text紀要論文 / Departmantal Bulletin Paperdepartmental bulletin pape

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SAKAMOTO, Kumiko

サカモト, クミコ

阪本, 公美子

English

Utsunomiya University Academic Information Repository

37宇都宮大学国際学部研究論集　2018　第45号,　37−46Local traditional knowledge and ethics in Southeast Tanzania: Mzee Rashid Litunungu’s contribution on history, livelihood, and plant use researchSAKAMOTO KumikoIntroduction“A guest is a blessing (Mgeni ni baraka).”I was welcomed by Mzee1 Rashid Mohammed Litunungu to stay at his house in spite of a sudden request. In starting my field research in Rutamba Village, I have discussed with villages officials to be able to stay at an average household, and they have selected the house of Mzee Litunungu, most probably because of his trustworthy characteristic to secure my safety. I had planned to start my stay after getting settled in a technical college guest house for a few days, but due to the breakdown of my transportation and the sun setting, I had no choice but to ask for a sudden favor to start staying at Mzee Litunungu’s house with extremely short notice. Since then, 9 August 2006, the house of Mzee Litunungu has become my home in this village in Lindi Region, Southeast Tanzania.Mzee Litunungu was knowledgeable in various aspects, and has continued to be respected from his family, neighbors, and villagers. Among his various knowledge, he has shared with me his record of family history, how he valued food production and mutual assistance, and how he utilized plants. In this note, I consolidate his contribution focusing in these areas.1.  Family historyAs I stayed at Mzee Litunungu’s house, various people came to visit the house for different purposes. Since it was difficult to understand their relationship even if they were relatives, I decided to start writing down his family tree. I obtained a big paper (manila2), spread it out on the mat in front of the house ―where family members and close neighbors sat down, did household chores, or just chatted―, and wrote down the family relations with available family members and visiting relatives. The family tree assisted not only understanding people’s relationships, but also about a unique lineage of the Mwera ethnic group, which was considered matrilineal. I have learned, with the advices of Mzee Litunungu and his neighbor Biti3 Somoe Magaya, that within the Mwera, the matrilineal lineage (ukoo4) is strong, but traditionally there was a patrilineal lineage kilawa, which made them unilineal double decent originally5. Inheritance of individual names basically followed the Islamic style by adding the father’s name to their first names, but with two major deviations. One is that a Bantu name is used at the end of one’s name throughout the lineage, which in some cases is altered when a different name became a “bigger” name. Secondly, prior to becoming Islam, the mother’s name ―although not inherited― was considered important and remembered6. These characteristics were clearly seen in Mzee Litunungu’s family tree, later confirmed with 20 other family trees in this village, and another village in Lindi Region with Mwera as the majority7.The family tree of Mzee Litunungu extended to 10 generations including 188 members8: three generations younger up to his grand-grandchildren, and six generations older. In spite of the fact that the other 20 family trees in the two villages were selected from the perspective to obtain a comprehensive family tree, they covered only five to seven generations9. This extended generation in his family tree was due to the fact that he kept record of his ancestors especially on his maternal side. When I asked about his ancestors, he went back to his room to get a memo, and gave the names of his ancestors. I regret I have not seen his actual note, however, I reckon it was written in Arabic since he has studied the Koran in Arabic (juzu 3) but not the alphabet.38On his paternal side, his father is Mohammed Litunungu, his grandfather is Hassan Litunungu, and his great-grandfather is Nagagula Litunungu. Islam names started at his grandfather’s generation. His Bantu name Litunungu, which means hyena in Swahili, comes from his paternal ancestor. His paternal clan kilawa name Mbinga also comes from his paternal side (Diagram 1). On his maternal side, his mother is Amina Seremani, his grandmother is Sharia Athmani Mwenda, and continues Bint Chagunda, Chinaimba, Chinayanda, and Chinamtawangano. He has noted down his maternal ancestor up to six generations, whereas he remembered only three generations on his paternal side. To my question why he knew his maternal ancestors, he explained that he wanted to know where he came from. His clan (ukoo) comes from his maternal side, and all of his maternal ancestors are Wahitu (singular Muhitu). Since many of the Mwera and other “matrilineal” ethnic groups lived within maternal clans before the Ujama villagization, the maternal clan (ukoo) has become a name to indicate where they came from. There is a neighbor who is of the same ukoo Muhito, and would understand that they came from the same place with some nostology.Mzee Rashid M. Litunungu was born in 1935 in SAKAMOTO KumikoNote: This is a partial family tree of the whole family tree. Source: Based on fieldwork since 2007.Diagram 1.  Family tree of Mzee Litunungu39Local traditional knowledge and ethics in Southeast TanzaniaNoto where he lived with his maternal clan, Wahitu. He married his first wife in 1956 at the age of 21, had one son and two daughters, but divorced in 1962. In 1964 at the age of 29, he married his second wife, had two daughters, but divorced in 1972. He married his third wife in 1967 when he was 32, and had three daughters and two sons. This is the house that I had the chance to stay in since 2006. After a few years when I had gotten used to staying at Mzee Litunungu’s house, he married another woman. Although having another wife was not sincerely welcomed at home, I remember he had disclosed it to me because he understood my work of research is to know the truth.Mzee Litunungu was a diligent Muslim. He would go to the mosque when the time comes, and at times he assisted others to hold funerals or other ceremonies like hitima. He was also informative in the process of funerals and has explained it to me as following. In a funeral, men would gather in the veranda (baraza) in front of the house, and women would gather in the back yard. There would be a cloth in each place, and the participating men and women will make contributions. The sheets to cover the corps will be obtained from the shop, and the payment is usually paid after the burial from the contributions. Two meters are needed for a child, and nine meters for an adult. Sheets are TSh1,500 per meter, therefore, TSh3,000 is paid in case of a child. The teacher will pray and the corps will be buried. This is the end of the specialists work, and a token of thanks will be paid to the specialist. This will be paid from the contribution from the participants. The rest of the contribution will be for the family. To my question specifically asking about the age of children, he explained as following. When a child is born after crying, and did not have a name since s/he died before one week, s/he will get a name for the burial ceremony. It is a different case when the child dies before birth within the mother’s womb10.II. Pride in food productionMzee Litunungu took great pride in farming. I had a chance to walk with him to his field for an introduction on 17 August 2006. It was about 30 minutes from the house. I remember talking about some fields in Japan that are near the house. He responded that it used to be like that before Ujamaa villagization in Tanzania as well, and explained that after villagization, people’s residence and field have become located away from each other. As we walked through the village, a villager tried to tease a foreigner to get attention, but Mzee Litunungu responded that I was his guest and daughter.His farm was near Lake Rutamba. The lake overflows in the rainy season to make a good rice paddy. Due to its unique environment, it is possible to utilize the field twice: once for rice and another for maize. While it was possible to own the fields in the mountain by clearing it, the fields near the lake has become valuable and was already sold, bought, lent, and borrowed amongst people due to its productivity.Mzee Litunungu took great pride in farming, and in the field he explained that a person with sufficient food is a rich person. In another occasion, he also discussed that a good, healthy, and complete husband and wife would help each other in farming. On another occasion at his house, he shared disappointment with another elderly man that young people do not have the patience to wait for the benefit of agriculture and jump to faster ways of making money such as business. With such background and value in agriculture, he seemed extremely happy when he saw his children or grandchildren involved in agriculture. At another setting at home, he talked about group farming during the Ujamaa. As people were moved into Rutamba Village, they were automatically grouped by ten-cell where they were coincidentally living next to each other. Without much in common, some were diligent like Mzee Litunungu, but others become lazy when they saw the chance. According to Mzee Litunugu, this was one of the reasons that ten-cell group faming, mikumi, eventually failed. He also recalled a workshop that I organized in Rutamba villages, 2001 with the topic of culture and development: One of the facilitators lectured the waste of excessive consumption in festivals11. Although I was not happy about the facilitator lecturing instead 42 SAKAMOTO Kumikoseems to be an effective medicine, and his neighbor advised me to ask Mzee Litunungu about it.Mzee Litunungu was also conversant in other plants within the area. I asked the local name and uses of 46 plant specimens located by other informants. 22 plants were located in this village (within 4 km from his house), 8 plants were in Kinyope (8 km northwest from his house and 4 km northeast Makangala), 9 plants were in Milola (20 km northwest from his house and 11 km northwest from Makangala), and 7 plants were in Nndawa (34 km southwest from his house and 31 km also southwest from Makangala).  Among those 46 plants, Mzee Litununugu knew 24 local names by specimen, he knew 15 by the local names, and he has seen one before (Table 2). The plants that he indicated different names were only 4. One was near the house which he differentiated from a plant that he listed himself. Three were from a village 34 km away from his own village, of which two were climbers (vine) and he indicated a local name within the same family and genera. He did not know two plants: one climber in a village 20 km away from home, and one herb 34 km away from home. Among the 39 plants he knew either by specimen or name, he also knew its uses or characteristics for 37 plants which is indicated in Table 3. He knew 28 medicinal use (including one for good luck), 14 food use, and 10 other uses including multiple uses for one plants.Within the medicinal plants, he knew multiple plants for cough, hernia, and convulsion. For cough, he indicated that the bark of Tamarind or Mkwaju (Table 3, no.36, Tamarindus indica) in addition to the previous two medicinal plants that he introduced himself (Table 1: nos. 26, 61).He knew four medicinal plant for hernia (mshipa). He knew roots of Mtoro (Table 3, no. 10, Landolphia kirkii), which the fruits are eatable, and Mlemblembe (no.41, Cassia abbreviate). He also knew Chiguluka (no.14, Securidaca longipedunculata) and Nalupande (no.37, Holarrhena febrifuga). He also indicated three medicinal plants for convulsion (degedege):  Mtapi (Table 3, no.5, Olax gambecola), Ukwaya (no.6, Dichapetalum mossambicense ) ,  and Nkambwenga (no.  47, Steganotaenia araliacea). Mtapi and Ukwaya was informed and collected for the same use by his neighbor, Ahmad Mtambo who is a son of a traditional healer, who may have shared the information. Using Angalaya (no.8, Tephrosia pumila) for eyes and using Pokoro (no.9, Grewia forbesii) for hernia (mshipa tumbo) were also common between Mzee Litnungu and Mtambo.For vomiting, he knew Nang’ungwa (no.29, Reissantia indica) and Mjau (no.33, Cola ruawensis). He also knew medicinal plants for various types of injuries: milk of Mtoro (no.10) for cuts, Jeijei (no.24, Mirabilis jalapa) for injuries, roots of Msofu (no.11, Uvaria leptocladon) ―which the fruits are eatable― for deep injury (vidonda vifuku), Mpingapinga (no.39, Cladostemon kirkii) for abscess (jipu), Mtamba (no.4, Rhoicissus revoilii) for swollen skin injury or burn, and Mtope (no.13, Annona senegalensis) when a swollen injury breaks. Jeijei has been informed by his daughter Mwanahamisi Rashid Litunungu from her garden, which she shared with her father.He also knew many food in the forest, but which Table 2.  Number of plants known by Mzee Litunungu by locationSource: Based on interview on 27-30 Jan. 2016.Location Rutamba Kinyope Milola Nndawakm from home <4 8 20 34km from Makangala 9-13 4 11 31Know the usage 20 6 8 3 37Know the name by speciment 16 1 4 3 24Know by name 4 7 4 0 15Have seen it before 1 0 0 0 1Different name 1 0 0 3 4Don't know 0 0 1 1 2Total 22 8 9 7 46Total43Local traditional knowledge and ethics in Southeast Tanzaniais of attention is that he knew those that is to be cooked such as Kilombelombe (no.22, Macrotyloma axillare) and Maranjei (no.30, Roueria coccinia ssp. boiviniana) in addition to Mpwapwaraga mentioned previously (Table 1, no.55). Looking into the parts of plants used by Mzee Litunungu (Table 1 and 3), fruits were mostly eaten by humans (nos. 3, 9, 10, 11, 13, 21, 23, 25, 28, 30, 34, 55) or birds (nos. 40, 41). Leaves are mainly used for medicinal purposes (nos. 5, 8, 12, 29, 32, 33, 36, 45, 47, 56) except for one used as food with scent (no.31). Roots are used mainly for medicine (no. 4, 6, 9-11, 14, 35, 37, 41, 46) or food (nos. 7, 20, 22, 54), but also for rope (no.45) or cloths press (no.7). Barks were used mainly for cough medicine (nos. 26, 36, 61), but some were used for bangles for blessing (no.57) or rope (no.60). His knowledge of plants did not seem to have any bias on plant family.Concluding remarksMzee Litunungu passed away on 19 April 2017 at the age of 82. I was first informed by his friend’s grandson on 22 April by e-mail, which I received with great shock. I was also later informed through his neighbor’s daughter, and also by his grandson as well. The last I have met Mzee Litunungu was when I left Rutamba Village on 4 February 2016. He told me to “take with you all the good here, and leave behind what is bad”. I was surprised and responded that I did want to leave behind what is “good” and hoped I don’t leave so much “bad” behind. Through consolidating his knowledge and memories, it comes clear that he has certainly shared lots of “goods.” Hopefully, I can bring back this “goods” back to the village to be shared with his loved ones.  AcknowledgementI dedicate this paper to Mzee Rashid Litunugu for all that he has taught me. I hope his knowledge will be inherited to his family and friends, and to be shared within society which I believed he himself intended. The plants have been identified by Mr. Frank M. Mbago, curator of University of Dar es Salaam Harbarium. The research on the utility of plants have been financially supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number 15H05139, and partly supported by 25284171. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　1 “Mzee” is a word to put prior to the name of an elderly man in Swahili for respect.2 “Biti” is a word to put prior to the name of an adult woman for respect.3 Such big paper is commonly called manila in Tanzania.4 Swahili words are indicated in italics.5 Sakamoto (2008).6 Sakamoto (2009a).7 Sakamoto (2011).8 Sakamoto (2008), p.3. The family tree includes members with some relationship even if it is not of direct lineage.9 Sakamoto (2011), p.5; Sakamoto (2008), p.3.10 Based on interview on 7 Sept. 2013.11 Sakamoto (2009b).12 Sakamoto (2007).13 The area is planned to become a new village as of 2017.14 The Latin scientific names are in bold italics.ReferencesSakamoto Kumiko (2007) "Mutual Assistance and Gender under the Influence of Cash Economy in Africa: Case study from rural southeast Tanzania," Journal of the Faculty of International Studies, Utsunomiya University, no.23, pp.33-54.  http://ci.nii.ac.jp/naid/110006555232Sakamoto Kumiko (2008) "The Matrilineal and Patrilineal Clan Lineages of the Mwera in Southeast Tanzania," Journal of the Faculty of International Studies, Utsunomiya University, no.26, pp.1-20. http://hdl.handle.net/10241/6358Sakamoto Kumiko (2009a) "Patrilineal Influence of Islam in Name Inheritance and Structure in Southeast Tanzania," Journal of the Faculty of International Studies, Utsunomiya University, no.27, pp.55-74. http://hdl.handle.net/10241/6956Sakamoto Kumiko (2009b) Social Development, Culture, and Participation: Toward theorizing endogenous development in Tanzania, Yokohama: Shumpusha.Sakamoto Kumiko (2011) “Revisiting Matriliny and Patriliny in “Matrilineal” Southeast Tanzania: Focusing on lineages of the Mwera,” Journal of African Studies, no.78, pp.1-23. https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/browse/africa/2011/78/_contents/-char/ja/46 SAKAMOTO KumikoAbstractThis research consolidates Mzee Rashid Litunung’s contribution on family history, livelihood ethics, and plants use research. He indicated six generations of maternal ancestors in his family tree, providing strong evidence of the Mwera double decent, matrilineal clan (ukoo), patrilineal clan (kilawa), and inheritance of names. For livelihood research, he showed ethical value for food production and food sharing among neighbors and relatives. For plant use research, he indicated 51 species (14 collected based on his introduction and 37 indicated by specimen or name of plant collected by others) with uses or characteristics. The uses are: 33 medicinal, 18 food, and 15 others including multiple uses of one plant. MuhtasariRepoti hii inaandika mchango ya Mzee Rashid Litunungu katika utafiti ya historia ya familia, maadili ya maisha, na matumizi ya mimea. Mzee amekumbuka jadi sita upanda ya mama katika ramani ya familia yake. Amempa ushahidi kubwa kuhusu ukoo mbili ya Mwera: kutoka mama na baba (kilawa). Imesaidia kuelewesha kuhusu urithi ya jina pia. Halafu alikuwa na maadiili kwa maisha kulima na kusaidiana chakula kati ya jirani na familia. Mzee amejua matumizi ya mimea 51 (ameonesha miti mwenyewe kwa mimea 14, na amejua 37 kutoka majani au jina ya mimea). Alijua matumizi 33 kwa dawa, 18 kwa chakula, na 15 kwa nyingiyne (yamo mimea anatumia kwa nia zaidi ya moja).（2017 年 11 月 1 日受理）Local traditional knowledge and ethics in Southeast Tanzania:Mzee Rashid Litunungu’s contribution on history, livelihood, and plant use researchMaarifa ya Mapokeo na Maadili katika Kusukazini Tanzania:Mchango ya Mzee Rashid Litunungu katika utafiti ya historia, maisha, na mimeaSAKAMOTO KumikoSAKAMOTO Kumiko

Local traditional knowledge and ethics in Southeast Tanzania: Mzee Rashid Litunungu’s contribution on history, livelihood, and plant use research

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Local traditional knowledge and ethics in Southeast Tanzania: Mzee Rashid Litunungu’s contribution on history, livelihood, and plant use research

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