to absorb conquered people into their
armies.
Militarily
the Ngoni were organised in large standing armies and age regiments; people of
the same age trained together, which brought unity and efficiency.They used the
short stabbing spears called assegai rather than the long throwing spears which
meant that the warriors could attack more effectively at a close range
They
used large cow hide shields, which could not be easily penetrated by spears.
They used the cow horn method of surrounding an enemy and attacking from all
sides giving the enemy little chance to escape.
They
often fought on their feet and in open areas for easy movement. They moved in a
large numbers which helped them to outnumber their enemies who were often
caught unaware, they used to absorb and assimilate all conquered people.
The Social, Political and Economic Effects of the Ngoni
Migration
Explain
the social, political and economic effects of the Ngoni migration
Effects of Ngoni invasion or migration in East Africa
Positive
effects
·
The Ngoni invasion led to the rise on outstanding leaders to
prominence. These included Mirambo, Nyungu ya Mawe and Mkwawa, who used the
Ngoni military tactics to build their states.
·
Many small Ntemi chiefdoms came together (united) and formed
large political units under strong leaders to fight the Ngoni for example Sangu
and Hehe (re-organisation).
·
There was formation of new societies/tribe like the Mbunga.
·
The Hehe under Mkwawa were able to resist the Germans.
·
There was spread of Ngoni customs and culture for example
initiation ceremonies where girls were taught sex educations and circumcision.
·
It led to formation of a large Ngoni society in East Africa as
they absorbed many people.
·
It led to the ormation of some societies by those who used Ngoni
tactics for example Nyamwezi under Mirambo.
·
It led to the introduction of new weapons eg. assegai, cowhides
and shields.
·
From the Ngoni invasion people learned how to become organised
from smaller disorganised society, to well organised bigger political systems.
These were to be under the control and leadership of organised, strong and
efficient rulers such as the Sangu chief, Hehe etc.
·
There were intermarriages between Ngoni and Nyamwezi which
subsequently led to improved relationships between the invaders and indigenous
people and an increased population.
Negative
effects
·
They caused the loss of lives leading to depopulation in some
areas where they got warriors this was especially in southern Tanzania. This
was due to the killing of people in the expansionist wars e.g. the Mariti
remnants of Rugarugas killed so many people.
·
They introduced military organisation and tactics to such an
extent that the Ngoni lost their superiority. e.g Holoholo were able to defeat
the Tuta Ngoni when they re attacked them.
·
Their movement led to wider spread of devastation, depopulation
and displacement of people.
·
They destroyed the economy of the people of southern Tanzania
when they grabbed their cattle (the Ngoni were cattle plunderers). The Ngoni
invasion led to poverty, i.e. it led to the creation of the class of poor
people as their property continued to be destroyed and persistently looted
during the wars.
·
The Ngoni led to formation of refugees who lived by plundering
and killing i.e. the Mariti and Rugaruga who were later used by ambitious men
like Mirambo and Nyungu ya Mawe to form their empires.
·
The Tuta Ngoni on their movement northwards, disrupted the trade
particularly between Tabora and Ujiji.
·
There was loss of peoples’ language, culture and customs
(detribalisation of people), i.e. the raids caused many people to become
homeless and tribe less. This led to people losing their identity. In addition,
such groups became terrorists who lived by war, plunder and hunting for ivory.
They included the “Rugaruga” who began hiring their services as mercenaries to
any chief willing to pay them.
·
Ngoni disturbances disrupted normal cultivation leading to
famine. There was widespread famine due to the scotched-earth policy of
fighting circumstances, crop could neither be planted nor harvested, and people
were forced to abandon farming.
·
They led to insecurity since the new weapons and military
tactics increased warfare and aggression in East Africa.
·
The Ngoni intensified slave trade in East Africa, this was
because they displaced people from their homes and so making it easy for slave
raiders to catch and sell them.
·
It led to increased warfare among the African societies,
including those areas that had been peaceful before.
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