154 



RUWENZORI AND ITS SNOWS 



the " Lu-" or " Ru-" prefix, would be Kaiisoro, and it is obvious that Stanley 

 unconsciously extended the pi'onunciation into Euwenzori. In the Nyoro 

 (Urunyoro) language the snowy part of the range is called Enehurru, which 

 is probably a variant of the same root as the Lukonjo Nsoro. It is only 

 on the authority of Stuhhnann, one of the few really careful observers and 

 writers who have \isited this region, that I give this explanation of the 

 name Kuwenzori. I have made a careful study myself of the Lukonjo 

 language,* and the nearest I can get is Ansororo, which with the plural 

 prefix "esi" (esiansororo) means "snow" or " snows." As a matter of fiict, 



4 



124. A urr OK Kr\vE.\zoj{i, fho.m the .semliki valley on the west 



Kuwenzori is more often called by the Bakonjo who inhal)it its southern 

 half Obweruka. and by the Banyoro, who are the native rulers of the country, 

 Ebirika. By the Baamba who dwell on the north-western flanks, and whose 

 very name means ''People of the Heights," it is called Gusia. By the 

 peo[)le si)eaking corrupt Bantu dialects on the north-eastern edge of the 

 Congo Forest it is styled Tiidii. The Baganda call this mountain range 

 Gambaragara. The people dwelling to the south of Alliert Edward Nyanza^ 

 who speak variants of the widespread Xyoro speech, appear to call the 

 mountain Gularo, Amidst all this diversity of names, it is perhaps best to 

 retain Stanley's somewhat incorrect version of Kuwenzori, though if only 



* Because it comes almost closer than any other tongue (except Lukonde) to the 

 conditions of the Bantu mother-language, from which all the other dialects diverged. 



