Story beat 1
Settlement in the highlands
Pastoral houses settle the Mulenge plateau from several Great Lakes paths — including oral lines from the ancient Rwanda and Burundi kingdoms and highland Tanzania — in what is now South Kivu, DRC.
Ndi Umunyamulenge
I am a Munyamulenge.
A Congolese people of South Kivu: the highlands of Mulenge, a long recorded history, living culture, and the lineages we keep.
The Banyamulenge are Congolese citizens of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Living culture, kept in view
Community photographs — shown at their natural strength, not stretched across the screen.
Five chapters to explore
Choose a chapter — each opens with a visual gateway into that part of the story.
“Ndi Umunyamulenge” — I am a person of Mulenge. The Banyamulenge are Congolese citizens of the Democratic Republic of the Congo; our story is rooted in the South Kivu highlands.
The Highlands of Mulenge
The Banyamulenge homeland lies on the high plateaus of **South Kivu** in the eastern **Democratic Republic of the Congo** — rolling hills, fertile valleys, and the Itombwe mountains that have shaped pastoral life for generations of Congolese highland communities.
Minembwe · Bijombo · Mulenge · Itombwe
See the homelandShort lessons and quizzes live inside the Culture chapter.
Explore Imirara Ancestry
Browse the tribes of the Banyamulenge and open living family trees as they are documented. The Abanyabyinshi lineage is available now — more tribes are being added over time.
- All 22 tribes listed in one place
- Interactive Abanyabyinshi family tree
- Migration stories and clan houses