People Profile
The Nuer of Sudan and Ethiopia
Religion: Monotheistic Animism 99%
Population: 840,000 Sudan; 40,000 Ethiopia
Status: 1% Christian
===================
NARRATIVE PROFILE
Location: The Nuer live mostly in Southern Sudan, in the east Upper Nile Province around the junction of the Nile River with the Bahr el Ghazal and Sobat Rivers, and extending up the Sobat across the Ethiopian border. The Center of the Nuer area is around Lake No.
History: Archeologists indicate that the introduction of cattle in this area is related to the development of the distinct peoples the Nuer are descended from. Oral traditions indicate that the Nuer have moved east of the Nile River only during the last 200 years. They began an especially active migration about the mid 1800s. As they moved gradually east, they pushed the Anuak farther east into Ethiopia. During this period many Dinka people were incorporated into the Nuer community. Atuot and Nuer traditions indicate origins with the Dinka in what is now known as Western Nuerland. These traditions say the separation of the three occurred due to a dispute over cattle ownership.
Identity:
Like many of his pastoral neighbors, a Nuer man's dearest possession is his cattle. Life depends on cattle and a Nuer will risk his life to defend them or to raid his neighbor's cattle. The Nuer worldview is built around the herds and prestige is measured by the quantity and quality of the cattle a man owns. Men and women take the names of their favorite oxen or cows and prefer to be greeted by their cattle names. While they do engage in agricultural pursuits, the care of cattle is the only labor they enjoy. It is said that conversation on virtually any subject will inevitably involve a discussion of cattle.
The Nuer, a tall and very dark people, are related to the Dinka, who live to their west, and their culture is very similar. The Nuer call themselves Naath, meaning "human beings." The Nuer, Dinka and Atwot (Atuot) are sometimes considered one ethnic group.
Language: The Nuer language is a Nilotic language closely related to the speech of the Dinka and Atwot. The language is uniform with no definable dialects.
Political Situation: The Nuer are organized into what might be called "tribes," which consist of further sub-divisions by lineage. The lineages are a major structural factor for political order. The territorial groupings and lineage groupings are more closely aligned for some purposes than for others. There is no overall political authority in the tribal structure. Political activity involves various grouping or separation of the many territorial and clan sections.
British influence, under the "condominium" with Egypt from the turn of the 20th century, caused a major change for the Nuer. British colonial policy was focused on establishing fixed boundaries between the Dinka and the Nuer. This effectively halted a long-term dynamic process of cultural change that had been happening among these peoples for centuries. They have not been active in national politics of the Sudan.
Customs:
Their culture is organized around cattle. But since the Nuer people
live in the Upper Nile valley, Nile perch is also an essential part of their economy. Grains and vegetables supplement this diet. None of the food commodities are produced for market purposes. Cattle are not primarily for food, but Nuer do drink milk. Meat is eaten at important celebrations when an animal is sacrificed.
The Nuer living pattern changes according to the seasons of the year. As
the rivers flood, the people have to move farther back from the river onto
higher
ground, where the women cultivate millet and maize while the men herd the cattle nearby. In the dry season, the younger men take the cattle herds closer to the receding rivers. Cooperative extended family groups live around communal cattle camps.
Nuer build only temporary houses or shelters. Houses in wet-season settlements have circular mud walls over stick frames with thatched roofs. As grain is harvested, it is dried on temporary scaffolds. In dry-season camps, men sleep with the cattle in shelters made from local grasses. Women may remain in or near the wet season areas when the men follow the receding waters toward the lower areas.
Parallel to territorial divisions are clan lineages descended through the male line from a single ancestor. These lineages are significant in the control and distribution of resources, and tend to coalesce with the territorial sections. Marriages must be outside one's own clan and are made legal by the payment of cattle by the man's clan to the woman's clan, shared among various persons in the clan.
Marriage takes place in stages, however. A marriage is not finalized until the bride has born at least two children. When a third child is born, the marriage is considered "tied." At this point, the wife and the children become full members of the husband's clan. Women desire to have six children. A man may have multiple wives, who do not necessarily live close to each other. But they will all live in the area of the husband's clan.
The Nuer refer to their cattle according to the coloring and spotting patterns of their coats. There are twelve separate words for the unique pattern groupings commonly referred to. Cattle are owned by the family, herded by men and milked by women but under the control of the head of the household. Most conflicts involve cattle. Fines for offenses are assessed in cattle.
The Nuer are an excitable people and individuals are very independent and prone to take offense. A casual slight may lead to a quarrel or fight. When violence or the threat of violence erupts, age-mates or family leaders are called on to cool things off. In dire circumstances, a special group called the leopard-skin chiefs are invoked. These special individuals have no formal political authority, but are honored for moral and spiritual authority. The chiefs may even offer sanctuary to murderers. They can then moderate negotiations for compensation, the only alternative to violent clan feuds.
The Nuer, like the Dinka, wear little or no clothing, especially the men. Women will more commonly wear a brief skirt of cloth or skin. Women wear wire and bead necklaces and headdresses. Young men are initiated by circumcision and six cuts across the forehead. A man is named by the coloring of his ritual bull given him at initiation. He composes songs of affection and praise to that bull.
Religion: Cattle play an important part in Nuer religion and ritual. Cows are dedicated to the ghosts of the owner's lineages and any personal spirits that may have possessed them at any time. The Nuer believe they establish contact with these ancestor ghosts and spirits by rubbing ashes along the backs of oxen or cows dedicated to them, through the sacrifice of cattle. No important Nuer ceremony of any kind is complete without such a sacrifice.
The Nuer have a traditional religious worldview usually called "animistic." But they worship a supreme being called Kowth who has various manifestations with which some claim to have personal relationships. The Nuer pray for health and well-being, offering sacrifices to Kowth so he will answer their petitions. There is no organized religious hierarchy or system, but many individuals serve as diviners and healers.
They do not believe in a place of afterlife for the spirit, and their religious concepts deal with concerns of this life. They do believe the spirits of the dead can affect their current life. The more recently deceased, the more influence they have. The Nuer honor and appease the spirits of their ancestors. Cattle are sacrificed to God and the spirits.
Christianity: Missionaries began working among the Nuer in the 1940s. Thirty years later, there was a revival among the people and many came to accept Jesus as Savior. Although some of the "decisions" may have been politically motivated, it is clear that there is a well-established Nuer church with about 200 congregations. However, it is a church in real need of Biblical teaching. There are some gospel recordings in Nuer but no scriptures. They are still considered a World A people, because access to the gospel has been restricted over the last 20 years.
In 1993, the UN High Commission for Refugees reported that 53 million people had been displaced by the civil war in Sudan. Several thousand of these are Nuer. Some who took refuge in Ethiopia were driven back into Sudan, while others found places in refugee camps.
Many Christian organizations from U.S. (Presbyterian Church of USA and Gospel Recordings), Germany and Sweden (Lutherans) and Ethiopia have faithfully ministered to unreached, as well as reached peoples. Through intermingling, tribes form relationships in which Christians can share Jesus with their animistic neighbors. Groups such as Nuer, known for their resistance to the gospel, have responded to Christ.
Those who would minister effectively to the Nuer must obviously learn well the language and life-style pertinent to cattle herding. It has been shown, too, that a great many aspects of the Nuer culture are similar to cultural distinctives of Old Testament peoples. These similarities include features of their social structure, the kinship reckoning and extended family systems, aspects of marriage and divorce, rites of passage, and even religious concepts of God, man, spirits, sin, and sacrifices. Clear presentations of God's working among the Hebrews, first when they were a nomadic pastoral group and then when they became sedentary will provide many parallels which will be meaningful to the
Nuer.
==========================================
NUER STATUS SUMMARY
1. HAVE THEY HEARD THE GOSPEL?
Ratio of pastors/evangelists to population:
? pastor/evangelist
for every ??? persons
total pastor/evangelists
- ?
Ratio of missionaries to population:
? missionary for every ??
persons
total missionaries - ??
Who is Jesus Christ to them?
1% Believe Jesus is the Son of God and name themselves
Christian.
3% Believe he is the Son of God and see him as their
savior
?% Believe Jesus is a prophet, teacher, a good man, but not
God's Son
96% Have not heard who Jesus really is
2. HAVE THEY RESPONDED TO THE GOSPEL? Minimally
3. DO THEY HAVE A CHURCH? Yes
4. DO THEY HAVE THE BIBLE TRANSLATED INTO THEIR MOTHER TONGUE? No
5. ANY HINDRANCES TO USE OF THE SCRIPTURE? Literacy Rate: ?%
[This might be distribution problems, understanding, illiteracy, bilingual inadequacy, poor translation, etc.]
6 WHAT OTHER FORMS OF GOSPEL PRESENTATIONS ARE AVAILABLE
Recordings: Yes Literature:
Video/Films:
Radio:
Audio-Visual:
7. ARE THEY RECEPTIVE TO CHANGE AND CHRISTIANITY? Minimally
8. IS OUTSIDE (CROSS-CULTURAL) ASSISTANCE REQUIRED FROM MISSIONARIES? Yes
====================================
COUNTRY DATA
Country:
Sudan
Ethiopia
Percent Christian:
19%
58%
Percent Evangelical:
3.1%
3%
Population (year):
29,116,000
3,677,000
Major Religion:
Islam
Christianity
Openness to Missionaries: Closed
Somewhat Open
====================================
!KUNG PEOPLE BACKGROUND QUESTIONNAIRE
POPULATION
Total People: 880,000 (1996)
Urban Percent:
Comments:
GEOGRAPHICAL/ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION
Location: Around junctions of Bahr el Ghazal and Sobat Rivers with the Nile, and along the Sobat into Ethiopia
Country: Sudan, Ethiopia
Ecosystem type: Savanna
Geological type: Riverine
Altitude:
Longitude: 70-100 N
Latitude: 290-340 E
Climate:
Comments:
LANGUAGE /LINGUISTICS/LITERACY INFORMATION
(From Ethnologue,
13th Edition)
Primary Language: Nuer
Ethnologue Code: NUS
Alternate Names: Neath
Dialects: None--common form spoken throughout
Attitude towards mother tongue:
Monolingual:
Comments:
Second Languages:
Linguistically related: ATUOT, DINKA
Neighbor Languages: DINKA, SHILLUK
Adult Literacy:
Literacy Attitude:
Active Program:
Publications in MT:
Comments:
ECONOMICS
Subsistence type: Pastoral
Occupations: Herding, fishing, cultivating
Income Sources: None, other than subsistence agriculture
Products/crafts:
Trade Partners: None
Modernization/Utilities: None
Comments:
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT STATUS
Health Care Quality:
Health Care:
Balanced Diet: Fair
Diet/food:
Water Quality: Good
Water:
Shelter:
Electricity: None
Energy/Fuel:
Clothing:
Transportation:
Child Mortality Rate:
Life Expectancy Rate:
Leading Cause of Death:
Comments:
SOCIETY
Family Structures:
Neighbor Relations:
Authority/Rule: .
Social Habits/Groupings:
Cultural Change Pace:
Acculturation to Nat'l Society:
Self Image: Neutral
Judicial/Punishment:
Celebrations:
Recreations:
Art Forms:
MEDIA
Local Language Broadcasting:
Attitude to Outsiders:
Attitude to Changes:
Comments:
EDUCATION/YOUTH
Primary Schools:
School Enrollment:
Eligible Enrolled:
Teacher to Pupil Ratio:
Language of Instructions for Early Primary School:
Language of Textbooks for Early Primary School:
Unmixed Schools:
Comments:
Labor/Tasks of Youth:
Problems:
RELIGION
Religion Adherents
Active
1. Traditional
2. Christian 8,500
Primary Religion: Traditional
Religious Practices/Ceremonies: Healing dances, usually involving trances.
STATUS OF CHRISTIANITY
CHURCH GROWTH
Strategy Status: World A
Reached Status: Engaged
Total Believers: Approximately 8,500
Total Baptized: 8,000 (estimate)
Pastors:
Lay Leaders:
Churches: 200
Missionaries:
Bible Schools:
Christian Clinics/Hospitals:
Christian Literacy Centers:
Comments:
HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY IN GROUP
Year Began: 1940's
By whom:
Significant Events:
SCRIPTURE/LITERATURE/MEDIA STATUS
Translation Status:
Available Scripture:
Available Form:
Use of Translation:
Hindrances to Scripture Use and Distribution: Low literacy
Comments:
Literature:
Recordings: Nuer: Eastern #959 Sudan; Nuer: Southeastern #3785 Sudan; Nuer: Western
#904 Sudan, from Language Recordings
Films:
Radio:
Video:
Audio/Visual:
MISSION/CHURCHES WORKING AMONG
Organization Type of No. of
No. of Wrkrs who Year
Ministry* Adherents Wrkrs use Vernac.
Start
1. Church of Christ
2. American Presbyterian Mission
3. Evangelical Luthern Church in Ethiopia
[*Bible translation/evangelism/church planting/community
development/literacy/medical/other]
Total Expatriate Missionaries:
Total National Missionaries:
Total Local Workers:
Comments:
RESPONSIVENESS
Attitude to Christianity: Indifferent
Attitude to Religious Change: Somewhat resistant
Resistance/Receptivity: Indifferent
Religious Analogies/Bridges: Old Testament societal patterns; concepts of God, sin, sacrifice
Spiritual Climate and Openness:
ITEMS FOR PRAYER
- Pray that the Nuer Church would grow both in numbers of believers and in spiritual maturity and knowledge.
- Pray for Bible translators.
- Pray for peace and an open political system which would facilitate access to gospel resources.
====================================
Bibliography
Burton, John W. "Nuer," Encyclopedia of World Cultures. Boston, MA.: G.K. Hall and Co., Vol. IX, 1995.
Carisle, Richard. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Mankind. N.Y.: Marshall Cavendish, 1990.
Evans-Pritchard, E. E. Kinship and Marriage among the Nuer. Oxford, Claredon Press. 1951.
----. The Nuer. Oxford, Claredon Press. 1940.
----. Nuer Religion. Oxford, Claredon Press. 1956.
Global Prayer Digest. Pasadena, California: Frontier Fellowship, 1991, 1994.
McFall. Approaching the Nuer of Africa Through the Old Testament. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library, 1970.
Metz, Helen Chapin. Sudan: A Country Study. Washington, D.C.: Federal Research Division, Library of Congress, 1991.
Orville Boyd Jenkins
March 1997
First posted May 2001
Last edited 18 April 2002
Copyright © 2001 Orville Boyd Jenkins
Permission granted for free download and transmission
for personal or educational use. Other rights reserved.
Email: researchguy@iname.com
|
|
|
|