Madi people

For other uses, see madi (disambiguation).

Language and brief history

The Ma'di are found in the Torit district in Sudan, and the districts of Adjumani and Moyo in Uganda. Their language, also called Ma'di, is a Central Sudanic language, closely related to the language spoken by the Moru, Lugbara, Lulubo, Keliku, Logo, and Avukaya, with whom they also share many cultural similarities – which might point to their common origin.

There are three main dialects of the language. These are Northern ('Burulo), central (Lokayi) and Southern (Moyo, Metu etc. Of the three southern and central are related in syntax, grammar and vocabulary, but the northern dialect is completely different, especially in its syntax.

The Second Sudanese Civil War (1983–2005) diminished the number of Madi in the Sudan and most of their villages are now occupied by internally displaced people from other parts of Southern Sudan. In Uganda, the Sudanese civil-war and the havoc caused by the Lord's Resistance Army, has led the Madi to bear with the influx of refugees from Sudan and from other parts of Uganda.

Uganda has hosted the Sudanese Ma'di twice now. First in the 1960s during the Anyanya war which ended in 1972 with the Adis Ababa Accord. The second wave started in 1983 with the SPLM/A war which came to an end in 2005 with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA).
In the early 1980's the flow of refugees was from Uganda, following the fall of Idi Amin's government when a lot of Ma'di people were massacred by the invading Tanzanian forces and the National Liberation Army.

Religion

As elders knowledgeable about Madi culture die off, increasingly fewer Madi practise their traditional religion and cultural activities. The majority of the Madi are now Christians, while some are Muslims.

In traditional Madi religion, God or Rubanga, may be approached through the spirits of dead relatives. At harvest time, the first harvest must be offered to the spirits to thank them for successfully interceding to God on behalf of the living. On miniature altars called Kidori, sacrifices were offered to ancestral spirits in good times and bad times.

Socio-Economic activites.

The Ma'di grow millet, sorghum, cassava, sweet potatoes, sesame, groundnuts for home consumption and sale. The main cash crops are cotton {Uganda} and tobacco {Sudan}. There is some fishing at Laropi (Uganda) and Nimule (sudan). Hunting is also important cultural and economic activity.

Political set-up

The ma'di used to be organised mostly at clan levels, led by a combination of rain makers (eyi opi), Land custodians (Vu 'dipi) and distinguished warriors (ajugo). With the coming of colonialism, there are now centralised local administration with the Ajugopi in Moyo and the paramount chief in Loa, Sudan.

Dances

There are a number of traditional dances. The main ones are Mure, (a royal war dance), gayi (a youth flirtation dance in the flamingo tradition), kore (a graceful dance), kejua (mostly by women), ogwa ariyo ( a foreign invasion possibly from the Acholi for youth).

Musicians

The hottest musicians to come out of the Ma'di land this century are:
Ma'di Homa Boyz, who rap.
Pawa Boyz, who are into easy listening music.
Of the older generation there is James Iyu who plays a traditional harp [o'di] and Jima Oyuru who plays guitar, in country fashion.

References

• Gurtong Peace Project - South Sudanese Communities
• Moorehead Alan, No Room in the Ark, Penguin, Middlesex, 1962.