The Kilukeni were members of the Lukeni
kanda or House of Kilukeni, the ruling dynasty of the
Kingdom of Kongo
The Kingdom of Kongo ( kg, Kongo dya Ntotila or ''Wene wa Kongo;'' pt, Reino do Congo) was a kingdom located in central Africa in present-day northern Angola, the western portion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Republic of the ...
from its inception in the late 14th century until the 1567 with the rise of the
House of Kwilu.
[Thornton, John: "Elite Women in the Kingdom of Kongo: Historical Perspectives on Women's Political Power", page 445. The Journal of African History, Vol. 47, 2006] The Kilukeni were springboard for most of the major factions that battled for control of Kongo during its
civil war
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...
.
Etymology
In
KiKongo the language of the kingdom of Kongo, the name of the kanda is ''Lukeni''. It is taken from the first name of the founder of the kingdom,
Lukeni lua Nimi.
Lukeni lua Nimi ruled around the 1390s before the throne was handed down to his cousins.
History
Beginning with the reign of
Nkuwu a Ntinu, a son of
Lukeni and the last non-Catholic
mwenekongo
The Manikongo, or Mwene Kongo, was the title of the ruler of the Kingdom of Kongo, a kingdom that existed from the 14th to the 19th centuries and consisted of land in present-day Angola, Gabon, the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Re ...
, the throne passed from father to son. Occasionally there were usurpations, but the crown stayed within the lineage of the founder until 1567 when a king from the region of
Nsi Kwilu,
Álvaro I ascended after the last of the Kilukeni died in battle against the
Anziku Kingdom.
References
See also
*
Kingdom of Kongo
The Kingdom of Kongo ( kg, Kongo dya Ntotila or ''Wene wa Kongo;'' pt, Reino do Congo) was a kingdom located in central Africa in present-day northern Angola, the western portion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Republic of the ...
*
Kimpanzu
The Kimpanzu were members of the Mpanzu kanda also known as the House of Kimpanzu, one of the lineages from which the kings of Kongo were chosen during the 17th century and following Kongo's reunification under Pedro IV. They are remembered in ...
*
Kinkanga
*
Kongo Civil War
*
List of rulers of Kongo
This is a list of the rulers of the Kingdom of Kongo known commonly as the Manikongos (KiKongo: Mwenekongo). Mwene (plural: Awene) in Kikongo meant a person holding authority, particularly judicial authority, derived from the root -wene which me ...
Manikongo of Kongo
{{africa-hist-stub