A History of the Tumbuka from 1400 to 1900

This is the first book on the history of the Tumbuka that traces their origin from the Luba Kingdom in the present Democratic Republic of Congo to where they are settled today. It details their leaders, the routes they used, the kingdom they formed, and the many cultural practices they have followed, and how from the eighteenth century, their kingdom was invaded and ruled by many non-Tumbuka ethnic groups that were eventually absorbed in their culture. “The study was overdue. Fortunately, the delay has been rewarded because the duty of doing this important work fell in good hands . . . The book improves our understanding of the Tumbuka in the twentieth century and beyond . . . Probably the strongest strength of the book is that the general reader and the specialist will find it easy to read.”—Professor Ackson Kanduza, History Department, University of Swaziland.