the zambian royal ceremonies series: nc'wala
nc'wala is the traditional first fruits ceremony of the ngoni people of eastern province, celebrated annually in chipata in february. the kingdoms series described the ngoni in part 4 — the warriors who came from kwaZulu, who marched three thousand kilometres from natal, who established a kingdom at fort jameson that the colonial administration could not suppress for thirty years.
the ceremony's meaning: the new season's harvest is presented to the paramount chief before anyone in the ngoni kingdom is permitted to eat from the new season's crops. the paramount chief — inkosi yamakhosi — is the first to taste the new fruits. his tasting is the permission for the rest of the community to eat. the chief as mediator between the community and the ancestors who guarantee the harvest — one of the most ancient forms of traditional political authority in africa, performed with the warrior energy and regimental discipline the ngoni brought from kwaZulu.
the ceremony's performance. nc'wala takes place at the paramount chief's palace in chipata in the last week of february. male participants arrive in regimental formation — groups from the different ngoni chieftaincy areas, dressed in traditional warriors' regalia of animal skins, carrying shields and sticks, moving in disciplined formation to the rhythms of ngoni war songs. the regimental dances whose choreography reflects the military traditions of the kwaZulu origin are unique to the ngoni and recognisably distinct from any other zambian ceremony.
the paramount chief addresses his people. the first fruits are presented. the traditional beer brewed from the new season's grain is distributed. the warriors dance.
nc'wala is the ceremony at which paramount chief mpezeni IV presided for 44 years — described in the tribute to his passing on 31 may 2026. the nc'wala of the future will be presided over by whoever the ngoni kingdom chooses as the next inkosi yamakhosi. the ceremony outlasts the chief. that is what ceremony means.
the zambian royal ceremonies series continues. 🇿🇲👑