Nuer

1. Nuer Cattle Culture in Southern Sudan

2. Geography Lesson • Not much to cover • We went over this area when we talked about the Azande • Major points: • Nuer territory has access to the White Nile • One of two large tributaries of the Nile • Other one is called the Blue Nile • Because of the proximity to this river (and the high annual rainfall) Nuer territory floods often • Lots of diverse wildlife • Very dense jungle in most areas but also savannah and swamp land

3. General Introduction • Naath • Means “The People” • ~1 million Nuer living in Southern Sudan • Very skilled warriors • Often conduct raids into neighboring areas • Managed to keep the traditional Colonial Powers at bay during the centuries of European Imperialism • Neighboring groups did not resist as much and formed alliances with the British • Created even more tension between groups

4. General Introduction • Studied extensively by E.E. Evans-Pritchard, among many others • Scarification is an important ritual practice among the Nuer • This is typically evident on the forehead • Consists of many different designs that are indicative of specific Nuer groups • Warfare and combat is an important part of life in Nuer society • Unfortunately war is also an ever present aspect of life in this region of the world, at least for much of the recent history of the Nuer

5. Villages • Because of the environment the Nuer must construct different kinds of structures • This is dependent upon whether it is the dry season or the wet season • During the dry season smaller settlements are built • Camps • Consist of a small hut that is close to vital sources of water • Building materials for these structures = Grass and Dung

6. Villages • Structures typically made out of whatever wood is available • Villages and homes will ideally be built on the highest point and will be surrounded by open terrain • Best environment for the cattle • Building structures on mounds keeps mosquitoes at bay • Especially important during the wet season

7. Social Organization • Very egalitarian • Resources will be shared when necessary • No leader or centralized system of organization • Only position of semi-authority is the Leopard Skin Chief • Large amounts of wealth do not make someone superior either

8. Leopard Skin Chief • Acts as an unofficial mediator of disputes • Wears a leopard skin as a badge of office • Has a great deal of ritual power among the Nuer • Decisions regarding conflicts are usually followed by all parties involved

9. Leopard Skin Chief • Acts as a roving social leveling mechanism • Prevents the escalation of conflict to a degree • But only in certain situations • The power of the Leopard Skin Chief is that he is not related to the lineages of either involved party • Makes him an independent and impartial normalizing force

10. Leopard Skin Chief • The ideal is for the Leopard Skin Chief to have prevented a conflict from becoming deadly • However, he may be called in after the fact as well • Determines and negotiates an appropriate payment for the victims family • Particularly important for murder

11. Leopard Skin Chief • Murder • The LSC will harbor an accused murderer at his home so no retribution occurs • Allows time for the victims family to perform mortuary ceremonies • Also gives the family time to cool down • Ritual cleansing also takes place • Murderer is bled on his arm • Animal (purchased or provided by the murderer) is then sacrificed

12. Leopard Skin Chief • Murder (cont) • Eventually negotiations will begin between the two families with the LSC negotiating the price • Price is paid in animals • Cattle most often • Long process because certain principles of honor must be upheld

13. Leopard Skin Chief • Murder (cont) • The price in cattle will eventually be set and a payment plan established • May take several years to fully repay the family for their lose • The price can be as many as 50 head of cattle • Can go lower or higher depending on the size of the heard owned by the paying family

14. Leopard Skin Chief • Murder (cont) • By no means does this mean the emotional debt is fully paid • Will be years and usually much longer (generations) of mistrust and hatred between families • Can even result in further violence or warfare years after the initial incident

15. Social Organization • Warfare and Feuds • Combat is essential to Nuer life and culture • War with neighboring groups occurs often • Fights will often break out as the result of an insult • The deadliness of a fight is often determined by the seriousness of the insult

16. Warfare and Feuds • Individual retribution is the only option for Nuer individuals to answer an insult • This usually results in a duel • Weapons used are dictated by who you are fighting: • Clubs = Closer friends or family members • Spears => Outsiders from other communities • Children (males) will fight with pointed bracelets and arm bands

17. Warfare and Feuds • Sometimes larger conflicts between whole villages take place • All the men from each location get involved • Before the issue is settled several individuals must die during the battle • But this happens infrequently • No one wants members of their community to die • The Leopard Skin Chief will be called in to mediate and prevent a dispute from reaching this level of seriousness

18. Warfare and Feuds • A larger notable conflict occurred between the Nuer and the Dinka • Dinka = Neighboring group with significantly more territory • The Nuer expanded their holdings and took a large portion of the Dinka’s land • Easily done because the Dinka have no way to mobilize larger groups of people like the Nuer lineage system does • Can call upon whole extended family for an attack

19. Lineage Organization • The social organization of the Nuer is based upon Kinship • Patrilineal system of descent • 20 distinct clans • Divided into Maximal Lineages • Subdivided into less broad (major) lineages • Major Lineages are then further divided into narrower (minor) lineages • The final subdivision is that of Minimal Lineages

20. Lineage Organization • Minimal lineages are the most common every day relations used by the Nuer • All members descended from a common Grand-Father • No day to day interaction with most of these different levels of social organization • Only used if alliances are needed to defeat an enemy or if circumstance necessitates the borrowing of food or supplies

21. Cattle • Mooooooo • Everything revolves around cattle in Nuer life • Essential for their survival as a people • Dictates how they view outsiders as well • Bar = People with Few Cattle • Jar = People with No Cattle • Both groups looked down upon and viewed with disdain

22. Cattle • The payment of cattle is usually the only way to square up between wronged parties • Without this resource there is no way to resolve disputes • Could escalate into all out warfare and result in the decimation of whole lineages

23. Cattle • Cattle are cared for communally by many families • Makes the maintenance of the herd much easier and everyone benefits • The oldest male of the family is the official owner of their families cattle • However, other members have rights to the use of the cattle and the products that they produce • Such as milk and dung

24. Cattle • Cattle are given to sons when they marry so that they may begin to start their own herds • Kinship and interpersonal relationships are often defined by who has given cattle to who • “who was that bro at the party last night?” • “Oh he was the guy who gave Jimmy 3 head of cattle last Saturday”

25. Cattle • Important point: Cattle are not bred to be consumed • They are far more valuable alive • But they are sacrificed and some do die of natural causes or accidents • Great sadness is expressed by the owner of a recently deceased animal • Important resource for the family

26. Cattle • When this happens the meat is consumed • But the cuts of meat are divided between community members based upon kinship associations • Other ritual occasions are also times when cattle will be ritually consumed • Marriages, Funerals, Spirit Veneration, etc • Usually the particular cow in this instance will be barren and thus a more acceptable lose

27. Cattle • Cattle are so interwoven into Nuer culture that the names of individuals are often related to certain aspects of treasured animals • Also important in Nuer rituals • Asking for information about the history of a particular individual or cow • Can receive supernatural information that recites the entire history of exchange that led to the cow coming into your possession

28. Cattle • Since cattle play such an important social role among the Nuer it is obvious that most of the day to day conversation among individuals is related to cattle • Every topic that may come up will eventually result in a conversation about Bobs cattle and the health of the herd or a single cow

29. Cattle • As far as the use of cattle for subsistence: • Milk is essential to the Nuer diet • It is the backbone of the Nuer subsistence strategy • Very easy to transport (in the cow) • Supplemented with other food sources as well • Even more important for children • Ensures healthy development • Will be shared between families if necessary • Cheese will also be produced • But only if there is a surplus

30. Cattle • The milk producing capabilities of a particular cow can be evaluated very precisely by an experienced eye • Cattle are also valuable for producing other products • Dung is used as toothpaste and for construction • Urine is used as a cleanser for washing hands • Are the only real symbol of prestige among the Nuer

31. Cattle • Can be ritually modified from birth as well to make the animal more desirable • Horns shaped and the humps on the back bound to look stronger, larger and generally more pleasing

32. Cattle • There are many modern problems that have begun to make raising cattle more difficult • Disease, pests, warfare in the region, etc • This means that there is a greater degree of interdependence between families than during previous generations

33. Other Food • Millet is also grown and is the staple crop of the Nuer • Made into porridge • And BEER • Harvested twice per year • Ideal for the type of climate Nuer territory experiences • Maize and Beans are also grown to a much more limited extent • Once the fertility of an area has been depleted the Nuer will simply move on to a new location

34. Spirits • 3 Different Types of Supernatural Deities Kwoth Spirits of the Above Spirits of the Below

35. Spirits • Kwoth • Creator deity • Analogous to Christian concept of God • Father, Judge, Guiding Force, Listens to Prayers • Universally recognized by all Nuer as the supreme creator

36. Spirits • Spirits of the Above • Highly Regarded • Many different types of spirits • Used to explain illness or unexplained death • Strange behavior or sickness is caused by the possession of the individual by a spirit • Colwic Spirit • Spirits of ancestors • Killed in remarkable or unexplained ways • Hit by lightening or Unexplained death • These ancestor spirits will be worshipped as the patron spirit of a lineage

37. Spirits • Spirits of the Below • Less important spirits • Less respect given to them by the Nuer • Some are represented as Totemic Spirits • Present themselves as animals • Usually one is adopted by each lineage • These spirits are present in all animals, plants, and natural formations • If the Nuer respect their totemic spirit then it will reward them

38. Spirits • The spiritual world is organized in the same manner as the Nuer lineage system and the spirits must follow the same set of rules relating to interaction between various members of each clan or lineage

39. Spirits • Death is feared • No knowledge of what awaits them • The concept of the Soul is also present in Nuer supernatural belief • Life is given by Kwoth and when you die it is given back to him

40. Spirits • Kwoth can give you a hand when you need it • But he can also exact retribution on an individual for wrongs they may have committed • Top 3 Sins: • Homicide • Incest • Adultery

41. Modern Problems • Of course the Nuer are affected by the Civil War in the region and the resulting crises in every area of day to day life • Has drastically changed their traditional way of life • The influx of missionaries has also provided a great deal of assistance • But at the same time this has resulted in the altering of the traditional Nuer way of life

42. Modern Problems • Migration to the United States has also occurred on a rather large scale • Again, with the assistance of religious aid organizations for the most part • Substantial Nuer populations in Minnesota • Despite the pressures of being surrounded by a new society some traditional practices are still being followed, or at the very least blended with American customs • Many Nuer are eager to return home after the situation improves • But as with other cultural migrations many other individuals and families want to stay in the US and make it their new home