The Impact Of Inter-Ethnic Relations Between The Wanga And Their Neighbours Since The Nineteenth Century

ABSTRACT

The main concern of this study is the role played by the Wanga community in

influencing their neighbours since the nineteenth century. First is a survey of how the

Wanga state was formed. This state then had a political, economic and social

interaction with its neighbours namely the Bukusu, Luo of Ugenya and the Iteso. The

study seeks to resolve the roles of inter-ethnic relations and their influence on Wanga

state formation and secondly the external influences of the advent of the Arab/Swahili

and later British Imperialism. This had an impact on the rise of this state and on loss

of independence. The objectives of this study are: to trace and explain the origins of

the Wanga as a distinct community, discuss the nature of inter-ethnic relations

between the Wanga and their neighbours and explain how they influenced the Wanga

community in the nineteenth century. The study also analyses the influence of the

Arab/Swahili encounter and British intervention on the fortunes of the Wanga state

formation between 1868 and 1949.With the consolidation of colonial rule by ]920's

the position of the Wanga was challenged by the Bukusu, the Luo ofUgenya and the

Iteso who resented their rule. In terms of methodology, archival and oral sources were

made use of. Questionnaires and interviews were also administered among the

Wanga, Bukusu, Luo of Ugenya and the Iteso. I used a focus group discussion. The

study population comprised of twenty elders from the Wanga, Bukusu, Iteso and the

Luo of Ugenya, This involved both men and women. Purposive sampling technique

was used to select five Wanga, lteso, Bukusu and Luo ofUgenya elders. Thereafter, a

pilot study was carried out amoung two Luo of Ugenya, Bukusu and Iteso elders to

establish the reliability of data collection instruments. Materials in form of files at the

Kenya National Archives in Nairobi were perused and analysed on western and

Nyanza provinces. Oral interviews were undertaken among the Wanga, Bukusu, Luo

of Ugenya and the Iteso. The study is based on Bonventure Swai's theory of the

central leadership. According to Bonventure Swai, state formation in Eastern Africa

was very much related to trade. This encouraged large scale political organization.

Wealth created by this trade supported the central leadership. Davis and Moore

advance the functional theory where stratification reflects the social organization of a

society and would, therefore vary as a result of differences in social organizations.

The study is also based on the theory of structural - functionalism as advanced by

Johnson, Turner and Radcliffe. Johnson and Turner look at society as analogous to a

living organism which becomes more complex due to growth and multiplication of its

cells. In their view, society develops owing to the increase of its members. The

fmdings revealed that there was an impact of inter-ethnic incursions on the formation

of the Wanga kingdom as the Wanga related with the Bukusu, lteso and the Luo of

Ugenya. The Wanga hence never existed as a distinct community. As the Wanga

interacted, these contacts encapsulated economic, social, cultural and political spheres

of life.They tended to reinforce the development of a cultural identity. Land

darmacation policies by the colonial government in which the Wanga were given

lands that originaly belonged to the Luo became a bond of contention