The people of Ethiopia have claimed a jewish heritage for most of their recorded history. And there’s some reason to think that their memory and lore is accurate, the scientific verdict is still out.
A new group claiming Jewish descent has been found in the nation of Zimbabwe much further to the south on the African continent.
This group has kept many of the old jewish traditions with regard to food, circumcision, the way they slaughter their food, and the use of the Star of David. And now there’s genetic evidence that their stories are based in fact. A team of british scientists carried out tests on the some of the members of the tribe:
“These tests back up the group’s belief that a group of perhaps seven men married African women and settled on the continent. The Lemba, who number perhaps 80,000, live in central Zimbabwe and the north of South Africa.
And they also have a prized religious artifact that they say connects them to their Jewish ancestry – a replica of the Biblical Ark of the Covenant known as the ngoma lungundu, meaning ‘the drum that thunders’.
The object went on display recently at a Harare museum to much fanfare, and instilled pride in many of the Lemba.”
Full article here.
Most of the Lemba tribe members are Christian or Muslim today, but they draw a distinction between their faith and their jewish culture according to the article.