Muzungu

In my last blog I briefly mentioned being called “muzungu” by everyone and anyone here in Uganda. I hear muzungu at least 15 times every day. Whether I am walking down the street to the market to buy some eggs or just playing football (soccer) with some local kids they point at me and call me muzungu constantly. Where ever I go I am noticed by everyone along the way...

Ugandans define the word muzungu as a white person. The word muzungu originates from Swahili and is defined as a world traveler but most Ugandan’s don’t know this. White people don’t live here and aren’t seen often so they have a name for us. The good news is Ugandans hold muzungu’s in high regard. Without even knowing me they think I am really smart and show me a lot of respect. When passing old women on the street they greet me using the name “baba” which means respected father, which is a very privileged name. When children shake my hand they bow down on one knee and put direct their face to the ground as a sign of respect.

On the other hand, there are a few downfalls of being a muzungu. I frighten my neighbor’s 3-year-old daughter. Anytime I get within a 4-foot radius of her she starts to cry. She is scared because she has never seen anyone like me before. Another downfall is they associate that all muzungu’s have a lot of money so they will beg from me as well. When they beg for money from me I also beg for money from them in the local language to catch them off guard. They generally get a kick out of it because they have never seen a muzungu speak their local language before.

Overall it is fun being the muzungu in my village. I am looking forward to seeing how they respond the longer I am here. They still treat me different and probably always will but I still anticipate some type of change after being here two years…