SWAMPY TALES

It is termed Nkutu in the Bisa language.   The seasonal, temporal farming camp, where families trekked in search of fertile land for cassava cultivation.   This was necessitated by the overuse of land around villages, leaving it barren for any meaningful farming. Almost every capable person would go and encamp ku Nkutu, in distant places, leaving their villages almost vacant, for not less than three months.   Depending on where you secured fertile land, there would be a sizable number of families in Nkutu . The farming season was normally between November and March. We cultivated reasonably vast fields where we grew cassava and sweet potatoes before returning home.   Life here was a bit alien, especially when it came to the availability of my favourite fish.   We often fed on two main kinds of vegetables, katapa – cassava leaves or kalembula- sweet potato leaves. For many men from our village who were customary fishermen, living in such condit...

To tell their stories, individual biographies would be ideal. They made important contributions to the village economy. But, due to time and   the fact that no one can give adequate and in-depth details about their diverse social and other aspects of their well-lived lives today,   a mere glimpse in their role   as observed in my childhood might remind   compatriots of where we are coming from;   and jerk our dormant conscious   of how much we have neglected   our tourism package which is still covered in dust in the   archives. It will also serve to remind all the born-frees that there was life before us, which was enjoyed just as much. Hunter. Blacksmith. Carver. Tanner. Potter. Brewer. Weaver.   And other artists . Armateur Knives & Cooking Sticks from an urban market- Pic by Vincent Mwanda These are some of the unsung contemporary ‘industrialists’ and artists who contributed immensely to the village economy a...

                      Ministry of Education-Curriculum Development Center (CDC) Approved. CHAPTER 3 FIISA MU NSHIKU “Pilikiti, tanasha fikali. Kano male male.” Bushe mumfwa shani nga ifyo mulefawaisha ukucitika fyakokola? Bushe mulasuswa no kutendeka ukucita ifingalenga mwakana ukupokelela icalailwe? Umfweni ifyacitike mu Mfumu Chipangano. Kale, ubwina nama nabo bwaleteekwa nga abantu. Mu mushi mwa Kanabesa ba Chipangano mwali imitundu ya nama mpanga iyapusanapusana. Inama shonse shalepyunga imilimo yalekanalekana umo shalesangila utwakulya. Shimbi shalebombelela ukulingana nefyo imilimo yaliko yalefwaya ababomfi no bwishibilo baakwete. Kwali ne fibusa Kolyokolyo na Lufwinyemba, abalebombela pamo no kwakanya utobabombela.  Kolyokolyo no munankwe Lufwinyemba baileipusha incito ku Mfumu. Balefwaya bakabombeleko kwisano. Imfumu yakwete amabala ayengi, kanshi ne milimo yalesangwa ku balefwaya. Pa mbali ya mulaasa, imfumu ...

It was in the 80s. I was going to catch some fledglings with my cousin from one of the bird sanctuaries in the Bangweulu swamps. Fledglings made excellent relish because of their tender meat and great taste. You had nothing to throw away! It was “normal” for fishermen from nearby fishing camps to capture small birds from their nests from time to time to have some nutritional variety, as long as the “fools” from Department of National Parks and Wildlife were still asleep. Many times, we got away with hundreds of fledglings of different species for our own consumption and for sale to villagers when we returned to the village. Victims of flash floods wading through water  in Lunga. Pic by LDA On this particular eventful trip, on our way, a bird dropped its guano (pooped) on me. I exclaimed in disgust at the mess as I washed away the poop and wiped my face. To my surprise, my cousin who was twice older than me, advised me not to clean it up as that was a “sign of blessing...

Does it sound surprising whenever news of collapsing houses in Lunga hit headlines in various media? To some of us, this is no strange news at all. It is merely the fulfillment of what is anticipated. What is surprising is a reporter reporting a disaster of 268 ruined houses showing footage of firmly built fishing camps instead of distressed families or actual ruins. Everyone knows that islands are prone to flooding whenever you have rains above normal. Our seasons are predictable. We exactly know that we will have rainy season from November to March. We also know the conditions under which inhabitants of the islands live during this period. In other words, we anticipate an annual disaster in the same way we wait for Christmas. Also, everyone knows that the majority of people living on these islands are poor; who live below poverty datum line. This means that they cannot afford decent housing on their own and so live in huts that are easily washed away leaving them in distr...

Away from nets, another known and popular mass-fishing method has been in use around Bangweulu swamps for a very long time. Fish weirs; which are basically barricades. Construction of fish weirs, locally termed ‘ Ukucilika amaamba ,” ( ukucilika simply meaning barricading) is another ancient commercial and reliable fishing method used by many fishermen.  Fishers who use this method may not use other fishing gear such as seine or gill nets but rely heavily on their amaamba to catch as much fish as they need for their livelihood. In other words, they specialize in this form of fishing.  Though the method is not unique to Bangweulu, as it is used in many other countries such as India, it's the kind of ensnaring used that is different.   Usually, here, this method is used when water floods during the rainy season and later when it recedes after spawning period. You may find fish weirs in deep waters while others are constructed in shallow waters such as...

This post is a continuation of where we ended in 2019, giving you highlights of life in the Bangweulu Swamps, and Lunga in particular. We started talking about fishing, the mainstay of the people in the area and we resume to continue discussing some of the methods employed to earn a living. Let’s talk about the seine net. A seine net is of historical importance in the business of commercial fishing. It is said to be the fishing method employed by the fishermen that later turned fishers of men during the time of Jesus Christ. It is one of the mass-catch methods of old that is also used in the Bangweulu Swamps today. “Seines hold a special honor in the Bible. Of all the nets mentioned in the Bible, the seine is mentioned more than any other, a total of nine times. In the Old Testament, written in Hebrew, the word for seine was "Herem" while in the New Testament, written in Greek, the word was "Sagene" from which we probably get the English word seine .” ...