Skip to main content

Featured

Luanda Reggae Defenders - what is your long term agenda?

Luanda Reggae Defenders is a now a popular movement with roots in Vihiga and border Siaya and Kakamega counties Attention is brought to the manner and conduct the movement has gained fame and followers, mainly the Youths. The movement capitalizes on funerals. With a poor culture of putting the dead to rest, the Reggae Defenders have taken it by storm and rebranded the infamous ‘Disco Matanga’ – disco at funeral. Reggae Defenders on move. Pic: Charles Rankings: Facebook They mobilize quickly on the day the dead will be discharged from the mortuary. They have this huge old school sound system that is over buzzing to no clear reggae song - that they hire a pickup to carry - and it has a young DJ mainly standing there than mixing anything. Often, against the rules, the casket is grabbed from a hearse vehicle and tied to a motorbike. There it will be swayed and jerk breaked between other motorbikes on the narrow roads. That, is, how a fellow soldier, often a young dead, is mourned. ...

Baskets; sizes and their uses

-: Inavodo
Ingungi
Kidinyiru 
Kisia 
Kihinda

-: 🤔🤔🤔,kidinyiru,kisia waah!🙆🏿‍♂🙆🏿‍♂🙆🏿‍♂

-: Thank you Professor for elaborating on this. In the  measurement of gorogoro of nowadays Inavodo,ingungi,kidinyiru, kisia and kihinda each was equivalent to how many gorogoros. Please advise more on these

-: Remember the sizes are approximations. Secondly, the gorogoro is a recent measure. However, if 40 gorogoro = 1gunia, then probably 5 gorogoro = 1 debe and 8 debes = 1 gunia.

-: Yeah! Ikidinyiru...that's the one I'd forgotten. My dad used to use that word . I can't actually remember hearing anyone else use it.

-: But prof,used have the perception that 7gogoros= l debe

-: Kulugina not mulugina (lugina a traditional grinding stone to grind on this stone one should have isio)
By the way what's engogoto?

-: Ekehe or egehe
Inavodo
Inguungi & ikisya or igisya
Ikihiinda 
ekedeera

-: Let us put uses for more familiarisation. 

 *Inavodo* 
- Smallest of the baskets
- used for measuring small quantities of solids. Like seeds to be planted. 
- Used for storage of minutes e.g needles
- measuring weights in volume below a kilogram

 *Ingungi* 
- larger in size than inavodo.
- used in carrying fewer items - easy for the young. 
- used in storage of solids like flour and grains. 
- used in measuring quantities in minimum measures like in trading.
- used for measuring weights of about 10 kilos.

 *Kidinyiru* 
- larger in size than ingungi. 
- (can we add please?)

 *Kisia* 
- larger than kidinyiru in size
- used for measuring volume weights of about 20 kilograms.
- used for carrying gifts to relatives during important functions as dowry payment and marking anniversaries. 
- used for storage of solids. 

 *Kihinda* 
- larger than kisia
- can hold volume weights of about 3-4 Visia
- used mainly for ferrying voluminous but lighter solids like tea, masagati. 

 *Kedera* 
- larger than Kihinda in size
- it is a stationary granary
- can accommodate volume of about 2-4 vihinda. 

 *Marksmanship* 
-/ they are made out of hard matured nappier grass (scientific name?)
-/ cut and worked on while still wet for easy bending, knotting* commences at apex base with columns to determine size and strength. Circular counter zig zag filling from the base follows to end at a conical top with rows and columns rounded together to form a solid ending and resistant to wear on handling. 
-/ finished, the baskets are dried for use/marketing.

 *Maintenance and usage* 
- smearing with wet cow dung fills in the spaces to disallow solids as flour from seeping away. Cowdung also has a calming effect, maintains the temperature of stored grains and prevents crawling insects beneath*
- Baskets are required to be raised when filled, hung when empty. If not on a peg then they can be placed on a flat base upside down. On floor they can quickly attract moisture which would allow quick decay of the organic material.
- Lowering is by first resting it on the knee to allow base landing than side-base lands which quickly wears with continual abuse. 
- Picking it is by holding on its diameter while full. Unbalanced lifting if full distorts the circumference of the opening and weakens the sides.  
- Balance on the head or with hands while carrying. Shoulder carrying while filled weakens it. 

 *Longevity* 
A basket if well used can last many years, minimum of 5. 

- Let us build on the article.....filling in the gaps.

-: You forgot ekehe, it can be used to measure small quantities of grains and also as a serving dish for ugali, cooked mabwoni or imyogo etc, it is thicker and stronger than inavodo and sealed such that something in liquid form cannot sip thru

-: Something in liquid? Porridge?

-: I think there was a send as the unit of measure. We therefore need to know how many debes filled a kihinda etc. A fever was metallic.

-: I'd never heard of kidinyiru & ekehe.  I'm back to school. This is the beauty of this group.

-: Some sort of a plate? Near kibakuri? 😊. Egehe. Let us know more. 

Then there is that which is more curved than /roderu but not complete to be ingungi/Kihinda. 

- called?

-: It can be a utensil or a basket depending on what you want

-: A debe was metallic🖕🏼

-: Could this kehe be what used be called ekederu?

-: Most likely because I heard there was ekederu where wimbi ugali was served. Then the utensil for boga made from mud, if I haven't forgotten was called lubago.  
I hope that's the word.

-: What about lidasa

-: You guys need lots of lessons in kimaragoli, 😎😎😎

-: My guku used ikidinyiru too, the one you measure njugu karanga in. But Nowdays in Mbale the njugu vendors measure 50bob njugus in a small glass equivalent or a sliced off bottom jam can🤪🤪🤪🤪 eeeh mambo haya

-: I think am wrong here, guyz,, nimechanganyikiwa🙈🙈

-: Nice to know. Kidinyiru is between inavodo and ingungi? Something btn murungi and mugorogoro?

-: Pls Hon Lunga'fa..pls pose photos of those baskets...if you come across, some members don't know about them....

-: I surely should. To keep learning.

Comments