Mongo - Kinship, Marriage, and Family

The household, village, and district were the three principal territoral units of Mongo society. The household compound ( etuka ) was the primary residence and the main unit of economic production and socialization. The average size of an etuka was generally between twenty and forty members. Each compound was largely autonomous in its internal affairs and was led by a senior elder, who was commonly referred to as "Tata," or "Father." Several compounds in the same area generally formed a village.