Madi

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For other uses, see madi (disambiguation).

The Mà'dí people are found in the Torit district in Sudan, and the districts of Adjumani and Moyo in Uganda.

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[edit] Language and brief history

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.However following the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed between the SPLM/A and the NIF government, a number of the Sudanese are preparing to return home. 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 1980s 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.

[edit] Religion

The majority of the Madi are now Christians, while some are Muslims.[citation needed] Most Christian Ma'dis are Catholics with some Anglicans. However a plethora of new churches are springing up daily in the area. There is also a sizeable Moslem community, mostly of Nubi stock, especially in trading areas like Adjumani, Dzaipi and Nimule. See Juma Oris and Moses Ali. However, even the so called 'people of the books' often revert to traditional beliefs and practices at traumatic moments.

In addition some modern people continue to believe in traditional African religions. 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.[citation needed] The Ma'di used to have rainmakers who played important social, religious and political roles. They had the power to make rain to fall. Often they were killed when rain fails for a prolonged period of time.[citation needed] However, as elders knowledgeable about Madi traditional culture die off, increasingly fewer Madi practise traditional religion and cultural activities.

[edit] Socio-Economic activities

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 used to be a very important seasonal activity but is dwindling in importance now.

[edit] 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.

[edit] 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).

[edit] Important Tourist Attractions

In Uganda there is Drufile port that was used as a major slave trade port. In the Sudan, there is the Nimule national park, and the Fulla Rapids, which is likely to be a major provider of hydro-electricity for the whole region.

[edit] References

Languages