Kwita Izina – The Gorilla Naming Ceremony

Welcome to the travel resource for Kwita Izina, an annual gorilla naming ceremony held at the foothills of the Volcanoes National Park of Rwanda. The growing popular event is a celebration of the birth of the new born baby gorillas! It is routed from the traditional ceremony of Rwandese giving a name to any born child. It is was and still a big event for the family and the neighborhood. It is a ceremony to welcome the child into the wider world.

In the past two decades, Kwita Izina was extended and applied to the new born mountain gorillas. The park guides took on the role of proposing names to be given to the mountain gorillas. The names are based on the behavior, circumstances and background of the infant mountain gorillas.

The Gorilla Naming Ceremony was first held in 2004. Though it was a low key event, it opened up the opportunity of promoting gorilla conservation to the world. In the 2005, Rwanda held the first public gorilla naming event at what is now the One and Only Gorilla’s Nest Lodge in Kinigi and a total of 23 baby mountain gorillas were given names.

Though the event was held in June, the Kwita Izina event was changed on the East African Tourism Calendar and it is held every September. Every year, all gorillas born over the past 12 months are given a formal name. The event attracts local people, conservationists, tourists, celebrities, government dignitaries and more. Some of the popular namers over the past events include His Majesty the King of England, King Charles III.

Visitors are welcome to attend the events that is held at a small village of Kinigi on the foothills of Volcanoes National Park Rwanda close to the park headquarters. The event raises valuable funds for the protection of the mountain gorillas, great apes that are found in only the Virunga Massif and the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest of South West Uganda.

You can get started with planning a gorilla trek in Rwanda and come to attend the Kwita Izina by linking up with one of the tour operators listed in this website. A reliable tour operator will be able to fit in your request into your travel itinerary. As well as Gorilla Naming, there is an opportunity to adopt or sponsor a gorilla and or make a donation to the welfare of the mountain gorillas. For more information, contact us via info@kwitizina.org.

Kwita Izina News

09 Sep

Must Haves for Rwanda Gorilla Trek

Posted By admin Comments ( 0 )

Treking, hiking and photography go hand in hand in any Rwanda gorilla tracking safari and gorilla trackers   trek through the forest, and make simple hikes as they search for the lovely primates the mountain gorillas until the time of encounter....

Kwita Izina Namers For the 19th Editions

Kwita Izina 2023 will have a record 23 baby gorillas...

Rwanda to Name Baby Mountain Gorillas in September

The Rwanda Development Board (RDB) is pleased to announce the...

24 Baby Mountain Gorillas Named in Rwanda

Rwanda's revered mountain gorilla population has increased tremendously to 302...

22 baby gorillas to be named

We shall be celebrating the successes of Gorilla conservation by...