Sins and Taboos: A Case Study of the Tonga People’s Taboos

Sins and Taboos is an analysis of what taboos are, and how taboos relate to sins (as viewed through the lens of the Tonga speech community) in Southern Zambia. The Western definition of Taboos seems inadequate when compared with Tonga’s definition. Generally speaking, a taboo is a prohibition within the context of a given community based on its cultural norms and practices. This article focuses on an anthropological and historical interpretation of scripture. It has been conducted on a semi-structured interview with the Tonga speaking people who are pastoralists and polygamists. The results of this study do apply across the theological landscape of Mission, Theology, Practical theology and Christian anthropology.