Koogere was a female chief of Busongora some 1,500 years ago. Oral tradition describes the prosperity of the chiefdom and Koogere's exceptional wisdom through a series of narratives, which are a part of the collective memory of the Basongora, Banyabindi, and Batooro communities in Kasese.
The oral tradition is a collection of narratives that are a part of the memory and folk expression of the concerned communities. The story revolves around a woman referred to as Koogere, who is said to have ruled the Busongora chiefdom during an era during which women ruled, during the legendary Bunyoro Kitara Empire during 1700AD.
This series of narrations portrays plenty and abundance as blessings for hard work and the heroic women who marshaled spiritual energy and human resources to establish a very prosperous chiefdom. This oral tradition is an important part of social philosophy and folklore. It consists of sayings and narrations emphasizing the importance of wisdom and evoking the myths and stories of women.
The traditions are typically practiced and handed down through elders, sages, storytellers, poets, musicians, artists, and indigenous families who live near sites associated with the stories. It is retold and sung informally around the fireplace as well as in collective activities, like handicrafts, cattle herding, and long-distance travel, with older storytellers passing on the story to the younger generation.
Throughout generations, the stories of Koogere, and the inspirational actions and history of Koogere, have inspired people’s social philosophy and folk expressions in the communities. The story conveys values and provides the basis for belief systems for communities such as the Basongora indigenous community.
This story gives legitimacy to contemporary community leaders, including males. Enacting this story would enhance memory skills and transfer skills of listening and narrating. It could also act as a vehicle for the intergenerational transfer of information about social philosophy and values. It would be performed by different specialists, as well as included in different forms.
Furthermore, the Koogere story language – Runyakitara (Runyoro-Rutooro) – is dwindling. Knowledge of the oral tradition is therefore diminishing rapidly, with only four master storytellers able to relate more than one episode of the Koogere story. Additionally, the frequency of these practices is shrinking, as other entertainment has taken over spaces associated with enactment and transmission.
In this way, Koogere storytelling facilitates shared actions, recreation, wisdom, learning, and intergenerational transmission of values, knowledge, and skills. Although formal training and education have become increasingly dominant today, the transmission of knowledge and skills associated with enacting Koogere oral tradition is informal and spontaneous, therefore unsuited to these new methods.