Some Traditional Institutions in Precolonial Rwanda

Traditional institutions of Africa are among the themes that have attracted the attention of European scholars since the end of the 19th century. Some colonial historiographies presented them as static, as invariant and not changing. This book challenges that vue. It shows to what extent the Rwandan Precolonial Institutions Ubwiru, Ubuhake, Ubukonde, Igikingi, and Ingabo have evolved in time and space. It investigates and assesses to what extent each above institution was flexible. It seeks to understand why at a particular time, in the same or different space these institutions changed and adopted a particular form, who were the agents in such shifts, and the consequences. Thus, this monograph emphasizes the changing feature of traditions and traditional institutions. It also places them within the historical realm and paradigm. While it is destined to academic audiences, it is also a general public user friendly book.