Bahima
(most common name)
(transboundary/brand name)

(local/other name):
• Banyoro (used incorrectly to mean Bahima)

The Bahima is the tallest of the Ankole cattle group.

A belt of land infested with the tsetse fly divides the area where the Bahima is found — with one side being in Uganda and the other side being in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, DR Congo). In Uganda, the Bahima is known as the Nsagalla.

Ankole cattle are found in East Africa in an area extending from Lake Albert (formerly Lake Mobutu) to Lake Tanganyika. (Both lakes belong to a series of lakes known as the African Great Lakes.)

Ankole cattle are described as having:
• very long horns
• medium-long heads
• short necks with large dewlaps
• narrow chests

NOTE: DAD-IS lists the spelling ‘Bahema’ as the most common name, however Mason (Dictionary 2002, 2020) emphatically states that this is incorrect.

This page was last updated on: 2023-05-14

You can also go to:

My Daily Cow® DR Congo and read about other DR Congo cattle breeds.

The Cow Wall® A-Z Cattle Breed Picture Reference to see other breeds of cattle in the world.