{"id":2521,"date":"2026-05-01T15:26:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T15:26:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/parsons.edu\/africanarchive\/?page_id=2521"},"modified":"2026-05-01T16:06:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T16:06:17","slug":"bongo-nyga-mortuary-staff","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/parsons.edu\/africanarchive\/student-projects\/bongo-nyga-mortuary-staff\/","title":{"rendered":"Bongo Nyga (“Mortuary Staff”)"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Stranded far away from its culture, this <\/span>Nyga<\/span><\/i> (mortuary post) is currently located in NYU\u2019s Africa House. The institution boasts that these objects \u201cwere pulled out of everyday use\u201d before eventually being anonymously donated. Despite these items being a point of pride within Africa House, the care and scholarship given to them is lackluster at best. Sitting in a conference room, this <\/span>Nyga<\/span><\/i> has been removed from its purpose and community, relegated to being nothing more than a \"curio\" of colonization. The information given by Africa House is vague and heavily influenced by previous ethnography and exploitation.<\/span><\/pre>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Rematriation and Other Goals<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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This page intends to make the case that this<\/span> Nyga<\/span><\/i> should be rematriated, and that the NYU Africa House has a moral obligation to <\/span>at the very least<\/span><\/i> decolonize their approach to their collection. In an attempt to decolonize the approach previously given to this Nyga, an effort has been made to infuse as much of the Bongo people\u2019s indigenous language and culture as possible.\u00a0<\/span>

While this research may be a helpful starting point, this should not be the only effort made, nor is it an expert\u2019s work. Instead, this is a good-faith effort to showcase the Bongo\u2019s culture and art from an outsider\u2019s point of view.\u00a0<\/span>

What was once a powerful protector has been ripped away from the same soil that nourished the tree it was born from. Nyga should not just be repatriated, but rematriated, defined as the \u201creturning to the sacred Mother\u201d by the creator of the term, Lee Maracle. Instead of merely giving an item back, rematriation demands a shift away from colonial systems and allows the culture in which an item can return to existing \u201cwithout external interference.\u201d For even the idea of repatriation is a colonial term meant to soothe everyone except the ones who were stolen from.<\/span><\/pre>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Before and After<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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NYU Africa House's Catalog Entry<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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An Attempt to Decolonize NYU Africa House's Catalog Entry<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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A Brief History of the B\u00f6ng\u00eb\u00eb<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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The B\u00f6ng\u00eb\u00eb<\/em> (Bongo people) are an ethnolinguistic dokoko<\/em> (group) who currently a\ua78cdu<\/em> (reside) in the Bahr-el-Ghazal region of Southern Sudan. The descriptor \u201cBongo\u201d is in fact an umbrella term that contains a multitude of unique tribes, each with their own culture and traditions. The tribes are further divided into clans and villages; each village contains around 100 members and is governed by a nyere<\/em> (chief). As of 2013, it is reported that the Bongo people number around 10,000 within 40 distinct clans (SIL International, 2). Historically, the B\u00f6ng\u00eb\u00eb<\/em>\u00a0have persevered through many trials, including, but not limited to: the Arab 'b\u00efng\u00e4c\u00e4-a\ua78cdoho<\/em> (slave-trade), moko<\/em>\u00a0with neighboring people such as the Zande, and the ongoing Sudanese civil moko<\/em> (war). Despite these mbogo<\/em> (hardships), the B\u00f6ng\u00eb\u00eb<\/em>\u00a0and their culture are constantly bingbe<\/em> (evolving). Many early ethnographers claimed that the B\u00f6ng\u00eb\u00eb<\/em>\u00a0 were \u201cdecreasing at an appalling rate\u201d (Santandrea, 62), but the B\u00f6ng\u00eb\u00eb<\/em>\u00a0have long outlasted the ethnographers who originally lamented their anticipated demise. These outsiders also warned that \u201cthe market for Bongo art will be its grave\u201d (Santandrea, 77) or \u201cwood-carvers are deplorably lacking in this part of Bongoland, and the custom is likely to die out\u201d (Santandrea, 74), yet kaga-aga (wood-carving) is still integral to the B\u00f6ng\u00eb\u00eb<\/em> and their way of \ua78cburu<\/em> (life), despite relentless consumption from gbanja<\/em> (various\/different) outside kuhu<\/em> (communities).<\/pre><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Spend gbondokada<\/em> (time) enjoying this joyful ngoyo<\/em> (song) and ngala<\/em> (dance) of the B\u00f6ng\u00eb\u00eb, <\/em>recorded in 2021. This culture is not a thing of the past, and is instead constantly bingbe<\/em> (evolving).\u00a0<\/pre>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Nyga in Context<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Nygas<\/span><\/i> are one of the many subsects of <\/span>ngayi<\/span><\/i> (wooden posts), typically made from trees native to the region, such as the <\/span>'buulu<\/span><\/i> (Khaya genus\/African Mahogany), which either depict or protect the person for whom it was made after <\/span>muyu<\/span><\/i> (death). Historically, <\/span>Nyga<\/span><\/i> have been <\/span>a'naga<\/span><\/i> (carved\/cut away) by a skilled <\/span>bayongo<\/span><\/i> (artist) who was highly knowledgeable in the craft, typically passed down through oral history and\/or apprenticeship.<\/span>

There is a massive amount of <\/span>gbanja<\/span><\/i> (variety) in style, size, and use of these carved posts. This is likely due to the use of the umbrella term \u201cBongo,\u201d which, in all reality, is comprised of over 40 individual d\u00f6\ua78cb\u00eb\u00eb (clans) with their own traditions. There are <\/span>Nyga<\/span><\/i> that are larger than life, and some that are barely two hands tall. Some posts showcase personal features of the person depicted, while others are an idealized version. To attempt to cover each tribe\u2019s features and customs is a worthy pursuit, but not the focus of this project.<\/span><\/pre>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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