Hubbry Logo
search
logo

Nilotic peoples

logo
Community Hub0 Subscribers
Write something...
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
See all
Nilotic peoples

The Nilotic people are people indigenous to South Sudan and the Nile Valley who speak Nilotic languages. They inhabit South Sudan and the Gambela Region of Ethiopia, while also being a large minority in Kenya, Uganda, the northern area of Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Tanzania. The Nilotic people consist of the Dinka, the Nuer, the Shilluk, the Luo peoples, the Alur, the Anuak, the Ateker peoples, the Kalenjin people and the Karamojong people also known as the Karamojong or Karimojong, Ngasa people, Datooga, Samburu, and the Maa-speaking peoples. Each of the ethnic groups mentioned have distinct languages, ethnic origins, and migration history, so the grouping under the name Nilotic or Nilotes is anthropologically contentious.

The Nilotes constitute the majority of the population in South Sudan while constituting a substantial minority in the countries of Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. They make up a notable part of the population of North eastern Democratic Republic of Congo as well. Nilotic people are believed to number 50 million in the 21st century.

Physically, Nilotes are noted for their typically very dark skin color and lean, and occasionally tall bodies. They often possess exceptionally long limbs, particularly their distal segments (forearms, lower legs).

The Nilotic people primarily adhere to Christianity and traditional beliefs, with the majority of them being Christians. A small minority of Nilotes practice the religion of Islam.

The term Nilotic was used by a Church of England's clergyman named Thomas Gataker in mid to late 1600s.

The terms "Nilotic" and "Nilote"' were previously used as racial subclassifications, based on anthropological observations of the supposed distinct body morphology of many Nilotic speakers. Twentieth-century social scientists have largely discarded such efforts to classify peoples according to physical characteristics, in favor of using linguistic studies to distinguish among peoples. They formed ethnicities and cultures based on a shared language. Since the late 20th century, however, social and physical scientists are making use of data from population genetics.[verification needed]

Nilotic and Nilote are now mainly used to refer to the various disparate people who speak languages in the same Nilotic language family. Etymologically, the terms Nilotic and Nilote (singular nilot) derive from the Nile Valley; specifically, the Upper Nile and its tributaries, where most Sudanese Nilo-Saharan-speaking people live.

Linguistically, Nilotic people are divided into three subgroups:

See all
User Avatar
No comments yet.