There has been a distinctive atmosphere in Owambo for the past few weeks and it is tangible. Life seems more relaxed than normally. So much so, that the traditional courts have gone into recess as the carrying of weapons is prohibited and disputes are supposed to be solved amicably. The reason. It’s Omaongo time!
Omaongo, the name of the white coloured wine made from the fruit of the marula tree, literally means “the water from the marula”. Such is its social and cultural significance that the Oshituthi shomagongo (Marula Fruit Festival) has been inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage List of Humanity and is rotated annually amongst the eight Aawambo communities.
This year’s festival was hosted by Ohamba Martha Mwadinomho Ya Kristian Nelumbu of the Oukwanyama Traditional Authority at the Omedhi palace on Saturday, 10 May. The theme for the festival was “Preservation of our cultural heritage and strengthening of our unity”. And what a celebration it was! Women were dressed in their ondhelela, some wearing a leather apron adorned with omba (large circular white shells), while the men wore etanga shirts in a variety of styles.
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, who delivered the keynote address, said Namibians look forward to the festival each year to celebrate their rich cultural heritage and strengthening the bond of unity that unites Namibians. She announced that there are plans to hold the Omaongo Festival in future in all regions where marula trees grow and not only in the eight traditional authorities in Owambo. The President paid tribute to late President Sam Nujoma who initiated the annual festival and served as its patron.
Depending on the rains, the female marula tree bears fruit for between four to eight weeks between late January and April/May. The round to oval fruit is still green when they fall off the trees and ripens on the ground after two to four days. Groups of women and girls gather the fallen fruit into small heaps under the trees and sort them according to their quality.
Neighbours are invited to help with the extraction of the juice which usually takes place in the early afternoon. The sharp edge of a cow horn was traditionally used to pierce the fruit’s leathery skin and is twisted around the nut to squeeze the juice into a container. It is a time-consuming chore which is nowadays increasingly being preplaced by mechanical presses.
The juice is transferred to a clay pot which is covered with a cloth and stored in a cool, dark place to ferment for between one and four days, depending on the required strength. Sweet omaongo takes longer to ferment and is more intoxicating. The juice can be preserved for almost a year when stored underground in clay pots.
Omaongo is brewed in most households during the fruiting season and is served to guests and at special occasions. Brews of omaongo are usually made from the fruit of single trees as each tree produces a distinctive brew. When harvests are poor, the fruit of different trees are combined.
The collection and processing of the fruit is an occasion for women to pass on knowledge about the process to girls to keep the culture alive. It is also an important social event for women to socialise and to feel free to talk freely – even maybe gossip a little bit.
Next year’s festival will be hosted by the Uukwambi and Uukwaluudhi traditional authorities at two separate occasions.
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