Culture of the Democratic republic of Congo

The culture of the Democratic republic of Congo reflects the diversity of the hundreds of ethnicities living the country and their habits. The mouths of the river (Low-Congo) succeed a dense forest in the basin of the river Congo (provinces Orientale and Ecuador), and a savanna on the plates of the center (Kasaï), the area densément populated country apart from the agglomeration of Kinshasa. Since the end of the 19th century, the traditional lifestyles were modified following the Colonisation, the fights for independence, the seizure on the country by Mobutu Sese Seko, and more recently the Première and Second War of Congo. In spite of these influences, habits and culture of Congo guards. The few 60 million inhabitants lives essentially in the rural regions. Approximately 30% of the inhabitants live however in the great over-populated agglomerations of which Kinshasa (7,5 million inhabitants), Mbuji-Mayi (3 million), Lubumbashi (1,5 million) and Kananga (1,2 million), or seaboard towns of Boma and Matadi, more opened with the foreign influences.

People, language, culture

As for other African countries, the borders of the country were traced by the colonizer, without particular concern to coincide with the ethnic borders. One distinguishes some 250 Langue S spoken in the country, and a number undoubtedly are equivalent of ethnicities. It is generally considered that there exist four ethnic big families:

the Pygmy S, first inhabitants of Congo, generally hunters-gatherers in Equatorial forest. Accustomed to a life in full nature, they generally trade the product of their hunting with the other tribes against products of agriculture. They are implied more and more in the Congolese company, loser some their particularisms;
the Bantou S, arrived at Congo by successive waves between -2000 and 500, coming from southernmost Nigeria. They are the most important group by far, and are for the majority of the farmers. One finds them in all the country, and three their languages on four have the statute of National language country. It is of the Lingala, the Tchiluba and the Kikongo. The kikongo is spoken by the Bakongo S, in the west of the country, in the province of the Low-Congo and the south of the Bandundu. He was encouraged by the colonial administration like Common language. One finds traces of the kikongo at the American descendants resulting from the slave system. For example in the language Gullah of the South Carolina which contains various elements kikongo. The kikongo in the beginning was spoken in the capital Kinshasa, but it was supplanted by the Lingala, was spoken throughout the middle price about the river Congo and its affluents. It is also the language traditionally used in the army, like in the traditional popular music (Papa Wemba, Kofi Olomide, Werrason, Ray Lema…) whose production is centered in Kinshasa. The Tchiluba (or chiluba or Luba-Kasai ) is spoken in the area about the Kasaï.
the East-African brought the fourth national language, the Kingwana - a local dialect of the Kiswahili. The fifth language, the French, has the statute of official language, used in particular for all the official communications and generally with the writing. The East-African ones are related to the bantous, but practice more readily the breeding. They arrived at Congo of various territories (Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and Tanzania), occasions and times, and the tensions with the bantous with appeared many times, in particular during the recent conflicts.
Hamites, originating in the Darfur in the south Sudan and in Ethiopia, traditionally cattle breeders. They include the Tutsi S, with the particularly important size. Hamites also emigrated with the Rwanda and the Burundi at the same time. Often mixed with East-African, one finds them in the east and the North-East of the country, and generally developed a culture and more developed military organization.

It is a simplified sight. Many Congolese is multilingual (local native tongue, one or more national languages, French), and the languages are used preferentially according to the context. French is the language used by the administration, the national languages are generally used for the trade, and the local language in the private life. Practically not spoken in the west, English increases however in importance in the east. The president Joseph Kabila itself would control English best that French.

The mixed marriages are current, in particular in urban areas where the communities côtoient themselves. Europeans focus themselves primarily in the big cities (primarily Kinshasa and Lubumbashi), generally working in the trade and humane work. Missionaries officiate in the campaigns. Certain communities, whose for example the Greek Lebanon board (Kinshasa), (Lubumbashi) or the Pakistan boards, established since tens of years, maintained their activities in spite of the sudden starts of the country, and control a big part of the economy.

Other information appears in the article Congo précolonial.

Attitudes and character -->

Religions and beliefs

The principal religions of the DRC are:

traditional indigenous Beliefs: 11,5%
Roman Catholicism: 41%
Protestantism: 32%
indigenous Christianity: 13,5%, whose the majority (13%) are kimbanguists.
Other Christian Churches: 1%
Islam: 1,5%

There are also small Jewish communities and hindouists in the great urban centres. The Athéisme is rare.

Traditional religious beliefs

Although 11,5% of the Congolese population are exclusively animist, these African beliefs often have traces of influence of the Christianisme. A great majority of the Congoleses are familiar with the African beliefs which share several points:

a belief in a sovereign creative spirit on the spirits, however this god is seldom the cause of any event. In some of Congolese languages, the name of the creative god is close to the word “father” or “creator”. Certain groups see it as being everywhere or omnipresent, others see it like sitting in the sky. For the majority of the animists, the link with the creative god is established via the ancestral spirits. A minority of group believes in a direct contact with this one.
a belief in an essential force source of life which animates the body. This force would leave the body with dead and would become an ancestral spirit. These spirits continue to be active among alive same family, either by punishing them or in their making good. Certain old ancestral spirits are requested even by people out of their family.
In some areas of the forest, a belief in various spirits of nature is present, those are often reported with the watery swirls, the mountains or the fountains. The beyond is either underground, or under the lakes.
Of the fetishes can have positive or negative capacities supernaturels.
the wizards, the soothsayers and the healers act like intermediary to reach the supernatural one.
Of the ceremonies or the collective prayers to the ancestors, the spirits of nature or the creative god is generally practiced in crowned places, like trees, caves or intersections. These ceremonies take place at one hour specific depending on the ethnicity.

Sorcery is a relatively common belief, and is sometimes interlaced with more radical beliefs, like Christianity evangelic. This belief took importance, pushed by the economic and social problems caused by the war. Several children were thus driven out of their family, after being denounced like children wizard.

Catholic Christendom (Western) and Protestant woman

The Christianisme is introduced into the area of Congo in 1484 when the Portuguese arrived and convainquirent the king and his entourage to convert the people. This conversion was first of all technological, Kongos being impressed by different constructions, ships and tools of the explorers, wished to adopt the culture and the faith of those. In 1506, a candidate who had the favor of the Portuguese arrived at the throne, Alphonse Ier of Kongo ( Alfonso I ). Alphonse Ier had several correspondences with the king of Portugal and the the Vatican. Certain prohibitions of the new faith created certain problems in particular concerning the Polygamie. Certain doctrines underwent an adaptation to the beliefs and habits local. A conversion with Christianity more generalized took place during the S, during the Belgian colonial period.

During this colonial period, Western, catholic Christianity or Protestant, took importance thanks to the missionaries. The black believers had their own churches, separated from those of the white. If the mass or the worship took seat in the same church, the white had sat in front of on chairs and the blacks with the back on benches. Towards the end of the colonial period, several elements of the local culture, like the songs and the dances were included in Christianity.

More recently, the Churches preaching “prosperity” took importance, those putting of the importance at the fact that the faith to give financial prosperity little.

Kimbanguism and African Christendom

During first half of the 20th century, the prophetic movements multiplied. Their nature was and anticoloniale and Christian woman, and they led to violent reactions of the colonial authorities.

Simon Kimbangu was the prophet of most important of these movements. Born in a village from the Low-Congo, it was high to become Protestant missionary. In April 1921, at the 39 years age, it stated to have had a vision of the Christ, who would have invited it to reconvert to them his and to devote her life to God. Kimbangu chooses to try to be unaware of this vision, left for Léopoldville and gives up its life of priest. It had new visions, turned over to its old life, and was devoted to Christ. A little later one allotted to him a sick cure of woman by simple affixing of the hands. Other miracles were allotted to him, and it was quickly known in the area. The catholic authorities protested near the authorities, and was disavowed by the Protestants. The social and economic effects started to be felt, with thousands of Congoleses who left their work to come to listen to the sermons. In June, the colonial authorities stopped it for incentive with the revolution and civil disobedience. Four months later, he was condemned to death. After an international campaign, Albert Ier of Belgium converts the sentence into a imprisonment with life. He died 30 years later in prison, in 1951.

The colonial authorities thought that the movement would not survive the imprisonment and the death of Simon Kimbagu, but this one was maintained and been an active element of resistance to colonization. During the time postcoloniale, the things became more complex. Rather than to prohibit this church, Mobutu adapted it and gave him an official statute. Kimbanguisme was spread through the country, and essaima through the surrounding countries. It is now the African religion most popular. The disciples do not smoke nor do not drink alcohol, and avoid violence. The Monogamie is practiced.

Religion nowadays

Article 26 of the Constitution of transition authorizes freedom of worship, with a proposal equivalent for the new constitution (article 22). These rights are generally respected. Religious tensions exist however, from the bonds between certain prophetic organizations and of the paramilitary groups. In the east of the country, in particular during the Second War of Congo, certain military groups believed in an invincibility given by fetishes transforming the balls into water (traditional ideology May-May).

The majority of the Congoleses kept their various religions précoloniale (more 56% of the population). The second religion of the country is Christianity. The Congolese-catholics form 40% of the population, the Protestants (with the Churches known as of alarm clock) come in second position 35%, the kimbanguists (important Église of African origin) occupy the third place with 10% of the population, finally it exists also small Muslim communities (9%), Jewish and Greek orthodoxe.

Sculpture

as in touts countries d Afric black, it there ell tradition of sculpture. The sculpture always have as silent partners of the companies often secrete for religious reasons. Denombreux works d´art have were stolen during colonization and rest aujourd´hui with the Museum of Tervuren in Belgium, or in the Museums of New York or London.

the carrying one cut is probably the most known sculpture. It is l´oeuvre of the Master of Buli, of l´ethnie luba-hemba.

the statue of Kuta Mbula 109 éme king of the bakubas

the balubas carve small kinds chess-board after lukasa decorated small balls of different color which forms different reason that lón can decipher in order to recall lhídtoire as of the their people.

Media and literature

to see the article Media as a Democratic republic of Congo Literature are:

has off revival ancestral and native traditions
Addressing the topics off contemporary society

LINKS: http://www.digitalcongo.net/index.php http://www.congopost.com/ http://allafrica.com/congo_kinshasa/ http://www-sul.stanford.edu/depts/ssrg/africa/congok/congoknews.html

Local traditions

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Audio-visual

Congolese national Radio-television, the public company is surrounded by other private companies in the Congolese audio-visual world since liberalization of years 1990. Antenna has, Canal Z and Kin Channel is companies of television based with Kinshasa.

Since 2002, Radio Okapi, diffused on most of the Congolese national territory took an important place among the principal media.

Written press

to see the article Written press of the Democratic republic of Congo

The written press of the DRC is mainly francophonee. Many small newspapers are created to support a party.

Art

Several old works of Congolese traditional art were stolen during colonization and since. For example, the Museum of Tervuren in Belgium has several works in its collection, like the carrying one cut. But it there also of the parts in the English museums, maéricains and Switzerland. Certain d´art works belong to collector deprived like the Ryckers family.

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