154 



EUWENZOUI AND ITS SNOWS 



the " Lu-" or " Ku-'' prefix, would be Kunsoro, and it is obvious that Stanley 

 unconsciously extended the pronunciation into Ruwenzori, In the Nyora 

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

 is probably a variant of tlie 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 visited 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 fact, 



124. A lUT Of KIWEXZORI, FROM THE SEJILIKI VALLEY OX THE WEST 



Ruwenzori is more often called by the Eakonjo who inhabit its southern 

 half ( )bweruka, 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 

 people speaking corrupt Bantu dialects on the north-eastern edge of the- 

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

 (Tambaragara. The people dwelling to the south of ^Albert Edward Nyanza,, 

 who speak variants of the widespread Nyoro sjjcech, appear to call the 

 mountain (xularo. 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. 



