The Bemba, the majority ethnic group living in the Copperbelt
This ethnic group represents about 20% of the inhabitants of Zambia. They occupy the rural areas of the northeast, now urban areas of the Copperbelt. Historically they came from the Democratic Republic of Congo to fill the mines with indentured labor for decades. Bemba is now the most widely spoken language - apart from English, the official language - adopted by about a quarter of the population. It has historically been spoken along the Luampula River, in Mpika and Kasama near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, but is also widely spoken in Lusaka due to the migration of Copperbelt residents to the capital in recent years. The language is also spoken by about 150,000 Congolese and 40,000 Tanzanians who border Zambia.
The Tonga, a people from the Zambezi Valley
They represent 13% of the population and occupy the entire Zambezi Valley, which is about 1 million people. They are found in Livingstone, a city of 300,000 inhabitants. The Tonga are the inhabitants of the Zambezi Valley, in southern Zambia and northern Zimbabwe, near Lake Karibe, the Lower Zambezi Park and Victoria Falls. The exact origin of the Tonga is not known; it seems that the Tonga have been linked to the history of the river since the dawn of time without knowing their original migration. This is the main reason why the Creative City concept is so important for the development of the Creative City concept, and why the Creative City concept is so important for the development of the Creative City concept as a whole. Thousands of Tonga were uprooted from their land. The Tonga had to leave their childhood homes, their burial grounds, their sacred lands, their fishing base, a real heartbreak. Essentially fishermen, the Tonga were forced to become farmers, on land that was far less fertile than the riverbanks and ancestral plains flooded by the Zambezi. This human relocation caused less media outrage than the relocation of animals to rescue.
The Nyanja, the majority ethnic group in the Luangwa Valley
The Nyanja, who number about 1 million in Zambia, represent 13% of the population and are mainly located in the east of the country. They are mainly found in the Luangwa Valley, a very agricultural area because it is more watered than the others, and in neighboring countries, as they are numerous in Zimbabwe (500,000 people) and Mozambique (300,000 people). Nyanja is the most frequently used Bantu language after Bemba. More than one million Zambians speak it throughout the country, including in Lusaka and Livingstone. It is widely used by the police, in government offices and in schools. Nyanja is also one of the main languages of Malawi, and several hundred thousand people use it in Mozambique and Zimbabwe, bringing the number of speakers of Nyanja as a first language in southern Africa to about 4 million.
The Lozi, the ethnic group that wants its autonomy
This ethnic group is found in the western and southern provinces. They number about 650,000. They are also found in the Barotseland provinces and to a lesser extent in Livingstone. As a pacifist country, Zambia has been relatively untouched by war and ethnic tensions. Only in the years following independence have there been clashes between Lozi and Bemba. The territory, a former British protectorate, remains contested, with the Lozi demanding the implementation of the agreement reached at independence that was to guarantee the autonomy of their kingdom in exchange for its integration into Zambia. These claims make the Lozi a people with a strong identity, and Barotseland is the richest region in Zambia in terms of cultural traditions. The Lozi way of life is centered on floodplain crops during the rainy season, primarily maize, which requires a lot of water and is the staple dish of the people, Nshima. A traditional tribal festival is held on the plains of the Lower Zambezi where most of the people are concentrated each year, the Kuomboka.
The other main ethnic groups that make up the country
The Tumbuka number about 430,000 and are found in the east of the country. Other Tumbuka live in Malawi and Tanzania. The Nsenga number about 330,000 on the border with Mozambique and Zimbabwe in the southeast, mainly in the Petauke area. They are also present in both neighboring countries. The Mabwe-Lungu (about 300,000 people) live in the northern province south of Lake Tanganyka, bordering Tanzania (where they are also present). The Lunda number about 230,000 and occupy the northern Copperbelt on the border with the DRC and Angola. The Luvale (about 215,000 people), are a group that is well represented in Angola, where nearly one million people speak this language. The Kaonde (210,000 people) are from the Kafue region (the national park like the river). The Luyana number only about 130,000 in Zambia, but they are also scattered in Angola, Namibia and Botswana. White Zambians arrived during colonization and are mixed with white expatriates from Europe, mostly from England. They form a small but very wealthy minority along with Asian Zambians (especially of Indian origin) and are found throughout the country.
