Best Travel Guide To Lopit Tribe Of South Sudan

Best Travel Guide To Lopit Tribe Of South Sudan

The Lopit people are an ethnic group found in Eastern Equatoria State, South Sudan. Traditionally, they refer to themselves as donge (plural) or dongioni (singular). The Lopit number 160,000 to 200,000 people living in the Lopit area, in the Lopit mountains which extend from the east to the north of Torit.

What is the history of the Lopit?

Very little is known about the origin of the Lopit apart from the widely held view that they came along with the waves of groups migrating from Lake Turkana. The Lopit is said to have broken away from the Dongotono after a quarrel over gazelle soup. They have been marginalized and politically excluded by the Lotuka elite. There is a small community of Lopit in Kakuma refugee camp in Northern Kenya

Location and Background: 

The Lopit inhabit the Lopit hills in the Torit district in S. Sudan. They are eastern Nilotic who practice traditional agriculture as well as rearing livestock on the mountain slopes and in the plains. They also harvest forest products such as honey and shea nuts.

Lopit Tribe  Language:

The Lopit people speak the Lopit language. Lopit is a Nairotic language with 6 different dialects.

Culture of theLopit Tribe: 

The Lopit are proud of their culture and this affects their attitudes and social life. They practice initiation ceremonies: a naming ceremony for a baby, and a second one as a young adult. Marriage begins with courtship and then the girl elopes with her boyfriend; when they return home the dowry is settled and she goes to her new home.

The transfer of power to the younger age set happens every 25 years in a ceremony called hifira. The village administration and authority over community affairs are handed to the next generation.

Their culture is transmitted through songs, poems, dramas, and music that express feelings and emotions as well. The grandmother imparts cultural knowledge through folktales and games, although even the stories, proverbs, myths, and words of wisdom that the adults give the children are dying out, especially in urban areas and due to the increase in formal education.

Lopit Tribe  Music and dance:

Music and dance are central to Lopit culture. There are different dances for different occasions. Each dance is associated with specific costumes, music, and time allocations. Drums are an important part of dance. The main dances are:

Bra - When someone dies, it starts with the woman and continues dancing for 24 hours. Ikanga - a dance performed at the end of the harvest.

Rongit - A celebratory dance performed on various occasions by the ruling age set and the next ruling age set. This is also part of the training process for the following groups.

Hitoboku - performed in preparation for war or during combat.

Mirian and Hatar - A celebratory dance performed when a woman is betrothed from another clan to a particular clan, mostly from night till morning.

Lamb - Once a year around May after a hunt that begins at night and ends the next morning. The hunt itself is a competition between individual hunters, and all the game they catch is presented to the king.

Liang - This is the afternoon dance from noon to 1 p.m. before the evening section dances. It depends on whether the deceased was old or young. For example, when young people aged 20 to 30 died, people would go hunting far from their villages between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m. and return home at noon, earlier than Mr. Liang, to mourn the deceased. Many things, such as animal meat, are given to the home of the deceased to support and honor the bereaved and visitors.

Rotuje - This is a dance only for those aged 50 and over, and usually takes place on the eve of Bula, around 6:00 pm to 12:00 am, depending on the season and conditions in the particular village. For example, there is enough food, everyone is happy, and there are no major illnesses.

Maria - This is a dance performed by young people between the ages of 18 and 35, or under the age of 50, regardless of gender. Maria is held from 6 am to 12 pm. Uses only one drum. ikitia (iitiyang) - This dance is performed by women only, around 2-3 p.m., just after Liang.

Lopit Tribe  Political structure:

The character representatives of each village and the highest authority in the village make important decisions regarding warfare, festivals, cultivation, entry, etc. They are respected and obeyed, but they must serve the community and previous generations of literacy. If they are deemed to be making the wrong decisions or not following the rules, this older-generation literacy can bring them to a halt. A grand ceremony is held when a new generation of reading takes over from the previous reign.

This transfer of power takes place at regular intervals of 12 to 22 years, depending on location, unless there are exceptional circumstances. In this case, they may be expelled from the village and expected to return with valuable items to express their apology. In central and northern Lopit (Ngotira, Dolik, Ngabori), a new reading begins every 12 years. This group alternates between two names: ngalam and lefirat. In South Lopit (one village from Lomiaha, Loftok, Lolongo, and Ngotira), a new reading character set is started every 22 years. Each new set will use the same name: hifira.

Lopit Tribe  Teenage Initiation:

At the age of 10-11, girls begin preparing to enter Girls' Generation. They begin to form groups of 3 to 10 or more people. A group of girls should find a sleeping space to share in the older woman's home. This elderly woman could be one of the girls' grandmothers, or a woman approached by a group of duos asking for permission to stay in her home. This time, it's time for the girls to gain experience and knowledge about the duties expected of Hodou (Adolescent girls).

They wake up early every day (around 4 a.m.) and start grinding sorghum and other grains for their families. The grandmother becomes a mentor to the girls, giving advice in the morning and telling stories at night. Formal entry into Hodwo takes place around the age of 14.

The character reader for initiation may select individual girls. Alternatively, the entire group may start at the same time as the start of a new dominant age set (reading). A girl's duties as a hodu include: Be present where the reading is dancing. (Non-attendance will be severely punished.) Remove branches and weeds from the moyomiji field, Clear land for new farms, Provide water to the character readers who do farm work, and Prepare hanima (peanut butter) in a gourd and cooking oil made from local fruits for the Ikanga festival.

Lopit Tribe  Womanhood Initiation:

Girls usually remain single until they get married and have children. At this stage, it becomes the main reading (female). Unmarried women can choose to join this group or remain single for two more years. When the girls join Honyomiji, they become the youngest group of women. It takes 30 years to move on to the next set.

The economy of the Lopit:

The Lopit live in a fertile, hilly environment and are agro-pastoralists who practice traditional agriculture as well as herding. These socio-economic occupations are practiced on both mountain slopes and flatlands. The main crops are sorghum, bulbul, millet, pumpkin, nuts, simsim, okra, Siamese, cassava, sweet potato, maize, and mango. They also harvest forest products, bamboo roots, coconuts, honey, shea nuts (pressed to make oil), figs, and many other species.

Lopit Tribe  Hunting:

The Lopit, like other groups in the region, hunt extensively. They hunt in the dry season after the harvest (January to April) is over. This time it's group hunting. Groups of up to 2,000 people team up to hunt prey. Neighboring villages work together to hunt on the land of the village calling for hunting. Calls are put out four weeks in advance. The group splits into two parts, each going in a different direction, and then the heads come together and regroup to cover a larger area.

The first animal killed in a hunt is given to the king of that country. Elderly people are given priority when sharing meat, and some parts cannot be eaten freely. The internal (except the lungs) can only be eaten by older men and women, but the young cannot eat the head or any part of the lower limbs of the animal. Buffalo, elephants, giraffes, rhinos, gazelles, ostriches, and antelopes are typically hunted. Special hunts are organized when lions and leopards kill livestock. Fishing takes place in marshes and lakes from August to April.

Lopit Tribe  Religion: 

They believe in a supreme god, spirits, and the spiritual sphere. Dancing and drinking accompany worship celebrations, and alcoholism is a problem amongst the Lopit. The rainmaker and other mediums hold great power, and gifts are given to seek their favor for rain and other good things to happen to the Lopit.

Arrange and Book with Ultimate Wild Safaris for the cultural safari of the Lopit tribe in South Sudan.

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Mobile: +256 705 087 906 / 760 282 342