The Bagwe people are a

Bantu Bantu may refer to: *Bantu languages, constitute the largest sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages *Bantu peoples, over 400 peoples of Africa speaking a Bantu language * Bantu knots, a type of African hairstyle *Black Association for National ...

ethnolinguistic group that live mostly in Southeastern

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

(particularly Samia-Bugwe County in

Busia District Busia District is a district in the Eastern region of Uganda. Location Busia District borders Tororo District to the north, Busia County, Kenya to the east, Namayingo District to the south, and to the south-west, and Bugiri District to the wes ...

) with a few scattered in Western

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

. They are composed of several clans and their ancient economic activities include fishing (''owunaabi'') in

Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropics, tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface are ...

and other rivers, crop farming (''owulimi''), and animal farming (''owutuki''). They were recognised in the 1995 Ugandan Constitution as one of the 56 identified tribes of Uganda. At the time of the 2014 Census, 99,884 respondents identified as Bagwe. The Bagwe speak Lugwe.

Political setup

The political setup of Bagwe was loose and segmentary. They did not have chieftainships. Every village was under the jurisdiction of an elder called the ''Nalundiho'' who was also a rainmaker. He administered law and order and he was responsible for settlement of disputes and he was the most influential person in the village and his position was hereditary

Marriage

Marriage has of recent changed but during the old times, if the parents of the boy and the girl were friendly, they could arrange the marriage without the boy and the girl being actively involved but cases of this nature were rare. The usual method was that the boy would seduce the girl first and the girl was not to show concrete response even though she was interested. Thereafter the boy would come with a spear and plant it in front of the hut of the girl's mother and if the girl had consented to marriage, she would remove the spear and take it inside the mother's hut. thereafter bride wealth negotiations would start. There was no fixed bride wealth for each girl one was charged according to their status. Upon payment of the bride wealth further arrangements were made to take the girl to her husband.

References

{{authority control Bantu peoples Ethnic groups in Uganda