Kitungula

Kitungula lies in the Moxico interior of south-central Africa, where rivers, woodland and seasonal grassland form a varied landscape. Wet and dry seasons shaped travel and the use of resources: in the rains, the low ground flooded and villages moved to the rises, while in the dry months people relied on the wells and river channels. Farming, hunting and gathering provided the staple foods.

From the sixteenth century the chiefly traditions of the Lunda and neighbouring peoples spread across this country. Political authority rested on kinship, ritual, followers and negotiated obligations, and could shift when communities moved or leaders gained influence. Traders carried ivory and captives through successive intermediaries toward the Atlantic coast, and local chiefs controlled the terms on which that trade passed through their land.

The later city of Solwezi lies nearby.