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ArchivesLooking for the meanning of Mumia?
I recently read an Article about Mumia Abu-Jamal. I wanted to know if anyone had any idea what Mumia means. I read that he chose Mumia, after having been inspired by high school teacher of Kenyan origin (perhaps the name is Kenyan?)
On wikipedia I read that : Abu-Jamal claims that 'Mumia' means "Prince" and was the name of anti-colonial African nationalists conducting warfare against the British in Kenya at the time of the Uhuru. Is there any historical truth to this?
Or is it simply an alternative spelling of Mwenye?
many thanks in advance for any suggestions
On wikipedia I read that : Abu-Jamal claims that 'Mumia' means "Prince" and was the name of anti-colonial African nationalists conducting warfare against the British in Kenya at the time of the Uhuru. Is there any historical truth to this?
Or is it simply an alternative spelling of Mwenye?
many thanks in advance for any suggestions
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Replies
It seems clear from a little Googlin that Mumia (or, more fully, Nabongo Mumia), was the name of the last king of Wanga, the chief home of the Luhya people of what is now western Kenya, just before the British arrived and tricked him into signing a treaty giving them control of the area. So Mumia was the name of a particular leader of the Luhya people back in the 19th century. You would have to find someone who knows the Luhya language to find out if Mumia has a generally accepted meaning. The first two online Kiswahili-English dictionaries I consulted did not contain "mumia" as a Swahili word, so it's more likely from the Luhya language.
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Thanks a bunch!
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