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The Shambaa people, also called the Sambaa, Shambala, Sambala or Sambara (''Wasambaa'' in Swahili), 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. Their ancestral home is on the
Usambara Mountains The Usambara Mountains of northeastern Tanzania in tropical East Africa, comprise the easternmost ranges of the Eastern Arc Mountains. The ranges of approximately long and about half that wide, are situated in the Lushoto District of the Tan ...
of Lushoto District, Bumbuli District. They are native to the valleys and eastern Usambara Mountains of Korogwe District, Korogwe Urban District and western
Muheza District Muheza is one of eleven administrative districts of Tanga Region in Tanzania. The District covers an area of . It is bordered to the north by Mkinga District, to the east by Tanga and the Indian Ocean, to the south by the Pangani District and ...
of northern
Tanga Region Tanga Region (''Mkoa wa Tanga'' in Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The region covers an area of . The region is comparable in size to the combined land area of the nation state of Burundi. The regional capital is the mu ...
of
Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
.Katariina Vainio-Mattila (2000)
Wild vegetables used by the Sambaa in the Usambara Mountains, NE Tanzania
Annales Botanici Fennici, Vol. 37, No. 1 (2000), pages 57-67 The word ''Shamba'' means "farm", and these people live in one of the most fertile Tanzanian region. In 2001, the Shambaa population was estimated to number 664,000.


Language

The Shambaa people speak the ''Shambala'' language, also known as Kisambaa, Kishambaa, Kishambala, Sambaa, Sambala, Sambara, Schambala, Shambaa. ''Kishambaa'' is the Sambaa word for the
Shambala language Shambala or Shambaa is a Bantu language of Tanzania. Overview Shambala, also Kishambala, (ki)Sambaa, (ki)Shambaa is spoken by the Shambaa in the Usambara mountains in the Lushoto District and Muheza District, Tanga Region, of northern Tanzania ...
, ''Wasambaa'' are the people (''Msambaa'' for a person), and ''Usambaa'' or ''Usambara'' is used for Sambaa lands. The Shambaa call their lands ''Shambalai''. They are related to the Bondei and Zigua people, and the Shambala language is mutually intelligible with
Bondei The Bondei People ( Swahili: ''Wabondei'') are a Bantu ethnic group based in Pangani District in east Tanga Region in northeastern Tanzania. Bondei speak a Bantu language and are related to the Shambaa ethnic group.. The name "Bondei" was given ...
and Zigua, with the three groups sharing significant overlap in territory and a long history of intermarriage. The similarity between them has prompted some to refer to themselves as "Boshazi" (the first syllable from each of the three groups). Sambaa belongs to the North East Coastal Bantu languages. This is a group which includes Swahili; however, Swahili is not mutually intelligible with Sambaa.


History

The WaSambaa were ruled by the
Kilindi dynasty The Kilindi dynasty is a pre-colonial, Tanzanian royal family that has reigned over the Shambaa people of north-west Tanga Region for most of the 18th to 20th centuries In modern-day Lushoto District and Bumbuli District. The dynasty was founded ...
from the mid-18th century to the end of the 19th century. The founder of the dynasty was
Mbegha Mbegha was the first "Lion King" (Shambala language: ''Simba Mwene'') of the Shambaa people, modern-day Northeastern Tanzania, who lived during the first half of the 18th century. While his existence is undisputed among historians, his biography i ...
, and his son Bughe established the hilltop capital at Vuga. The kingdom reached its greatest extent under
Kimweri ye Nyumbai Kimweri ye Nyumbai (or Shekulwavu) (died 1862) was the King of the Shambaa people of the Usambara Mountains in what is now Tanga Region of Tanzania between around 1815 and 1862. Under his rule the kingdom reached its greatest extent. However, di ...
. After he died in 1862 a civil war broke out over the succession, fueled by competition for the new wealth that the caravan trade in the Pangani valley had brought to the region. Smallpox and slave trading contributed to the disintegration of the kingdom, and in 1898 a fire destroyed Vuga. The Germans took control. Under colonial rule the dynasty continued to have some authority, but in 1962 the Tanzanian government removed all power from the hereditary chiefdoms. Kimweri ye Nyumbai's descendant
Kimweri Mputa Magogo Kimweri Mputa Magogo (1914 – 20 September 2000) was the last king of the Shambaa people of the Usambara Mountains in Tanga Region of Tanzania. He was the last of the Kilindi dynasty to be recognized as having authority, which was removed in ...
(died 2000) was the last Lion King. The
Usambara The Usambara Mountains of northeastern Tanzania in tropical East Africa, comprise the easternmost ranges of the Eastern Arc Mountains. The ranges of approximately long and about half that wide, are situated in the Lushoto District of the Tanga ...
area was the early colonial headquarters for German East Africa during the hot season. Tanganyika, the name for the German colony, and later for the republic and eventually for the mainland portion of Tanzania is itself from Sambaa: ''Tanga'' means farmed land, and ''nyika'' is brushy land.


References


Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shambaa People Ethnic groups in Tanzania Indigenous peoples of East Africa People from Tanga Region