Gciriku is a traditional Kavango kingdom in what is today

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

. Its people speak the

Gciriku language Gciriku or Dciriku (Also Diriku, Dirico, Manyo or Rumanyo), is a Bantu language spoken by 305,000 people along the Okavango River in Namibia, Botswana and Angola. 24,000 people speak Gciriku in Angola, according to Ethnologue. It was first know ...

. The Gciriku (Rugciriku: ''vaGciriku'') are one of the many ethnic groups in Namibia with an estimated population of 20 000. The Gciriku mainly live in

Ndiyona Constituency Ndiyona is a constituency in the Kavango East region of Namibia. The district centre is the settlement of Ndiyona. It had a population of 20,633 in 2011, up from 19,565 in 2001. the constituency had 6,210 registered voters. Ndiyona constituenc ...

Kavango East Kavango East is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia. Its capital is Rundu, its governor is Bonifatius Wakudumo. The Region was created in 2013 when the Kavango Region was split into Kavango East and Kavango West. The only self-governed settle ...

. A small number of Gciriku live in the southern part of Angola. Their language,

Rumanyo Gciriku or Dciriku (Also Diriku, Dirico, Manyo or Rumanyo), is a Bantu language spoken by 305,000 people along the Okavango River in Namibia, Botswana and Angola. 24,000 people speak Gciriku in Angola, according to Ethnologue. It was first known ...

(previously known under the name Rugciriku), is also a Bantu language, spoken in the Ndiyona constituency and in

Rundu Rundu is the capital and largest city of the Kavango-East Region in northern Namibia. It lies on the border with Angola on the banks of the Kavango River about above sea level. Rundu's population is growing rapidly. The 2001 census counted 36,9 ...

Origins

The Gciriku are part of the Kavango migration group that originated in the parts of central Africa and the Great Lakes. In the early 1900s, the Gciriku became the first tribal group in the Kavango area to accept European missionaries. The Missionaries were given land and settled in an area now known as Nyangana (Kangweru) - Mamono.

Royal rulers

Hompa

Nyangana Nyangana is a village in the Ndiyona Constituency in Kavango East Region of north-eastern Namibia, situated east of Rundu. The Roman Catholic mission of Nyangana is located in the village. History The settlement is named after Nyangana, king ...

(1874-1924) was a fierce critic of all European influence, and particularly that of missionaries. Six Catholic mission journeys into the Kavango ended unsuccessful during his reign. Only after the seventh journey did missionary and later Archbishop

Joseph Gotthardt Joseph Gotthardt (16 December 1880 – 3 August 1963) was a Catholic missionary and later Bishop and Archbishop in South-West Africa (today Namibia). He was the first to set up missions in the Kavango Region and in Ovamboland, became the first V ...

manage to establish a mission station at

in 1910 and at

Andara Andara is a village in Mukwe Constituency in the Kavango East region of north-eastern Namibia. Located east of Rundu, it is inhabited primarily by the Hambukushu people. Founding of the Catholic mission Catholic fathers of the organization Mi ...

in 1913, using the severely weakened position of the King after the VaGciriku-Lishora Massacre of 1894.

Language

The VaGciriku speak a language called Rugciriku. The language is also part of the school curriculum and the subject is called Rumanyo. Most people refer to the language as Rugciriku rwaMuduva (Muduva's Rugciriku). The language has a few clicking but it is not similar to the San language.

Rugciriku phrases

*Muntu mudona - A human is evil. *Wash tuka oko ghuna kutunda, tuka oko ghuna kuyenda - Always be humble.

References

Rundu / Kavango in Namibia - Travel Information and Accommodation

History of Namibia Kavango East {{Namibia-stub