$Unique_ID{COW00661} $Pretitle{283} $Title{Burundi Chapter 4. Population, Including Ethnic Groups and Languages} $Subtitle{} $Author{Gordon C. McDonald} $Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army} $Subject{tutsi hutu population burundi language social ch country percent family} $Date{1970} $Log{} Country: Burundi Book: Burundi, A Country Study Author: Gordon C. McDonald Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army Date: 1970 Chapter 4. Population, Including Ethnic Groups and Languages The most recent official census, taken in 1965, enumerated a population of 3,210,000 persons. Government estimates indicate a 1967 total of 3,340,000 based upon a yearly growth rate of between 2 and 2.5 percent. If this yearly increase is maintained, the population will reach 4,500,000 by 1980. Density for the entire country averaged 325 persons per square mile. Regions varied from 93 to 847 per square mile, making the country one of the most densely populated in Africa. The population is overwhelmingly rural, with small clusters of family groups dispersed throughout the hilly terrain. Approximately 46 percent of the people in the 1965 census were under 15 years of age, indicating a relatively young population. Another 46 percent were between 15 and 59, and only 8 percent were over 59 years of age. The African population of Burundi is composed of three distinct ethnic groups: the Hutu, who make up about 83 percent of the population; the Tutsi, 16 percent; and the Twa, less than 1 percent. Group memberships are somewhat indistinct since considerable intermixing has taken place between the dominant Tutsi minority and the Hutus. Social differentiation between the two groups is obvious in occupational distribution. The Tutsi minority fills most administrative positions and about 85 percent of all important Government posts. The Hutu are usually farmers and laborers, although a few have achieved administrative positions. Small numbers of Europeans and Asians, comprising less than 1 percent of the total population, also live in Bujumbura, the capital, or in commercial centers. The Europeans function mostly as missionaries, teachers, and administrators in business and Government; most Asians are traders, small businessmen, clerks or technicians. The national language is Rundi (Kirundi), a Bantu language closely related to Kinyarwanda, the language of neighboring Rwanda. Although minor regional variations and dialects are found among the three ethnic groups, Kirundi is generally understood throughout the country. French, which was introduced by the Belgian administrators and missionaries, is used in official documents, newspapers, and radio broadcasting. Swahili, the trade language used throughout East Africa, is spoken in trade centers, especially Bujumbura. Population trends have been greatly influenced by periodic famines, depletion of usable lands, and immigration and emigration. Jobs on plantations and in mines in Uganda and Tanzania have drawn workers out of Burundi; meanwhile, civil unrest in Rwanda and the Congo (Kinshasa) has driven refugees into this crowded country. Burundi's Five-Year Plan for the period 1968-72, by outlining programs designed to encourage greater food production, reflected governmental recognition of the problems of feeding a growing population in a nation where pressure on the land is already intense. Ethnic Group Characteristics Although there has been a great deal of intermixing, the three ethnic groups still differ somewhat in physical appearance and social position. Intermarriage, especially between Hutu and Tutsi, has blended physical traits and brought at least some reduction of intergroup conflict. The Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa share similar kinship structures, social values, and language throughout most of Burundi and her neighbor, Rwanda. They adhere to essentially the same religious beliefs, which include forms of animism, Christianity, and a combination of these beliefs (see Religion, ch. 5). As the Hutu and Tutsi cultures have become more interrelated, it has become difficult to determine in which ethnic group certain cultural features originated. Clan membership, still a strong cultural feature, probably began with the Tutsi, and the focus on cattle, which became the basis of the society, evolved from the Tutsi pastoral tradition. On the other hand, the common language, Kirundi, is the Bantu language of the Hutu. For several centuries the Tutsi have functioned as feudal lords, granting the use of cattle and land to Hutu cultivators in exchange for services and goods (see Historical Setting, ch. 2). As part of the agreement, the Tutsi provided their Hutu clients protection against other feudal lords. The client-sponsor agreement could be terminated by any time, but it was most likely to persist through many generations, passing to the male (patrilineal) descendants of deceased patrons and clients. This feudal relationship was the primary framework for a whole system of dominant-subordinate roles which has continued for several centuries (see Social Structure, ch. 5). The Tutsi and the Hutu have essentially the same kinship system, in which the smallest social unit is the local kin group of the male descent line, or umuryango, which includes all married male members of a family and their wives, plus unmarried male and female children. The largest kin group is the patriclan. Persons in this group recognize a common paternal descent line, but are unable to identify a specific ancestor, who may have been a mythical figure. In spite of their ancestral differences, both Tutsi and Hutu may belong to the same clan. Nine major clans are established in Burundi: the Abarunga, Abararo, Abasapfu (exclusively Tutsi), Abayogoma, Abahanza, Abarango (the royal families), Ababibe, Abenengwe, and Abanyakarama (see Historical Setting, ch. 2). A common way of intermixing ethnic groups has been the acquisition of Hutu concubines by Tutsi males. It was rare for a Hutu male to marry a Tutsi female, but when this occurred, the Hutu's social and political status was elevated. A substantial bride-price, usually in livestock, was generally required for a marriage. Local exogamy, or outgroup marriage, was most prevalent (see Family, ch. 5). The marriage system before the advent of Christian influence was polygamous. The Tutsi husband housed his wives on separate properties, but the Hutu spouse lived in his wives' hut. Biological paternity was considered important but not essential, since legal fatherhood was based on the acceptance of the child by the man. Divorce has always been commonplace and continues to occur frequently, although it has been discouraged by Christian missionaries, who have been active in Burundi since the end of the 19th century. The Hutu and Tutsi who have not been converted to Christianity share traditional animistic religious beliefs in which a powerful spirit called Imana is regarded as a creator. Although this dominant figure is frequently mentioned, there are no rites for his worship. The term Imana also refers to the force of good, a pervasive power which causes fecundity, prosperity, joy, and peace. Other central values of the society are a belief in inherited hierarchical positions of superiority or inferiority, the importance of intelligent judgment, and the benefits of luck. These are recognized as factors in gaining political power and wealth. Desirable qualities include respect and love for others, good manners, and the ability to attain and hold material possessions (see Social Values, ch. 5). Women and the earth are related symbols of fertility. There is great veneration for fecundity and for the soil as the Supreme Mother and the source of all food. The Hutu The Hutu, who make up most of the population of Burundi, are identified as part of the Rwanda cluster of the East African Lake Region Bantu tribes. All of this group, which includes the ethnic Bantu in Rwanda, parts of Tanzania, Uganda, and the Congo (Kinshasa), originally came into the area from the equatorial belt to the north. Average Hutu males are 5 feet, 5 inches tall and weigh 130 pounds. They are generally stocky, with muscular frames. Because of considerable intermixing with the Tutsi over the past four or five centuries, many Hutu have the lighter skin and more slender body structure of the Tutsi. Traditionally, they were hoe cultivators with little division of labor by sex. Their principal crops have included beans, peas, sorghum, cassava, maize, and bananas. Under Tutsi guidance they became adept at handling cattle and adopted the Tutsi's mystical attitude toward the herds (see Agriculture, ch. 9). Work is highly valued, and the ideal man is one who is hard working, prosperous, and proud of his reputation, although he may not hold an important position in the social structure (see Social Values, ch. 5). Before independence in 1962, the Hutu were the social inferiors of the Tutsi rulers and were forced to contribute agricultural produce and to perform numerous menial services for Tutsi overlords (see Social Structure, ch. 5). Since the political upheaval of the past decade, the Hutu have begun to take part in the social and political systems. They are still primarily agriculturalists, but a minority has been developing trades and skills and has taken over a few of the more significant positions in Government and commerce (see Political Dynamics and Values, ch. 6). The Tutsi The Tutsi are tall, slender, angular, relatively light-skinned Nilotic people. Their average height is 5 feet, 8 inches, and the average weight is 126 pounds. Some members of the court or certain royal dancers are more than 6 feet, 3 inches tall, but these individuals are from a specific, highly inbred clan and do not represent the average. The Tutsi have been pastoralists and warriors since their earliest known history. Since their arrival in the area 300 to 400 years ago, they have controlled the Burundi populace, composed of an elite minority of Tutsi lords and a majority of Hutu commoners in a sharply stratified society (see Social Structure, ch. 5). Control was based upon the hierarchical arrangement of Tutsi clans, in which marriage within the clan, endogamy, was customary. Power was passed down through patrilineal descent. The Tutsi undoubtedly had their own tribal language when they came to Burundi from the north, probably during the 17th century, but the succeeding generations adopted the Kirundi language of the Hutu (see Historical Setting, ch. 2, and Social Structure, ch. 5). The Twa The Twa are a pygmoid subgroup of the larger group of Twide pygmies, who are the first known inhabitants of eastern and central Africa. They closely resemble the pygmy, but are somewhat larger; the average male is 5 feet, 1 inch in height and weighs about 105 pounds. They have wide noses, tightly curled hair, and yellowish body hair. The Hutu and Tutsi treat them as inferiors and refer to them in various derogatory terms, allegedly because of what they regard as unacceptable dietary and hygienic customs. The Twa are by preference forest dwellers with a food-gathering and hunting economy. Centuries ago they retreated from the path of the agrarian Hutu who were systematically reducing the forest area. Generations later, after the Tutsi had achieved political, economic, and social dominance over the Hutu, the Twa settled near the courts of the Tutsi nobility and served as dancers, buffoons, guards, and concubines. Some still roam the surviving forests as hunters and gatherers; others have established themselves permanently near Hutu and Tutsi groups, where they work as potters and artisans. Language and Communications Kirundi, the major language, is spoken throughout the country. It is closely related to Kinyarwanda, the language of Rwanda. Both are important in the Bantu subgroup of the central branch of the Niger-Congo linguistic family, and speakers of the two constitute the third largest language group among all the Bantu languages. In contrast to other Bantu languages, which may be spoken by people scattered over a wide geographic area, Kirundi and Kinyarwanda speakers are found only in the relatively small Hutu and Tutsi tribal areas which have now become the nations of Burundi and Rwanda. Both languages are filled with complexities. In Kirundi, the difficulties arise primarily from unique pronunciations and from combinations of prefixes, roots, and stems which are used to make up the numerous and highly diverse verb forms. All verbs fall into one of two tone classes, distinguishable according to the presence or absence of a high tone. There are endless variations by which the tonal system can change the meaning of words. In contrast, spelling in Kirundi is relatively easy because sounds are distinctive and patterns are consistent. There are five vowels, a, e, i, o, u, which may be of either long or short duration. As in most Bantu languages, consonants occur at the beginning of a syllable, never at the end. Many words begin with vowels, and every word ends with a vowel. All Burundi speak Kirundi, but there are dialectical and regional variations. The forms spoken by the Tutsi and Hutu are very similar, whereas the variation used by the Twa has more obvious peculiarities. Kirundi is rich in vocabulary used to explain the ancient traditions. Children and cattle were important traditional focal points of the society. The mystical importance of cattle is illustrated by the presence in the language of a large number of words related to cattle culture and bovine traits and virtues. Metaphors and symbols are drawn from pastoralist activities (see Artistic and Intellectual Expression, ch. 7). Technical and scientific terms are scarce in this traditional pastoralist language. French, introduced by early colonial officials and missionaries, is taught in the secondary schools, used in the sciences, and accepted in Government as a second official language of the country. The use of Swahili, a trade language, is growing in cities and markets as a means of communicating across language families. Population Structure Most population statistics for Burundi are informed estimates based upon data from official Government publications, United Nations documents, Belgian administrative figures, and missionary reports. Demographic Inquiry, a 1965 census by the Burundi Government, indicated a population totaling 3,210,000. No official analysis of fertility, fecundity, or mortality rates was included in the 1965 census report. Unofficial sources suggest an annual rate of approximately 46 births per 1,000 persons during the past 15 years. United Nations figures for 1964 tend to correlate with this estimate, indicating that about 147,920 babies were born in Burundi during that year. Partly because of a reluctance among the Burundi to record or admit infant deaths, useful infant mortality statistics are not available. Miscarriage and stillbirth rates are thought to be high, but rates cannot be accurately determined. One estimate suggests that the infant mortality rate-the death rate of children under 1 year old-was as high as 150 per 1,000 live births in 1965. Annual mortality rates were reported to be approximately 25 per 1,000 per year in the 1950s, with a trend toward a lower rate. Registration of deaths is usually low, but there may be a small reduction in the rate due to moderate improvements in health and sanitation facilities. Longevity estimates, based upon official Burundi statistics and United Nations figures, suggest that life expectancy at birth is 35 for males and 38.5 for females. A study of marriage in the year 1960 indicated that the mean age at the time of formal marriage in the general population was 22.9 years for males and 22.1 years for females. There were approximately 104 married women per 100 married men, indicating the existence of a limited number of plural marriages. Approximately half of all women over 45 years of age had been widowed or divorced. The average number of members in a nuclear family varied from 3.7 in certain settlements which had some village characteristics to 6.6 per family in the more typical outlying, separate dwellings of the farmers who live on the land they farm and who have no significant community relationships outside the family. The illiteracy rate is high. In 1966 an estimated 68 percent of the people in the few existing villages or commercial centers and 96 percent in the outlying areas were unable to read or write. About 5 percent of the population was attending educational institutions in 1966; approximately 147,000 students were in primary schools and 4,000 in secondary schools. Population Distribution The average population density in 1969 was approximately 325 per square mile, which is relatively high by comparison with most of Africa. Density varied from 847 persons per square mile in some areas to 93 in others. Inhabitants generally settle in family groupings. Villages, with their sense of community and exchange of services and goods, are not an important part of the settlement pattern in Burundi. Some organized communities exist, but most people have had no experience of interrelationships other than family ties and feel no desire for more communal exchanges. Each family constructs a separate dwelling encompassed by a fence (rugo). Within the fence there are fig trees, a banana grove, and fields of produce (itongo) planted for the family's subsistence. The dwellings are normally atop the hillock (ichanyo) on which the various families have their land. There are concentrations of people near some Christian mission stations, but these have not developed into organized communities (see Social Structure, ch. 5). In 1960 the Government divided the entire country into administrative communes or municipalities. Adjoining communes make up districts, which in turn comprise the eight provinces of the Republic. The governmental boundaries have little significance for the inhabitants, who do not generally regard themselves as belonging to any system other than the family. Regional comparisons show an uneven population distribution, with the highest density being in the northwest and central areas. A large portion of the population lives in the central plateau regions near Gitega, Ngozi, and Muramvya, between 5,000 and 7,000 feet above sea level. This completely deforested central area is exceptional for its preponderance of cattle-raising Tutsi; the Hutu are in the majority in all other areas. High population densities are also found near Makamba in the south-central portion of the country and at Kigwena in the southwest, on the shores of Lake Tanganyika. In 1965 the central Province of Ngozi had the largest population of the eight provinces-approximately 750,000 people, averaging 622 per square mile. Bujumbura, on the western border, is the only major city and is the focal point of another high-density area. Lowest densities occur in areas below 4,900 feet, where the climate is hot and humid and the incidence of human and animal disease is greater than at higher altitudes. These low altitudes tend to be in the eastern and western border areas; thus, concentrations of people are relatively lower in the southeastern corner of the country where forest still covers much of the land, in the swampy east-central border area, and at the lower altitudes of the Rift Valley north of Bujumbura. The density is also relatively low in the southern regions where rainfall is low and farmland is less productive than in the central highlands. There are no accurate statistics on immigration. Estimates prepared after the civil disturbances of the early 1960s in Rwanda suggest that between 20,000 and 40,000 Rwandese immigrants settled in Burundi. In 1963 and 1964 at least 5,000 Congolese refugees entered the country and possibly took up residence. Periodic internal movements, such as the travels of nomadic cattle herders in the central region of Bunyambo, have been a factor for centuries in the continuing mixing of Tutsi and Hutu groups. The search for grass brought the pastoralists into contact with settled agriculturalists and fostered intermarriage. In the Demographic Inquiry of 1965, the urban population was listed at only 71,000 out of a total of 3,210,000, indicating that only Bujumbura, the capital, was officially regarded as an urban center. Several thousand people live in the enlarged but non-urban settlements of the Gitega-Muramvya-Giheta area, which is the ancient seat of the Bami, or rulers, located in the central highlands. The area has a few urban facilities, such as a small airfield, a radio station, and a museum of traditional art. Several province capitals function as both administrative and trade centers and therefore have become expanded settlements. Small agricultural market centers have become more important throughout much of the country during the last 10 years, but have not developed into organized towns. In 1969 the population remained almost entirely rural. Bujumbura is the major port on Lake Tanganyika and the only major transportation and trade center in Burundi. It has an international airfield, a radio station, hotels, restaurants, sports facilities, and a university just starting. As the center of Government and commerce, it has attracted a variety of people. Most of the Europeans and Asians in Burundi live here, and there are workers, traders, and refugees from the Congo (Kinshasa) and several other African countries.