The Sonjo (native name Batemi) (''Wasonjo'' in
Swahili
Swahili may refer to:
* Swahili language, a Bantu language official in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda and widely spoken in the African Great Lakes
* Swahili people, an ethnic group in East Africa
* Swahili culture
Swahili culture is the culture of ...
) are a
Bantu
Bantu may refer to:
*Bantu languages, constitute the largest sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages
*Bantu peoples, over 400 peoples of Africa speaking a Bantu language
* Bantu knots, a type of African hairstyle
*Black Association for National ...
ethnic group inhabiting some west of
Lake Natron in
Ngorongoro District of
Arusha Region,
Tanzania.
Overview
In 2002, the Sonjo population was estimated to number around 30,000 individuals (
Ethnologue
''Ethnologue: Languages of the World'' (stylized as ''Ethnoloɠue'') is an annual reference publication in print and online that provides statistics and other information on the living languages of the world. It is the world's most comprehensiv ...
).
The term ''Sonjo'' is the name given to the people by the
Maasai Maasai may refer to:
* Maasai people
*Maasai language
* Maasai mythology
* MAASAI (band)
See also
* Masai (disambiguation)
* Massai
Massai (also known as: Masai, Massey, Massi, Mah–sii, Massa, Wasse, Wassil or by the nickname "Big Foot" Mas ...
. Group members prefer to call themselves the ''Batemi'' people.
The Sonjo people speak
Sonjo, a
Bantu
Bantu may refer to:
*Bantu languages, constitute the largest sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages
*Bantu peoples, over 400 peoples of Africa speaking a Bantu language
* Bantu knots, a type of African hairstyle
*Black Association for National ...
language. They refer to it as ''Kitemi'' or ''Gitemi''.
The Sonjo are known for their use of irrigation systems in agriculture. They have consequently been linked by some historians with the
Engaruka complex, situated some 60 miles to the southeast. The Sonjo also maintain terraced village sites, albeit of considerably more rudimentary form than what is found at Engaruka.
Notes
References
* Gray, Robert F. 1963. ''The Sonjo People of Tanganyika: An Anthropological Study of an Irrigation-based Society''. London: Oxford University Press.
* Nurse, Derek &
Franz Rottland
Franz Rottland (December 4, 1934 in Gelsenkirchen – August 4, 2014) was a German linguist and Africanist.
His interests included the historical linguistics of Nilotic languages and Cushitic languages.
Biography
After receiving his doctorate on ...
1991. ‘Sonjo: Description, Classification, History’, ''Sprache und Geschichte in Afrika'', 12/13: 171-289.
* Nurse, Derek & Franz Rottland 1993. ‘A Linguists' View of the History of Sonjo and Engaruka’, ''Azania,'' 28: 1-5.
{{Authority control
Ethnic groups in Tanzania
Indigenous peoples of East Africa
Indigenous peoples of Arusha Region