Majang people
Majangir ( Majang, also Mezenger or Mezhenger ) is both the name for a living in the southwestern Ethiopia people, and for their language.
The language belongs to the Surmischen languages , a subgroup of the Nilo-Saharan languages. According to a census in 1998 the population is 15.341. The actual number is higher but estimated as the Majangir live in scattered settlements in the mountains.
As a political representative of the Majangir in Ethiopia serves the People's Democratic Unity Organization of the Sheko and Mezenger.
Culture
The Majangir traditionally live in small groups of three to five years at the same place they cultivate agricultural, and move on when the fertility of the soil decreases. They breed bees and collect the honey, go hunting and catching fish. But animals make up only a small part of their diet, the majority of them get out of their own agricultural production.
In recent decades, the lifestyle of the Majangir has changed. The most noticeable change is that they now live in permanent settlements. The cattle, which traditionally did not belong to their culture, was started by some residents since the 1980s. Also, now also fruit and coffee plants are grown, the need several years to harvest.
The Majangir have a very egalitarian society without political leader. The only official positions are those of the " Tapad " which lead the rituals. These are from the Meelanir Klan, a group that is associated with the same privileged clans in other surmischen groups.
In contrast to the cultures in the Ethiopian highlands, there are no tuning or arbitration process at the Majangir. In the event of a serious dispute one of the parties would just move on.
The Majangir have about 70 clans, the respective name is passed down through the male line. A person can not marry a person of the same clan and should not marry out of the clan of the mother.
Traditionally, there are two alcoholic drinks: " tááján " (cf. Tella ) from cereals and " ògòòl " (see Tej ) of honey.
The music consists of singing, which can be both harmonic antiphonal and is accompanied by traditional instruments. Beneath is a five-string lyre, a lamellophones, drums, rattles and a pan flute. In addition, they play a kind of vertical marimba with only three wooden bridges, which will still be used more as a pastime than to make music.
The traditional life of the Majangir began to change rapidly since the 1970s. Many members have converted to Christianity. Since the end of the civil war in 1991 and the subsequent re-division of the country along ethnic lines, the Majangir are strongly politically marginalized. Its territory is divided by three administrative units, the so-called kalil. This frustration led to some armed struggle against the government.
Language
The Majangir language belongs to the group of Surmischen languages , but is largely isolated from the other languages of this group. There are few dialects that vary from north to south, but hardly affect the communication.
The language includes implosive consonants ( bilabial and retroflex ), but no ejectives. There are nine vowels in which the length is critical. In addition, the intonation can change both the word and the grammar: tan ( high tone ) ' cow ', tan ( low tone ) ' abscess '.