Settlement, architecture and organization The Bambuti live in villages that are categorized as bands. Each hut houses a family unit. At the start of the
dry season, they leave the village to enter the forest and set up a series of camps. The Bantu villagers produce many items that the hunter-gatherers trade some of their products for. They often obtain iron goods, pots, wooden goods, and basketry, in exchange for meat, animal hides, and other forest goods.
Bushmeat is a particularly frequently traded item. They will also trade to obtain agricultural products from the villagers through barter. Hunting is usually done in groups, with men, women, and children all aiding in the process. Women and children are not involved if the hunting involves the use of a bow and arrow, but if nets are used, it is common for everyone to participate. In some instances, women may hunt using a net more often than men. The women and the children herd the animals to the net, while the men guard the net. Everyone engages in foraging, and women and men both take care of the children. Women are in charge of cooking, cleaning and repairing the hut, and obtaining water. The kin-based units work together to provide food and care for the young. It is easier for men to lift the women into the trees for honey.
Food restrictions According to a study published in 1987, based on fieldwork and data gathered between 1974 and 1985, the Mbuti restrict some 40% of the over 500 species of plants and animals they gather and hunt, including some 85% of the animals. The
kweri animals are thought to cause disease and disorder, especially to young children; restrictions are gradually relaxed as one ages.
Kinship and descent system The Bambuti tend to follow a
patrilineal descent system, and their residences after marriage are patrilocal. However, the system is rather loose. The only type of group seen amongst the Bambuti is the
nuclear family.
Kinship also provides allies for each group of people.
Marriage customs Sister exchange is the common form of
marriage. Based on reciprocal exchange, men from other bands exchange sisters or other females to whom they have ties. In Bambuti society,
bride wealth is not customary. There is no formal marriage ceremony: a couple are considered officially married when the groom presents his bride's parents with an antelope he alone has hunted and killed.
Polygamy does occur, but at different rates depending on the group, and it is not very common. The sexual intercourse of married couples is regarded as an act entirely different from that of unmarried partners, for only in marriage may children be conceived.
Political structure Bambuti societies have no ruling group or lineage, no overlying political organization, and little social structure. The Bambuti are an
egalitarian society in which the band is the highest form of social organization. Leadership roles within the band may be displayed during certain group activities such as hunting treks. Men become leaders because they are good hunters. Owing to their superior hunting ability, leaders eat more meat and fat and fewer carbohydrates than other men. Men and women basically have equal power. Issues are discussed and decisions are made by consensus at fire camps; men and women engage in the conversations equivalently. If there is a disagreement,
misdemeanor, or offense, then the offender may be banished, beaten, or scorned. In more recent times the practice is to remove the offender from the forest and have them work for private landowners for little to no pay.
Mythology Everything in the Bambuti life is centered on the forest. They consider the forest to be their great protector and provider and believe that it is a sacred place. They sometimes call the forest "mother" or "father". An important
ritual that impacts the Bambuti's life is referred to as
molimo. After events such as death of an important person in the tribe,
molimo is noisily celebrated to wake the forest, in the belief that if bad things are happening to its children, it must be asleep. As with many Bambuti rituals, the time it takes to complete a molimo is not rigidly set; instead, it is determined by the mood of the group. Food is collected from each hut to feed the molimo, and in the evening the ritual is accompanied by the men dancing and singing around the fire. Women and children must remain in their huts with the doors closed. These practices were studied thoroughly by British anthropologist
Colin Turnbull, known primarily for his work with the tribe. "Molimo" is also the name of a trumpet the men play during the ritual. Traditionally, it was made of wood or sometimes
bamboo, but Turnbull also reported the use of metal drainpipes. The sound produced by a molimo is considered more important than the material it is made out of. When not in use, the trumpet is stored in the trees of the forest. During a celebration, the trumpet is retrieved by the youth of the village and carried back to the fire. == Contemporary situation ==