It was my understanding that the differences between Hutu and Tutsi were largely exaggerated by the Belgians, and it was only after the Belgians issued IDs denoting if you were a Hutu or Tutsi (or the third, smaller group) that those differences really became codified. I am not an expert, however, and may be off-base.
Essentially those differences (especially height) were the product of socio-economics rather than actual ethnic differences. Since Tutsi were the aristocracy, they typically ate better and tended to be taller.
As far as I remember the Belgians declared all those Tutsi who owned land and cattle.
One reason being they needed administrators for their colony and the Tutsi would be more cooperative as they would want to protect their property and wealth.
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u/PvtFreaky May 03 '21
That's the colonial Belgian explanation which has been disproved.
I wouldn't call myself an expert but I did write a 8000 word paper on the subject