Tonga, Bantu-speaking people who inhabit the southern portion of Zambia and neighbouring areas of northern Zimbabwe and Botswana. Numbering more than one million in the early 21st century, the Tonga are concentrated along the Zambezi Escarpment and along the shores of Lake Kariba. They are settled agriculturists who grow corn (maize) primarily for subsistence but also for limited commercial purposes. The vast majority of Tonga live in small, dispersed villages; they are the only one of Zambia’s major ethnic groupings whose wealth and power are founded upon rural, agricultural activities as opposed to urban pursuits.

Descent and land inheritance are reckoned among the Tonga along matrilineal lines, and a newly married couple go to live near the bride’s relatives. They attribute marked importance to spirits associated with rainfall, and thus rainmakers are prominent in Tonga society.