Exploring the Zulu Culture
Sawubona: (Zulu for hello — I see you)
Earlier this year, South Africans went to the polls and elected the controversial Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma as their new president. JZ as he is often called, is South Africa’s first Zulu president.
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| Jacob Zuma, South Africa's first Zulu president. |
South Africa has never had a president quite like Jacob Zuma. For one thing, the 67-year-old self-educated "farm boy" (his own words) has five wives and at least 20 children. On special occasions like weddings and funerals he decks himself out in traditional Zulu finery: leopard skin, headdress and spear. "A leader is a person who doesn't sit back," he has said. "Who will do things and make mistakes and be corrected; who is not reserved."
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| Jacob Zuma and wife #1. |
In contrast to the statesmanlike lawyer, Nelson Mandela, and Thabo Mbeki, Mandela's Latin-quoting successor, Zuma revels in his tribal roots. "In a sense, he is our first real African president," says his close friend Jeremy Gordin, author of "Zuma: A Biography." "Mandela … came from Xhosa royalty. Mbeki was educated in England. But Zuma is a real African, and this real Africanness and lack of sophistication, combined with a real shrewdness, is very compelling."
In many ways Zuma offers new hope for a unified South Africa. He demurs at being called the country's first Zulu president. "The Zuluness is not the big issue," he says. "I've always looked at myself first as a South African—a black South African who always fought for the interests of the oppressed."
"Now that the election is over we must enter a new era of hope and progress. We must enter a period where we bury mistrust, uncertainty, pain and tension and begin a new chapter of harmony and collaboration."
~Jacob Zuma |
Often portrayed as a leftist firebrand, Zuma is a rather complex figure. He was born in 1942 in northern ZwaZulu-Natal ( former Zululand), the son of a policeman and a domestic servant. After his father died, he worked as a cattle herder. Unaable to continue school due to lack of money, he followed his mother to Durban where he became a “kitchen boy.” There he was an eager student at political classes held by the African National Congress (ANC) and the Communist party.
He joined the ANC at the age of 17, becoming an active member of its military wing, Umkhonto We Sizwe, in 1962. He was convicted of conspiring to overthrow the apartheid government and imprisoned for 10 years on the notorious Robben Island, alongside Nelson Mandela. Zuma is said to have helped keep up morale among the incarcerated ANC prisoners with songs and impromptu theater. He was very well liked.
The Zulu traditionalist subsequently left South Africa, living first in Mozambique, then Zambia, as he rose through the ANC ranks to the executive committee. He became one of the first leaders to return home in 1990 — when the ban on the ANC was removed — to take part in negotiations with the white minority apartheid government.
His political rise in post-apartheid has not been easy and has been marked by scandal and controversy (read more below). Like his Zulu ancestors, JZ is a shrewd, fierce fighter and has emerged, although slightly battered, to lead this remarkable country.
There are many things that can be said about this colorful and charismatic man, but perhaps the most important is that he really does inspire hope among the disadvantaged and unemployed of his country. He talks a good game about post-apartheid reconciliation, but like all politicians, can he live up to his campaign promises? Let’s hope so.
To learn more about Zuma — please click on the links below:
Jacob Zuma official bio
The rise of Zuma
A Polygamist?
Five things about Zuma
Zuma brings joy and fear
All Things Zulu
Zuma’s election has put a spotlight on the intriguing Zulu culture. I personally love these proud, beautiful people. The modern Zulu population is fairly evenly distributed in both urban and rural areas. Although KwaZulu-Natal is still their heartland, large numbers have been attracted to the relative economic prosperity of the Johannesburg area.
We include excursions to meet rural Zulu communities and families on most of our trips. We work with Zulu partners and guides on all trips.
For a long time, it was hard to get my local guides in South Africa to introduce me to the “real” rural Zulu’s – finally I found a kid working at a hotel and begged him to take me to his village and introduce me to his mother. He lived in a small village with no running water and no electricity just a few miles from the luxurious resort hotel. Laughing, he took me home with him, shaking his head all the way. When I told his mother, Miss Lillian, that I wanted to bring some American travelers to meet her and her family – she looked at me and said: “Why? No one will find us interesting.” I insisted: “Oh, but they will.” She looked at me as if I were crazy. I persisted, and now my travelers tell me that a visit with Lillian and her assorted family members is a highlight of their trip. And Miss Lillian’s family and neighbors look forward to our visits – and receive us with gracious Zulu hospitality and humor.
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| Miss Lillian and family. |
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| Waterfalls drip off the hillsides. Copyright: South African Tourism. |
So, I respectfully dedicate this newsletter to our Zulu friends – their courage and tenacity is a big part of South Africa’s history. They are survivors — known as unrelenting warriors, they are also gracious and loving. And KwaZulu-Natal is one of the most beautiful places in the world — with majestic mountains, lush fertile valleys, rolling farm land, an abundance of waterfalls, dazzling lightning storms, and sensational sun-kissed beaches. It is a part of South Africa not to be missed!
Sit back now – and Get to know the Zulu Culture:
Zulu Society
Zulu society is patriarchal, with clearly defined rules dictating the duties of its members and governing the manners and behavior of subordinates towards superior such as women towards men and young people towards their elders.
The Zulus believe that destiny has put each person in a certain place for a specific reason and so each person has a set place in the Zulu social hierarchy. The role of women in Zulu society is subordinate and polygamy is the norm. From early childhood, girls are taught to obey men and show them great respect. A girl must behave according to the rules laid down by her father and later those laid down by her husband, or if unmarried, a male relative.
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| Woman carrying bucket. |
Domestic and general chores from fetching water, collecting firewood, harvesting the fields, cooking, making pots, weaving mats, and brewing beer are the lot of the females in the rural households. Although traditionally inferior in status, most women are not treated badly and are respected in accordance with their status. Looking after the children is also the sole responsibility of the women.
A traditional rural Zulu homestead (umuzi) is a cluster of thatched dwellings that are home to a married man and his family. The umuzi is circular and consists of a number of beehive-like huts. The huts are often made of long grass, wood-rods, reeds, cattle dung, and the soil of termite mounds. In past years, a stockade encircled the entire homestead and was high enough to keep wild animals away from residents and livestock. Today, because there are fewer wild animals roaming free, a hedge or wooden fence suffices.
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| A Zulu home in Didima valley. |
Traditional Dress
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Zulu man dressed in traditional
leopard skin. |
Both men and women wear animal skins, feathers and beadwork. Leopard skins are worn by royalty, induanas (village officials) and the chiefs. The higher their status, the more leopard skins are worn.
Women in different stages of their lives wear different attire. The older they get, and when they marry, the more they cover their bodies. An unmarried girl (intombi) wears nothing but a short skirt made of grass or beaded cotton strings. Zulus do not contribute any sexual meaning to the naked breast, but rather to back of the upper thigh. An unmarried girl adorns herself with beads and keeps her hair short.
When a young woman has been chosen or engaged, she lets her hair grow and covers her breasts with a decorative cloth as a sign of respect to her future family — it also indicates to the community that she has been spoken for.
Married women cover their bodies completely, which signals that they are now off limits. Married women also wear hats (izicolo). Traditionally these were made of grass, and more often than not intertwined with red or white cotton thread. Size and shape of the hats differ from clan to clan. The largest hats are found in the hot valleys of the Tugela River.
It’s a man’s world
From about six years old, boys are entrusted with cattle herding and milking cows. They enter the world of men in due course, learning the art of stick fighting along the way.
The head of the household is the defender of his family and land and attends meetings where directives from the upper echelon of power are communicated. Everything in an umuzi belongs to the head of the household and agreements or decisions have no legitimacy without his consent. (I want to add here that when I went to ask Miss Lillian if I could bring people in to meet her and her family — I first had to go to the village chief and ask his permission. I found the chief and his sons sitting around a small, smoldering fire — smoking, drinking beer, and working on the engine of an old car. The chief said to me: “Why do you want to meet the women?”).
The man is in complete control of all possessions and his wife owns nothing, although this appears to be changing through new governmental legislation, thank goodness. The older sons become involved in decision-making regarding general family matters; the wife is only occasionally consulted. Anything involving cattle is strictly his domain and young women may not even enter the cattle kraal (isibaya).
Courtship
As they become of age, the Zulu youth in rural area are required to follow strict courtship rules. Traditionally a young man declares his love for a girl while she is collecting water from the river. She follows custom by ignoring his advances. Her female peers take part in the courtship and form a sisterhood whose approval of the young man is essential. But the final choice of a partner is made by the young woman. Once she has made her choice, she sends the sisterhood to present him with a necklace of white engagement beads indicating her acceptance.
At the engagement ceremony, money is pinned onto the girl’s hairnet or hat by family and friends. Men congregate to watch the women sing and dance.
Weddings are large festive gatherings where dancing, singing and stick fighting and beer drinking are a major part of the celebration. The wedding usually takes place at the bridegroom’s home and the couple’s families take turns singing and dancing and use the opportunity to publicly account any indiscretions on the part of the other family. A father may admonish the groom for causing his daughter’s pregnancy while also praising his good points.
The Ancestors
Like most African tribes, the Zulus pay tribute to the souls of the dead; in Zulu they are called abaphansi (roughly translated to mean, those in the ground) or amadlozi (ancestors). In western terms, one could compare them to guardian angels. Those left behind go to great lengths to keep these souls happy by making sacrifices and offerings to them. They also ensure that the souls are brought back from the place where the body died to the family home. They are given a special place to ‘live’ in the hut, this place is called emsamo, and this is where one goes to talk to and communicate with them. It is considered a sacred place, any sacrifices and offerings are placed there for them. Women may go there on occasion, but the men communicate with them as they are the head of the family and know what is needed from the ancestors at any given time.
Spiritual healers
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| Sangoma herbs. |
The Zulu visit traditional diviners and healers for assistance in times of trouble or illness. Diviners, or Sangomas as they are called, heed a deep spiritual call to their profession and can also communicate with the dead. They undergo several years of apprenticeship and are powerful and influential members of Zulu society. They are easily recognized by their distinctive garb and ornate headdresses. They make use of many tools like the throwing of the bones (a sort of fortune telling), and animal-sacrifices to help patients. Sangomas also work with inyangas (traditional healers/herbalists) who have a vast knowledge of plants and roots that is passed down from generation to generation.
The inyangas blend natural remedies for the treatment of illnesses: various herbs, roots, leaves, and barks are crushed and mixed with dried snakes or animal skins or innards to make potent medicines.
Food
Everyday meals are very simple in the Zulu household, with a large portion of the diet being maize (corn), pumpkins, sweet potatoes, vegetables and sorghum. Meat is considered a luxury and is therefore only eaten at important ceremonies. A favorite is a thick and lumpy porridge made from ground maize called uphuthu which is boiled in a three-legged pot. Uphuthu is usually eaten with curdled milk known as amazi and is considered a delicacy. It is the only food not shared outside the family. It is left to sour in gourds or baskets that are never washed as they are topped off every day.
Beadwork
Beads are a very important part of ancient and modern Zulu Culture. Beadwork is a craft passed on from generation to generation and from mother to child. Zulus design their beadwork in wonderful geometrical patterns and designs. Bracelets, headbands, necklaces and embroidered miniskirts are decorated with colorful, bright beads, but they also fulfill another purpose — they convey messages. Color combinations can be used to communicate love, marriage, pregnancy, engagement, birth, grief and death.
How about a beer
Beer is central to the social culture of the Zulu.
Traditional beer is made from sorghum and is brewed by the women. It is brewed in a special hut that is not completely thatched so smoke can escape and the beer gets enough oxygen to ferment. It is very popular and enjoyed equally by young and old. It is an excellent thirst quencher particularly in the hot Zululand sun. It is also nutritious and they say it is known to soothe stomach ulcers.
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| Zulu boy drinking beer. |
Maize and sorghum are cooked to form a thick porridge, then left to stand for one day to steep. On the second day the softened grains are boiled with water to form a milky soup and dried sorghum is sprinkled on top. The large pot is covered for a day to keep it warm and aid the fermentation process and to keep out the flies and dust. Then the brew is filtered through a grass sieve.
Guests may be offered beer as a welcoming gesture. To reject the beer is to reject the hospitality. One respectfully accepts the beer and holds it in the right hand and sits or squats while drinking. Men, and only men, are allowed to burp or tap a foot to compliment the brew-mistress.
A brief Zulu history
Ancestors of the Zulu, called the Nguni, migrated down from central east Africa and settled what has become know as Zululand in Natal in the late 16th century. The Nguni drove out the San or Bushmen and inhabited the area unchallenged as independent clans — but they clashed and quarreled among themselves. Zulu oral tradition has it that Malandela, the “father of the Zulu people” had two quarrelsome sons – Qwabe and Zulu (which means heaven). To prevent them from fighting he sent them to different areas to establish chiefdoms.
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| The tranquil Drakensberg - once the scene of Zulu battles. |
With each generation, the Zulu clan grew and by 1785 the descendants were calling themselves the abakwaZulu or the People of Heaven. Ruled by the brilliant warrior-king Shaka, the People of Heaven would defeat and absorb other chiefdoms and the Zulu nation and became renowned as one of the most formidable military forces in all of Africa. But the colonization efforts by the British and Dutch changed all that. The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Empire. The war, from complex beginnings, is notable for several particularly bloody battles, as well as for being a landmark in the time line of colonialism in the region. Though the Zulus fought fierce battles — that war ended the Zulu nation's independence.
Urban Zulu
Today the poorer urban Zulu people live in the South African townships, which came about as a result of apartheid. However, a large number of Zulu people are members of the middle class, living in suburban houses, and have common middle class and first world jobs. Many are involved in tourism. A number of Zulu are prominent businessmen and women, and a number are parliamentarians. And while they have left many of their tribal customs, traditional clothing, and polygamous practices behind — they are fiercely and justly proud of their Zulu heritage.
I hope you have enjoyed reading our ZULU newsletter. We hope it has inspired you to learn more about all the cultures in South Africa. But there is something about the Zulu culture that makes you just fall in love with the people. Oprah did. I did. You will, too! Check out our new tours into KwaZulu-Natal — these 14-45 day volunteer trips offer you the opportunity to really make a difference.
Please call us to talk about any of our trips.
Nihambe kahle (go well),
Pat Walker
Founder
The Cultural Explorer
Phone: 415-387-1335
Email: pat@theculturalexplorer.com
Further Reading
Shaka Zulu: The Biography of the Founder of the Zulu Nation by E. A. Ritter
Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions by Margaret Musgrove |
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