The Tetela people (or Batetela in the plural) are an ethnic group of the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

, most of whom speak the

Tetela language Tetela (Otetela, Kitetela, Kikitatela), also ''Sungu'', is a Bantu language of northern Kasai-Oriental Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is spoken by the Tetela people. Noun classes Like other Bantu languages, Tetela grammar ...

Description

The Batetela live in the region between

Lusambo Lusambo is a territory in and capital of Sankuru province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. The town lies north of the confluence of the Sankuru River and the Lubi River. Lusambo is served by Lusambo Airport. In 1890 Lusambo was chosen by Paul ...

and the Upper Congo River, in the provinces of

Sankuru Sankuru is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Sankuru, Kasaï-Oriental, and Lomami provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former Kasaï-Oriental province. San ...

and

Maniema Maniema is one of 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Kindu. Toponymy Henry Morton Stanley explored the area, calling it Manyema.Stanley, H.M., 1899, Through the Dark Continent, London: G. Newnes, Vol. One , ...

. They live by hunter gathering,

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

farming Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

and raising cassava, banana and kola nuts. They are related to the Kusu people, only separating from them in the late 1800s after the arrival of Arabs and Belgians in the region. Both the Batetela and the Kusu are subgroups of the larger Mongo people, Mongo group.Kisangani and Bobb 501 The name Motetela comes from a god named Motetela, meaning either "he who laughs not" or "he at whom one may not laugh." Like congolese Bantu groups, the Tetela have a large and colorful set of proverbs that are used for a wide variety of purposes, from rebuking to encouraging, usually by adults.

History

According to Emil Torday (who studied the tribes of the Congo between 1908 and 1909), the Batetela originated on the right bank of the Lomami River and migrated to their present territory at some unknown date. In 1869–70, some Tetela groups came into contact with Tippu Tip, an Arab slave trader from Zanzibar. Following this, the chieftain Gongo Lutete began working with Tip and the Arabs to lead the Batetela in slave raids against the Luba people in Kasai region, Kasai.Turner 587 In the Congo Arab war of 1892–1894, the Batetela fought for the Arabs, but later defected to the Belgians. Gongo Lutete was executed by the Belgians in 1893, however, and this caused the Batetela to revolt in 1895 in the first of the Batetela Rebellions. Successive uprisings followed, lasting until 1908.Renton, Seddon, and Zeilig 34 During the period immediately following independence, Patrice Lumumba, a Tetela, was a prominent politician and the first Prime Minister of the

before his assassination in 1961. In 1975, many Batetela were purged from the Military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, military.

Music

"Three types of drum are used by the Batetela, a Bantu tribe situated between the Lomami River and the Sankuru River in the Kasai Province of central Belgian Congo. The ngomo skin drum is used for dancing, usually accompanying the lukumbi, the six-toned slit drum. The ekuli, a small cylindrical two-toned drum, formerly used to signal victory in battle, is now used to call people to church and classes. The lukumbi is the most interesting and intricate of the three, and constitutes a highly developed poetic and musical art form as well as a means of communication".Gilbert, Dorothy R. 1955
The Lukumbi: a six-toned slit drum of the Batetela
African Music: Journal of the International Library of African Music, [S.l.], v. 1, n. 2. .

Notes

References

* * * * * {{authority control Tetela people, Ethnic groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Bantu peoples