The Kumam People of Uganda | Culture & History
The Kumam also referred to as the Nile Hamites living in the western areas of Teso and southern areas of Lango. In Teso,they are spread in Kaberamaido, Soroti and Serere, all these are neighboring the shores of Lake Kyoga. While in Lango you find them in Kioga.
The Kumam belong to the Atekerin family, together with the Langi,Itesots and Karamojongs.
The Kumam are also traced in other regions of the country, forexample; Busoga, Tororo and Buganda mainly. They speak the Luo dialect though their language is not Luo, they speak Kumam.
ORIGIN
The Kumam are said to have come from the North-eastern direction of Ethiopia in the 1600AD. It is said that they used to speak the Ateso language until they came to contact with the Luo speaking people from around Mt.Otukei and Wila in the Karamoja region. Since then, they abandoned the Ateso speech and took on the Luo speech. They also claim Leno to be their former name they owned. This is evident in their phrases in speech like Pale lango (home), Yat Lango (medicine), Yo Lango (path).
The Kumam have very similar characteristics with the itesoits and the Lango. They include; respect to birth rituals, hunting practices, early fishing, agriculture.
The karamojongs use the same word Kumama when referring to the Itesots, the Langi and the kumam.
The Kumam derived from the word Akum also to mean the former district of teso who were the Itesots and Langi.
The Kumam also referred to as IKOKOLEMO. The word IKOKU is an Iteso word meaning CHILD while ELEMO is a Luo word meaning HEADDRESS. The Kumam are as a result of Luo and Atekerin possibly by their intermarriages between the Luo and Ateker speaking people.
As the Luo settled in Northern Uganda, they came into contact with the Atekerin people who were also at the same time moving from North Easter and founded settlement in North East and infact they speak both Luo and Ateker.
SOCIAL SET-UP
The Kumam had both the Langi and Iteso cultures but they were closer to the iteso culture than the Langi just because the Langi were so much subjected to the Luo influence that they lost most of their original influence.
POLITICAL SET-UP
The Kumam political structure was on clan basis. And from the clans they elected clan leaders who represented all. They were called WEGI ATEKERIN. They leaders of groups like; the dancing groups also called WEGI IKODETA, the Asonya homes also called the WEGI CEL, the DOGOLAN or ODONGE IKEKOROS meant heads of one part of a clan descending from one man.
The Clan heads were in charge of monitoring law and order and general administrations.
