TABOO OF EATING BONOBO AMONG THE BONGANDO PEOPLE IN THE WAMBA REGION, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

Abstract

Among the Bongando, an ethnic group living in and around the village of Wamba, a well-known base for research on the bonobo (Pan paniscus) in the Democratic Republic of Congo, it has traditionally been taboo to eat bonobo. In Bongando folk taxonomy, bonobos are categorized not as animals, but as human beings. The resemblance of bonobo bodily characteristics and behaviors to those of humans is the main reason for this categorization. While this recognition has helped in the conservation of this endangered species, social and cultural interchanges with other ethnic groups are changing the tradition of "folk conservation." Through interviews with villagers, we investigated changes in the eating of bonobo meat. This taboo persists in older generations, whereas a certain number of younger people have begun to eat bonobo meat. With regards to this change, bonobo conservation and the meaning of food taboo as a "cultural resource" is discussed.