The type of village polyandry described in this paper is found among the Lele, and possibly among other peoples, living between the Kwilu and the Kasai in the western Belgian Congo. The Pende, the Bunda, and the Dinga are reported to have a similar custom. There is a government ordinance prohibiting polyandry among these tribes, and I have followed this legal precedent in calling the practice polyandry, for lack of a better title. The Lele call it hohombe, or ngalababola, which means ‘wife of the village’. As the hohombe institution is closely connected with village life and politics, I shall begin by giving an outline of village conditions.