The 'Jopadhola', or 'Badama', are an ethnic group of approximately one-quarter of a million people, who live in the Tororo district of southeastern Uganda (about 2 percent of the country's total population). They are primarily pastoralists. They arrived in the region in the sixteenth century during the Luo migration from southern Sudan, and are related to the Luo and Acholi peoples, rather than to their immediate Bantu-speaking neighbors. Tororo is a district in eastern Uganda. ... The Luo are a people of Kenya, they live on the shores and hinterland of Lake Victoria. ... Acholiland, Uganda Children in an IDP camp in Kitgum The Acholi are an ethnolinguistic group of the upper Nile valley dwelling on the east bank of the White Nile, about a hundred miles north of Lake Albert. ... Map showing the approximate distribution of Bantu (dull yellow) vs. ...

Dhopadhola is the language of the Jopadhola. The prefix 'dho' refers to any language per se. It can be attached to nationality or speech community to imply the language of such a people. For instance 'dho' can be attached to Japan =Dho-Japan meaning Japanese (language of the Japanese).

The infix 'pa' is a possessive 'of'

'Padhola' is the area or region where Dhopadhola is spoken. 'Dhopadhola' thus means the language spoken in Padhola. 'Jopadhola' is the plural of 'Japadhola'. That is, a person who speaks Dhopadhola.Hence, 'Jopadhola' are speakers of Dhopadhola.

'Ja-'is a prefix meaning the 'doer' or a person belonging to a particular place or position. The plural is 'Jo-'. That is, people who do something or belong to a particular place or organisation.

For instance Jafwonji means a teacher. Jofwonji means teachers. Jawer means a singer. Jower means singers. Janywol means a parent. Jonywol means parents. Japach means a carpenter. Jopach means carpenters. Ja...to be continued

'Badama' is a Bantu synonym for Jopadhola. It is the plural of 'Mdama'. It is important here to note that the Jopadhola are all around surrounded by the Bantu speaking peoples. As such,it was easy for them to coin terminologies refering to the Jopadhola.

It is easy to say why the Bantu call them 'Badama'. This is because the Jopadhola occupy two counties in Tororo district commonly known as Budama. One of them is called North Budama and the other is West Budama. Hence the name Badama and NOT Bunaba.

In many occassions,the Jopadhola are briefly refered to as 'Japs'. However, basing on this abbreviation, the Jopadhola go further to call themselves "Japanese".

Tororo district formerly comprised of the current: Pallisa district (the Iteso and Bagwere), Butaleja district (the Banyole) and Busia district (the Basamia). Currently there is an on-going bid to further divide Tororo into two seperate districts mainly on tribal basis. If it succeeds then there will be Budama and Kwapa districts repectively.

Basing on the nature of the linguistic environment, Dhopadhola is a threatened language. In the north...to be completed including: The history of Jopadhola, Names, etc.

--212.88.98.165 10:44, 10 October 2005 (UTC) Name: 'OKETCHO PHILLIP' The writer is a Japadhola and lecturer at Makerere University Kampala, Uganda.

email:oketchophilip@yahoo.co.uk