|
| |
Dinka of Southern Sudan
Meet the Dinka
The Dinka are the largest tribal group in southern Sudan, numbering
around 3 million. Every visitor is struck by their physique: the Dinka are one of the
tallest peoples in the world and are extremely graceful.
Territory and tribal groups
The Dinka live in 250,000 square kms of savannah grassland that arches
around the swamps of the Upper Nile Basin.
The Dinka are split into about 20 smaller groups named according to their
homelands: the Agar, the Aliab, the Bor, the Renk and the Halual Dinka. Although each
group has its own elected chief, they wield influence rather than power and have no
tradition of violent punishments.
Cattle Farming
As for many other southern Sudanese people, the Dinka world centres
around their cattle. A man's wealth and status is judged by the size of his herd.
From the time a boy is 8 years old, it is his duty to look after the
herds. The older boys take care of the younger ones while they are away from home.
In the dry season, from December to April, the boys take the herds to
pastures near the river and then return to the villages in the rainy season when grass
grows abundantly nearby.
Because of the importance of cattle they are rarely killed for food,
although a bull may be slaughtered for a marriage celebration or other rituals.
Recognising cattle
Although the cattle are all taken to the grazing grounds together,
every boy knows exactly which ones are his. For the Dinka herdsman, every cow or bull is
an individual. He can tell them apart by
 the shape of
their horns
their colouring
body markings
the sound of their voices
different ways of moving
Here are some ways the Dinka use their cattle:
Cattle
represent wealth
bridal dowries
occasionally sold for cash
Hides
sold at market to
retailers
clothing and sandals
bedding
storage bags
Milk products:
milk
sour milk (like yoghurt)
butter
Dung:
dried and used as
fuel
smoke from dung fire wards off
malaria mosquitoes
Fishing and Hunting
While the herdsmen are away, other members of the village go fishing or
hunt wild game. Many animals such as wildebeest and gazelles migrate to the Nile basin
during the dry season, bringing them into the Dinka homelands.
This is the traditional time for hunting game because the animals have
finished breeding in the rainy season. Hunting only in the dry season thus preserves the
herds.
Role of women
Women and girls help with drying and smoking the meat and fish, they mend
the roofs of the huts and make wild game skins into loin cloths and sleeping mats. They
also tend the crops: planting time begins as soon as the rains come. The Dinka's main
crops are millet and sorghum.
Dinka diet
The Dinka diet is rich in protein, calcium and other essential minerals.
When the grain is harvested, it is ground into flour and made into thick porridge. This is
served with meat or fish stews and also with sour milk (a kind of yoghurt).
Sorghum grains can also be boiled in salty water until tender and then
eaten with butter. This dish is rich in iron.
Dinka Beliefs and Customs
The Dinka believe in a supreme God called 'Nialith', along with many
ancestral spirits which they honour.
Elders are treated with great respect because of their wisdom. They are
believed to have descended from the ancient priestly clans, and therefore lead all the
Dinka rituals.
What the future holds
The terrible long-running civil war in Sudan makes the future very
uncertain for the Dinka people and everyone else in Southern Sudan. Their traditional way
of life has been completely disrupted: villages have been razed to the ground, schools
forced to close and all trading has stopped. Thousands have been killed, others have had
to go into exile outside south Sudan. Dinka children have been taken as slaves by northern
Sudanese Arabs.
The Dinka can no longer access many of their traditional grazing areas.
The south, potentially very fertile and productive, can barely feed its own people.
There is urgent need for help from the international community to end the
war and allow people to get on with their lives.
Much of this information was prepared for CAFOD by Amelia Evans, a
Sudanese woman living in Britain.
Things to do
Use the information in this Fact Sheet "to analyse the social,
cultural, religious and ethnic diversity of a society studied" (from Key Stage 3
History: Range and dept of historical knowledge and understanding).
or
Use Sudan as a focus for the study of a developing country:
"Pupils should be taught about the physical and human features that give rise to the
country's distinctive characteristics and regional variety" (from Key Stage 3
Geography: Places)
Further Information:
The Dinka - Warriors of the White Nile by Time-Life books, USA
ISBN 7054 0700 4
|
Factsheets Index,
