Hutu (Hútus), Tutsi and Twa (Twi) are Bantu-speaking/ethnic people native to the African Great Lakes region. They are mainly located in Rwanda, Burundi, and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, where they form the principal ethnic groups.  They speak the Rwanda-Rundi as their native tongue, a member of the Bantu subgroup of the Niger-Congo language family.

When the Hutu first entered the area, they found it inhabited by the Twa, Pygmy hunters whom they forced to retreat. Their life centered on small-scale agriculture, and a social organization that was based on the clan, with petty kings (bahinza) ruling over limited domains. The Tutsi in turn entered the area in the 14th or 15th century and gradually subjugated the Hutu, forcing them into a lord–vassal relationship. In 1994, one of the worst incidents of genocide in modern history took place in Rwanda, where Hutu extremists slaughtered nearly a million Tutsi and moderate Hutu.

The Hutu’s kinship and clan system are probably derived from Tutsi culture, as is the central importance of cattle. The Hutu and the Tutsi adhere essentially to the same religious beliefs, which include forms of animism and (today) Christianity.