Bateke

Bateke names the Teke, also called Tio, a Bantu people whose homeland lies on the plateau north of Malebo Pool and along the Congo River. Teke speakers spread through the Republic of the Congo, the western Democratic Republic of the Congo and southeastern Gabon. Rivers connected forest, savanna and plateau communities, and trade moved ivory, cloth, salt and food between them.

The Teke remember a kingdom ruled by the Makoko, a king whose office combined sacred and political authority. He governed through local chiefs in the country around the river crossings, and his position linked the Congo River with routes into the interior plateau. Teke traders carried ivory and cloth to riverside markets, while chiefs collected dues from caravans crossing their land. The kingdom's power rested on this control of trade.