IDNO

P.49873.DRI

Description

"5. Lango dance" [Driberg's caption]

A group of description of adult men performing the 'myel me bilo' dance, all uniformly bending their knees. Driberg writes that, customarily, dancers stand with their legs together and arms bent forward at the elbow holding a stick. (Driberg 1923, pp.126-127). From this position, they leap in uniformity and often turn around before landing to the music.

In the background are trees to the left, and two thatched roofs of buildings to the right. [LS 25/07/23]

Place

E Africa; Uganda; ?Northern Region [Lango District]

Cultural Affliation

Lango

Named Person

Photographer

Driberg, Jack Herbert

Collector / Expedition

Date

circa 1912 - 1921

Collection Name

Driberg CollectionUnmounted Haddon Collection

Source

Format

Print Black & White

Primary Documentation

Other Information

P.49848.ACH2. to P.49875.ACH2. were found in envelope now marked C210/1/. This was found in another envelope now marked C210/ which came from the wooden drawer 1.

Place: The Place field was previously recorded as being "Africa; East Africa; ?Uganda", but the Lango is a group from what was known as the sub-region of Lango District, Uganda. A photograph of the series, P.49860.ACH2, has now being identified as Driberg’s, who worked with the Lango of Uganda between 1912 - 1921. The Place field has been amended accordingly. [Source: Ethnologue 15th Edition, JD 19/6/2009]

Photographer: The handwriting on the reverse of the prints P.49848.ACH2. to P.49875.ACH2 is the same as on P.49860.ACH2, which has been identified as J.H.Driberg’s. The Photographer and Date fields have been amended accordingly. [JD 19/6/2009]

In Driberg, J.H. and Coryndon, R.T. 1923. 'The Lango a Nilotic tribe of Uganda' (London: Fisher Unwin) Driberg discusses various types of Lango dances in his chapter on the "Mode of Life" on page 126-127, noting that the myel me bul and myel me bilo, depending on whether a drun or flute band is present, are the most common. This photo depicts similarities to Driberg's description of the myel me bul whereby "the dancers are arranged in lines, the men in one line and the women in another facing them about six feet away".