A tribal chief , chieftain , or headman is a leader of a tribal society or of a chiefdom .
60-738: There is no definition for "tribe". The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of western Afroeurasia . Tribal societies are sometimes categorized as an intermediate stage between the band society of the Paleolithic stage and civilization with centralized, super-regional government based in cities . Anthropologist Elman Service distinguishes two stages of tribal societies: simple societies organized by limited instances of social rank and prestige, and more stratified societies led by chieftains or tribal kings ( chiefdoms ). Stratified tribal societies led by tribal kings are thought to have flourished from
120-433: A colonial context, the most powerful member of either a confederation or a federation of such tribal, clan or village chiefs would be referred to as a paramount chief . Classical sources of information about tribal societies are external descriptions such as from Greco-Roman ethnography , which identified societies, surrounding the societies of the ethnographers, as tribal. States and colonialism , particularly in
180-770: A king whose title is also recognized by the Bolivian government. The band is the fundamental unit of governance among the First Nations in Canada (formerly called "Indians"). Most bands have elected chiefs, either directly elected by all members of the band, or indirectly by the band council, these chiefs are recognized by the Canadian state under the terms of the Indian Act . As well, there may be traditional hereditary or charismatic chiefs, who are usually not part of
240-644: A US$ 14 billion industry nationwide. This has been imitated in many of the respective states that still have indigenous American tribes. The money that this generates has engendered some political scandal. For example, the Tigua tribe, which fled their ancestral lands in New Mexico during the Pueblo revolt of 1680, and who then settled on land in El Paso County, Texas , has paid for a low probable return to
300-590: A broader popular assembly in "parliamentary" cultures, the war chief (may be an alternative or additional post in war time), the hereditary chief, and the politically dominant medicineman . The term is usually distinct from chiefs at lower levels, such as village chief (geographically defined) or clan chief (an essentially genealogical notion). The descriptive "tribal" requires an ethno-cultural identity (racial, linguistic, religious etc.) as well as some political (representative, legislative, executive and/or judicial) expression. In certain situations, and especially in
360-426: A city-state, such a unit as Jericho might have become in its later stages … tribalism can be viewed as reaction to the formation of complex political structure rather than a necessary preliminary stage in its evolution. The term "tribe" was in common use in the field of anthropology until the late 1950s and 1960s. The continued use of the term has attracted controversy among anthropologists and other academics active in
420-662: A court application was submitted by Princess Masalanabo's legal team in order to challenge the Royal Council's decision, which they claim to be illegal under the Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Act and to ignore the recognition of Masalanabo as Rain Queen by President Cyril Ramaphosa . An online petition against Lekukela's appointment was launched in May 2021, even though the Royal Council has stated
480-505: A leadership responsive to the needs of neighboring states (the so-called tribes of the United States or British India provide good examples of this). The British favored the label "aboriginal tribe" for some communities. India adopted a republican constitution in 1950, after three years of debate in its Constituent Assembly. During the debate, Jaipal Singh, a member of Munda tribe from Central India advocated for special provisions for
540-455: A number of them were restored as politically neutral constituencies of the state by the government of Yoweri Museveni . Such figures as the kabaka of Buganda and the omukama of Toro typify the Ugandan chieftaincy class. El caciquismo is a distorted form of government through which a political leader has total control of a rural society expressed as political clientelism . This concept
600-852: A political unit formed from an organisation of families (including clans and lineages) based on social or ideological solidarity. Membership of a tribe may be understood as being based on factors such as kinship ("clan"), ethnicity ("race"), language, dwelling place, political group, religious beliefs, oral tradition and/or cultural practices . Archaeologists continue to explore the development of pre-state tribes. Current research suggests that tribal structures constituted one type of adaptation to situations providing plentiful yet unpredictable resources. Such structures proved flexible enough to coordinate production and distribution of food in times of scarcity, without limiting or constraining people during times of surplus. Anthropologist Morton Fried argued in 1967 that bands organized into tribes in order to resist
660-593: Is Native American, although the connection is usually only sentimental and not economic or cultural. Thus, there is some political power in one's ability to claim a Native American connection (as in the Black Seminole ). Because the Nations were sovereign, with treaty rights and obligations, the Wisconsin tribes innovated Indian gaming in 1988, that is, on-reservation gambling casinos, which have since become
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#1732781073422720-597: Is a 2006 Royal Council resolution appointing Lekukela as heir to the Balobedu throne, which was allegedly kept secret due to security concerns. The Royal Council plans for Princess Masalanabo to instead assume the position of khadi-kholo (great aunt) of the Balobedu kingdom. Lekukela was installed as King elect by the Modjadji royal council in October 2022, although his coronation is still pending judicial approval after
780-742: Is also sometimes applied as an honorific title to spiritual leaders of Sufism. Apo Rodolfo Aguilar (Kudol I) serves as the chieftain of the Tagbanwa tribes people living in Banuang Daan and Cabugao settlements in Coron Island, Palawan, Philippines. His position is recognized by the Filipino government. The Solomon Islands have a Local Court Act which empowers chiefs to deal with crimes in their communities, thus assuring them of considerable effective authority. Tribe The term tribe
840-527: Is generally held by linguists to be a compound formed from two elements: tri- 'three' and bhu , bu , fu , a verbal root meaning 'to be'. Latin tribus is held to derive from the Proto-Indo-European compound * tri-dʰh₁u/o- ('rendered in three, tripartite division'; compare with Umbrian trifu 'trinity, district', Sanskrit trídha 'threefold'). Considerable debate has accompanied efforts to define and characterize tribes. In
900-443: Is often contrasted by anthropologists with other social and kinship groups, being hierarchically larger than a lineage or clan , but smaller than a chiefdom , ethnicity , nation or state . These terms are similarly disputed. In some cases tribes have legal recognition and some degree of political autonomy from national or federal government, but this legalistic usage of the term may conflict with anthropological definitions. In
960-460: Is reportedly considered by some to be a faction that promotes division within the royal clan of the Balobedu people. The second Rain Queen, Masalanabo Modjadji , is said to have been the inspiration for H. Rider Haggard 's novel She: A History of Adventure . The Marvel Comics character Storm is a fictional descendant of the dynasty that produces the Rain Queens through the line of
1020-550: Is the result of a borrowing from a Romance language source (such as Old French tribu ) or if the form is a result of borrowing directly from Latin (the Middle English plural tribuz 1250 may be a direct representation of Latin plural tribūs ). Modern English tribe may also be a result of a common pattern wherein English borrows nouns directly from Latin and drops suffixes, including -us . Latin tribus
1080-466: Is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group . The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology . Its definition is contested, in part due to conflicting theoretical understandings of social and kinship structures, and also reflecting the problematic application of this concept to extremely diverse human societies. The concept
1140-857: The Modjadji cycad , is named after the Rain Queen. The rain-making powers are also believed to be transmitted through matriarchal mitochondrial DNA . Therefore, the Queenship is inherited through matrilineal lineage, by the daughters of the Rain queen. The Rain Queen is a prominent figure in South Africa, many communities respecting her position and, historically, attempting to avoid conflict in deference thereto. The fifth Rain Queen, Mokope Modjadji , maintained cordial relations with Nelson Mandela . Even presidents of South Africa during apartheid visited
1200-669: The Native American tribes of North America, tribes are considered sovereign nations , that have retained their sovereignty or been granted legal recognition by the federal government. Rain Queen Queen Modjadji , or the Rain Queen , is the hereditary queen of Balobedu , a people of the Limpopo Province of South Africa . The Rain Queen is believed to have special powers, including
1260-591: The Neolithic stage into the Iron Age , albeit in competition with urban civilisations and empires beginning in the Bronze Age . In the case of tribal societies of indigenous peoples existing within larger colonial and post-colonial states, tribal chiefs may represent their tribe or ethnicity in a form of self-government . The most common types are the chairman of a council (usually of " elders ") and/or
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#17327810734221320-597: The Pueblo people were granted U.S. citizenship, and it was not until 1948 that the Puebloans were granted the right to vote in state elections in New Mexico. In Wisconsin, the Menominee has its own county Menominee County, Wisconsin with special car license plates; 87% of the county's population is Native American. Mainstream Americans often find pride and comfort in realizing that at least part of their ethnic ancestry
1380-707: The king of the Zulu Nation and the rain queen are politically recognized in South Africa because they derive their status, not only from tribal custom, but also from the Traditional Leadership Clause of the country's current constitution. Some of them are members of the National House of Traditional Leaders . The pre-colonial states that existed in what is today Uganda were summarily abolished following independence from Great Britain . However, following constitutional reforms in 1993,
1440-723: The social sciences with scholars of anthropological and ethnohistorical research challenging the utility of the concept. In 1970, anthropologist J. Clyde Mitchell wrote: Despite the membership boundaries for a tribe being conceptually simple, in reality they are often vague and subject to change over time. In his 1975 study, The Notion of the Tribe , Fried provided numerous examples of tribes that encompassed members who spoke different languages and practiced different rituals, or who shared languages and rituals with members of other tribes. Similarly, he provided examples of tribes in which people followed different political leaders, or followed
1500-464: The 'Adibasi' -- a translation into Hindi of 'aboriginal'. His arguments proved persuasive. These communities were to have seats in the legislatures and positions in government employment 'reserved' for them. Each of the assembly members prepared a list of communities that deserved special protections. These names were listed in a "Schedule" (appendix) to the Constitution. So these came to be called
1560-444: The 'Scheduled Tribes', often abbreviated to ST. Second, bands could form "secondary" tribes as a means to defend against state expansion. Members of bands would form more clearly bounded and centralized polities, because such polities could begin producing surpluses that could support a standing army that could fight against states, and they would have a leadership that could co-ordinate economic production and military activities. In
1620-571: The Indian Act-sanctioned formal government. There were 614 bands in Canada in 2012. There is also a national organization, the Assembly of First Nations , which elects a "national chief" to act as spokesperson of all First Nations bands in Canada. Generally, a tribe or nation is considered to be part of an ethnic group , usually sharing cultural values . For example, the forest-dwelling Chippewa historically built dwellings from
1680-625: The North American continent, it was historically possible to evade the political power of another by migration. The Mingos , for example, were Iroquois who migrated further west to the sparsely populated Ohio Country during the 18th century. Two Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois, Hiawatha and the Great Peacemaker , formulated a constitution for the Iroquois Confederation. The tribes were pacified by units of
1740-591: The Rain Queens. The Rain Queen has become a figure of interest, she and the royal institution becoming a significant tourist attraction contributing to the South African economy. The Rain Queen was offered an annual government civil list . The stipend was also expected to help defray the costs of preserving the cycad trees found in the Rain Queen's gardens. Rain Queen Makobo Caroline Modjadji VI (22 July 1978 – 12 June 2005)
1800-482: The United States Army in the nineteenth century, and were also subject to forced schooling in the decades afterward. Thus, it is uncommon for today's tribes to have a purely Native American cultural background, and today Native Americans are in many ways simply another ethnicity of the secular American people. Because formal education is now respected, some like Peter MacDonald , a Navajo, left their jobs in
1860-505: The United States, Native American tribes are legally considered to have "domestic dependent nation" status within the territorial United States, with a government-to-government relationship with the federal government. The modern English word tribe stems from Middle English tribu , which ultimately derives from Latin tribus . According to the Oxford English Dictionary , it remains unclear if this form
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1920-643: The ability to control the clouds and rainfall. She is known as a mystical and historic figure who brought rain to her allies and drought to her enemies. She is not a ruler as such, but a powerful rainmaker and a traditional healer (ngaka). As of March 2024 , the title is in dispute between two claimants. The traditional installation of Prince Lekukela Modjadji as the king of the Balobedu took place in October 2022 at Khetlhakoni Royal Palace in Modjadjiskloof outside Tzaneen in Limpopo. Princess Masalanabo, who
1980-607: The annual Rainmaking ceremony at her royal compound in Khetlhakone Village. She is not supposed to marry, but has many "wives", as they are referred to in the Balobedu language. These are not spouses in the usual sense of the word; as a queen regnant , she has the equivalent of royal court servants, or ladies-in-waiting ), sent from many villages all over the Balobedu Kingdom. These wives were selected by The Queen's Royal Council and in general are from
2040-584: The bark of trees. On the Great Plains , where trees were rare, some tribes typically dwelt in skin-covered tipis , usually acquiring the lodgepoles by trade, while other Plains tribes, such as the Pawnee , built their lodges of earth. The Pueblo people of the Southwest built their dwellings of stone and earth. A chief might be considered to hold all political power, say by oratory or by example. But on
2100-453: The council of women. Historically, the U.S. government treated tribes as seats of political power, and made treaties with the tribes as legal entities. Be that as it may, the territory of these tribes fell under the authority of the Bureau of Indian Affairs as reservations held in trust for the tribes. Citizenship was formerly considered a tribal matter. For example, it was not until 1924 that
2160-689: The cultures of the traditional areas. They also serve as members of the Ghanaian National House of Chiefs . Although both the Nigerian traditional rulers and the wider chieftaincy aren't mentioned in Nigeria's current constitution , they derive their powers from various so-called Chiefs laws and are therefore legally recognized. The traditional rulers and select chiefs usually serve as members of each federating state's State Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs . Such figures as
2220-405: The decision is irreversible. A male branch of the extended royal clan has also petitioned the South African president to restore the male line of the Balobedu royal house, which reigned before 1800. This request is considered unlikely to be granted, since the Rain Queen heritage is recognised as a national cultural legacy and interest in it has stimulated significant tourist trade. This male branch
2280-567: The fortress of Great Zimbabwe . During the 1930s, social anthropologists Eileen Krige and Jack Krige carried out fieldwork on the society of the Rain Queens. Their work was published in 1943 as The Realm of a Rain-Queen. A Study of the Pattern of Lovedu Society , and remains one of the standard anthropological works. According to custom, the Rain Queen must shun public functions, and can only communicate with her people through her male or female councillors . Every November she presides over
2340-467: The future Rain Queen in a 2016 memorandum and she was expected to officially receive her certificate in 2021, when she turned 18, as minors are not allowed to be traditional leaders. Makobo's brother Prince Mpapatla was designated regent for Princess Masalanabo. However, Mpapatla himself has a daughter by his cousin, a woman from the royal Modjadji line. Mpapatla, however, has insisted that his late sister's daughter, Princess Masalanabo, will be enthroned as
2400-515: The government as members of the Ntlo ya Dikgosi , the national House of Chiefs . In addition to this, they also serve as the ex officio chairs of the tribal kgotlas , meetings of all of the members of the tribes, where political and social matters are discussed. The offices and traditional realms of the nanas of Ghana are constitutionally protected by the republican constitution of the country. The chiefs serve as custodians of all traditional lands and
2460-424: The households of the subject chiefs. This ritual of "bride giving" is strictly a form of diplomacy to ensure loyalty to the Queen. The Rain Queen's mystical rain-making powers are believed to be reflected in the lush garden which surrounds her royal compound. Surrounded by parched land, her garden contains the world's largest cycad trees which are in abundance under a spectacular rain belt . One species of cycad,
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2520-406: The land, Mokoto impregnated his own daughter in order to restore the tribe's matrilineal tradition. In another version, Mokoto had a vision that he had to marry his daughter in order to create a matrilineal dynasty. She gave birth to the first Rain Queen, known as Modjadji , which means: "ruler of the day". Oral histories recount that the Rain Queens are originally from ancient Ethiopia and built
2580-407: The last centuries, forced their central governments onto many remaining tribal societies. In some instances tribes have retained or regained partial self-government and their lifestyles, with Indigenous peoples rights having been fought for and some being secured on state or international levels. In Botswana, the reigning kgosis of the various tribes are legally empowered to serve as advisers to
2640-471: The mainstream U.S. economy to become chairpeople of their tribal councils or similar self-government institutions. Not all tribal leaders are or were men. Wilma Mankiller was a well-known chief of the Cherokee Nation. Also, the chief may not free to wield power without the consent of a council of elders of some kind. For example: Cherokee men were not permitted to go to war without the consent of
2700-1280: The modern state system. Tribes have lost their legitimacy to conduct traditional functions, such as tithing , delivering justice and defending territory, with these being replaced by states functions and institutions, such as taxation, law courts and the military. Most have suffered decline and loss of cultural identity. Some have adapted to the new political context and transformed their culture and practices in order to survive, whilst others have secured legal rights and protections. Fried proposed that most surviving tribes do not have their origin in pre-state tribes, but rather in pre-state bands. Such "secondary" tribes, he suggested, developed as modern products of state expansion. Bands comprise small, mobile, and fluid social formations with weak leadership . They do not generate surpluses, pay no taxes, and support no standing army. Fried argued that secondary tribes develop in one of two ways. First, states could set them up as means to extend administrative and economic influence in their hinterland, where direct political control costs too much. States would encourage (or require) people on their frontiers to form more clearly bounded and centralized polities, because such polities could begin producing surpluses and taxes, and would have
2760-479: The nature, structure and practices of tribes. Writing on the Kurdish peoples, anthropologist Martin van Bruinessen argued, "the terms of standard anthropological usage, 'tribe', 'clan' and 'lineage' appear to be a straitjacket that ill fits the social reality of Kurdistan". There are further negative connotations of the term "tribe" that have reduced its use. Writing in 2013, scholar Matthew Ortoleva noted that "like
2820-569: The past, the Rain Queen was allowed to have children only by her close relatives . Perhaps uniquely, the Balobedu crown descends according to matrilineal primogeniture : her eldest daughter is always her successor , so the title of Rain Queen is normally passed from mother to daughter. It is said that she ingests poison when she is near death so that her daughter will assume the crown more quickly. Lately, however, many traditions have been abandoned, influenced by Christian missionaries . The government of South Africa recognized Princess Masalanabo as
2880-412: The popular imagination, tribes reflect a primordial social structure from which all subsequent civilizations and states developed. Anthropologist Elman Service presented a system of classification for societies in all human cultures, based on the evolution of social inequality and the role of the state . This system of classification contains four categories: Tribes are therefore considered to be
2940-701: The queen when she turns 18. However, in May 2021, the Modjadji Royal Council appointed Masalanabo's older brother, Prince Lekukela, as king of the Balobedu nation with the support of Prince Regent Mpapatla, citing Masalanabo's lack of preparation on divine processes traditionally assumed by Rain Queens, as she lives in Gauteng with the family of Mathole Motshekga, a former advisor to the Balobedu Royal Council. Mpapatla claims there
3000-505: The same chief's house, in which the chief's son impregnated Dzugundini. Dzugundini was held responsible and was forced to flee the village. Dzugundini ended up in Molototsi Valley, which is in the present day Balobedu Kingdom. The village she established with her loyal followers was ruled by a Mokoto, a male leader, but the peace and harmony of the village were disrupted by rivalries between different families; therefore, to pacify
3060-416: The same leaders as members of other tribes. He concluded that tribes in general are characterized by fluid boundaries, heterogeneity and dynamism, and are not parochial. Part of the difficulty with the term is that it seeks to construct and apply a common conceptual framework across diverse cultures and peoples. Different anthropologists studying different peoples therefore draw conflicting conclusions about
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#17327810734223120-405: The succession is currently before the courts of South Africa. There are several different stories relating to the creation and history of the Rain Queens of Balobedu. One story states that an old chief in 16th century Monomotapa (South eastern Zimbabwe ), was told by his ancestors that by impregnating his daughter, Dzugundini, she would gain rain-making skills. Another story involves a scandal in
3180-878: The tribe because of the Jack Abramoff publicity. Many of the tribes use professional management for their money. Thus, the Mescalero Apache renovated their Inn of the Mountain Gods to include gambling as well as the previous tourism, lodging, and skiing in the older Inn. The Navajo nation defeated bids to open casinos in 1994, but by 2004 the Shiprock casino was a fait accompli . Arabs, in particular peninsular Arabs , nomadic Bedouins and many Iraqis and Syrians, are largely organized in tribes, many of whom have official representatives in governments. Tribal chiefs are known as sheikhs , though this term
3240-422: The violence and exploitation of early kingdoms and states. He wrote: In fact, there is no absolute necessity for a tribal stage as defined by Sahlins and Service, no necessity, that is, for such a stage to appear in the transit from a single settlement with embedded political organization, to a complex-state structured polity. Such a developmental process could have gone on within a unit that we may conceptualize as
3300-415: The word Indian , [t]ribe is a word that has connotations of colonialism." Survival International says "It is important to make the distinction between tribal and indigenous because tribal peoples have a special status acknowledged in international law as well as problems in addition to those faced by the wider category of indigenous peoples." Few tribes today remain isolated from the development of
3360-475: Was expected to be the next Rain Queen, is intended by the faction of the Modjadji Royal Council that installed him to now take a position reserved for her and become the Khadikholo (great aunt) of Balobedu. The other claimant is Lekukela's sister, who is known to loyalists as Masalanabo II Modjadji VII. She is the daughter of the last Rain Queen, Makobo Modjadji VI. A ceremony to celebrate her 18th birthday
3420-775: Was held in April 2023 at the Kara Heritage Institute in Pretoria ; it was organized by the Balobedu Heritage Society, which was founded by her great grandmother Mokope Modjadji V . The event was used to launch her history booklet "Masalanabo Modjadji VII: Daughter Of The Sun". She will be crowned by a rival faction of the Modjadji Royal Council. Originally planned for April 2024, her coronation will take place in September 2024. The matter of
3480-469: Was listed as chronic meningitis . She is survived by a son, Prince Lekukela Hex (b. 1997), and a daughter, Masalanabo Modjadji VII (b. 20 January 2005) who succeeded her in 2023 when she turned 18. The Rain Queen's official mates are chosen by the Royal Council, so that all of her children will be of dynastic status, from which future Rain Queens may descend. However, the Rain Queens are not expected to remain in exclusive relations with these partners. In
3540-521: Was most widespread in Latin America in its different periods of history. In Spain and some Latin American countries, the word cacique is used pejoratively to refer to those who hold the power through obscure networks of influence even though this type of fraud is not related to pre-Columbian era civilizations The Afro-Bolivian people , a recognized ethnic constituency of Bolivia, are led by
3600-576: Was the sixth in a line of the Balobedu people's Rain Queens. Makobo was crowned on 16 April 2003, at the age of 25, after the death of her predecessor and grandmother, Rain Queen Mokope Modjadji V . This made her the youngest queen in the history of the Balobedu. Makobo was admitted into the Limpopo Medi-Clinic for an undisclosed illness on 10 June 2005 and died two days later, at the age of 27. The official cause of death
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