Mnyampala notes that life for the Wagogo changed significantly with the coming of colonialism. Even naming is significant. Prior to colonialism, the inhabitants of Ugogo still primarily identified by clan; to speak of the Wagogo as a tribe was an artefact of colonial organisation and labelling. Aside from being drawn into European conflict […]
Continuing in our series on Mnyamapala’s The Gogo: History, Traditions and Customs, which was written in 1954 about the region where we now live… The Wagogo were not an ethnically pure tribe: there were the original Bantu migrants but lots of other people passed through Ugogo region for trade. On […]
I mentioned in my brief timeline of the Ugogo region, that Mnyampala’s The Gogo: History, Customs and Traditions was commissioned by the colonial authorities. The introductory essay explains that the colonists were worried about the rise of nationalism, which could potentially throw them out, and so they commissioned studies like […]
Ugogo is the region of Tanzania that Dodoma is in – basically, it’s the middle bit. The people of Ugogo are called Wagogo (plural); one person is an mgogo. Recently I’ve read an English translation of Mathias E Mnyampala’s The Gogo: History, Customs and Traditions written in 1954. While much of […]
Francis Spufford’s Unapologetic is a defence of the emotionality of Christianity. He’s not trying to convince you why Christianity is rational, but why it is beautiful. In line with his aim, Spufford’s writing is lyrical and a bit rambly. You might find yourself thinking ‘just get to the point’ if […]
Motherhood as Spiritual Practice is the second in Seedbed‘s ‘Spirituality for the Streets’ series. This short collection of reflections took me less than an hour to read and I take it that’s intentional – it’s aimed at the busy mum. The premise of the book is that on top of […]
In The Woodlands, we’re introduced to Rosa who lives in a world dominated by ‘The Superiors’ who apparently rule her world in an effort to ‘correct our faults’ after Rosa’s people lost a war. The Superiors are obsessed with race and have implemented some sort of program of cross-breeding to […]
Meet Jesus at uni 