Bolomba Territory Explained

Official Name:Bolomba Territory
Settlement Type:territory
Pushpin Map:Democratic Republic of the Congo
Pushpin Label Position:bottom
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Democratic Republic of the Congo
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Name1:Équateur Province
Area Total Km2:24598
Population Blank1 Title:Languages
Timezone:West Africa Time
Utc Offset:+1
Coordinates:0.3506°N 19.2303°W

Bolomba Territory is an administrative area in Équateur Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[1] The headquarters is the town of Bolomba.[2] It is located northeast of the provincial capital of Mbandaka. Its main waterway is the Ikelemba River[3] which is navigable down to the Congo River.[4]

History

The territory of Bolomba was included in the Équateur District when the Congo Free State was established, annexed by Belgium in 1908,[5] and passed into Équateur Province in 1917.[6] [7] In the reorganizations of 1962, 1966 and 2015 it remained in the core Équateur area.[8]

Administrative subdivisions

Bolomba Territory is divided into five administrative divisions or "sectors":

Dianga, with 4 sub-groupings (groupements) and 46 villages ;

Mampoko, with 3 sub-groupings (groupements) and 43 villages ;

Bolomba, with 7 sub-groupings (groupements) and 112 villages ;

Busira, with 6 sub-groupings (groupements) and 78 villages ; and

Losanganya, with 4 sub-groupings (groupements) and 113 villages.

Geography and climate

The Bolomba Territory is mainly evergreen deciduous forest, except where it has been clear-cut.[9] The area is low-lying with respect to the Ikelemba River and is subject to either regular annual inundation or flooding in wet years.

Ethnology

Bolomba is primarily inhabited by Bantu tribes of the Mongo and the western branch of the Ngombe (water-people),[10] with some dependent pygmy communities known as "Balumbe".[11] The Mongo there are divided into the Eleku and the Baenga. The predominant languages are Lomongo and Lingombe. The primary occupation is fishing.

Notes and references

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Kyalangilwa . Joseph M. . 22 January 2007 . Nouvelles entités provinciales . https://web.archive.org/web/20110723095534/http://www.congoforum.be/upldocs/RDC%2DNouvelles%20entit%C3%A9s%20provinciales%5B1%5D.pdf . 23 July 2011 . dead . dmy . 18 May 2018 .
  2. Web site: Administrative Zones of the Democratic Republic of Congo (Congo Kinshasa) . Statoids .
  3. Mbandaka, Zaire . JOG 1501-A NA34-13 . Second . 1:250,000 . Aeronautical Chart and Information Center, U.S. Air Force . St. Louis, Missouri .
  4. Encyclopedia: Ikelemba River . Kisangani. Emizet Francois . Historical Dictionary of the Democratic Republic of the Congo . 26 May 2021 . 2016 . Rowman & Littlefield Publishers . 293. 978-1-4422-7316-0.
  5. Britannica:Web site: Congo Free State. 22 April 2021.
  6. Lufungula . Lewono . 1986 . Les gouverneurs de l'Équateur, 1885 - 1960 . fr . Annales Aequatoria . 7 . 149–166 . Honoré Vinck . 25836402 .
  7. Note: Équateur Province was called Coquilhatville between 1933 and 1947.
  8. Lufungula . Lewono . 1989 . Les gouverneurs de l'Équateur (Zaïre) de 1960 à 1988 . fr . Annales Aequatoria . 10 . 65–90 . 25836509 .
  9. Book: Inogwabini, Bila-Isia . 2020 . Chapter 5: Qualitatively Describing Forests of the Landscape . Reconciling Human Needs and Conserving Biodiversity: Large Landscapes as a New Conservation Paradigm . Cham, Switzerland . Springer Verlag . 59–78, Table 5.1, page 63 . 978-3-030-38728-0 .
  10. Note: The Ngombe are sometimes classified among the pygmys. Chabiron . Clothilde . Gally . Silvia . Demolin . Didier . 2013 . Les parlers pygmées du bassin équatorial du Congo . Pygmy Talks of the Congo Equatorial Basin . fr . Géolinguistique . 14 . 125–144 . 10.4000/geolinguistique.873 . free .
  11. Heijboer, B. M. . Heyboer . B. M. . 1946 . De Ngombe-stammen van het Lulonga-stroomgebied . nl . Aequatoria . 9 . 4 . 128–134 . 25837799 .