The people of Malawi belong mainly to various Central Bantu groups. About half belong to the Chewa and Nyanja groups, known collectively as Malawi (or Maravi) before the 19th century. About 15% are Lomwe (Alomwe), who live south of Lake Chilwa. Other indigenous Malawians include the Tumbuko, Tonga, and Ngonde. The Ngoni and Yao arrived in the 19th century; together they constitute about 15% of the population. There are a few thousand Europeans, mainly of British origin, including descendants of Scottish missionaries. There are also small numbers of Portuguese, Asians (mainly Indians), and persons of mixed ancestry.
Most Malawians are Christian. About 55 percent are Protestant and 20 percent Roman Catholic. Christians often mix their beliefs with local traditions. For instance, the gule wamkulu (great dance), popular in the central and southern regions, uses various masks representing ancestral spirits, people, and animals to tell stories and teach traditions. The different belief systems are not considered contradictory because each plays a role in people's daily lives. Muslims (20 percent) are concentrated in lakeshore areas. The remaining 5 percent of Malawians practice traditional indigenous beliefs through rituals, festivals, and dances.
English, an official language, is used in government and business. Chichewa (also official) and Chitumbuka are the two most widely spoken languages. Banda, who was a Chewa, selected Chichewa as the main national language, and it is taught in schools along with English. Chichewa dominates in central and southern regions, while Chitumbuka is spoken mostly in the north. Smaller ethnic groups speak their own Bantu-related languages but usually know some Chichewa. These Bantu languages are melodic and expressive; every syllable ends in a vowel, though some are not pronounced.
Some tension exists between generations due to the influence of Western culture among the youth. Many people feel that Western influence threatens traditional ways of life. Material possessions are few but well cared for. Bicycles are prized, and it is quite an achievement to own a car.
In Malawian society, the family is considered a person's greatest asset. Parents fondly refer to children as “Firstborn,” “Secondborn,” and so on. Society is group oriented; individuals sacrifice their interests for the good of the family or community. They expect to share their incomes with poorer family members.
Western-style dress is common in Malawi but may be combined with local fashions. Men wear pants, shirts, and often a suit jacket.
Women wear blouses, skirts, and dresses. They might also wrap a chitenje around their waist. This 7-foot-long (2-meter-long) African-print cotton fabric protects dresses from dust and dirt. The chitenje can also serve as a shield from wind and rain, as a baby carrier, or as a coiled support for baskets carried on the head. Major cities and tourist spots are the only places where women wear pants, shorts, and short skirts. Children are encouraged to wear school uniforms to help them develop a sense for “dressing smart” later in life.
Postal and telecommunications services are the responsibility of the government; there were 38,000 mainline telephones in use in 1999 with an additional 49,000 cellular phones in use in 2000. Radio broadcasting services are provided in English and Chichewa by the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation. In 2001 there were 9 AM and 5 FM radio stations and 1 television station. In 2000 there were about 499 radios and 3 television sets for every 1,000 people. Seven Internet service providers were serving 15,000 people in 2000.
The Daily Times, published in English in Blantyre, appears Monday through Friday and had a circulation of 22,000 in 2002. The other major daily publications were Computer Monitor, Michiru Sun, The Enquirer, and U.D.F. News (United Democratic Front). The Malawi News, a weekly, had a circulation of 30,000. Other weeklies include The Independent, The Nation, and The New Express.
Though previously strictly controlled by the government, the media now enjoy new constitutional provisions suspending censorship powers. The government is said to respect these new provisions.
The Malawi National Library Service, founded in 1968, has more than 804,000 volumes and maintains a nationwide interloan system. The largest library is that of the University of Malawi (375,000 volumes). The US Information Agency maintains a small library in Lilongwe, and the British Council has libraries in Blantyre and in the capital. The National Archives are in Zomba and contain 40,000 volumes. The Museum of Malawi (1959), in Blantyre, has a collection displaying the nation's archaeology, history, and ethnography. Other museums include the Lake Malawi Museum in Mangochi and a regional museum in Mzuzu. There is also a postal museum in Namaka housed in a traditional postal carrier's rest hut.
When meeting, Malawians shake right hands while placing the left hand under the right forearm. Showing both hands in this way demonstrates sincerity and trust. Women and men dip their knees slightly when exchanging greetings. If greeting elders or people of authority, they kneel down and clap their hands quietly two or three times. Women dip their knees whenever they meet someone, even if the person has lower status. Placing the prefix a- before a name or title shows respect. For example, bambo is the word for man, but usually one would address him as abambo.
People greet with an exchange of “Hello, sir!” (Moni bambo! in Chichewa; Monire adada! in Chitumbuka) or “Hello, madam!” (Moni mayi! or Monire amama!). This is followed by “How are you?” (Muli bwanji? in Chichewa; Muli uli? in Chitumbuka). The common response is “I am fine!” (Ndili bwino! or Ndili makola!). People also ask about each other's families.
Malawians rarely use first names. They address others as “Madam” or “Sir,” followed by the surname. Informally, they use surnames alone. Persons in authority are addressed as Bwana (Boss). Young adults and teens may address each other as chemwali (sister) or chimwene (brother). The informal address to children (and acquaintances) is iwe (you), while the formal address to elderly and strangers is "inu" (you).
Malawians give and receive items with both hands. Tossing food (such as fruit) is considered rude. A verbal "tss-tss" or "a-a-ah" expresses displeasure or disbelief. A loud and long hiss is used to get someone's attention from far off. When near, one says Aisse (Friend). Public displays of affection between men and women are not acceptable in most places. However, men may walk arm in arm or hold hands while laughing and exchanging stories; women will do the same. Hand gestures are dramatic and conversation is lively. Eye contact is important but direct gazes are limited, especially toward elders or persons of authority. The youth use the “thumbs up” gesture and Sure! (in English) in friendly exchanges. It is offensive to make the U.S. “OK” sign, with the thumb and index finger forming a circle. When describing a child's size to others, Malawians extend an upraised hand to the approximate height. Extending a level hand, palm down, is used only for animals.
Strong family and community ties make visiting a common activity. Unannounced visits occur anytime, but especially on Sunday. Rather than knock at a door, Malawians call out Odi! Odi! until someone welcomes them in with Odini! A house with frequent visitors is highly regarded. The Chichewa proverb Alendo ndi mame (Visitors are like dew) means that a visitor's presence is short-lived and hence precious. Hosts automatically serve tea or water and refreshments to their guests; asking if a guest wants something is considered rude. Visitors customarily bring a small gift of money, tea, or sugar—especially if invited, visiting a new baby, or coming after a funeral. Attending funerals is extremely important, and people will travel great distances after the death of even distant relatives.
Malawians usually begin their day with corn porridge or a piece of bread and tea. They eat their main meal in the evening; lunch may or may not be available. There is a greater abundance of food after the April harvest. Women often cook meals over a fire, either in small mud-brick kitchens or over an open fire with three stones supporting a pot. Food is kept covered until it is ready to eat. Among some traditional families, women and children eat apart from men, who are served first. All wash their hands in a basin of water before and after eating. Most food is eaten with the right hand. Nsima (starchy porridge made of corn flour and water) is balled in the right hand, dipped in ndiwo (a sauce or condiment), and eaten. Ndiwo may be made of fish, meat, beans, greens, or other ingredients, depending on what is available. It is impolite to smell food or comment on the aroma of a meal. Leaving a small amount of food on the plate when finished assures the cook that a person has had enough to eat.
Malawians value large families; a typical household includes extended members, especially the husband's brothers. Most men assist with farming but may also hold jobs as teachers, health workers, fishermen, or general laborers, depending on where they live and their level of education. Some men practice polygamy; in which case, they build a separate hut for each wife and her children.
Throughout Malawi, women raise the children, care for the home, cook, and farm. They teach children socially acceptable behavior, responsibility, respect for elders, and work skills. The elders of all ethnic groups reinforce these lessons.
Girls care for younger siblings, gather firewood, clean, and collect water. They often drop out of school to assume these responsibilities. Boys stay in school longer than girls but still assist with farming, sweeping, and other chores.
In rural areas, extended families live together in a compound of several huts, typically thatch-roofed, mud-brick dwellings with one or two rooms. A compound also includes a kitchen hut, a borehole or well, a nkhokwe (a structure for storing grain), and perhaps an enclosure for livestock. The family's fields are located nearby. Urban houses have electricity and running water and may be constructed of cinder block and tin roofs, though makeshift squatter areas are also common.
Some ethnic groups celebrate the transition from youth to adulthood at about age 12 through initiation rituals. In such rituals, youth are prepared for their future roles as mothers and fathers; young men are circumcised—an increasing number have it done in hospitals.
There is little formal dating in Malawi; school dances are popular at secondary schools. In rural areas, a young man may notice a young woman's quiet manner and hardworking character. He must approach the girl's uncle to request marriage. Before the wedding, a group of elders meets with the couple to discuss marriage roles and responsibilities. In the north, the groom's family must pay a lobola (bride-price), usually in cattle or goats. Village weddings are less elaborate than urban celebrations. Typically, traditional dancing and food follow a church ceremony.
Malawians do not feel they have eaten unless they have had nsima. Rice is a more expensive, less filling alternative to nsima. Water is taken with meals. Malawians drink tea daily if they can afford it. Most Malawians do not consume enough calories to meet basic nutritional needs. Dried or fresh fish from Lake Malawi is the most abundant protein source. It is available in markets along with beef, chicken, and goat. But these foods are expensive. Alternative protein foods such as red beans and peanut flour are plentiful; insects such as grasshoppers and termite larvae are another source of protein. Locally grown fruits and vegetables include papaya, mangoes, bananas, tangerines, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and avocados. Hawkers approach local buses to sell produce, dried fish (nsomba), and among certain tribes, even roasted mice on a stick (mbewa). People of all ages like sugarcane for a snack.
Soccer is the most popular national sport. Young boys create soccer balls out of plastic-bag scraps. Boys also make highly prized magalimoto (cars) out of scrap metal and bits of trash. Girls and boys play games like hide-and-seek (kalondolondo). Girls play netball, a game similar to basketball. People in a village, market, or at a bus stop gather around anyone playing bao, a strategy game with pebble or seed tokens on a carved-out board. Families enjoy church- and school-sponsored activities. Men often gather at local “bottle stores” to drink traditional beer or bottled soft drinks.
Recreational travel is rare, but urban dwellers may travel to home villages on holidays. Although Malawi has one television station, most people do not have access to a television set. In villages, someone who owns a television and VCR will charge people (mostly men) admission to watch videos. Action movies are the most popular.
Imported goods and ideas have almost eclipsed many traditional arts. These included the carving for indigenous use of ornamented furniture, household objects, human figures and smoking pipes. There has also been a decline in the production of finger rings, bracelets and anklets made of copper, brass, iron and ivory, and of beaded headdresses, necklaces and women’s waist ornaments; the latter were made of colourful beads worked into patterns. Additionally the region was once renowned for the smelting and skilful working of iron implements and weapons, and for the manufacture of cotton cloth on broad horizontal looms. Some traditional art has continued undiminished into modern times. Fine masks and extraordinary basketry and fiber constructions are produced for the Gule Wankulu (Great Dance) performances of the ancient Maravi Nyau association. Face masks are made of a variety of materials and follow well-established conventions specific for each type. Kasiyamaliro and Chimkoko are enormous fibre sculptures animated with elegance and style by dancers inside them. Women still produce pottery vessels that are often incised with patterns, covered with graphite and burnished to a lustrous black. Handwoven mats and baskets can also be found throughout Malawi. Examples of the region’s art and craft traditions can be seen at the Museum of Malawi, Blantyre.
Although the visual arts were not particularly encouraged by the government before independence, their development was assisted by the establishment of the University of Malawi, Zomba, in the late 1960s. In 1967 the first university-level art courses were offered at Soche Hill College, Blantyre, this art programme eventually becoming part of the Department of Fine and Performing Arts at Chancellor College, Zomba. From 1970 the accomplished sculptor Berlings Kaunda, with an art degree from Makerere College, Kampala, Uganda, was on the faculty. With a growing international reputation, Kaunda travelled to Japan in 1991 to oversee an exhibition of his work. He has also taught some of Malawi’s finest artists and teachers, including Willie Nampeya (b. 1947). Nampeya studied in London, earned an MFA in 1981 from the Pratt Institute, New York, and returned to Chancellor College to chair the fine-art section of the Department of Fine and Performing Arts in 1982. His work (in wood, stone, clay and concrete) is sometimes on a large scale, although he often produced smaller, more intimate pieces such as Family (see fig.). He received commissions from the architects Oldfield and Denn for wood, sculpture and clay reliefs (1985) for the Mount Soche Hotel in Blantyre and for a figurative work, Mother and Child (1990-92), several metres high in terrazzo-covered cement for an office complex in Lilongwe city centre by R. S. Mthawanji and Associates. Nampeya also exhibited works in oil, pastel and other media.
Like Nampeya, the artist Kay Chiromo (b 1951) served as head of the fine art section at the University of Malawi. He received an MFA from the Pratt Institute in 1986, and he illustrated books and produced a documentary video. His oil paintings are irregularly shaped canvases, their surfaces sometimes built up with fabric, sand or pebbles to produce a deep relief. His paintings have been exhibited at the 1982 United States Information exhibition in Lusaka, in a one-man exhibition in 1984 at the Africa Centre, London, at the Akwaa-Harrison Gallery, Toronto, and the Workshop Platform, Durban, in 1989.
In the early 1990s opportunities for contemporary artists included exhibitions organized by the Arts and Crafts Department of the Malawi Cultural Affairs Office, by the university art faculty and students and by other art organizations and individuals. Such artists as Alice Kaunda, Louis Dimowa, N. E. Kapitapita, Cuthy Mede and Tiona Mwera were exhibiting new work regularly. Various exhibitions without catalogues were held every few weeks at the French Cultural Centre, Blantyre. In addition, the textile firm of David Whitehead and Sons employed a group of artists, coordinated by Vina Simbale, who designed printed cotton cloth with colourful patterns based on indigenous themes, for both the home and export markets. A number of Malawi artists also worked in layout and as illustrators for newspapers, books and other materials produced by the Blantyre Print and Publishing Company and its affiliates. Brian Hara (b 1946), whose cartoon, "Pewani," appeared in the Malawi News, produced a weekly illustrated feature article, "Kwinyani," that commented satirically on current issues. Victor Kasinja (b 1957) drew the "Joza" cartoon each week for the Daily Times. The Malawi Council for the Handicapped published cards, stationery and calendars with designs by disabled artists. A variety of paintings, batiks, craftwork, jewellery, masks and figures are made for export and for sale to tourists. Wooden bowls, platters, candle holders, cups and chairs, often with decorative borders, were produced by carvers’ cooperatives in several parts of the country.
Malawi's official holidays include New Year's Day; Chilembwe Day (15 Jan.); Martyrs' Day (3 Mar.), honoring those who gave their lives in 1963 in the quest for independence; Easter (Friday–Monday); Labor Day (1 May); Freedom Day (14 June); Independence Day (6 July); and Mother's Day (second Monday in October). Malawians celebrate Christmas Day (25 Dec.) and Boxing Day (26 Dec.). Boxing Day comes from a British tradition of giving small boxed gifts to service employees. It is now a time for visiting friends and relatives. Muslims observe Idul-Fitr, a three-day feast at the end of the month of Ramadan. During Ramadan, Muslims do not eat or drink from sunrise to dusk. During evening hours, people visit friends and eat.