The Ruweng are part of
South Sudan
South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...
's larger Ngok fraternity found in both South Sudan and northern Sudan. The Ngoks consists of Jok, Ruweng and
Lual Yak. Ngok is one branch of the eight
Dinka
The Dinka people ( din, Jiɛ̈ɛ̈ŋ) are a Nilotes, Nilotic ethnic group native to South Sudan with a sizable diaspora population abroad. The Dinka mostly live along the Nile, from Jonglei to Renk, South Sudan, Renk, in the region of Bahr el Gh ...
groups (namely
Rek REK may refer to:
* Rek people, of South Sudan
* Rek language
* Rek, a Cambodian board game
* Vitold Rek (born 1955), Polish musician
* Rek or Reg, Iran, Khusf County, South Khorasan Province
* Rek or Rig-e Bala
Rig-e Bala ( fa, ريگ با ...
, Malwal, Ngok, Agaar, Twic, Bor, Padang, and Marbek). The Dinka is the largest
Nilotic
The Nilotic peoples are people indigenous to the Nile Valley who speak Nilotic languages. They inhabit South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. Among these are the Burun-sp ...
group in the world.
Location
Located in South Sudan's
Ruweng State
The Ruweng Administrative Area is an administrative area in South Sudan. The area was known as Ruweng State between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020 when it was a state of South Sudan.
History
On 1 October 2015, President Salva Kiir issued a ...
, the population of the Ruweng is estimated at 260,000. Ruweng State is bordered by
Abyei
The Abyei Area ( ar, منطقة أبيي) is an area of on the border between South Sudan and the Sudan that has been accorded "special administrative status" by the 2004 Protocol on the Resolution of the Abyei Conflict (Abyei Protocol) in ...
in the west,
Twic
Twic State was a state in South Sudan that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020. It was located in the Bahr el Ghazal region and it bordered Aweil East to the west, the disputed Abyei region to the north, Gogrial to the south, Nort ...
in the southwest,
Nuer Nuer may refer to:
* Nuer people
* Nuer language
The Nuer language (Thok Naath) ("people's language") is a Nilotic language of the Western Nilotic group. It is spoken by the Nuer people of South Sudan and in western Ethiopia (region of Gamb ...
in the south,
Shilluk in southeast and the Sudan (
Nuba Mountains
The Nuba Mountains ( ar, جبال النوبة), also referred to as the Nuba Hills, is an area located in South Kordofan, Sudan. The area is home to a group of indigenous ethnic groups known collectively as the Nuba peoples. In the Middle Ages, ...
and
Misseriya
The Messiria (), known also under the name of Misseriya Arabs, are a branch of the Baggara ethnic grouping of Arab tribes.Adam, Biraima M. 2012. Baggara of Sudan: Culture and Environment, Amazon online Books''Baggara of Sudan: Culture and Enviro ...
) from the east to northwest.
Language
Ruweng speak the Ruweng Ngok Dinka dialect, a subdialect of the Ngok dialect of the
Dinka language
Dinka (natively , or simply ) is a Nilotic dialect cluster spoken by the Dinka people, the major ethnic group of South Sudan. There are several main varieties, Padang, Rek, Agaar, Bor, Hol, Twic East, Twic, which are distinct enough (though m ...
.
Groups
The Ruweng have largely moved away from the Ngok identity to establish their own separate identity as Ruweng. This makes the Dinka have nine major groups (Ruweng, Rek, Malwal, Agaar, Twic, Bor, Padang, Marbek, and Ngok). Ruweng sometimes call themselves , which is a short form of Pan-Ruweng.
The capital of Ruweng State is
Pariang. The four major Ruweng groups are Kwel, Awet, Aloor and Paweny (which are found both in Ruweng State and
Central Upper Nile State
Central Upper Nile was a state in South Sudan
South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Centra ...
in South Sudan). In Ruweng State, the Ruweng people are divided into 18
chiefdoms
A chiefdom is a form of hierarchical political organization in non-industrial societies usually based on kinship, and in which formal leadership is monopolized by the legitimate senior members of select families or 'houses'. These elites form a ...
. Ruweng of are divided into two kwel and awet and together they have 12 subclans. The kwel subclans () are Kuocgoor, Agaany, Bibiok, Ngeer, Miorcigiu, Bugo Bol, Bugo Angau, Palei, and Tungdiak. The awet subclans are Aniek, Kuok, and Diar. Ruweng of Aloor (or ) has six subclans: Amaal, Majuan, Thieyier, Ngongkiel, Manteng, and Abang.
The Ruweng section known as Paweny, located in the Atar County of Central Upper Nile State, left the mainstream Ruweng in 17th century, although they maintain contact with mainstream Ruweng. They have six subclans. Part of Paweny is still in Ruweng State today and has three subclans: Buga e Bol, Tungdiak, and Palei.
External links
Ruweng People Association
Ethnic groups in South Sudan
{{SouthSudan-ethno-group-stub