The Chiefdoms of Powhattan and Ukaguru - Term Paper Example

The chiefdom leader ensured that labor loss is minimized. The chiefdom focused on agricultural crop growing. The chiefdom’s most popular crop is the corn. Maize is eaten by the chiefdom members as a regular part of their daily meals. Corn is the most important wealth of the Chiefdom. However, the agricultural practices of the Chiefdom were not enough to ensure a stable economic condition. Statistics indicate that the chiefdom members planted corn plants that generated two corn ears on each plant.

Consequently, 2,700 corn plants were harvested in one acre of land alone. In terms of statistics, 15 bushels of corn per person were harvested every year in each household corn plot1. B. Tanganyika Chiefdom. There are unique descriptions of the Tanganyika Chiefdom. Beer drinking is one of the popular activities of the Tanganyika Chiefdom. Cattle theft is also one of the seemingly illegal activities some of the Tanganyika chiefdom residents. The Tribe is located in East Africa. In the cattle theft, a member of one tribe of the Tanganyika Chiefdom steals the cattle of another tribe of the Tanganyika Chiefdom.

There is an ambivalent interaction between the people of the Tanganyika Chiefdom2. The people of the Chiefdom are farmers and herdsmen. During the prior wars, the Kaguru members hid among the mountain cliffs of the Kaguru Plateau to defend themselves against their attackers. The Kaguru members of the Chiefdom were metal craftsmen. . The peasants lived only at the expense of the chief authority and elite privilege. The field laborers worked to feed English settlers, the Elite, and finally themselves, in respective order3.

The Virginian settlers commanded the Powhatan chiefdom to plant food. When the harvest arrived, the settlers harvested the food. Wahunsonacock, the people’s leader, controlled the surplus crops. The peasants eagerly obey Wahunsonacock’s commands. To ensure loyal compliance, Wahunsonacock used coaxing to persuade the peasants to obey his every command, without hesitation. Wahunsonacock went out of his way to create a sense of solidarity between himself and his subjects. To ensure solidarity, Wahunsonacock dressed like a peasant, in deerskin breechclout, moccasins, racccon cape or mantle4.

As leader, Wahunsonacock was surrounded by the tallest warriors, had more than 11 favorite wives, and several servants maintaining his physical appearance. On the other hand, the Kaburu People of Tanganyika are divided into matrilineal groups. Some of the clans have certain rights to own or use land and political power. This concept is dominant in many areas of the chiefdom. The Kaguru Matrilineal clan system is the group’s government organization type. The headman is the leader of the groups.

The headman manages the land and other government affairs. The Kaguru people live in little hamlet groups of 3 to 20 huts or even in only one lone homestead. The Kuguru government architecturally set up the people’s homes located in the settlements are bigger than the valleys5). 2. Economics and exchange. In terms of economics and exchange, the Production in excess of household needs is surplus6. the economic is based on