Lamba-Lima Cultural Association

TEST PUBLICATION

The Lamba-Lima Cultural Association was formed to promote the Cultures of the Lamba and Lima People of Lambaland. Lambaland stretches from Central Province through Copperbelt to North-Western Province of Zambia. Their Culture, Language and traditions differ from many other African cultures for the peoples that have settled among them, who mainly came in search of employement. The need to promote their own culture is a result of the desire not to loose own culture even with so many people settling in Lambaland.



The Lamba Dance Troop

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The Lamba-Lima People have been known for some of the most captivating dances in the World. Popular among these traditional dance are the Mantyantya and Mayenge.

Lamba and Lima are languages found in Zambia and commonly spoken in the Copperbelt, Central and North-Western Provinces. There are over 500,000 native speakers in  Zambia. The two languages are also found in the southern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Lamba is also spoken in Lusaka, mainly because many speakers have migrated there.

Lamba is a Bantu language. (In fact, "mu ntu" means "one person" in Lamba and "ba ntu" means "two or more people".) Depending on who does the counting, Zambia has between 42 and 78 local languages besides English.

Some people say Lamba is a dialect of Bemba. Though the two languages share some common words, they are not as close as say Cockney and Haitian Creole are to English or French. Infact, some Bemba words mean something else in Lamba. For example:

1.  Inyanje means Maize in Bemba, whereas the same word means a Crab in Lamba (Maize being Mataba in Lamba).

2.  Ifyumbu means Sweet Potatos in Bemba, whereas the same word means Floaters in Lamba (Sweet Potatos being Kandolo in Lamba).

It is such differences which have time to time caused Poor Results in the Bemba Language by Lamba-Lima Children. The Chiefs have raised concern, and Government Officials have also supported calls to have Lamba taught in Schools.

According to History, Lamba was the First Zambian Language to be taught in Zambian Schools.

Nkwilimuna Traditional Ceremony



The Lamba and Lima people of Lambaland conduct traditional ceremonies every year. These include the Nkwilimuna (Chief Malembeka) and Nsengele Kununka (Chief Machiya) in Mpongwe; and The Ntongo Ceremony (Chief Ngabwe) in Ngabwe. 

At these ceremonies, you are assured of the best of the Rich Lamba Culture.

For Contributions or clarifications, contact the Editorial Board on: info@lambaland.com