Reel are Part of the Dinka Nationality: The Irritating Atuot Identity Politics in South Sudan

By Abolich Makoi, Juba, South Sudan

Thursday, April 23, 2020 (PW) — The more the debate about the identity of Reel keeps recurring, especially on Facebook, the more irritating it becomes to continually ignore. It has been damaging rather than constructive. Facts have been distorted; naïve followers of particular individuals with purported “political interest” in the topic have already crushingly taken it upon themselves and are peddling it everywhere on social media, misinforming and confusing citizenry; and people who take things superficially, have already started identifying Atut (Reel & Apɛ̈k) as non-Dinka.

That way, it has become a serious issue of concern. So, as someone with no other interests in the issue apart from correct information, and who is seriously concerned and conscious of the negative social impact that repetitive distortion of facts can bring, let me correctly inform you about the truth about us (Reel), and what majority of us holds as such. I’m using & will continue to use “First Person expression” throughout here because I’m a Rel.

For those who may have little knowledge about who the Reel are, Reel is a name of a group of 5 sections of the Atuɔ̈ɔ̈t people of Yirol. These are Luääc, Jëkεɛyë (Rörkεc), Jilëk, Jëkuεɛu (Kuεɛk) and Aköt. Together with Apɛ̈k/Apääk, we form Atuɔ̈ɔ̈t community.

Reel and Atuɔ̈ɔ̈t are often confused as synonymous—and this is believed to be all due to a deliberate misrepresentation by one of us who synonymized the two at the time the nationalities of South/ern Sudan were being mapped and published on Gurtong Website—but that is not true. Correctly, Reel are the five sections of Atuɔ̈ɔ̈t distinguished above. Reel speak Thuok ë Rëël, a language that is a mixture of Nuer and Dinka words. It is safe to say, it is much closer to Nuer than to Dinka language.

As to how Reel are part of the Dinka Nationality or tribe as most South Sudanese like to always call it, let’s begin by outlining the arguments that the self-acclaimed advocates of the would-be “Reel tribe” are giving as reasons why Reel are/should be an independent and distinct ethnic group.

They say: 1- Reel speak a distinct language that all Dinka, except the Cïc of Yirol East and some Aliab (a few Akɛ̈ɛ̈r in particular) of Awerial, do not understand; 2- That Reel have always called themselves Reel and not Atut or Dinka; and 3- That even though most of the contemporary Reel were originally Dinka, that Dinka-ness is lost because of assimilation by original Reel (Rir, Murle, & Jimiiny), and therefore becomes non-identifying.

Now, this is how Reel are part of Dinka. Most of us are Dinka by origin; we speak Dinka fluently; we have always recognized ourselves as Dinka; and fellow Dinka have always recognized and identified us as Dinka, regardless of the language we speak. Let us explain these points one by one.

First, oral history traces the origin of most Reel to Dinka. For each of the five sections, a big majority is Dinka by ancestral origin. For instance, Luääc (my clan) are all Dinka. We came all the way from Koor Fulus in Upper Nile. Up to date, we have a similar naming system with our Luääc cousins over there. We have Maluɛ̈c, Nyandiɔ̈ɔ̈r, and Yɔl, the same way they have them. Köök of Jëkεyë (Rörkεc), were originally Agar, and most Aköt as well as Piir, Panamëkër (ciɛ̈ɛ̈ŋ mëkeer) of Jilëk are partly Aliab and Bor.

This explains why we keep composing most of our songs in Dinka. It is to keep in tandem with our origin and to serve as a reminder to the succeeding generations that we were Dinka and are still Dinka, the language we speak notwithstanding. The argument that we sing in Dinka because we want to reach a wider audience can only be verisimilar.

That we lost our Dinka-ness because of assimilation by the original Reel is also logically erroneous. Assimilation has a numbers connotation where it is the majority that assimilates the minority and never the other way round. From the current Reel, those who can claim original Reel-ness—if ever there was one as such—are apparently very few. Majority are Dinka by origin as can be seen from the examples given above.

As to how we came to speak Thuok ë Rëël, we can only guess that as there are no existing anthropological records. It could be because of the need to ease communication in order to establish peaceful coexistence since all of us immigrated from somewhere. But surely, no one assimilated another among us. We just adopted and adapted each other’s ways and coexisted.

So, since ancestral origin is always the first determinant of ethnic identity, Reel therefore, are a section of the Atuɔ̈ɔ̈t sub-ethnic group of the Dinka ethnicity. Second, we are born bilingual in Thuok ë Rëël and Dinka. No Reel child is taught Dinka language after birth—we comprehend it automatically. Since language is admittedly another key determinant of identity, which can only be preceded by original ancestry, we’re Dinka by that virtue the same way we’re Reel by it. We can’t choose one over another to assert our ethnic identity. Both are equally important.

Third, regardless of the fact that we call ourselves Reel, which of course we do with a sense of pride, we have always recognized ourselves as Dinka. Wherever we go and interact with other nationalities, we introduce ourselves as Atuɔ̈ɔ̈t Dinka from Yirol—which is rightly so. No other way has it ever been. We don’t ignorantly do or steal it away in hiding. We do it with full openness, knowledge and awareness.

Yes, it is true that you’re who you call yourself, but it is equally true—and perhaps more important—that you are who you recognize yourself. For time immemorial, even though we’ve been calling ourselves Reel, we have always recognized and identified ourselves as Dinka. Other nationalities, too, do the same and call us by the exonym “Atuɔ̈ɔ̈t” which extends further to include Apɛ̈k.

Finally, the fact that other sub-nationalities of Muɔnyjiɛ̈ɛ̈ŋ (Dinka) fully recognize us as Muɔnyjiɛ̈ɛ̈ŋ speaks much more than otherwise. Many Jiɛ̈ɛ̈ŋ get stunned at the denial of Jiɛ̈ɛ̈ŋ-ness and the fervent claim of an independent “tribe” that we’re peddling.

Also, I have never come across any ethnic discrimination directed against Reel from fellow Dinka, alienating us as a different ethnic group based on our unique language. We have always been embraced as Muɔnyjiɛ̈ɛ̈ŋ. It is therefore totally causeless and unwarranted to engage in such an intense breakaway campaign for a “Reel tribe”. Anɔŋ kë dïït ye kaang tïïη, ku ba jääl yɔɔt roor (Dinka) / E të ke diɛ̈ɛ̈t më ke yï kɔŋ juic, ku bï ku kaac jɔ̈ɔ̈r (Thuok ë Rëël).

As they say, you can’t always choose what happens to you, but you can always choose how you feel about it. For me, even though I feel strongly about my Reel-ness, I have always comfortably felt Dinka and I choose it (Dinka) as my identity. And that’s the case for the majority of us, and I’m sure including some of those engaged in the Reel brouhaha on Facebook. They just need to stop blindly following others and focus on their own feelings to lead them about things.

Holding this line of thinking is not mental enslavement, stupidity, or historical naivety, as the campaigners of “Reel tribe” regard those of us who are levelheaded about this issue. Apparently, they do this with the intention of frustrating, bullying or beating people into silence or coercing them into falsely accepting this cock and bull story. It is rather about presenting proper and correct historical account and keeping in line with truth.

The author, Abolich Makoi, is a Humanitarian and a concerned Atuot youth from Reel. I can be reached on abolichmakoi@gmail.com.

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