Reading the third schedule of our Constitution of the Republic of Uganda (article 10(a)) has me wondering how so little I know about our indigenous communities, my fellow Ugandans. And yet I identify as a cultural anthropologist.

Some of our indigenous communities, like the Aliba, the Batuku, the Gimara, the Mening, the Ngikutio, the Reli and the Vonoma, I have never heard of them being spoken of in popular discourse.

Seriously, do these communities have some of their members in the top echelon of leadership in the national government? If so, who are they? And are their languages? Are those languages still spoken?

Source Wikipedia

And it got me thinking. Before we add on others, like the Bayindi, let us audit the degree to which we are celebrating the existing cultural identities of our nation; or, perhaps, the rate at which we are facilitating their ethnocide.

Anyways, here is the complete list of Uganda’s Indigenous communities as at 1st February, 1926 as published in the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda:

1. Acholi
2. Aliba
3. Alur
4. Aringa
5. Baamba
6. Babukusu
7. Babwisi
8. Bafumbira
9. Baganda
10. Bagisu
11. Bagungu
12. Bagwe
13. Bagwere
14. Bahehe
15. Bahororo
16. Bakenyi
17. Bakiga
18. Bakonzo
19. Banyabindi
20. Banyabutumbi
21. Banyakore
22. Banyara
23. Banyaruguru
24. Banyarwanda
25. Banyole
26. Banyooro
27. Baruli
28. Barundi
29. Basamia
30. Basoga
31. Basongora
32. Batagwenda
33. Batoro
34. Batuku
35. Batwa
36. Chope
37. Dodoth
38. Ethur
39. Gimara
40. Ik (Teuso)
41. Iteso
42. Jie
43. Jonam
44. Jopadhola
45. Kakwa
46. Karimojong
47. Kebu (Okebu)
48. Kuku
49. Kumam
50. Langi
51. Lendu
52. Lugbara
53. Madi
54. Mening
55. Mvuba
56. Napore
57. Ngikutio
58. Nubi
59. Nyangia
60. Pokot
61. Reli
62. Sabiny
63. Shana
64. So (Tepeth)
65. Vanoma