Hororo people

Hororo

Hororo / Bahororo

The Hororo or Bahororo are a Bantu ethnicity who live mainly in the north of the Kigezi District of south western Uganda border with Rwanda and Tanzania, and Kigezi highlands, south east of Lake Edward. The Bahororo are mainly found in Ntungamo and Rukungiri districts.

There are 151,566 Bahororo (2014 census) in Uganda.

 

Language

The Bahororo speak a dialect of Nkore-Kiga, Ruhororo, and are subdivided into clans most of which are common to both the Nkole and Kiga nations. The Bahororo language is similar to Runyankole spoken by Banyankole.

 

Origin and history

The Bahororo are a mixture of Bantu and Nilotic/Nilo-hamitic ethnic groups. The Bantu originated from central Africa during the 11 th century Bantu migration, while the Nilotic/Nilo-hamitic Bahororo are said to have originated from Ethiopia travelling southward and entering Uganda through South Sudan. Another legend says that the Nilotic/Nilo-hamitic Bahororo originated from South Sudan and moved southward to Uganda in the mid-15th century.
It's said that when the Nilotic/Nilo-hamitic Bahororo ancestors arrived in Uganda, they mixed with early Bantu settlers in Uganda and became part of the Chwezi Empire that existed in Uganda and central Africa in the 13th-15th centuries. When the Chwezi Empire disintegrated in the 15th century, its people, including Bahororo ancestors, spread out in East Africa and the Great Lakes Región.
The Bahororo ancestors who settled in Ankore (present-day Ankole) in Uganda became the Bahima while those that settled in Rwanda, Burundi, and Northern Tanzania became the Batutsi under the leadership of the Bashaambo clan. Eventually, different groups formed independent kingdoms. In the early 1600s, a war erupted between Busongora Kingdom that existed in South western Uganda, and the Kingdom in Rwanda. These two kingdoms shared boundaries. The war ended in the 1650s and both Busongora Kingdom and Rwanda Kingdom decided to form a new kingdom between them to act as a buffer. This new buffer kingdom was meant to avoid future conflicts between the two kingdoms (Busongora and Rwanda Kingdoms). The new buffer kingdom was called Mpororo Kingdom. It's from this kingdom that the ñame "Hororo" carne about. Some people from Busongora Kingdom moved to the new Mpororo Kingdom. It's these people who became the Bahororo.
In the 1750s Mpororo Kingdom disintegrated. Some Bahororo settled on the Uganda side in Rujumbura County in Rukungiri district and in Ntungamo district while others settled in Rwanda. Those who settled in Uganda became the Bahororo tribe and when they got incorporated into Ankole Kingdom, they became part of the Banyankole thus sharing their culture. In Rukunguri (Kigezi región) they co-existed/co-exist with the Bakiga.

 

Economy

The Bahororo are mainly pastoral people but also do agriculture. They keep cattle especially Long horned cattle, and also farm millet, sorghum, bananas, maize, and vegetables. Their staple food is Millet, Bananas and Milk. Millet is called "Kalo", Bananas - "Matooke", Milk - "Amate". From millet they make millet bread which they eat with "Eshabwe" (milk ghee), Milk, and "Enyama" (beef).

 

Dress code

The Bahororo dress code is: Kanzu (men) and Omwenda nane Kitambi (women). Omwenda nane Kitambi is a combination of a large scarf called "Omwenda" wrapped around the shoulders, and a skirt called "Kitambi".

 

Dances

The Bahororo dance is called "Ekitaaguriro" dance. The dance imitates the long horned cattle and the cattle's movements. In the dance, women and men raise their hands high above their heads and twist them in imitation of the cattle's horns. They do so while stumping lightly on the ground in imitation of the cattle's movement. Ekitaaguriro dance is a celebration dance inspired by their love for the Ankole long horned cattle. This dance is the same for all Banyankole.

 

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