Editing Rwanda (section)

== Early history ==

The first known inhabitants of the Rwandan highlands were Twa communities, whose livelihoods included forest hunting, pottery, and exchange with neighbouring cultivators. Bantu-speaking agricultural communities settled the region by the first millennium CE and formed lineage-based authorities on the hillsides. Cattle-herding groups later became part of the political order of the central plateau.

The [[Kingdom of Rwanda]] developed under the Nyiginya dynasty. Its rulers, known as ''mwami'', expanded royal authority from the central plateau through military campaigns, tribute collection, and clientage. By the nineteenth century, the reign of Kigeli IV Rwabugiri had extended royal control over more districts and reduced the autonomy of many older lineage authorities. Royal officials administered cattle, land, military service, and local obligations for the court.

Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa identities existed before colonial rule, but they were not fixed racial categories. Hutu was commonly associated with cultivators, Tutsi with cattle-owning patrons and court-linked lineages, and Twa with smaller communities connected to forest work and pottery. Status could change through cattle ownership, marriage, patronage, and royal service. Belgian colonial administration later hardened these identities through state classification and identity documents.