Lenje people (also known as ''Bene Mukuni, Balenje, Balenge, Benimukuni, Ciina mukuna, Lenge, Lengi''
) is an ethnic group in Zambia. They are loosely bound with its spatial and cultural boundaries shifting, depending on whom you talk to. They live mainly in the
Central province but also in
Lusaka
Lusaka ( ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was abo ...
and
Copperbelt
The Copperbelt () is a natural region in Central Africa which sits on the border region between northern Zambia and the south eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. It is known for copper mining and is the second largest global reserve of copper, ...
province. It is not clear when they arrived to the area where they live today
but they are believed to be among the first people to come to Zambia from the Cameroon region. It has been claimed that they have been in the area at least since the 17th century. The Lenje chiefdom comprises one senior chief and seven subordinate chiefs and chiefdoms. They are about 240 000 - 310 000, and are related to the neighboring
Tonga people and have also been said to be related to the
Twa
The Twa, often referred to as Batwa or Mutwa (singular), are indigenous hunter-gatherer peoples of the Great Lakes Region in Central Africa, recognized as some of the earliest inhabitants of the area. Historically and academically, the term †...
(or ''Batwa, Awatwa'') of the
Lukanga Swamps.
Subsistence
Travellers who visited Lenje in the beginning of the 20th century writes that they were mainly farmers but hunting and fishing was also important.
[{{Cite book, last=Rosen, first=Eric von, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pDcNAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA30, title=Från kap till Alexandria: reseminnen från svenska Rhodesia-Kongo-expeditionen, date=1913, publisher=A. Bonniers, pages=30, language=sv] Present day Lenje are generally subsistence farmers growing maize during the rainy season and vegetables during the dry season, They burn charcoal as well as keep a few cattle, goats, chickens etc. Some, especially those closer to the edge of the Lukanga swamp, fish or are involved in fish trade.
References
Ethnic groups in Zambia