Lealui

Lealui even Lialuyi , the residence is in the dry season of the Litunga , king of the Lozi in Barotseland in Western Province in Zambia . Lealui is located near Mongu . At the end of the dry season, when the level of the Zambezi rises, the Litunga moves to its palace in Limulunga , which is higher up. The parade is celebrated with the Kuomboka Ceremony, one of Zambia's most important and popular folklore festivals .

The first king of the Barotse Kingdom to reside in Lealui was Sipopa in 1864. In 1978, King Lubosi Lewanka re-established the place as the cultural, traditional and administrative capital. The center of the royal complex is the Kamona from 1880. It still plays an important role in the coronation, when the new litunga has to live there for a certain time. The Kamona is considered an important historical testimony in Zambia.

Lealui is 13 kilometers west of Mongu at 1,008 meters above sea level and is one of the largest Lozi towns with around 10,000 inhabitants. Nevertheless, many Lozi have moved to higher areas. Litunga Lubosi Imwiko has therefore decided to upgrade Lealui through renovations in order to reverse this trend. In the rainy season, the Zambezi floods the surrounding area, which it can turn into a turbulent lake that stretches five kilometers inland and leaves only a few islands. This regularly results in homeless people and hunger, as huts and fields are destroyed. The infrastructure is bad except for the road to Mongu. There is the Mulumba port and only one elementary school.

Personalities

François Ellenberger (1915–2000), French geologist, born in Lealui

Web links

(English) History of Lealui ( Memento of 5 May 2006 at the Internet Archive )

-15.230555555556 23.027777777778Coordinates: 15 ° 14 ′ S , 23 ° 2 ′ E