ntumas

Ntumas is a term used in a fictional ethnographic tradition to describe a long-running communal ritual of the Ntuma people, a hypothetical culture created for world-building. The concept is used in literature and world-building guides to explore social bonds, reciprocity, and memory within a made-up society.

In the imagined Ntuman language, ntuma roughly means "bond" or "sharing." The name is thus tied to ideas of connection, obligation, and collective memory, rather than to any real-world language group.

The rite unfolds during the end of the harvest season. A central feature is the ntuma bowl, a carved wooden vessel passed among households while elders recite lineage verses. Participants exchange tokens—tools, textiles, or food—in a regulated pattern that traces kinship and reciprocal obligations. Music, dance, and a public storytelling session accompany the exchange, culminating in a communal meal.

Scholars within the fictional tradition treat ntumas as a mechanism for social cohesion, memory keeping, and the reallocation of surplus. It is presented as a durable practice that reinforces networks of support and interdependence, even as its specific forms vary by region or community within the narrative world.

Some writers depict ntumas as a formal state ritual; others describe it as an informal, family-centered practice. Critics in the fictional analysis warn against essentializing the practice, noting regional and class variations that influence how ntumas is performed and interpreted.

Ntumas appears in several novels and world-building guides as a flexible device for exploring reciprocity, memory, and communal identity. Related concepts include ritual exchange, potlatch, rites of passage, and ceremonial feasting.