ABSTRACT
The western part of Uganda is a land of great contrasts. There are enormous snow-clad peaks, and low steaming valleys; great rolling plains of elephant grass, and forests of tall trees and jungle creepers, where hordes of monkeys chatter and tease at the passers-by. To the south the land rises sharply and there, above a steep escarpment, some 7,000 feet above sea-level, is Kigezi county, home of the Chiga. The Chiga people speak a Bantu dialect which is related to Nyoro. Their cultural similarities with these neighbours to the north, and with Ruanda to the south, are profound. The Chiga are not a united people. There is no tribal organization, and there is much inter-clan fighting. There are minor variations in custom and even in dialect in different parts of the country. But to their neighbours, as well as to themselves, they are a distinct people.
