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OTHER NAMES: Lualua, Balualwa, Balualua,
Walwalwa, Lwalu, Baluolo, Balwalwa, Balolo, Daluwaluwa. LOCATION:
lat 7°-7°35' S, long 21°30'-22°30' E.
TERRAIN: Grasslands with interspersed
savanna, fertile soil, rolling hills, sparse forest. Altitude 400-600
m. RIVERS: Kasai, Lueta, Kapalekese.
CLUSTER: Mpasuized Kete. Murdock:
not mentioned. POPULATION: 20,000 ±. PRINCIPAL TOWNS: Kazumba, Lueta,
Mukwenda, Luambo. LANGUAGES: Bulwalwa, Kilwalwa. Guthrie (1971), L20
Lwalwa. Lingua franca: Kiluba.
RELEVANT PEOPLES: Salampasu, Mbal,
Mbagani, Lunda, Dinga, Kete, Boie, Tshokwe, Twa.
Sociopolitical organisation:
Though all descent is matrilineal, young Lwalwa live with their fathers,
and upon the father's death go to live with the patrilineal uncle.
The villages are long and narrow, with the hereditary chief, male
or female dina did bukalenga, and his nobles in the central portion.
Status within the village is determined by hunting prowess. The village
is composed of matriclans and their leaders who report to the village
chief; he is assisted by a council of specialized appointed elders
representing the older clans. There is no paramount chief, and clans
do not have unity outside of neighboring villages. Instead the strongest
chiefs meet to make important decisions. HISTORY: Before 1600 the
Lwalwa, who are probably of Kete origin, were subdivided into small
matrilmeal chiefdoms. In the 17th c. the Lunda created ties with the
Luba that included the Lwalwa. The Lwalu are a Dinga-influenced Lwalwa
subgroup. The Lwalwa, at one time under Salampasu domination, have
been influenced by the Lunda, but do not pay tribute or accept the
Lunda chiefs as overseers. In fact, the Lwalwu Jre united with the
Mbagani, Salampasu, and Kete. They were cut off from trade routes
by the Kasai and the Lueta rivers. They have linguistic ties to the
Yaka, Suku, and Kongo. They have also incorporated some Luba and Songye
elements due to contacts in the 19th c.
Economy:
Among the Lwalwa, all agriculture is women's work except the harvest
which is communal. The men raise dogs for the hunt, chickens, and
goats. The hunt is crucial to the Lwalwa males and involves specialized
charms. Hunting can be solitary, but big communal hunts are organized
seasonally. The Lwalwa land is very fertile, and they are very good
at both fanning and hunting. Sculpting is a very prestigious occupation
that is often passed from father to son.
Religion:
The Lwalwa believe in the supreme being, Mvidie Mukulu, and Nzambi,
the first creator, who is omniscient. They have initiation ceremonies
for males and females. The Lwalwa believe everything has a spirit
mukishi that can be offended. They make offerings to a variety of
nature spirits to whom shrines are erected. They have an esoteric
society munienga. There is an ancestor cult limited to those recently
deceased bafue. Diviners use rubbing oracles kashita to seek out witches
and give advice.
Sculpture:
The main works of the Lwalwa are their wooden masks; there are four
main types, usually painted with the red sap of the mukala fruit,
ooccasionally blackened by smoke or dyes. They are all used in the
bangongo dance to quiet the spirits, increase hunting success, and
initiate bangongo society dancers. They sometimes perform at funerals
of high ranking dignitaries. They are danced only at night, so as
not to harm women. Nkaki is a male mask with a pointed nose tapering
to the top of the forehead that sometimes becomes a crest on the head
(1). Shifola is another male mask with a short round nose (2) and
a protruding forehead. Mushika (3) is a female mask with a crest across
the top of the head, nose slightly pointed to mid-forehead (3). Mvondo
is a male mask, also with a long nose, but not as long as nkaki, and
slightly pointed to mid-forehead (4). The Lwalu substyle includes
masks in wood decorated with copper in the form of tacks or plates
(5), which are closely related to the copper masks of their Ding neighbors.
Statues are rare; one pair of figures known probably represents lineage
ancestors (6), as with their Ding neighbors. Female statues are used
in fertility rites within the female secret society (7). Rubbing oracles
kashita (8), used by diviners, are similar to the ones of the Lunda
world.
Art
style:
Lwalwa sculpture is easy to recognize by the elongation of their deep
facial masks carved in medium heavy wood, mulela, with prominent noses,
red or brown coloring, narrow rectangular eyes, protruding mouth with
a small hole  between
mouth and nose, keloids between ear and eyes, and long pointed chin,
creating an overall sense of concavity. Figures have the same facial
traits on roundish elongated bodies,
usually colored red.
Enlarge this picture
Bibliography:
Denolf, P. Aan de rand van de Dihese, Brussels 1954; Pruitt, W. "An
independant people: A history of the Salampassu of Zaire and Their
Neighbours," Ph.d. diss. Northwestern University, 1973; Timmennans,
P.
"Les Lwalwa," A. T. 13, 1967.
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