The sh7b CHOGM huts
May 02, 2008
What kind of huts cost a whooping sh7b? The 15 huts in the expansive backyard of the Uganda Museum, in Kamwokya.
By Lydia Namubiru
What kind of huts cost a whooping sh7b? The 15 huts in the expansive backyard of the Uganda Museum, in Kamwokya.
The huts make up the Uganda Cultural Village that was created for CHOGM.
Whether they are worth that much money is a question that would perhaps be answered with too many figures and equations. So, we won’t go there. As for a visit, who wouldn’t want to know what huts you can get from sh7,000,000,000.
From the dome-shaped stone just outside the semi circular compound, every hut tells a story about its owner. Just to the right is a home that speaks of luxury and is a tad of extravagant. Thickly thatched with the dry grass flowing to the ground, its back view might remind you of a woman in a busuuti. You would not be far off the mark. This is the Buganda hut.
Along a 45 degree line of vision to the south is another remarkable home. It seems to tell of an owner who does not take chances with security. The compound is surrounded by a fence of poles strongly bound together by closely woven sticks. It is the Karimojong manyatta.
A similar line of vision to the opposite side brings you to another interesting hut that looks like a bee hive. It is the Bunyoro hut.
To appreciate the beauty of each of the 15 huts, you have to take a close look. From the beautiful terraced roof of the Acholi Ot, to meticulously woven internal structure of the Buganda enyumba and the beautifully reed panelled entrance of the Bamba’s enjumba, every hut has it own testimony of the architectural skill of its people.
The Madi would seem to have been a bit futuristic, if indeed the hut at the museum reflects their tradition. Equally spaced rectangular columns line the exterior of the round mud and wattle hut.
The roof rises above the wall with a simple three tier design. Inside the hut are hunting and household equipment.
The Alur house would have been identical to the Madi one had it not lacked the columns. A goat shed littered with black droppings in front of the Alur house completes the picture of a typical household in Nebbi.
A beautifully done multi-tiered roof is the first thing that catches your eye as you approach the Acholi hut. Smeared black soot with black soil, the unassuming round trunk contrasts with the painstakingly done roof. Inside the house is the one thing we all recognise about the Acholi - musical instruments for the famous Larakaraka and Bwola dances. A granary completes the picture.
The Acholi hut is flanked by the Langi one that looks similar although considerably less attention was paid to the roofing.
And one hut away was another with the same features - the Teso entogo.
Construction of the Karimojong manyatta must have been quite a feat. The house itself is constructed with sticks and poles closely bound together with other sticks. A smearing of cow dung and earth on the inside walls secures the holes between the entwined sticks. The entrance extends out to form a narrow passage into the house.
One needs to bend double as they enter and two people cannot go in at the same time. Planning a surprise attack on the inhabitants of the house might not bear much fruit. In addition to this restrictive entrance is a fence made with twined sticks and poles surrounding the front side of the compound. Ironically, much of the back of the house is left exposed and so is the granary that stands besides the house.
The people from the east are apparently hot on colour. The Bugisu enzu, the Busoga enumba and the Japadhola oti are all painted with coloured soil.
As expected, circumcision equipment including knifes, costumes and music instruments dominate the interior of the Bugisu house.
On the other hand, people from the western part of the country are seemingly big on privacy. While all other huts are simple single roomed housings, the Hima, Tooro, Bunyoro and Bamba huts are partitioned into different rooms. Decorated straw mats separate the interior of the dome-shaped Hima huts, while reed walls are used for partitions in the Tooro and Bunyoro homes.
The Bamba, the mountain people, remain loyal to their ancient mountain cave dwellings. Like the entrance of a mountain cave, the entrance to the mud and wattle Bamba cultural hut is a narrow arched porch. The compact reed panelling of the entrance, however, is many artistic miles away from a mountain cave.
Whoever said urbanisation of their homeland gave Baganda luxurious taste, ought to look at their traditional dwelling. The wide arched entrance is flanked on both sides by richly woven reed work, creating a wide veranda. Thick, geometrically perfect concentric rings running around the internal structure of the entire roof tell of luxury and inevitably extravagance. The omweso board game and gourd for booze sitting inside the hut complete the tale of a people who have lived the “good life’ for eternity.
Should you be lost in the enchantment of this miniature Uganda that the museum closes before you can tear yourself away, take the footpath that runs along the lower side of the building. Walking along the path with overgrown grass will just complete your ‘back to the roots’ experience.
What kind of huts cost a whooping sh7b? The 15 huts in the expansive backyard of the Uganda Museum, in Kamwokya.
The huts make up the Uganda Cultural Village that was created for CHOGM.
Whether they are worth that much money is a question that would perhaps be answered with too many figures and equations. So, we won’t go there. As for a visit, who wouldn’t want to know what huts you can get from sh7,000,000,000.
From the dome-shaped stone just outside the semi circular compound, every hut tells a story about its owner. Just to the right is a home that speaks of luxury and is a tad of extravagant. Thickly thatched with the dry grass flowing to the ground, its back view might remind you of a woman in a busuuti. You would not be far off the mark. This is the Buganda hut.
Along a 45 degree line of vision to the south is another remarkable home. It seems to tell of an owner who does not take chances with security. The compound is surrounded by a fence of poles strongly bound together by closely woven sticks. It is the Karimojong manyatta.
A similar line of vision to the opposite side brings you to another interesting hut that looks like a bee hive. It is the Bunyoro hut.
To appreciate the beauty of each of the 15 huts, you have to take a close look. From the beautiful terraced roof of the Acholi Ot, to meticulously woven internal structure of the Buganda enyumba and the beautifully reed panelled entrance of the Bamba’s enjumba, every hut has it own testimony of the architectural skill of its people.
The Madi would seem to have been a bit futuristic, if indeed the hut at the museum reflects their tradition. Equally spaced rectangular columns line the exterior of the round mud and wattle hut.
The roof rises above the wall with a simple three tier design. Inside the hut are hunting and household equipment.
The Alur house would have been identical to the Madi one had it not lacked the columns. A goat shed littered with black droppings in front of the Alur house completes the picture of a typical household in Nebbi.
A beautifully done multi-tiered roof is the first thing that catches your eye as you approach the Acholi hut. Smeared black soot with black soil, the unassuming round trunk contrasts with the painstakingly done roof. Inside the house is the one thing we all recognise about the Acholi - musical instruments for the famous Larakaraka and Bwola dances. A granary completes the picture.
The Acholi hut is flanked by the Langi one that looks similar although considerably less attention was paid to the roofing.
And one hut away was another with the same features - the Teso entogo.
Construction of the Karimojong manyatta must have been quite a feat. The house itself is constructed with sticks and poles closely bound together with other sticks. A smearing of cow dung and earth on the inside walls secures the holes between the entwined sticks. The entrance extends out to form a narrow passage into the house.
One needs to bend double as they enter and two people cannot go in at the same time. Planning a surprise attack on the inhabitants of the house might not bear much fruit. In addition to this restrictive entrance is a fence made with twined sticks and poles surrounding the front side of the compound. Ironically, much of the back of the house is left exposed and so is the granary that stands besides the house.
The people from the east are apparently hot on colour. The Bugisu enzu, the Busoga enumba and the Japadhola oti are all painted with coloured soil.
As expected, circumcision equipment including knifes, costumes and music instruments dominate the interior of the Bugisu house.
On the other hand, people from the western part of the country are seemingly big on privacy. While all other huts are simple single roomed housings, the Hima, Tooro, Bunyoro and Bamba huts are partitioned into different rooms. Decorated straw mats separate the interior of the dome-shaped Hima huts, while reed walls are used for partitions in the Tooro and Bunyoro homes.
The Bamba, the mountain people, remain loyal to their ancient mountain cave dwellings. Like the entrance of a mountain cave, the entrance to the mud and wattle Bamba cultural hut is a narrow arched porch. The compact reed panelling of the entrance, however, is many artistic miles away from a mountain cave.
Whoever said urbanisation of their homeland gave Baganda luxurious taste, ought to look at their traditional dwelling. The wide arched entrance is flanked on both sides by richly woven reed work, creating a wide veranda. Thick, geometrically perfect concentric rings running around the internal structure of the entire roof tell of luxury and inevitably extravagance. The omweso board game and gourd for booze sitting inside the hut complete the tale of a people who have lived the “good life’ for eternity.
Should you be lost in the enchantment of this miniature Uganda that the museum closes before you can tear yourself away, take the footpath that runs along the lower side of the building. Walking along the path with overgrown grass will just complete your ‘back to the roots’ experience.