Full text of "The Bantu Speaking Tribes Of South Africa"

THE BOOK WAS
DRENCHED

. 60398 >m

a: ~~ 73 ^

m -< CO

Z^ ^>

' pUP 43 30-1-71 5,000

OSMANIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

Call No. S~l 3 &% 3 Accession No. ^ O 5"
Author

This book shojrfd be returned on or berore the date last marked below.

THE BANTU-SPEAKING TRIBES OF SOUTH

AFRICA

PLATE 1

[F. Etlmbtrgcr

Girl Initiates (Bale) of the Tlokwa Tribe, Bcchuanalancl Protectorate
(Their bodies are smeared with white clay)

[frtntispitc

THE

BANTU-SPEAKING TRIBES

or SOUTH AFRICA

An Ethnographical Survey

Edited for the (South African} Inter-University
Committee for African Studies

by
I. SCHAPERA

Contributors :

RAYMOND A. DART MONICA HUNTER

CLEMENT M. DOKE

W. M. EISELEN

A. J. H. GOODWIN

ELLEN P. HELLMANN

A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

PERCIVAL R. KIRBY
EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE
G. P. LESTRADE
J. S. MARAIS
I. SCHAPERA

N. J. VAN WARMELO

LONDON

ROUTLEDGE & KEGAN PAUL LTD

BROADWAY 1IOI/SK: 68-74 CARTER LANE, E.G. 4

First published 1937

Second impression 1946

Third impression 1950

Fourth impression 1953

Fifth impression 1956

Sixth impression 1959

Seventh impression 1962

Printed in Great Britain by
Lowe and Brydone (Printers) Limited, London. N.W.io

CONTENTS

PREFACE xiii

CHAPTER . PAGE

I. RACIAL ORIGINS. By RAYMOND A. DART, M.Sc., M.D., Ch.M.,
F.R.S.S.Af., Professor of Anatomy in the University of the

Witwatersrand, Johannesburg i

Introduction

Historical Background

Racial Features

Cranial Characters : Asiatics in Africa ....
The Racial Basis of the Bantu : A Bush and Negro Matrix
Racial Minglings of Bush and Bantu : The Contribution of the Brown

Race (Hamites)

Subdivision of the Southern Bantu

The Contribution of the Nordic Race ....

7
10

M
'9

H. HABITAT. By A. J. H. GOODWIN, M.A., F.R.S.S.Af., Senior
Lefturer in Ethnology and Archaeology in the University of

Cape Town . . . 33

General Morphology 33

Climate 34

Environmental Regions 35

The Tropical Belt 35

Eastern Cattle Lands 36

The Western Drought Lands 3*

III. GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY. By N. J. VAN WARMELO, M.A.,

Ph.D., Ethnologist, Native Affairs Department, Union of South

Africa 43

Introduction 43

Nguni Group 45

Cape Tribes Proper 4*

Fingo and other Recent Immigrants into the Cape ... 47

Natal Nguni .48

Swazi 5<>

Transvaal Ndebele 53

Recent Nguni Offshoots 54

Shangana-Tonga Group 55

Sotho Group 57

Southern Sotho 5*

Western Sotho &>

Transvaal (Eastern) Sotho 6l

Venda Group *3

Lemba *5

IV. SOCIAL ORGANIZATION. By A. WINIFRED HOERNLE, B.A., Senior

Le&urer in Social Anthropology in the University of the Wit-
watersrand, Johannesburg 6?

Introduction *7

Common Characteristics 68

The Tribe <58

The Household 69

The Sub-Distrift and Distrift 69

The Kin (i) Relatives by Blood 70

vi CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE

(ii) Relatives by Marriage 73

Other Groupings 74

Nguni Group 74

(a) Southern Nguni

Um^i 74

Ibandla and ikurutta 77

hiduko or Clan 80

Age and Sex Groupings 81

(J) Northern Nguni

Umu^i 82

IsiBongo 83

Age Groupings 84

Nguni Offshoots 86

Sotho Group

Kin by Blood and by Marriage 86

The Village 88

The Ward 88

Larger Tribal Divisions 89

Households 91

Totem Groups ......... 91

Age Sets 93

Shangana-Tonga and Venda 93

V. INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT. By EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE, M.A. . 95

Child Life 95

Education and Initiation 98

General Education . . 98

Initiation " Schools " 99

Puberty Ceremonies 100

Circumcision 100

The Boxwera 103

The Komana 104

Byalc. or Girls* " Circumcision " School 104

Methods of Teaching in the "Schools" . .' . . .106

Sex Life and Marriage 107

Sex Life ,07

Marriage in

VI. DOMESTIC AND COMMUNAL LIFE. By G. P. LESTBADE, M.A.,

Professor of Bantu Languages in the University of Cape Town 119

The Daily Round 120

The Village I2O

Early Morning 121

The Morning Meal 122

The Later Morning and Early Afternoon . . . .122

The Late Afternoon 125

The Evening Meal , 2 6

The Evening I27

Seasonal Changes in Daily Life 128

Occasional Interruptions of Daily Routine 128

VH. WORK AND WEALTH. By I. SCHAPERA, M.A., Ph.D., F.R.S.S.AF.,
Professor of Social Anthropology in the University of Cape
Town ; and A. J. H. GOODWIN, M.A., F.R.S.S.Af. . . .131

Commodities and their Production nl

Foodstuffs ,j,

Horticulture j l ^

Animal Husbandry .' .' \ \yj

Hunting ,J,

Clothing and Ornaments I4a

CONTENTS vii

CHAPTER PAGE

Dwellings and Household Goods 144

Calendar of Work X4 8

Division of Labour 149

Exchange 153

Property and Inheritance 156

Land 156

Livestock 157

Produce 159

Huts, Household Utensils, and Personal Belongings . . .160

Family Obligations 161

Inheritance 162

Special Gifts and Services 164

Obligations towards Relatives 164

The Position of the Chief 166

The Breakdown of Tribal Economy 170

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS. By I. SCHAPERA, MA., Ph.D.,

F.R.S.S.AF. 173

The Chieftainship 174

Succession and Minority 174

Prerogatives and Wealth 176

Duties and Obligations 177

Relatives of the Chief
Tribal Councils .
Local Administration .
Citizenship and Status .
Inter-tribal Relations

179
181
185
187
191

IX. LAW AND JUSTICE. By I. SCHAPERA, M.A., Ph.D., F.R.S.S.Af. . 197

Introduction 197

Nature and Sources of Bantu Law 197

Civil and Criminal Law 198

Contracts 200

Civil Wrongs 204

Wrongs against Family Rights 204

Wrongs against Property 206

Defamation 207

Penal Offences 208

Crimes against the Person 208

Crimes against Tribal Authorities 211

Sorcery and other Unnatural Offences 211

Procedure 212

Courts and their Jurisdiction 212

Trials 214

Factors affecting Liability 217

X. MAGIC AND MEDICINE. By A. WINIFRED HOERNLE, B.A. . 221

The inyanga . . 226

Protecting a Village
Heaven Doctors .
Agricultural Ceremonies

Methods of Divination
Ordeals
The Witch and the Sorcerer

240
241

XI. RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES. By W. M. EISELEN, M.A.,
Ph.D., sometime Professor of Anthropology in the University
of Stellenbosch, Chief Inspe&or of Native Education in the
Transvaal ; and I. SCHAPERA, MA., Ph.D., F.R.S.S.AF. . . 247

The Spirits of the Dead 247

Manifestations of the Spirits 251

viii CONTENTS

The Worship of the Ancestors 254

Family and Tribal Rites .... ... 259

High Gods and Other Deities 262

TheSkyGod 262

Rain-making Rites 265

Lesser Deities 269

Religion and Morality 270

XII. THE MUSICAL PRACTICES OF THE NATIVE RACES OF SOUTH AFRICA.
By PEBCIVAL R. KIRBY, M.A., D.Litt., F.R.C.M., Professor
of Music in the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Introduction .......... 271

Instrumental Music 271

Bushman ... . ..... 271

Hottentot 272

Bantu
Vocal Music

Bushmen

Hottentot

Bantu
Glossary of Technical Musical Terms used

274
281
281
282
284
288

XIII. TRADITIONAL LITERATURE. By G. P. LESTRADE, M.A. . .291

Introduction 291

Kinds of Literature 292

Myths, Legends, Fables, and Tales 292

Proverbs and Riddles 293

Songs 294

Praise-poems 295

Origin and Propagation 297

General Characteristics . . . . ' . . . .301

Language, Style, and Technique 302

Language 302

Style 3<>5

Technique 306

XIV. LANGUAGE. By CLEMENT M. DOKE, M.A., D.Litt., Professor of
Bantu Languages in the University of the Witwatersrand,

Johannesburg 309

Main Characteristics 309

General Classification 312

South African Bantu Languages .. 313

Special Features 314

Differences 316

Similarities 318

Grammatical Forms 319

The Substantive 319

The Noun . . . 319

The Pronoun 321

The Qualificative 322

The Predicative 324

Verbal Derivatives 327

Compound Tenses 328

The Copulative 329

The Adverb 330

Theldeophone 330

CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE

XV. THE IMPOSITION AND NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL. By J. S.
MARAIS, M.A., D.Phil., Senior Leclurer in History in the

University of Cape Town 333

Cape Colony 33)

Natal 342

The Boer Republics 345

The Transkei 350

The Union 353

XVI. CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE. B\ I. SCHAPERA, M.A., Ph.D.,

F.R.S.S.Af. 357

Mechanisms of Culture Contact . 357

Types of Contaft . -357

European Aims and Policies . 359

Native Reactions . 361

Economic Changes . 363

Religion and Magic . 368

Government and Law . 372

Education and Health . 376

Social and Domestic Life . 380

The Trend of Cultural Development . 385

XVII. THE BANTU ON EUROPEAN-OWNED FARMS. By MONICA HUNTER,

M.A., Ph.D 389

The Household 391

Community Life 394

Individual Development 399

XVIII. THE NATIVE IN THE TOWNS. By ELLEN P. HELLMANN, M.A. . 405

Material Culture 406

Income and Expenditure ........ 407

Individual Development 4 12

Birth 4>3

Education and Puberty Rites 4' 5

Marriage 419

Death 4*3

Religion and Magic 4*4

Detribalization 4*9

BIBLIOGRAPHY 435

INDEX OF TRIBAL NAMES 445

INDEX OF AUTHORS CITED 44 8

GENERAL SUBJECT INDEX 45

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PLATE. PAGE

I. Girl Initiates (Bati) of the Tldkwa Tribe, Bechuanaland Protectorate.

(V. Ellenberger) Frontispiece

II. Physical Types 16

(a) Bhaca man, Transkei. (N. J. van Warmelo.)
(V) Swazi man. (N. J. van Warmelo.)

III. Physical Types 17

(a) Kwena man, Bechuanaland Protectorate. (N. J. van Warmelo.)
() Lemba man, Zoutpansberg, Transvaal. (N. J. van Warmelo.)

IV. Physical Types 56

(a) Venda woman. (N. J. van Warmelo.)

(4) Transvaal Ndebele woman. (N. J. van Warmelo.)

V. Territorial Organization 72

(a) Swazi kraals. (S.A.R. and H.)

(J) Portion of Mochudi Village, Kxatla Reserve, B.P. (I. Schapera.)

VI. Native Homesteads 73

(a) Natal Nguni. (S.A.R. and H.)

(4) Transvaal Sotho. (N. J. van Warmelo.)

VII. "Daughters of Africa" 9<*

Kxatla children, Mochudi, B.P. (I. Schapera.)

VIII. INITIATION CEREMONIES 97

(a) Vhusha rite of the Venda. (N. J. van Warmelo.)
() Kxatla maxwane (male novices). 0- Reyneke.)

IX. Initiation Ceremonies 112

Dance of the abakweta (Cape Nguni). (S. A.R. and H.)

X. Zulu Wedding Dance. (S.A.R. and H.) 113

XI. Household Occupations 120

(a) Drawing water. (I. Schapera.)

() Smearing the Courtyard Floor. (I. Schapera.)

XII. Domestic Scenes 121

(a) Children at Play. (I. Schapera.)

(6) An informal beer drink. (I. Schapera.)

XIII. Agricultural Life 136

(a) Kxatla Fields. (I. Schapera.)
() Threshing Corn. (I. Schapera.)

XIV. Pastoral Life M4

(<t) Milking. (I. Schapera.)

(6) Herdboys riding oxen. (I. Schapera.)

XV. Arts and Crafts 145

(a) Setting a snare for birds. (I. Schapera.)
() Potter at work. (I. Schapera.)

XVI. Interior of a Zulu Hut. (S.A.R. and H.) 160

XVII. Political Life 184

(a) The Great Tribal kxotla, Mochudi, B.P. (I. Schapera.)
(4) Graves of the Kwena chiefs, B.P. (I. Schapera.)

xii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PLATE PAGE

XVIII. Political Life 1X5

(a) Morning gossip at a local kxotla. (I. Schapera.)
(&) Hearing a lawsuit. (I. Schapera.)

XIX. Magical Practices 232

% (a) Divining the cause of a patient's illness. (N. J. van Warmelo.)

(6) Rain-maker preparing his medicines. (I. Schapera.)

XX Religious Ceremonies 256

Venda thevhula (first-fruits) sacrifices. (N. J. van Warmelo.)

XXI. Music and Dancing 280

Scenes from the domba initiation dance of the Venda. (N. J. van Warmelo.)

XXII. Changing Life in the Reserves 358

(a) Village Church Service. (J. Reyneke.)
(*) Solving the Water Problem. (I. Schapera.)

XXIII. Urban Native Life 406

(a) Scene in a Johannesburg Slum Yard. (. P. Hellmann.)
() Scene in Langa Native Township. (A. J. H. Goodwin.)

XXIV. Urban Native Life jo 7

" War " dances in a Johannesburg Mine Compound. (H. V. Meyerowitz.)
Map 454

PREFACE

T^HIS book is the outcome of a resolution adopted by the (South
African) Inter-University Committee for African Studies in
July, 1934, to " sponsor the preparation and publication of a handbook
of South African tribes ". The need for such a book has long been
felt, not only by teachers and students of anthropology in the South
African Universities, but also by others interested in the racial problems
of the country. There exist some large monographs about individual
groups or tribes, and many useful short accounts, of a more general
nature, published either as articles in scientific journals or as seftions
of works dealing with the continent as a whole. But there has hitherto
been no single comparative survey sufficiently detailed, and sufficiently
catholic in scope and content, to form a satisfactory manual of South
African ethnography. It is our hope that this work will be found to
fulfil reasonably adequately the purpose for which it was written.
Increasing specialization in study has made large-scale collaboration
not only desirable but essential, and although the book may in con-
sequence perhaps have suffered some loss of unity it has certainly
gained in authoritativeness. The contributors have all had considerable
first-hand experience of field investigation among the peoples dealt
with, and almost all of them are or have been engaged in teaching
anthropology, Bantu languages, or allied subje&s in South Africa.

The present state of South African ethnography has to some'extent
diftated the limitations in the range of this book. Certain areas and
ethnic stocks have already been dealt with sufficiently fully in standard
works to make it unnecessary to include them here as well. The
information relating to the Bushmen and Hottentots is summarized
in Schapera's Khoisan Peoples (1930) ; the Bergdama of South- West
Africa are treated exhaustively in Vedder's great work, Die Bergdama
(1923) ; while the small handbook, The Native Tribes of South-West
Africa, issued in 1928 by the South-West Africa Administration, covers
the Ambo and Herero tribes of that Territory, as well as its Bushman,
Hottentot, and Bergdama inhabitants. The present work is therefore
restricted in the main to the Bantu-speaking peoples of the Union of
South Africa and the adjoining British Protectorates, although
reference has occasionally been made by some of the writers to other

ziii

xiv PREFACE

groups for comparative purposes. Our aim all along has been
essentially to summarize existing knowledge rather than to present
merely the results of individual investigations ; but most of the
writers have utilized in their contributions original work whose final
results have not yet been published.

The greater part of the book is devoted to an account of the Bantu
as they were before afFefted by the intrusion of Western Civilization.
The four final Chapters will, however, indicate how considerably
their traditional life has already been altered by this overwhelming
new influence a theme more fully treated in another colleftive work,
Western Civilisation and the Natives of South Africa (edited by I.
Schapera. Routledge, 1934). It has rightly become the fashion in
modern ethnography to study " the changing Native ", and not to
concentrate merely upon his traditional culture. But the understanding
of present-day Native life must rest largely upon a knowledge of
the former culture, and the time is rapidly approaching when such
knowledge will no longer be obtainable in the field. It is highly
desirable, therefore, that more intensive fieldwork should be done in
this country before too much of the old culture has been obliterated ;
and if this book succeeds in stimulating any of its readers to inquire
more fully into some of the topics or peoples dealt with, it will, for
that reason alone, have been worth compiling.

Some reference should be made to the forms used here in writing
the names of Bantu tribes and languages. These forms have been
chosen in conformity with the principles laid down by the International
Institute of African Languages and Cultures, and adopted by the Inter-
University Committee for African Studies. All names are used in
their root form, without prefixes, as nouns and as adjeftives, in the
singular and in the plurad, e.g. a Zulu, two Zulu, Zulu customs, Zulu
(the language), not an umZulu, two amaZulu, isiZulu customs, and
isiZulu respectively. The spelling of the forms is that used in the
languages themselves, e.g. Sotho, not Suto ; but diacritic signs have
been omitted in the commoner names, e.g. Venda, not Venda. The
designations applied to the larger cultural groups are those now in
common use in South Africa, e.g. Nguni, not Zulu-Xhosa ; Sotho, not
Sotho-Tswana. The only one calling for special comment is that of
Shangana-Tonga, for the group hitherto known as Thonga (more
correftly Tonga). Since there are at least three other tribal groups in
Africa bearing the name Tonga, the form Shangana-Tonga has been
chosen as an identifying designation, in conformity with the principle

PREFACE xv

that when two or more tribes have the same name they should be
distinguished from each other by some appropriate geographical or
other label. 1

The task of editing the book was originally entrusted by the
Committee to Professor W. M. Eiselen, of the University of Stellen-
bosch, and Professor I. Schapera, of the University of Cape Town.
Soon after its commencement, however, Professor Eiselen was
appointed Chief Inspeftor of Native Education for the Transvaal
Province, and owing to the pressure of his new duties he felt obliged
to relinquish any further share in the work. He was also unfortunately
unable to contribute the various Chapters originally allotted to him,
apart from his seftion of the Chapter on " Religious Beliefs and
Praftices ". The committee thereupon invited Professor Schapera to
carry on as sole Editor.

The Editor wishes here to thank his collaborators for the generous
assistance they have given him, not only in the preparation of their
own articles, but also in advice regarding the book as a whole. He
would also mention Professor R. F. A. Hoernle and Mr. J. D. Rheinallt
Jones who, although not contributors to the book, have been of much
help in various matters relating to its preparation. He is further
indebted to Mr. V. Ellenberger for the photograph forming the
Frontispiece; to Dr. N. J. van Warmelo for Plates II, III, IV, VM,
Villa, XIXcz, XX, and XXI, and for the map showing the location
of the principal tribes dealt with ; to the Publicity Department of the
South African Railways and Harbours Administration for Plates V<z,
Via, IX, X, and XVI ; to the Rev. J. Reyneke for Plates VIII* and
XXIIa ; to Mrs. E. P. Hellmann for Plate XXIIIa ; to Mr. A.- J. H.
Goodwin for Plate XXIIK; and to Mr. H. V. Meyerowitz for
Plate XXIV.

1 Since the above was written, and after most of the proofs had already been corrected,
the Inter-University Committee for African Studies, at a meeting held in November, 1936,
adopted a recommendation that the form Shangana-Tonga should be employed when writing
of Africa generally, but that when reference is clearly being restricted to South Africa the
shorter form Tonga is sufficiently accurate to stand alone. The occurrence of both forms in
the text is due to the fact that the recommendation came too late to allow of uniform changes
being made throughout the proofs.

CHAPTER I

RACIAL ORIGINS

By RAYMOND A. DART

INTRODUCTION

ANTHROPOLOGICALLY, Africa can be divided into three parts. Two
curves drawn convexly to the north-east across the continent, one
running from Senegal through Khartoum to Mombasa and the other
from Walfish Bay through Johannesburg to East London, separate
it into northern (or north-eastern), central, and southern (or south-
western) belts, predominantly populated to-day by the Brown
(Hamitic or Mediterranean), Negro, and Bush races respectively. The
central or Negro belt can be further subdivided. A line running
parallel to the Equator from the Bight of Benin to Victoria Nyanza
separates it into a northern or Sudanic and a southern or Bantu moiety.
This major division is based on the languages spoken by their
respective peoples. Two other lines, one running north and south
through the Great Lakes to Lake Nyasa and the other running east
and west through the middle of Lake Nyasa (separating the water-
sheds of the Congo and Zambezi) divide the Bantu territory into
eastern, western, and southern regions. The Bantu of this southern
region, embracing Portuguese East Africa, Southern Rhodesia, Angola,
the Union of South Africa, and the British Proteftorates, form the
particular subjeft of this chapter.

For the past 300 years the southern portion of Africa has been
populated by three main groups of people, European, Bantu, and
Bush. Not one of these is a pure race. Each presents a rich racial
pattern which, however intricate to-day, grows ever more complex,
not merely by the fusion of European with European and of Bantu
with Bantu, but also by the past admixture of European with Bantu
and Bush, and the further intermingling of these hybrids with Indians,
Malays, and other Orientals.

Miscegenation is no new feature in the racial history of Africa.
The fossil finds of human bones tell a story of ancient peoples in

2 RAYMOND A. DART

Africa fusing with one another and with aliens. Some ten to twenty
thousand years ago Africa was inhabited by the Boskop race, so
variable in itself as to be suspefted of resulting from the mixing of
as yet unknown, previous races. Already four distinft types of this
race are known : the type represented by the original. Boskop
Skull, the Matjies River type, the Zitzikama type, and the Springbok
Flats type. On the arrival from the North of the Bush race, an ethnic
group comprehending already like other races several fundamental
types, hybridization took place with the Boskop peoples, producing
various combinations and permutations of features within both groups,
so that even at a very early date in South African history the physical
anthropology of the country was a complex ravel. This complexity
was increased by contafts with peoples alien to Africa a faft exempli-
fied by the discovery at Outeniqua (Eastern Cape Province) of ancient
skulls with a Mongoloid (Asiatic) facies in the midst of a Bush-
Boskopoid population. 1 Again, at Mumbwa in Northern Rhodesia,
in the lowest bone-bearing stratum, dating back some 6,000 years,
a European (Nordic) type of skull was found associated with other
bones more Boskopoid than Bush. 2 Cave-deposits prove that, long
before the coming of the Bantu, Southern Africa had attracted aliens.
The Bush people have low-vaulted skulls, yet before the advent of
the Bantu occasional high-vaulted skulls were to be found.

Following the immigrations of the Bantu further hybridization
took place between them and the miscegenated indigenes. In the
prehistoric Bantu era, i.e. before European occupation, we again find
alien types. At Cathkin Peak (Natal) a Bantu skull, instinft with
Mongoloid features, can be assigned to the sixteenth or early
seventeenth century. A European type of skull has been found by
Mrs. Martin in her excavations of pit circles at Penhalonga (Southern
Rhodesia), and another by Dr. Laidler at East London. Shrubsall
described a predynastic Egyptian type, belonging to the Brown
(Hamitic) race, also from the Cape Coast.

The arrival of the Bantu was not only accompanied by extensive
racial mixing but resulted in unleashing very diversified types of
physical features. To-day all types of breadth, length, and height
combinations are to be found in skulls called Bantu ; all types of
cranial form, a wide variation of stature, skin colour, and face type

* L. H. Wells and J. H. Gear (1931), Cave-dwellers of the Outeniqua Mountains," S.
Afr. J. Set., xxviii, 444-469-

R. A. Dart and N. del Grande (1931), " The Ancient Iron-smelting Cavern at Mumbwa,"
Trans. R. Soc. S. Afr., xix, 379-4*7-

RACIAL ORIGINS 3

are there, and to such extent that the variation between individual
members of a tribe is greater than between the averages of one tribe
and its neighbour.

Hitherto physical anthropologists in Africa have been occupied
primarily with the reporting of data. There has been little or no
time for interpreting physical features and their origin. But the
ever-increasing compilation of data makes it desirable for us to
attempt some preliminary correlation of the facts as seen in mass.
Our obje&s then will be to show how history verifies the story of
the bones ; to discuss the outstanding features of the Bantu physical
tangle ; to hint, by comparison and contaft with other types, at the
origin of the Bantu-speaking peoples ; and, incidentally, to fill out
episodes in Bantu history which can now be revealed only by their
physical features.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The sites of early human habitation, in caves, and out in the open,
south of the Zambesi throw no light on the physical or cultural
evolution of the Bantu. They are aliens who entered from the
North by force of iron arms, the secret of whose large-scale manufacture
they had mastered. But history gives some indication of their
movements and the peoples with whom they trafficked and inter-
mingled. Before the coming of the Europeans South Africa was a
dependency of the Orient.

When the Portuguese rounded the Cape they found " Strand-
looper " (beachcomber) and other " Hottentot " communities of
Bush peoples possessing undisturbed the whole southern end of the
continent. From Sofala northwards, however, the coast was inhabited
by Negroes like those of Angola and West Africa ; but the shipping
ports (Kilimane on the mouth of the Zambesi, Mozambique, Melinda,
Kilwa, Zanzibar, Mombasa, Malindi, Lamu, and Mogadishu) were
held and colonized by semi-dependent Moslem chiefs. The Arabs
had penetrated deeply into the interior, settling as far inland as Sena
along the Zambesi. They knew the Great Lakes and had carried
their trade in Negro slaves and elephant ivory across Lake Tanganyika
into the Congo. The European explorers of Central Africa followed
the " roads " occupied by Arab traders.

To the Arabs the whole of this territory down to Sofala was " the
land of the Zing " (or Negro) who were " Kafirs " (or infidels).
Arab geographers, like Masudi (circa A.D. 912), Idris (circa A.D. 1154),

4 RAYMOND A. DART

and Yakut (1179-1229), provide evidence that from the time the
Saxons invaded England down to the Portuguese circumnavigation
of the Cape, the approximate meeting-ground of " Wak-Wak " and
" Zing " (or Bush and Bantu peoples) was in the vicinity of Sofala
or Louren$o Marques.

The Moslem movement, which thrust the Arabs southwards and
westwards through Egypt and over Northern Africa and finally
across the Straits of Gibraltar into Spain (A.D. 711), caused the south-
easterly emigration of the two Arabian chiefs of Oman, the brothers
Suleiman and Said, to the " land of the Zing " (circa A.D. 695). During
the reign of Abdul Malik they escaped, taking their families and a
number of their tribes with them. According to East Coast tradition
the same Abdul Malik built no less than thirty-two towns along the
coast between Mogadishu and the Comoro Islands with the aid of
Syrian craftsmen and placed a Governor in each of them. Arabs did
not enjoy undisputed command of the coast. The Kilwa Chronicles
record the founding of that centre (A.D. 975) by Persians, and in
particular by Ali, the son of Sultan Hassan of Shiraz. By this time
(tenth century), as Masudi reports, the Shirazis (Persians) and the
Adzis (Omanis) had all the coastal trade in their hands. Hassan
and his family of six sons left their native land in seven ships of which
only one, that under Ali (whose mother was an Abyssinian slave),
reached Kilwa in Tanganyika. There he reigned for forty years,
founding the state which predominated along the coast for the following
three centuries, until the coming of the Portuguese.

The Bantu slave-trade provided an unlimited source of man power
and frightfulness in the Moslem wars. Abdul Abbas (brother of the
first Abbasid Caliph) had 400 Negroes in his army, when he massacred
11,000 people in Iraq (A.D. 749). Ultimately, these aliens imported
into Mesopotamia became so numerous and restive that their revolt
under the " Lord of the Blacks " (A.D. 850) was felt all over Arabia.
Their bid for freedom in A.D. 869 under the Persian, Alid Messiah,
resulted in the sack of Basra (A.D. 871) and a decade of pillage at
the hands of an armed force said to number 300,000. The rebels
were finally defeated (A.D. 883). Thus Moslems from the littoral
of the Indian Ocean were freely trading, raiding, and bastardizing
with the Bantu for nearly 800 years before the coming of Europeans
to the East Coast. 1

In the century before the Moslem surges, which had these indireft

1 Vid* W. H. Ingrams (1931), Zanzibar : iu History and its PtopU (London, Witherby).

RACIAL ORIGINS 5

but far-reaching repercussions on the Bantu, the African coast was
dominated by the King of Aksum in Abyssinia. Cosmas Indico-
pleustes (circa A.D. 547) says : " Beyond Barbaria there stretches
an ocean that has the name of Zingion, bordering on the same sea
is the land called Sasos which possesses abundant gold mines " ;
he proceeds to tell how the king sent expeditions to the country which
took six months to go and return, how the people bartered oxen
for gold with the natives and how " the winter of those regions
coincides with the summer amongst us ". This is the first distinctive
record of a black man's territory (Zingion) fringing the Indian Ocean,
and of gold from Africa south of the equator ; it doubtless refers
to Rhodesia. 1 At this time the territory embracing the Rhodesian
gold country is " Sasos ", that is something different from the Bantu
" Zingion ". Presumably we have a record here of how domestic
animals were being introduced into " Hottentot " Southern Africa
nearly 1,400 years ago and before the coming of the Bantu to Rhodesia.
Abyssinia gained her pre-eminent maritime position by destroying
the Himyaritic and Sabsean empire in Arabia (circa fourth century).
The importance of Sabaea (or Sheba) in relationship to South African
prehistory and the movements and physical constitution of the Bantu
people is demonstrated by the records in the Periplus of the Erythraan
Sea and by the study of Bantu linguistics. After Hippalus (A.D. 45)
observed the change of the monsoon in the Indian ocean and made
it public property, a fleet of 120 vessels sailed annually in Roman
times from Myo-Hormos, in Egypt on the Red Sea, to the Malabar
Coast, or Ceylon, at the summer solstice and returned in December
or January. So many Roman and Greek merchants were trading
in the Indian Ocean (or Erythraean Sea) about this time that one
of them wrote the Periplus a kind of travellers' guide. He described
(circa A.D. 60) the ports of Pano (Las Binna), Opone (Ras Hafun),
Serapion (Mogadishu), Nicon (Brawa), and the Pyralae Islands
(Patta, Manda, and Lamu) on his way down the Ausanitic Coast
of the Continent of Azania (Africa) to the Island of Menouthias
(Zanzibar or Pemba) and Rhapta (a port then lying on the mouth
of the Rufiki or the Pangani River). The African export trade he
discussed was in ivory, rhinoceros horn, tortoise-shell, palm oil, and
slaves (required in Egypt and other parts of the Roman Empire) ;
to Africa came lances, hatchets, daggers, awls, glass, wine, and wheat.

* Cf. F. P. Mennell (1902), " The Zimbabwe Ruins near Victoria, Southern Rhodesia/*
Proc. Rhod. Set. Ass.) iii, 81-4.

6 RAYMOND A. DART

Each port was in the hands of a separate chief ; even the most southerly
station mentioned (Rhapta) was administered by Arabians, who were
subject to the people of Muza (Mocha). The coast itself was governed
by a so-called Mapharitic chief, Charibael (Kariba-Il), identified
historically from South Arabian inscriptions as a Sabaean king, who
lived at Saphar (Zafar) and ruled over the Homerites and Sabarites
(Himyarites and Sabaeans) circa A.D. 40-70. By means of embassies
and gifts he held diplomatic intercourse with the Roman Emperors
Claudius and Nero. The Romans sent expeditions against the Sabaeans
from time to time; but they had found wars costly experiments
against this nation, which had been predominant in Southern Arabia
from time immemorial. The Sabaeans rendered tribute only to the
most powerful of the Assyrian kings (seventh century B.C.) and every
biblical student knows of the visit of their queen (Balkis of Sheba)
to Solomon's Court (tenth century B.C.).

This powerful colonizing sea-power extracted its wealth by its
commanding position relative to the maritime trade between Egypt
and the Indian Ocean, whose dimensions in ancient times is best
attested by the fact that Seti I (1380 B.C.) connected the Nile with
the Red Sea by means of a canal. 1 It fell into disrepair, and Necho
(630-527 B.C.) made a spirited attempt at the sacrifice of 12,000 men
to re-establish it. His unsuccessful work was completed by Darius
(520 B.C.) when he attained his desire of commanding the Indian
Ocean trade by subjecting Egypt to Persia. This canal of Darius
was maintained, with periods of intermission, down through Roman
and Moslem times until its closure by the Moslem Mansur (circa
A.D. 770). Any weakness or strife on the part of Egypt, Assyria,
Babylonia, Persia, Greece, and Rome, as successive masters in the
Near East, ensured the liberty and fostered the expansion of the
Sabaean people, who held Egypt's eastern gateway. They were the
Phoenicians of the Indian Ocean and doubtless supplied Necho with
his circumnavigators of Africa, to whose maritime traffic they held
the keys both in the Red Sea and in the historically recorded trading
stations along the East African coast.

We do not know when the Bantu gained sufficient numerical
strength, and political organization, agricultural knowledge, mining
skill, and implement-manufacturing ability to render themselves
independent of the coastal imports of lances, hatchets, awls, and
daggers from coastal traders in the first five centuries of the Christian

1 Vidt Encyclopedia Bntannica, M th ed., art. "Suez Canal".

RACIAL ORIGINS 7

Era, and to avalanche themselves down the eastern side of Africa,
in the way the Goths and Huns hurled themselves across South-
western Europe. Something corresponding with the convulsive
movements of the Gauls into Italy (390 B.C.), of the Teutons into
Gaul (105 and 102 B.C.), and of the Vandals into Italy, Spain, and
finally into Africa (A.D. 429), seems to have taken place in the region
of the Great Lakes and headwaters of the Nile, whence the black
flood had previously constantly threatened and sometimes over-run
Egypt. After destroying the Sabaean power, the Abyssinians were
able to maintain their own independence and to arrest the north-
easterly flow of Bantu ; but their relaxed grip on the Sabaean East
Coast ports and the gold-producing South African belt left the Bush
natives of that territory an easy prey to the southward-advancing
Bantu from the end of the sixth century onwards. We shall probably
not be far from the truth if we place the first great southern migration
of the Bantu at about this period. The physical affinities between
the Nilotic Negroes and our Southern Bantu attest their common
origin.

RACIAL FEATURES

A distribution map of the African races would have presented a
very different picture 2,000 years ago. Few, if any, Negroes occupied
the eastern half of the continent. There, the Bush race were in
direct contact with the Brown race, whose cradle is placed by Sergi
and Elliot Smith in the north-eastern part of Africa. All three races
evolved in Africa and must have been, at one time, sufficiently isolated
from one another to develop their distinctive racial characteristics
and genetic stability. When crossed, their offspring are fertile;
but the anatomical features distin&ive of each type can be traced
in relative purity, or in various degrees of admixture, in their descen-
dants. Let us then consider how these types arose and what features
distinguish them.

The Sahara has been for millenia a great barrier between a free
intermingling of the Brown and Negro races. It has been natural
for anthropologists to imagine that this barren waste, by its isolating
effect, favoured the emergence of these two distinctive types of man-
kind. But the Kalahari desert also extended in a north-easterly dire&ion
across the Viftoria Falls and the two Rhodesias in early Pleistocene
times. It virtually severed the south-eastern from the west-central
part of the continent. This old-time Kalahari barrier must have

8 RAYMOND A. DART

fluctuated with the Ice Ages, as did the Sahara, and at one time probably
separated the Bushmen from the Negro to the west and from the
Brown race to the north. At any rate the cradle of the Negroes,
as nearly as we can determine, was in the basin of the Congo water-
shed. Thence they first spread out in a north-westerly direction
towards the Niger Valley and the Sahara ; and, subsequent to certain
racial hybridization, which we will discuss later, moved in the north-
easterly direction towards the Great Lakes and the sources of the Nile.

Every intelligent person is familiar to-day with the obtrusive
physical characteristics of the typical Negro : the tall and ereft stature ;
well set-up, athletic body of sthenic type, coal-black in colour, and
virtually hairless, save for the tightly-curled woolly mop protecting
the oval head ; the long, thin legs terminating in broad, flat feet.
The skull is infantile in form, being long and relatively narrow, of
moderate height and ovoid in contour, as seen from above. The
eyebrow ridges are negligible or absent ; the forehead is moderately
wide and following the infantile form of the bone curves convexly,
gently, and regularly to the crown of the head, whence it falls away
with equal smoothness of curvature to the rounded occiput. The
form of the orbits is almost square and their margins are strongly
built. The cheeks are wide and, with their supports (zygomatic
arches), are bowed laterally in keeping with the powerful jaw muscula-
ture. The eyes are widely set apart by the broad and flattened nasal
bones. The nose is flat and the nostrils widely expanded. The face
is large and prominent. The jaws are prognathic, accommodating
large, well-formed teeth with a dense ivory covering, which slightly
continue the prognathism and are covered by full, fleshy lips, whose
prominent mucosa is reddish-black or purple in colour. Even the
whites of the eyes are darkened by the strong pigmentation of the
body, but contrast sharply with the deep black of the eyelids and
iris. The chin is not prominent owing to the fleshiness of the lips
and the fullness of the cheeks. The face as a whole is rhomboidal
in form. The skeleton is massive, but the constituent bones are
more slender than those of Europeans owing to their more compact
or ivory-like texture. Their resilience has given rise to an erroneous
impression that the Negro skull is thicker than that of the European.
The air-spaces in the skull are more numerous and larger than those
of the European and are largely responsible for the calibre, resonance
and carrying-quality of the Negro voice.

These characteristics contrast sharply with those of the Brown race,

RACIAL ORIGINS 9

which has spread out from North-East Africa through Southern
Europe to the British Isles and through Southern Asia to Malaya.
They are short and slender, verging on the effeminate in bony structure
and bodily physique. Their brunette bodies have scanty facial hair,
except for a chin-tuft ; but their heads are covered with wavy, black
locks. The iris is brown or black, owing to a considerable retention
of body pigment. The skull is long and relatively narrow, of moderate
height, and pentagonoid (coffin-shaped), when viewed from above ;
the eyebrow ridges are poorly-developed, but the narrow forehead
rises ereft and full above them and the occiput is bulged out behind
into a marked prominence. The orbits are horizontal, ellipsoid, and
with thin margins. The cheeks are narrow, their bony supports
flattened laterally. The nose is small and only moderately developed
but is a definitely elevated ridge. The small jaws do not project
and the chin is pointed. The face as a whole is straight, short, and
narrow and of ovoid form. The teeth are moderate in size. 1

The Bush race resemble the Negro in their broad, flat, and flaring
nostrils and are even more specialized in respeft to their loss of hair ;
its extremely rolled character and sparsity give origin to its peppercorn
distribution. But here the resemblances end. Their bodies are
shorter and more slender than those of the Brown race ; while they
are darker in colour than the Brown, they are not black like the
Negro. The Negro skull we described as infantile in form; that
of the Bushman is foetal. It is narrow relative to its length, but
extremely low, and even more markedly pentagonal than the Brown
skull when viewed from above. Eyebrow ridges are entirely absent
and the forehead, instead of sloping backwards or rising vertically,
bulges anteriorly as it rises towards the crown of the head and then
falls away abruptly, to the prominent occiput posteriorly. 2 The
horizontal orbits are small and circular and have thin margins. The
face is short and straight, and also pentagonoid in form, being widest
opposite the cheek-bones and falling to a point in the chin region.
It is flat and recessed in comparison with the Negro face, for the
jaws project very little, while the bony parts below the lateral parts
of the eyes bulge beyond the nose ; this sub-ocular facial bellying
emphasizes the width in this region. The jaws and the teeth are
small and delicately built and the musculature corresponds with their

1 Cf. G. Elliot Smith (1923), 7% Ancient Egyptians and the Origin of Civilisation (London,
Harper).

s D. Slome (1927), " Curvature of the Bushman Calvarium," Am*r. J. Pliys. Anthrop.,
x,

10 RAYMOND A. DART

form. The facial parts resemble those of the Pygmy and Tasmanian
in being of Australoid or foetal type. The Bush retain primitive
features in the lower jaw 1 which also resembles most closely that
of the Brown race^ the vertebral column, 3 the stru&ure of the feet, 4
and the genitalia. 5

Thus, while the Bush are in many points distinft and more primitive,
the degree of affiliation between them and the Brown race is as great
as or even greater than between either of these races and the Negro.
The physical contrasts are of such a chara&er, that the Negro may
be regarded as a western specialized stock separating very early
from the Sapient stock and pursuing an independent line of evolution
towards tallness, ere&ness, muscularity, infantile head-form, and facial
prognathism, while retaining the primitive, coal-black skin and nasal
conformation. The common ancestral stock of the Bush and Brown
races meantime lost some of its colour ; from this stock arose the
Bushman in the sluggish and unstimulating South and the Brown
Race in the vigorous and favourable North. The Bushman, in
specializing, surpassed the Negro in general loss of body hair and
kinkiness of what remained, but retained the foetal skull, skeletal,
and facial parts which the Negro lost; the Brown Race retained
the primitive, wavy, black hair (chara&eristic also of the Australoid
Race), but lost more colour, expanded their brain-cases and, growing
taller, improved their ereft attitude and bodily agility. Still more
adventurous and lighter-hued offspring from the Sapient stock
reached North- West Africa, Europe, and Asia; there they gave
rise to the Nordic (including the Ainos of Japan and the non-
Mongoloid Eskimo peoples), Armenoid, and Mongoloid stocks
respectively.

CRANIAL CHARACTERS : ASIATICS IN AFRICA

The famous Swede Retzius first drew attention (1840) to the
possibility of distinguishing between people of different racial origin,
by comparing the relation of the width to the length of the head

R. B. Thomson (1913), " The Vertebral Column of the Bushman Race," Trans. R. Soc.
S. Afr., Hi, 365-378 ; G. D. Laing and H. S. Gear (1929). " The Strandlooper Skulls found
at Zitzikama/'S. Afr. J. Set., xxvi, 575-601.

L. H. Wells (1931), " The foot of the South African Native," Amer. J. Pbys. Anthrop.,

M. R. Drennan (1933)* A Short Court* on Physical Anthropology (Capetown : Mercantile
Press) ; ]. Drury and M. R. Drennan (1926-7), " The Pudendal Parts of the South African
Bush Race," Ml. J. S. Afr., xxii, 113-117.

RACIAL ORIGINS II

and expressing it mathematically. It is a cardinal faft that the Negro
shares with the Bush, Brown, and Nordic races the possession of
a long-headed (dolichocephalic) skull, i.e. one in which the breadth
is actually or even less than three-quarters of its length. This is
the primitive form of the human skull. It is found in the man-like
ape Australopithecus (South Africa), and in all known forms of
primitive mankind, such as Pithecanthropus (Java), Sinanthropus
(China), Eoanthropus (England), Neanderthal Man (Southern Europe
and Palestine), Rhodesian Man (Africa), Boskop Man (Africa), and
the living Australoid peoples (Veddas of Ceylon and Australian
aborigines). In this human ocean of dolichocephaly, stretching from
the Cape of Good Hope to the Behring Straits and from Norway
to Australia, there sprang up like an erratic current in Asia the broad-
headed (brachycephalic) type of mankind. This particular human
stream is represented to-day by two main swirls : the Armenoid Race,
which flooded from Turkestan across Mesopotamia and Egypt and
through the Mediterranean area and across Russia and Central Europe
to the British Isles (circa 300 B.C. onwards), and the Mongol Race,
which percolated into the East Indies and Indian Ocean littoral and
rushed like a torrent through the two Americas from Alaska to
Tierra-del-Fuego at an unknown period. 1

A preliminary application of these generalizations, rendered possible
by the collective labours of anthropologists during the last century,
will help to clear the ground in our attempt to interpret the physical
characteristics of the Bantu South of the Zambesi. In any con-
siderable collection of skulls from all available tribes, 2 there occurs
spasmodically, in about i per cent, of the number, a thoroughbred
brachycephal or two Asiatic fish out of their home water. They
appear also in any considerable group of Bush skulls. 3 This Asiatic
influence is not confined to the Bush and Bantu of South Africa.
Amongst 475 Pygmies in Central Africa Schebesta and Lebzelter
found 26 per cent brachycephalic. 4 Figures published by Leys and
Joyce 6 demonstrate fluctuating proportions of the same element in
the various tribes of Kenya, Uganda, Tanganyika, and the Congo.

1 G. Elliot Smith (1934), Human History (London : Cape).

* Such as that in the Anatomy Department of the University of the Witwatersrand.

* J. H. Gear (1929), " Cranial Form in the Native Races of South Africa," S. Afr. J. Set.,
xxvi, 684-697.

4 P. Schebesta and V. Lebzelter (1933), Anthropology of the Central African Pygmies in tnt
Belgian Congo (Prague : Czech Academy of Sciences and Arts).

* N. M. Leys and T. A. Joyce (1913), " Notes on a series of Physical Measurements from
East Africa," /. R. Anthrop. Inst., xliii, 195-267.

12 RAYMOND A. DART

Amongst the Masai, they appear as infrequently as amongst the
South African Bantu; but amongst the Kachamega, Kavirondo,
Kikuyu, Kamba, and Swahili, they account for 10 per cent and upwards
of the population. More than a quarter of the Lamu natives on
the coast and of the Nyema in Belgian Congo, just west of Lake
Tanganyika, are brachycephalic. The Comoro Islanders are so
infiltrated with Asiatic influence that over half their number are
brachycephalic ; they thus resemble the Arabs of Yemen and behind
Aden (Sheker tribe of Bedawi) and the coastal population of Biloch
and Cutch in India more than they resemble their Bantu brethren on
the mainland in cranial characteristics.

Similar nests of brachycephafy stretch across the Congo. Fifteen
per cent of the Tetela near the headwaters of the Lomani tributary
to the Congo River share this feature, and even on the Atlantic
bea-board along the Gaboon Coast near Fernand Vaz more than
5 per cent are to be discovered 1 ; Keith found nearly 35 per cent
amongst the Bushongo, Soko, Sango, and miscellaneous tribes of
Central and Eastern Congo (measured by Torday), and nearly
7 per cent amongst the tribes in the south-eastern (Oban) district
of Nigeria (measured by Talbot) 2 ; about 4 per cent Brachycephals
occur too amongst the Hausa of Nigeria. 3 These fluctuating figures
show how the brachycephalic Asiatic aliens were scattered in seemingly
haphazard fashion across the Continent. More detailed observation
will probably show that the isolated centres where they occur most
frequently represent links in the chain of ancient trans-continental
trade-routes, which supplied the Orient with marketable wealth from
" the land of the Zing ". Onward from the days when the old
Dutch colonists dete&ed the Mongolian appearance of the Eastern
Bush peoples and called them Chinese Hottentots, many writers have
encountered Mongoloid features in the Bush and Pygmy peoples
and in the Negroes of South Africa, the Sudan, and the West Coast. 4
These provide no ethnographical difficulty, for Malayan canoes have
been dredged out of the sea as far south as Port Elizabeth (Algoa
Bay), and the Indonesian type of outrigger canoe is common at
Mozambique, Port Amelia, the Comoro Islands, and other places on

1 R. C. Benington (1911-11), "A Study of the Negro Skull with special reference to
the Congo and Gaboon Crania," Biomttrika y viii, 292-339.

1 A. Keith (1911), "On Certain Physical Chapters of the Negroes of the Congo Free
State and Nigeria," /. R. Anthrop. 7/wr., xli, 40-71.

* A. N. Tremearne (1911), " Notes on some Nigerian Tribal Marks/' /. R. Anthrop. /**;.,
xli, 162-178.

* C. G. and B. Z. Seligman (1932), Pagan Triots of the Nilotic Sudan (London, Routledge).

RACIAL ORIGINS 13

the coast. The Malayo-Polynesian infiltration of Madagascar ethnically
is well-established.

Idris (twelfth century) records the traffic of Orientals thither and
to Sofala, probably from Java and Cambodia. An Arab ambassador
took a Negro slave to the Chinese court in the Sung dynasty (976 A.D.)
from which time onwards Chinese familiarity with African increased.
Masudi (tenth century) commented upon the Chinese African trade,
which was so great in Alberuni's time (circa 1030 A.D.) as to be affecting
the size of the ports in India (e.g. Somanath in the Gujerat Peninsula).
This African trade for ivory, rhinoceros horn, gold, ambergris, tortoise-
shell, animal skins, amber, sandal-wood, and particularly slaves was
never forgotten by the Chinese. It was re-established during the
succeeding Mongolian (1280-1360) and Ming (1358-1644) dynasties
as far south as Madagascar, thus extending over" six centuries. The
Oriental commerce was responsible for spreading the Negro Race
through the East Indies and into Melanesia in the same way as the
slave-trade also dispersed the Negro Race through the West Indies
and America. It made the Bantu language Swahili the lingua franca
of the Indian Ocean.

The Malayan and Chinese people merely followed in the wake
of the Hindus who " not only made trade settlements on the coast,
dating from the seventh century B.C. but apparently penetrated inland
towards the Great Lakes "- 1 The sacred Sanscrit poems or Puranas
describe the great Krishna (Nile) River, running, through Cush-
Ndipa the great lake in Chandristhan, the country of the Mpon
geographical information which gave the correft position in relation to
Zanzibar Island, and was used by Speke in his quest for the sources
of the Nile. The Indians knew Babylon as Baberu, and there is a
story dating from the third century B.C. about Indian mariners there.
After his invasion of India (326 B.C.), Alexander the Great confidently
and successfully sent a large portion of his Macedonian army back
to Mesopotamia across the Indian Ocean in a fleet under his general
Nearchus. Nebuchadnezzar used beams of Indian teak in the temple
of the Moon at Ur and in his own palace. Even before the Chaldean
Empire period the Oriental shipping trade was so vital to the Assyrians
that Sennacherib (circa 694 B.C.) recorded monumentally his destroying
the nests of pirates in the Persian Gulf and his compelling them to
settle at Gerrha. 2 It was these Assyrians who also compelled the

1 Ingrains, op. cit.

F& de L. . O'Leary (1927), Arabia before Muhammad (London, Kegal Paul).

14 RAYMOND A. DART

Sabaeans to pay tribute. The widely diffused interest in, and intimate
contaft with, East Africa at that remote period is shown not only
by Necho's circumnavigation of Africa and by the accurate geographical
knowledge contained in the sacred books of the Hindus, but also
by Darius the Persian monarch's (512-510 B.C.) sending thfe Greek
mercenary Skylax to explore the route down the Indus across the
Indian Ocean and up the Red Sea to Arsinoe near the modern Suez
Cana!, and his execution of Sataspes for failing to circumnavigate
Africa. These further historical fafts explain the maritime influences
which caused so many brachycephalic Asiatics to become dispersed
through the African Continent ; and reveal why, amongst the Ambo
and Herero tribes in South- West Africa, individuals are found to-day
indistinguishable facially from Indians and Persians.

The Asiatic stigmata in the South African native population are
not confined to the Mongoloid traits found in the Hottentots and
other Bush peoples and occurring amongst the " Nyambaan ",
Shangana-Tonga, Xhosa, Sotho, and other groups of Bantu and
most frequently of all amongst the Zulu of the Natal coast (vide
Table VI). Armenoid features are more widely dispersed than
Mongoloid. They are common amongst the Zulu, but even more
pronounced in the Venda of North-Eastern Transvaal, the Shona
tribes of Southern Rhodesia and the Rotse of the Zambesi head-
waters, as well as amongst the Herero and Ambo ; they are expressed
in the s>called " Semitic" traits* of hooked noses and hirsute faces
and bodies. These physical traits, referred to loosely and popularly
as " Semitic " or " Arabic ", are derived not from the primitive
Brown indigenes of the Mesopotamian and Arabian area, but from
the Armenoids, who from their ancient homeland of Turkestan
deluged the " fertile crescent " in successive viftorious waves, from
Dynastic Egyptian times onwards. This formed the avenue of their
approach, by land and sea, to Southern Africa during the historical
period.

THE RACIAL BASIS OF THE BANTU : A BUSH AND NEGRO MATRIX

Retzius's anthropological weapon, the cephalic index, enables us
to separate the Asiatic brachymorphs from the African (and European
and Asiatic) dolichomorphs. As the three African human stirps
(Negro, Bush, and Brown) are long-headed, we need further mathe-
matical weapons to isolate them from one another. Confronting

RACIAL ORIGINS 15

similar problems in the analysis of the Brown (or Mediterranean)
Race, the veteran Italian anthropologist G. Sergi discarded mathe-
matics and classified skulls according to their shape (pentagonoid,
ovoid, ellipsoid, etc.), as viewed from above. Finding these varied
types of skulls recurring constantly throughout Northern Africa and
Southern Europe, Sergi concluded that they were all relatively insignifi-
cant variants of one human racial type, which he called the Mediter-
ranean Race. 1 The conclusion that one predominant race characterized
the area proved correct ; indeed, Elliot Smith showed that this race
extended beyond Africa and Southern Europe into Arabia, Persia,
India, and South-Eastern Asia. 2 Sergi's guiding hypothesis, that
different forms of skull belong to one homogeneous race, is erroneous ;
but it called attention to a much-needed study of head form which
is critical for unravelling the anthropological tangle in Africa as well
as in Europe.

Another shortcoming in Sergi's system (as in that of Retzius)
was that by classifying skulls according to length and breadth alone
it neglected the factor of height. This deficiency in the system has
been neatly overcome by Sergi's fellow-countryman, Frassetto. 8 He
has shown that the dolichomorph and brachymorph groups can each
be divided into three main head-form sub-groups; according as
the parietal bone (which chiefly is responsible for the shape of the
skull) happens to be foetal, infantile, or adult in form. He has thus
reduced Sergi's innumerable categories of skull form to six, based
on biological considerations of bone growth. These six sub-groups
can then be split up according to height factors. They are classified
as hypsicephalic, orthocephalic and chamaecephalic ; according as
their cranial vaults are high, moderately elevated, or low respectively.
This system provides an apparatus for separating human skulls into
eighteen different categories ; it is a mechanism of sufficient isolating
capacity to be of great assistance in African anthropology.

Tables I and III demonstrate ]. H. Gear's application in 1929 of
Sergi's system (as modified by Frassetto) in examining collections
of Bush and Bantu skulls respectively. 4 Previously no very clear
idea existed as to what was and what was not a Bush skull. Even
to-day most diverse and contradictory statements are current in the

1 G. Sergi (1911), L'Uomo (Turin, Bocca).
1 G. Elliot Smith (1934), op. cit.

* F. Frassetto (1909-1918), Lt^ionl antropologia (Bologna : Coop-Tipografica Libraria
giani).
H. Gear, op. cit.

RAYMOND A. DART

literature. Some writers affirm that the Bushmen and Pygmies are
Negroes ; others separate all three from one another and proceed
even further to manufa&ure Hottentot, Strandlooper, and Korana,
and other branches of the African human stock; alternatively,
suggestions have been put forward that Hottentots are hybrids
between the Bush and the Bantu.

Australoid and Boskopoid types do crop up in the living population,
especially amongst the Bush peoples in the south-western ethnical
territory of Africa. They may prove one day to be more prevalent
than has been recognized hitherto ; but they are so few numerically
and so sporadic in occurrence as to constitute anthropological
curiosities. They are atavistic links with Africa's past, heirlooms of

TABLE I
BUSH GROUP DISPERSAL (AFTER GEAR)

DOLICHOMORPHS

BRACHYMORPHS

Penta-
gonoid

Ovoid

Ellip-
soid

Totals

Eury-
penta-
gonoid

Sphe-
noid

Sphse-
roid

Totals

Perccn
tage

Hypsi- .

Ortho- .
Chamae- .

2
19

2
20
*9

3'9
39-2

5<V9

Totals

100-0

Percentage

68-6

*5'S

3'9

2'O

o-o

lOO'O

antiquity preserved in the southern recess of the continent. They
do not belong to the Brown or Negro races, and they do not represent
the fundamental type to which the greater number of individuals
in all branches of the Bush family belong.

In his 51 skulls (comprising 26 Bushmen, 9 Hottentots, 7 Koranas,
5 Strandloopers, and 4 Griquas) Gear found nearly 70 per cent penta-
gonoid in form. Of the twenty-six known Bushmen, 70 per cent
belonged to this pentagonoid group. Further, 57 per cent of the
skulls were low-vaulted (chamaecephalic), and, of these, 76 per cent
were pentagonoid. He therefore concluded that the fundamental
type of skull, common to all Bush peoples of South Africa, is the
chamapentagonoid. In keeping with its baby-like form, its dolicho-
cephaly and chamaepentagonoidy the skull has a small endocranial
capacity, i.e. it is microcephalic.

RACIAL ORIGINS 17

The most highly populated compartment in Table I is that occupied
by these twenty-two chamapentagonoids, which represent the Bush
race in its greatest purity. The low vault, typical of the Bushman,
appears in addition in seven other skulls (six ovoids and one ellipsoid).
The pentagonoid form occurs also in thirteen other skulls, whose
vaults are of greater height than is typical in the Bush race. We will
consider these (and the thirteen ovoids and two ellipsoids) at a later
stage; and merely note, in passing, the single eurypentagonoid
a brachymorphic, Asiatic intruder.

Recently Dr. Galloway and Mr. Wells have gathered together
the information from every available published source where
measurements have been taken of Hottentot, Korana, and Strand-
looper skulls. Clumped together these 239 individuals are distributed
as follows :

TABLE II
DISTRIBUTION OF ALL REPORTED S.A. BUSH PEOPLES COMBINED

Dolichocephalic

Mesaticeph.

Brachyceph.

Totals

Percentage

Hypsicephalic .
Ortho- .
Chamae -

f
61
68

8
50
3

U
118

107

5'8
49-4
44-8

Totals .

*39

lOO'O

Percentage

56-1

40-2

3'7

lOO'O

The relative percentages of the different types of skulls are somewhat
modified by the inclusion of all the variants occurring in this " Bush-
Hottentot" series (such as the Boskopoid and Australoid types),
but the general deduction to be drawn is that further analysis only
corroborates the general truth of Gear's original postulate and demon-
strates that all physical variations from the fcetalized, dolichocephalic,
chamaepentagonoid skull in the Bush peoples are to be regarded as
due to hybridization with other racial types.

Qear also analysed (vide Table III) 94 Bantu skulls (comprising
15 Zulu, 15 Sotho, 5 Xhosa, 3 Fingo, 3 Kalanga, 2 Tswana, 2 " Nyam-
baan ", 2 Mpondo, 2 Ambo, and one each of the Swazi, Rotse, Herero,
Rolong, Hlubi, Chopi, " Mozambique ", Thembu, Ndebele, and Shona
peoples, and twenty-six others of unknown tribe but probably
Transvaal Sotho). In this unselected polyglot he found one foreign

RAYMOND A. DART

(Sphaeroid) Asiatic brachymorph. There were also sixteen Penta-
gonoids, six of which were Chamaepentagonoids indistinguishable
from the typical Bushmen just described. The strong Bush influence
in the Bantu group was further exhibited by twenty-two other skulls
having a low vault (28*7 per cent in all). The best-populated single
compartment in the Bantu group is that occupied by the twenty-five
Ortko-ovoids, which represent the Negro element in its greatest purity.
They aftually account for less than 27 per cent of the group. On
the other hand 45*7 per cent show the ovoid form of skull, which
is the most frequent of the three dolichomorph types of head-form
present in the Bantu. The Southern Bantu are therefore only about
one-third pure-blooded Negro and are more than one-quarter pure-
blooded Bush in constitution (vide also Tables V and Vt).

TABLE III
BANTU GROUP DISPERSAL (AFTER GEAR)

DOLICHOMORPHS

BRACHYMORPHS

Percen-
tage

Penta-
gonoid

Ovoid

Ellip-
soid

Totals

Eury-
penta-
gonoid

Sphe-
noid

Spha-
roid

Total

Ortho-
Chamae-

o
10
6

8
5

4
19
II

54
*7

o
55
7

12-8
58-5
28-7

Totals

lOO'O

Percentage

17-0

45-7

36-1

o-o

0*0

i*i

100*0

To discover the other racial elements that have gone to the manu-
fafture of the Bantu we require to travel farther afield than the Zambesi
River ; but the nature of our problem will be greatly simplified if
we consider these two Tables (I and III) a little farther. Both the
Bush and the Bantu groups are admittedly very mixed, but the Bush
group is more homogeneous (or racially purer) than the Bantu group.
If we consider the feature hypsicephaly, for example, the Bush group
displays only two skulls (4-0 per cent), while the Bantu reveals twelve
(12-8 per cent) of this elevated type. These two high-vaulted skulls
in the Bush group are Ovoids; and, as the preponderant number
of hypsicephalic skulls in the Bantu group are Ovoids, it is apparent

RACIAL ORIGINS 19

a fortiori that the hypsicephaly found amongst Bush peoples has
been handed on to them from the Bantu.

Similarly only two (3-9 per cent) of the skulls in the Bush group
present ellipsoidy, while amongst the Bantu no less than thirty-four
(36-2 per cent) of the skulls possess this feature. We are entitled
to assume that the ellipsoidal impurity amongst the Bush peoples
was a second gift handed on to them through the Bantu.

On the other hand, if we study the phenomenon of orthocephaly
amongst the two principal types of skulls (Pentagonoids and Ovoids)
common to the Bush and Bantu groups a contrary state of affairs
exists. In the Bush group there are virtually three Ortho-pentagonoids
to every one Ortho-ovoid ; in the Bantu there are only two Ortho-
pentagonoids to every five Ortho-ovoids. In other words, while
the Bantu were transmitting their hypsi-ellipsoid impurities into the
Bush race, the latter was responding by enriching the Bantu agglomerate
with onho-pentagonoid impurities which the Bush already possessed
in high degree.

RACIAL MINGLINGS OF BUSH AND BANTU :
THE CONTRIBUTION OF THE BROWN RACE (HAMITFS)

If we can ascertain how the Bantu became infiltrated with hypsi-
ellipsoidal and the Bush with ortho-pentagonoidal impurities, we will
have gone far towards understanding the curious distribution of
cranial types in South Africa and the mechanism whereby it was
produced.

In this quest we are materially assisted by a splendid study of
105 Abyssinian skulls from the Tigre Province, carried out by Sergio
Sergi. 1 He used his famous father's method in such a manner that
we are able to reclassify them in Frassetto's fashion and to compare
direftly the racial constitution of these Abyssinians near the Red Sea
in the north-east of Africa with our Bantu and Bush peoples south
of the Zambesi (vide Table IV).

Various fafts immediately leap to light. In the first place the
Abyssinians are an even more mixed group of people than the Bantu.
They embrace more Asiatics (three Eurypentagonoids and three
Sphenoids) ; and history is corroborated that Abyssinians and other
related North Africans simultaneously received in greater amount

1 S. Sergi (1912), Crania haoessenica. Contribute all' antropologia dell' Africa oriental* (Rome,
Loescher).

RAYMOND A. DART

or a&ually assisted in mediating the Asiatic influences, which are
more sparsely represented amongst the Bush and Bantu races farther
south. But a more remarkable faft is that the most densely populated
compartment in the Abyssinian group is formed by the thirty-one
(Negro) Ortho-ovoids ; they account for an even higher proportion
(i.e. virtually 30 per cent) of the Abyssinians than of the Bantu. It
is not surprising that Sergi also found that 30 per cent of the Tigre
skulls were prognathous like the typical Negro. While the ovoid
quality only affects 36-2 per cent of the skulls (instead of 45-7 per
cent as amongst the Bantu) the Abyssinians are virtually as pure-
blooded Negro as the South African Bantu, and far more considerably
impregnated with Negro blood than are the Bush peoples of South
Africa.

TABLE IV
ABYSSINIAN (TICRE) GROUP DISPERSAL (AFTFR SERGI AND FRASSETTO)

DOLICHOMORPHS

BRACHYMORPHS

Penta-
gonoid

Ovoid

Ellip-
soid

Totals

Eury-
penta-
gonoid

Sphe-
noid

Sphae-
roid

Totals

I ercen-
tage

Hypsi- . .
Ortho- .
Chamae- . .

4
31
3

M
68
16

3
o

2
I
O

16-2
68-6
15-2

Totals .
Percentage

37
35-2

3
36-2

22-8

3
*'.9

3
2-9

o-o

105
100-0

lOO'O

Another impressive feature about this analysis is that although
the Abyssinians show only about half as much chamaecephaly (15*2 per
cent)' as the Bantu (28*7 per cent) and about a quarter of that found
amongst the Bush (57-0 per cent), it is none the less present ; moreover,
50 per cent of the chamaecephalic individuals are Chamse-pentagonoids
like the typical Bushman. Hence the Tigri Abyssinians include relatively
more pure Chamce-pentagonoids of thoroughbred Bush type than do the
undetected Bantu south of the Zambesi. Both the Bush and the Bantu
are flat-nosed (platyrrhine), which accounts for the fact that Sergi
found an even higher percentage (46 per cent) of platyrrhiny than
of prognathism amongst these Abyssinians.

This Bush element in Abyssinia assists our understanding of the

RACIAL ORIGINS 21

physical make-up of the Bantu. The whole of the territory from
Abyssinia to the Zambesi abounds in Bushman relics in the form
of prehistoric rock-paintings and engravings ; it has yielded Bush
remains l ; it harbours to-day at least two tribes (Hadza and Sanda),
who preserve Bush physical features and speak languages belonging
to the Bush-Hottentot linguistic family. 2 Tanganyika Bantu show
22 per cent, or nearly as much, chamaecephaly as do the Bantu south
of the Zambesi. 3 More than a quarter of a large series of skulls from
south-east Kenya were typical dolichochamae-cephalic Bush skulls
and hence the " Hottentot " affinities of the group are strongly
evident. 4 Anatomical, linguistic, and archaeological fafts here all unite
in demonstrating that the territory of the long-headed, low-vaulted,
pentagonal^ microcephalic Bush race extended at one time from the Cape
of Good Hope to the Red Sea.

That this state of affairs preceded the Negro intrusion into the
eastern half of the continent is corroborated by our tables. While
the Abyssinians are more strongly " negrolized " if we may coin
that term than the Bush peoples, they are more closely akin to
our Bush than to our Bantu group in the relatively large number of
Ortho-pentagonoids present. Indeed, the most outstanding point of
contrast between the Southern Bantu and the Abyssinians (vide
Tables II and III) is the sudden relative increase in the number of
Pentagonoids and more particularly of the Ortho-pentagonoids in
Abyssinia. The Ortho-pentagonoids account for about a fifth of the
Tigre population ; they constitute over a quarter of our Bush group.
This type of skull, which occurs nearly twice as frequently amongst
the Abyssinians and more than twice as frequently amongst the
Bush as amongst the Bantu, is characteristic of the Brown (Mediter-
ranean or Hamitic) Race.

The racial features of the Brown Race have already been outlined.
They were the indigenes of the Fertile Crescent, formed by the
Nile Valley, Palestine, and Mesopotamia ; in their midst civilization
emerged. Owing to the bone-preserving qualities of the hot, dry,
Egyptian sands and the Egyptians 9 profound interest in preserving

1 A. Galloway (1933), " The Nebarara Skull," S. Afr. J. Sci., xxx, 585-596.

* D. F. Bleek (1931), " Traces of Former Bushmen Occupation in Tanganyika Territory,"
S. Afr. /. Sci., xxviii, 423-9 ; L. F. Maingard (1934), " The Linguistic Approach to South
African Prehistory and Ethnology," S. Afr. J. Set., xxxi, 117-143-

* v. Schweinitz and R. Virchow (1893), " Kopfmessungen an Ost-Afrikanern," Z. Ethn.,

XXV,

(1931), " A Study of the Negro Skull, with special reference to the Crania from
Kenya Colony," Biomttrika, xxiii, 271-314.

22 RAYMOND A. DART

the dead by mummification, so many thousands of Egyptian skeletons
have been found and measured, that we can follow racial movements
in Egypt from before the dawn of history and study the effefts of
those movements in modifying the skeletal features of her inhabitants
with more exaftitude and over a longer period than in any other
part of the world.

Despite these movements the vast majority of the Egyptians, at
all periods in their eventful history, are dolichocephalic and ortho-
cephalic. These long-heads of moderate cranial height are the typical
Brown people, and they are relatively far more numerous in Egypt
than in Abyssinia. In very ancient Egypt they accounted for approxi-
mately 70 per cent of the population but even in those days 12-20 per
cent of the Egyptians were chamaecephalic like the Bushmen. Miss
Smith has described nine adult " Pygmy " skulls amongst a collection
of Egyptian crania of the Third Dynasty, 1 which testify to the con-
siderable amount of the little people present there in a relatively
pure state 5,000 years ago.

These fafts colleftively demonstrate the intimacy of the fusion
between the Brown and Bush races east of the Great Rift Valley in
Africa prior to the inroads of the Negro upon the eastern sea-board.
The former prevalence and continuous distribution of the Bush Race
over the eastern half of Africa explains their accessibility to the Ancient
Egyptians, and the deep, recurrent interest of the ancient civilized
world in the dwarf people ; it shows why the Bush-Hottentot languages
are so intimately related to the Hamitic group of languages ; it
explains why the Bushmen of South Africa and the Pygmies of
Central Africa and of Southern Asia, despite alien racial admixture,
retain a virtually identical width of skull base 2 ; it helps us to under-
stand how and why by land and sea these primitives of nature could
have become scattered from the Equatorial forests of Africa to the
recesses of Papua and it assists in elucidating the fantastic part these
abbreviated editions of humanity have played in the mythology and
folk-lore of all civilized and semi-civilized peoples.

SUBDIVISION OF THE SOUTHERN BANTU

At this point it is appropriate to remark that much detailed investiga-
tion of the tribes will have to be carried out before we can know the

1 H. D. Smith (1911-12), "A Study of Pygmy Crania based on Skulls found in Egypt/'
Biomttrika, viii, 262-6.
* Schebesta and Lebzelter, op. tit.

RACIAL ORIGINS 23

proximity of physical relationship between tribe and tribe and the
order in which the various tribes entered the territory. Historically
we have little to help us and the position can only be remedied by
the slow process of correlating the fafts of language, tradition, and
culture with physical strufture. The information in the former three,
being more voluminous and accessible, naturally constitutes our
preliminary basis of classification. Linguistically the Southern Bantu
can be subdivided into three main zones :

1. Western, spreading north and south of the Okavango River
and including the Ambo, Herero, and Mbundu (as far north as
Benguella on the Angola Coast) ;

2. South-Central, comprising the Shona tribes of Southern
Rhodesia ;

3. South-Eastern, situated principally in the Union of South
Africa and Portuguese East Africa but also extending into Bechuana-
land and the headwaters of the Zambesi. It includes :

(a) the Nguni peoples (such as the Xhosa, Zulu, and Swazi) on the
south-eastern sea-board, all of whose dialefb are affefted by Bush
clicks ;

(K) the Shangana-Tonga (Thonga) peoples of Portuguese East
Africa, who have no clicks ;

(c) the Sotho peoples, such as the Southern Sotho of Basutoland,
Northern Sotho of the Transvaal, and Tswana of Bechuanaland ; and

(d) the Venda of North-Eastern Transvaal.

It might be anticipated that the Nguni peoples, who have absorbed
Bush " clicks " into their dialets, would also betray more Bush
physical features than do other tribes ; this, in point of faft, is true.
An interesting investigation of certain tribes in the south-eastern
zone by the blood-grouping method has been carried out by Elsdon-
Dew. He finds the blood-group differences so significant that he
can locate three different tribal groups in this zone alone. The first
is formed by the Xhosa and Mpondo, who are the most nearly related
to the "Hottentot"; the second, constituted by the Shangana,
Zulu, Southern Sotho, and Tswana, is intermediate in type between'
the first and the third racial group, which is composed of the Northern
Sotho, the Swazi, " Nyambaan " and Chopi (of Portuguese East
Africa). Of these three groups the last-named, situated most to the
north, approximates most nearly to the postulated "primitive"
type of human blood-grouping. All three groups are more " primitive "

24 RAYMOND A. DART

in their chara&ers than the Bush or the " Hottentot " groups examined
by Elsdon-Dew. These data corroborate our view that the Negro
forms an early off-shoot from the Sapient human stock ; they accord
also with the idea that the first Bantu intruders into South Africa

TABLE v

Vault Characters in

Percentages

CHAMAE-

Below
68.

ORTHO-.

68-73

HVPSI-.

Above
73

No. in
Series

Tribal Name*

Grouping of tribes by cross compari-
parison of cephalic characters

9'5

66-7

23-8

SHANGANA-TONGA

Group A High dolichocephaly
S High hypsicephaly

12-5

50-0

37' J

Bhaca.

20*0

70-0

IO'O

Hlubi ^v^v S

24-0

44-0

32-0

TRANSVAALJX^

SOTHOM ^>

^^^

M-.

fi-8

24-1

S \

-GrouJ> B Low dolichocephaly
+*~^^ High hypsicephaly

26-5

59-8

13-7

1 02

Mpondo^ <p ^--''"'y^

26-7

46-6

26-7

zuiu--"^r \

63-6

9. t

f"?v/tim C* /C<mili ^% A Kut- u!t

\V1 -y increasing Bush admix-

28-0

62-0 .

10-0

"NYAMBAAN^l / tUTc).

35-9

40*0

59-2
60*0

4'9
0*0

103

5birrA5ocAA \

t'* w roupU (otmilar to if but witti
increasing Bush admix-

44- i

48-1

7'7

104

A^a-^/\

ture).

44'4

50-9

4'7

106

^art^ana-/-

roup (Similar to A in dolicho-

48-6

42-6

8-8

TSWANA^

cephaly but differing from
both A and B in loss of

hypsicephaly probably
due -to profound Bush

admixture).

33'9

54-7

n-4

760

Total

'CAPITALS = over 90 per cent, dolichocephalic.
Italics = over 80 per cent dolichocephalic.

Lower case = 70-76 per cent dolichocephalic.

presumably found farthest south to-day were exposed for a
longer time to the effects of admixture with the hamiticized Bush race.
We can confidently expeft that with the extension of such observations
to other branches of the south-eastern zone, and especially to tribes

RACIAL ORIGINS 25

in the south-central and western linguistic zones, very valuable
light will be thrown on the more detailed physical inter-relations of
these highly mingled peoples.

Statistics concerning the cranial chara&ers of over 750 Southern
Bantu have been collected by de Saxe, in the course of an investigation
which is under way. His objeft is to analyse the somatometric
chara&ers presented, by comparing at least a hundred living adult
males of each tribe. He has kindly allowed us to assemble the incom-
pleted data in a tentative tribal grouping (vide Table V). In every
tribe hitherto examined 70 per cent or upwards of the population is
dolichocephalic. The tribes have been arranged on the table in a
gradually increasing order of Bush admixture : as shown by the
ascending chamaecephaly and descending orthocephaly. This arrange-
ment assists in demonstrating that some tribes resemble one another
in cranial features more closely than do others ; and thus makes it
possible to group them. The grouping suggested is not final because,
until adequate numbers have been collefted for all tribes; the groups
are of unequal classificatory value. Moreover the colleftion of data
from other tribes outside the south-eastern zone, to which these
belong, may seriously modify any general opinion now expressed.
At the same time it is of general interest that, already, five distinft
groups appear to be emerging in the south-eastern zone and that
they not only confirm but expand Elsdon-Dew's triple grouping,
though in some points there is slight disagreement.

Thus Elsdon-Dew's affiliation of the Shangana-Tonga with the
Northern Sotho (in Group A) and close dolichocephalic relationship
of these to the Chopi and " Nyambaan " (Group C) is corroborated ;
but our few Swazi appear more akin to the Zulu and Bhaca (Group B),
while the Tswana are more akin to Group C (and A) than to the
Zulu. The Mpondo approximate the Hlubi and Fingo (Group D)
rather than with the Xhosa, Southern Sotho, and Shangana (Group E) ;
but Group D is related to Group B rather than to Group A, while
Group E stands apart. The extension of such cross-analyses is greatly
needed, if we are to discover the more detailed physical relationships
of the tribal groups.

Little detail has been gathered concerning the tribes in the south-
central zone of Southern Rhodesia, and we are in little better case
in respeft of the western zone of South- West Africa. But an analysis
of fifty-four skulls recently made available to us by the kindness of
Dr. L. Gill, Curator of the South African Museum in Capetown,

26 RAYMOND A. DART

has furnished data about forty-eight Ambo and six Herero. They
too are over 90 per cent dolichocephalic; and, taken together,
are 27-8 per cent chamaecephalic, 57-4 per cent orthocephalic, and
14*8 per cent hypsicephalic. They therefore approximate very closely
in physical characteristics the Chopi and " Nyambaan " (Group C
of our table).

This cross-analysis of cranial characteristics has been introduced
to illustrate an avenue of approach to physical anthropological studies
capable of indefinite extension and thitherto relatively unexploited.
Our next table (VI) represents the results of a distributional study
of facial features amongst 977 natives of various tribes, including
the foregoing 760 adult mine natives and a series of 217 facial masks
taken in the field by Professor Cipriani, of Florence, or by various
members of the Anatomy Department in the University of the Wit-
watersrand over the last decade. The analysis was performed by Messrs.
Wells and de Saxe. It provides further information concerning our
provisional groups. The tribes are arranged in order of increasing
percentages of Bush features ; the only serious reversal in order, as
compared with the previous table, occurs in respeft of the Shangana,
who, despite their chamaecephaly, only display 17-1 per cent of
people with Bushman fades. The Zulu, " Nyambaan ", and Sotho
stand out with their relatively high percentage of Mongoloids. The
unsatisfactory term " Caucasoid " has been used in this table to
embrace all facial types other than the Negro, Bush, and Mongoloid ;
the preponderant number of these present the facies characteristic
of the Brown race but there is a considerable percentage of Armenoid
appearance, and even Nordic types are scattered through the groups.
In all the large groups, save the strongly Bushmanized Tswana, die
" Caucasoid " elements tend to account for nearly one-quarter of
the population. Throughout the series the genuine Negro facies
only accounts for 35-63 per cent, or an average of only half of the
population.

In view of these fafts it is not surprising that the mean stature
measurements recorded by different observers of large series of
natives is approximately 5 ft. 6 in. for males and 5 ft. i J in. for females.
Most male measurements fall between 5 ft. 5 in. and 5 ft. 8 in., the
least measurement being 4 ft. 8 in. and the greatest 6 ft. 4} in. It
is obvious that, apart from a consideration of the racial type of
individuals, reliance upon stature as a racial indicator is bound to
prove sterile.

RACIAL ORIGINS 27

A similar range of variation from individual to individual has been
found by Miss Orford and de Saxe in skin coloration, the different
nuances of colour in our records of approximately 1,000 individuals
extending from Nos. 14-35 on von Luschan's scale. The shades
lighter than 23, however, are very rare ; three-fourths of the subjects
fall within the 26-30 range, the order of frequency being 28, 29,
27, 30, and 26 ; the most frequent shade, 28, accounts for one-fourth
of all individuals examined. Seiner found that the Bushmen ranged

TABLE VI

Distribution of facial features in percentages

Cauca-

Mongo-

No. of

Tribal Name*

Negro

Bush

SOld

loid

Cases

53'5

if'S

29-0

2'2

" NYAMBAAN "

54'7

17-1

26-5

1-7

117

Shangana

59-1

18-2

22-7

SHANGANA-TGNCA

43-2

19-3

22'O

5-5

109

Zulu

Sfo

20*0

25-0

Hlubi

60- 9

23-4

1 5-7

6 4

Swazi

n-o

24-2

22-8

CHOPI

ffi

26-0

17-3

1-6

i*7

Xhosa

63-2

26-3

lo-j

Bhaca

46.2

27-2

24-6

2'O

Sotko

44-8

27-6

105

Mpondo

35-7

28-6

35*7

Fingo

43'*

44-6

I2'2

~""

TSWANA

51-2

25-0

22-3

"'5

977

Total

'CAPITALS = over 90 per cent dolichocephalic.
Italics = over 80 per cent dolichocephalic.
Lower case = 70-76 per cent dolichocephalic.

from 1 6-1 8 ; nine-tenths of the subjefts falling between 22 and 25 ; the
most frequent shade, 23, charafterized one-third of all those examined.

As might be anticipated from these data, the tribes more infiltrated
with Bush admixture, such as the Tswana, Fingo, Bhaca, Mpondo,
and even the Sotho, Swazi, and Shangana, are on the whole lighter-
skinned (average 28) than the Xhosa, Zulu, and Chopi (average 29),
and particularly the " Nyambaan " and Shangana-Tonga (average 30).

Physical analysis of the Bantu is thus proceeding, but the data
which will accumulate during the coming decade may profoundly
modify our tentative scheme of grouping. All methods of grouping

28 RAYMOND A. DART

linguistic, cultural, or physical go to prove that the Southern
Bantu did not cross the Zambesi in a single migratory movement
but by a series of inroads separated by centuries. Whether there
were three, five, or more such major movements these records,
colleftively or co-ordinately read, will finally reveal.

THE CONTRIBUTION OF THE NORDIC RACE

We have seen how the ortho-pentagonoid Brown (Hamitic)
impurity in the Bush stock became transferred to the Bantu; it
now remains to discuss how hypsi-ellipsoid impurities impregnated
the Negro stock and became transferred through the Bantu to the
Bush peoples. If our conception be correct that the Nguni peoples,
who retain Bush " clicks " in their diale&s, were some of the earliest
Bantu intruders into Southern Africa, it becomes very interesting
that tribes in this group display a progressive loss of hypsicephaly.

Hypsicephaly is widespread throughout Negro Africa. It is clear
from the averages recorded by de Quatrefages and Hamy that approxi-
mately 25 per cent of the skulls recorded by them from the Congo,
Sudan, Senegambia, and Upper and Lower Guinea were hypsicephalic,
the remainder being chiefly orthocephalic. 1 The percentage varies
from distrift to distrift. If we go up the western half of the con-
tinent, we find the Tetela with 36-5 per cent of hypsicephaly, the
Loango Natives with 69 per cent, and the Gaboon Natives with
52 per cent. Chamaecephaly is encountered very infrequently (none
in 26 Loango; two in 92 Gaboon; three in 74 Tetela). 2 The
hypsicephaly occurs independently of brachycephaly, in fact it is
more frequent where there is least brachycephaly.

Obviously, the hypsicephaly of the Southern Bantu is only part
of a continent-wide phenomenon and the explanation of its presence
must be sufficiently wide to embrace its occurrence in the north as
well as the south. If we return to our early tables we will see that,
while there is slightly more hypsicephaly amongst the Abyssinians
(16-2 per cent) than amongst the Bantu south of the Zambesi (12*8 per
cent in 128 skulls, 14-4 per cent, in 750 living males), there is consider-
ably more ellipsoidy amongst the Bantu (36-2 per cent) than amongst
the Abyssinians (22*8 per cent). Moreover the greater degree of
Abyssinian hypsicephaly is largely accounted for by the presence

1 A. de Quatrefages and E. T. Hamy (1881), Crania ethnica. Let cranes Jet races kumtunes,
a vols. (Paris, BailHere).
* Cf. R. C. Benington, op. ait.

RACIAL ORIGINS 29

in the group of two hypsicephalic Brachycephals, such as are not
found in the Bantu group. It is obvious that the Abyssinians did
not have a sufficiently preponderating amount of hypsi-ellipsoidy
to have been responsible for communicating it to the Bantu ; it is
equally apparent that it could not have come from any other North
African group of peoples ; the Brown Race charafteristic of those
parts has only moderately elevated (orthocephalic) heads, such as
the Negro himself charafteristically possesses.

Hypsicephaly is alien to all three of the races predominating in the
three transcontinental anthropological territorial belts of Africa, and yet
it has percolated through the whole continent, but with decreasing
intensity as we pass from north to south. Only two hypsicephalic
(O voids) skulls were found in the Bush group (Table I) ; 12 (8 O voids
and 4 Ellipsoids) in the Bantu group ; 17 (9 Pentagonoids, 40 voids,
2 Ellipsoids, and 2 Sphenoids) in the Abyssinian group. Now one
definite possible source of hypsicephaly is Asia the short brachy-
cephalic skull must be elevated, if it is to contain a human brain.
We cannot doubt that the Asiatic source is responsible for the hypsi-
cephaly of brachycephalic skulls in Africa ; but nobody would have
the temerity to suggest that brachycephalic admixture could transform
long-headed skulls of moderate height into high-vaulted skulls without
affefting their length. Unless hypsi-ellipsoidy has appeared as a
spontaneous variation amongst the Negro, who passed it on to the
Abyssinian and the Bush peoples, we are led to the conclusion that
the hypsi-ellipsoidy came to the Bantu as to the Abyssinians from
some dolichomorphic people other than the Brown Race. The only
possible known source is the Nordic Race.

The so-called " Nilotes and Nilo-Hamites " along the Upper Nile
Valley and in Uganda were thought by Seligman to be distinguished
from adjacent Negroid tribes by virtue of their dolichocephaly. 1
Aftually amongst the seventy Nuer and Dinka measured by Dr. Pirrie,
72*9 per cent are dolicho-, 24-3 per cent mesati-, and 2-8 per cent
brachycephalic. In our Departmental series of 128 skulls taken at
random from the different tribes of Bantu in the Union of South
Africa 81-2 per cent are dolicho-, 18-0 per cent mesati-, and 0-8 per
cent brachycephalic. If dolichocephaly were the test, then the Southern
Bantu are more " Hamitic " than the " Nilotes and Nilo-Hamites ".
The proximity of relationship between the two groups is brought

1 C. G. Seligman (1913), "The Hamitic Problem in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan," /. R.
Anthrop. Irut., xliii, {19-705.

30 RAYMOND A. DART

out by the similarity in the above figures ; it is emphasized by com-
paring the altitudinal (height) characters in the two groups. The
Nuer and Dinka are 13-0 per cent hypsi-, 53-6 per cent ortho-, and
34-4 per cent chamaecephalic, and our Southern Bantu collection
is 10-9 per cent hypsi-, 58-6 per cent ortho-, and 30^5 per cent
chamaecephalic. Comparing the Nuer and Dinka measurements
with the list of tribal measurements tabulated above we can see that
the nearest congeners of the Nilotes and Nilo-Hamites in South
Africa are the group formed by the Sotho (of Basutoland), Xhosa,
and Shangana, the chief distinction being that the more northerly
situated Nilotes and Nilo-Hamites are more hypsicephalic.

Various sources of evidence such as the series of seventy-two
African skulls analysed by G. Sergi 1 and the figures published by
Shrubsall for Uganda Natives, 2 etc. could be brought forward to
prove the statement that, in general, hypsicephaly increases as we
proceed from the south-east to the north-west of the African con-
tinent. It would lead us too far from the purposes of this chapter
to discuss how and when these cranial characters of hypsicephaly
and ellipsoidy became transferred from the Nordic Race to the Negro
Race. It is enough to point out that the various features discussed
are found amongst the Bantu and that by studying the relative pro-
portions in which they are distributed, we can conclude that the
Southern Bantu are more closely related to the Eastern Bantu and
to the Nilotes than they are to the Western Bantu. The Western
Bantu did not suffer Brown and Bush admixture to the same extent
as did the Eastern and Southern Bantu.

The dolichomorphic hypsicephaly, which is more pronounced
amongst the Western than the Eastern and Southern Bantu, has
apparently spread across Africa from the Sudan by two different
channels, one eastern (or Nilotic) from the Nile headwaters through
erstwhile " Bushman " Tanganyika and then radiating fan- wise across
the southern terrain from the Indian to the Atlantic Ocean, the other
western (or Nigerian) through the Equatorial forest and the Cameroons
to the uttermost parts of the Congo and Angola. There finally the
two streams converged.

These broad but fundamental features of racial distribution in
Africa are explained satisfactorily if we assume that the Sahara was
a more effective barrier against human mingling prior to the last

1 G. Sergi, L'Uomo, op. cit.

1 In H. H. Johnston (1902), The Uganda Protectorate, 2 vols. (London, Hutchinson).

RACIAL ORIGINS 31

Ice Age than it is to-day. It separated the Nordic from the Negro
Race in the west and the Nordic from the Brown Race in the east.
With the coming of the Ice Age climatic conditions far more con-
genial than those of recent times spread across that desert. The
adventurous Nordic people, scattered hitherto along the Mediterranean
littoral, migrated freely over the Sahara and intermingled to the east
with the north-westerly moving Brown Race and to the south with
the northerly expanding Negro Race. In the Sudan the Negro-Nordic
admixture produced the hypsicephalized negroid stock, whose mobile
history we have been reconstru&ing, whilst depifting the course of
their transcontinental pilgrimage into their present homeland and
its implications for the physical strufhire of the Bantu south of the
Zambesi. We look to the future labours of the growing army of
anthropologists throughout Africa for the gradual elucidation of the
details in this prehistoric epic.

The background of our pi&ure has been limned ; various high-
lights have been tentatively painted in ; their gaunt relief will be
subdued by the labours of those artists whose detailed work is essential
to the masterpieces of the future. Their books are works of the
time to come and will unquestionably appear when an army, equal
to that which has 'laboured in Europe over the last 400 years since
Vesalius, has been organized in Africa to colleft information about
the Bantu similar to that which has been garnered over these centuries
concerning Europeans.

CHAPTER II

HABITAT

By A. J. H. GOODWIN

GENERAL MORPHOLOGY

AFRICA south of the Zambesi consists of a great plateau, somewhat
higher on the eastern side, and falling gradually towards the west.
The height averages between three and four thousand feet, and the
plateau is markedly cut by the valleys of the three great South African
rivers, the Zambesi, the Limpopo, and the Orange, with its Molopo
affluents. Balancing these valleys are three regions which exceed
the 4,000 ft. level : the plateau country between the Zambesi and
Limpopo rivers, which constitutes the greater part of Southern
Rhodesia, the Highveld region stretching south-west of the Limpopo,
and the highlands behind Walvis Bay.

The plateau formation has given rise to the flat-topped and
" spitzkop " hills so typical of the Karroo country and other parts.
The main plateau falls to the coastal plain in a series of terraces,
each clearly delimitated by a mountainous rim. In the south these
terraces are most marked, and form the Great and the Little Karroo,
bounded by the Nieuwveld, the Zwartberg, and the coastal range
which falls to the true coastal belt. This belt is everywhere narrow,
save where it. widens out to form the thornveld which is Portuguese
East Africa. The western coastal belt forms the dry Namib desert
strip, but the eastern edge of the sub-continent falls less steeply to
the sea and is well watered. It is formed of a wide sloping plain,
deeply cut by innumerable streams and their tributaries. The valleys
so made are well wooded and the palm belt and other equatorial
phenomena extend much farther down this coast than on the remainder
of the continent.

A striking feature of the country is its watershed. In the northern
part of Southern Africa the Zambesi cuts far across the continent,
flowing from west to east. Balancing it on the west coast are a few
short rivers, such as the Kunene, which prove a valuable asset to

34 A. J. H. GOODWIN

that region. In the southern part of the Union the position is reversed.
Here the Orange with its tributaries almost transgresses the continent
from east to west, flowing from the Basutoland highlands to the
Atlantic. In contrast the eastern side is here well watered by short,
constant streams which run together to form considerable rivers.
The Orange is mainly a flood river with high evaporation, and dies
to a stream in the winter months, even ceasing altogether in dry years.
Save for the upper Zambesi, which has nursed the Rotse Empire,
rivers have not played a great part in the material culture of the
South African Bantu. Rivers are seldom navigable for great distances,
as the shorter rivers are too swift in their flow to the sea from the
plateau country, while the longer rivers lack water for much of the
year. What little canoe movement has existed on the middle Zambesi
and on the Ngami complex of streams and marshes has been to a
great extent confined. But if rivers have had no great part in the
building of South African cultures, their contents have proved vastly
important. No great riparian tribes exist, no Canoe peoples have
integrated the country with trade routes, but the great mass of the
country depends very dire&ly upon the rainfall and the water which
the rivers provide.

CLIMATE

The bulk of South Africa lies on the track of the south-east trade
winds throughout the year. These winds bring regular rains to
the east coast during the summer months (December-February),
rise sharply over the mountains and feed the residue of their burden
to the eastern edge of the plateau. As the winds pass onwards towards
the west coast they colled more moisture than they deposit, and
rainfall decreases while evaporation increases. The western side,
especially the Namib or coastal desert strip, is thus dry, save for the
high-lying Damara-Nama plateau. In winter (June-August) the
track of these trade winds moves northward towards the Equator.
They still feed parts of the east coast, but the rains fail to pass the
mountain rim. Synchronous with this northward swing of the south-
east winds is a parallel movement of the westerly winds, which now
bring rains to die southern coast from the Cape of Good Hope to
.Port Elizabeth.

The plateau system with its heavy eastern mountain rim, afted
upon by the rain-bearing south-east wind, has thus given us a climate
reflefted on the eastern side by abundant rains, well-wooded country,

HABITAT 35

and the cattle regions east of 25 E. On the western side the desert
reflefts the increased evaporation. To these climatic faftors are also
due the typical mountain forms varying from softly rounded grassy
hills to arid, jagged crags as we pass across South Africa from east
to west.

In all Africa the distribution of the Bantu-speaking peoples coincides
to some extent with the December-February rainfall area. -This
becomes most striking to the south, where Bantu and non-Bantu
tribes have distributed themselves in direft relation to the summer
and winter rain areas respeftively. The Bantu have confined them-
selves to the region of high summer rainfall, while the Khoisan peoples
have had perforce to share the winter rainfall region of the south-west
and the arid marshes south and west of the Kalahari. Only the Hcrero
and Ambo tribes slightly transgress the lines plotted by the limit
of the 10 in. summer rains in South Africa.

ENVIRONMENTAL REGIONS
The Tropical Belt.

The northernmost parts of Southern Africa lie within the Tropics,
but the temperature is everywhere modified by low humidity and
high altitude. Hot days give place to cold nights, and rain also brings
a sudden drop in temperature. The tropical area is best delimitated
by the distribution of the Baobab (Adansonia digitata) and the Mopane
(Copaifera mopane). The former is found throughout tropical Africa
and Madagascar, from Senegal to the Transvaal. It supplies the
natives with bark for cordage and" for string-making. The Mopane
is more confined, forming the typical forest tree of the plateau country
between the Zambesi and Limpopo rivers, with a westward extension
to the Etosha Pan and Kunene region.

A variety of other tropical trees, including the Rhodesian teak and
other water-loving timber trees, are found along river banks in the
tropical region. The Hyphane palm occurs in suitable environments,
and this general moist-tropical vegetation has an extension down the
eastern side of the continent as far as Port Shepstone on the Natal
coast. The dry-loving tropical Mopipi (Boscia rehmanniana) is a
striking tree in the more arid parts. Its soft wood is a common material
used in Native wood-carvings in Bechuanaland.

The conditions in Portuguese East Africa are rendered somewhat
peculiar by the wide, low-lying coastal belt, which here coincides

36 A. J. H. GOODWIN

roughly with the political region. This thornveld is largely a game
country, with relatively low fertility, and a rainfall which is adversely
affe&ed by the presence of Madagascar to the east.

The tropics have their own diseases. Malaria is prevalent every-
where north of 25 S. and extends even farther down the east coast.
Man and the anopheles mosquito are both essential hosts in the life
cycle of the malaria germ, and though the Natives are often carriers,
they themselves are largely immune from the worst effefts of the
fever. The complication of malaria, known as blackwater fever, has
the same distribution, but is rare among Natives.

In contrast with the rest of Africa the sleeping sickness of this
region seems to be carried by Glossina morsitans, the same tsetse
which carries the cattle nagana. The nagana comes farther south
than sleeping sickness which extends only as far as Lake Ngami
in the centre, and to the northern parts of Zululand on the east.
In both these diseases only those tropical distrifts lying below the
4,000 ft. level are affefted. The movements of the fly are further
limited by its dislike of strong light, and by its need for the humidity
which river banks afford. The Natives have thus found it possible
to avoid a heavy incidence of nagana among their cattle by confining
their animals to the high grasslands where light and altitude aid
them. The tsetse, however, still takes a terrible toll of cattle in suitable
parts of the country. Many tribes have in consequence been confined
almost entirely to agriculture.

Termites are largely confined to the high sub-tropical grasslands.
Their depredations affeft standing timber most severely. All wood-
work, even such intricate architectural forms as the Ambo village,
has to be renewed every few years. This deslru&ion and replacement
continues throughout Bechuanaland, Northern Transvaal, and
Southern Rhodesia.

Eastern Cattle Lands.

East of longitude 25 E. are the great cattle lands of South Africa.
All this region lying south of the tropics is good grazing country,
and has proved a suitable field for mixed agriculturists. South of
the extended tropical region on the east coast, the eastward slope
has been cut to form rounded, well-grassed hills. Deep, hot valleys
yield fertile soil and sub-tropical vegetation. While the rainfall is
greatest in the summer months, the winter is by no means dry, and
the chief natural forest areas thus lie along the coast. Even to-day,

HABITAT 37

between George and Port Elizabeth, where the summer and winter
rainfall areas overlap, the forests are composed of an extraordinary
variety of excellent timber trees. The Bantu have made horrid inroads
into the forest country within their areas, preferring the deep leaf-
mould for agriculture, and destroying the timber trees. The Nguni
tribes inhabiting these eastern slopes are mixed hoe-culturists and
cattle keepers. The grassy uplands are used for grazing, while the
watered valleys provide agricultural land. During the winter months
the cattle are taken to the shelter and warmth of the forested valleys,
where grass is abundant.

The whole region, and especially the moist grasslands, is, however,
subjeft to tick-borne diseases, such as tick fever, gall-sickness, and
especially East Coast fever, which seriously afFeft the cattle. Bilharzia
is carried by snails inhabiting the eastward-flowing riyers only.
A much more widespread pest, however, is the locust, of which
two varieties, red and brown, are always to be found throughout
Southern Africa. At irregular intervals 'either species may increase
amazingly, owing to the coincidence of suitable climatic conditions
and the absence of natural enemies. These swarms drive before the
prevailing winds, and wherever they go, by a few hours' feeding,
devastate the countryside, affe&ing grazing and agriculture alike.

The East Coast region rises on the west to the Highveld and the
high Rhodesian grasslands, save where these are cut by the Bushveld
region of the Limpopo and by the tropical belt of the Zambesi valley.
The remainder of the cattle country thus lies on the plateau, and
begins at the marches of the tropical savanna region, with high grass-
lands dotted with trees and shrubs which form the major part of
Southern Rhodesia. This plateau is cut to the north by the Zambesi,
and is defined to the south by the deep Limpopo valley. The rainfall,
and with it the size of the timber trees, decreases fairly rapidly from
Mashonaland on the east to Matabeleland on the west, so that the
grain country of the east here shades to cattle country on the west.

South of Rhodesia lies the strip of Lowveld which follows the
Limpopo and Komati rivers, and then virtually continues south-
south-west from the Limpopo sources to form a marginal region
between the Highveld and the eastern Kalahari. This Lowveld belt
has been a migrational route for various tribes, many of whom were
scattered direftly or indire&ly by the turmoil of Zululand in the
early years of last century. It is thus a region where offshoots of
Sotho and Nguni tribes live side by side.

38 A. J. H. GOODWIN

On the southern edge of this Lowveld region is the Zoutpansberg
where the Venda people have settled between the Shangana-Tonga
tribes of the east and the Sotho tribes of the west. The Venda country
is mountainous and rugged, and shows a varied climate. To the north
it is dry, but the southern and eastern parts are well watered, and
proved excellent forest lands before the general denudation of the
countryside. Sneezewood, ironwood, yellow wood, red almond,
and a variety of other timber trees were represented, together with
trees suitable for tanning leather, for small timber, and other Native
uses. The mountains provide good thatching grasses, and grazing.
So fertile is the red soil that two crops may be raised in a single year.
Like the varied flora, the fauna is typical of the usual game country.

From here the Highveld continues southward to include the Trans-
vaal and the mountain regions of Basutoland. It is a rich cattle region,
with reasonable rainfall, but high evaporation. The country is thus
purely grassland with few trees, bave in the more sheltered valleys.
The rate of soil erosion is everywhere high, and is rendered worse
by cattle-paths, annual grass fires, and the inability of the natives
to appreciate its inevitable results. The Sotho have been forced
towards the mountain masses of Basutoland by the white settlers of
the Free State, and here depend largely upon their cattle. The high
altitude and deficient soil of the eastern part of the Highveld have
forced the Natives to turn to sheep-rearing. The agricultural tradition
is still strong, and a considerable amount of maize and Kaffir-corn
is grown, more especially towards the north-west, which with the
coming of the European became the great " Maize triangle ". Wheat
has taken some hold on the eastern side. The whole region is over-
stocked with cattle, and the results are seen in the continual exodus
of the menfolk to the Union in order to obtain a living from mining
or domestic work under the European.

The Karroo region, south and south-west of the Highveld, has
never been inhabited by the Bantu, and little need be said of this
arid sheep-raising land, save to note that the plateau formation of
South Africa here gives rise to the flat-topped " tafelberg " and
conical " spitzkop " hills, scattered over a wide area, and giving no
enclosed valleys.

The Western Drought Lands.

The Kalahari region of central South Africa is an important
ecological area. It is a region of generally low rainfall, and precipitation

HABITAT 39

decreases as we move south or west. Evaporation is high, and
may even exceed the precipitation in parts. The rainfall is short and
heavy, and varies from 13 inches in the north to 8 inches in the
south.

The north-western limit of the Kalahari may be taken as the Omatako
River, where the red Kalahari sands change to the white sands of
the Omaheke. The main desert extends from the upper Molopo River
to Lake Ngami, its eastern edge lies near the main railway line to
the north, the western edge coincides roughly with the South- West
African border. It is an arid country, not true desert, scored by old
river beds, and lying between 3,000 and 4,000 feet above sea-level.
Undrained depressions or pans scattered throughout the region supply
brackish water after rains. The soil consists of red desertic sand, or
white calcareous tufa formed by the alternating solution and repre-
cipitation of salts in the wet and dry seasons. The extension of the
Kalahari sands as a geological phenomenon suggests that the desertic
region was possibly far more widespread at one time. Here and
there long parallel belts of loose sand are found, sometimes forming
barkhans along the river beds.

The extreme north is regularly flooded in the summer months,
sometimes heavily. The Okavango marshes are 100 miles long,
choked with reeds and laced with channels of stagnant water.
In the rainy season they drain into Lake Ngami and even into the
Makarikari depression. This latter is a great salt-pan in which water
colle&s in the wet season, but soon evaporates to leave a 4 in. crust
of salt. After rains there is profuse vegetation, Acacia giraffe* and
A. detinens thrive along the river banks, while to the north we reach
the mopane, baobab, and commiphora regions.

Even in the driest parts there is a profusion of bulbs and leguminous
plants, while the tsama melon (Citrullus vulgaris) supplies liquid to
men and beasts. The north becomes tropical and less varied. Tsetse
fly, white ants, ticks, and mosquitos abound. Days are hot, but
owing to the altitude and the dry climate, nights are cold, and rain
cools the air suddenly. Winds rise almost daily with the increasing
heat, falling off with the cool of evening. The conditions are thus
not suited to the Bantu cattle-keepers and hoe-culturists, and their
homes are distributed in strift relation to available water.

The northern and eastern parts of the Kalahari are inhabited by
the Tswana tribes. Unlike the Nguni, whose environment allows
them to divide up into small family settlements, the Tswana are

40 A. J. H. GOODWIN

forced to adopt a small town system, the town lying within easy
distance of adequate water, or having its own wells. The town is
loosely surrounded by scattered agricultural lands, while cattle are
often grazed some distance away. During the winter months cattle-
posts are built along distant streams, and the cattle migrate annually
with whole families, or with the younger men of the village. Recently,
with the imposition of peace on these tribes, the tendency has been
to constitute the cattle-posts as permanent homes, and a more scattered
economic strufture is appearing.

The north-western parts of the Kalahari form an interesting complex
in themselves. To the extreme north are the Kunene and Okavango
rivers, lined with teak and other forest trees. The upper Kunene
and upper Okavango bound the country of the Ambo peoples.
Ovamboland proper consists of a great level expanse of white sand,
covered sparsely with grass, acacia, and mopane, known as the
Omaheke country. In natural clearings are palms and baobab trees,
wild figs, and morula trees, from which last a wine is made. The
Ambo tribes are dependent upon short and heavy rains which end
in July, by when the whole region is inundated to form a vast morass
dotted with little islands. During the remainder of the year the
country dries up, and what was impassable flood now becomes a
plain, here and there pitted with water-holes and wells. In order
to combat the rising lime brought to the surface by the high evaporation,
the Ambo build up beds of earth .and cow-dung above the level of
the plain. These are planted with a quick-growing millet which
can take advantage of the rains. Largely owing to the environment,
few cattle are kept, and the breed seems smaller and stockier than
that kept by the Herero.

The Kunene as it passes through Ovamboland banks itself up above
plain-level with the Omaheke sand, then falls steeply to the coastal
belt of desert sand through which it seldom passes.

The Okavango or Kubango river, studded with wooded islands
and riddled with malaria, flows eastward from the white sands of
the Omaheke to the red sands of the Kalahari. With the Chobe or
Kwango river the Okavango spreads like a trellis over Lake Ngami,
which drains northwards to the Zambesi. This Ngami region, though
of tremendous interest anthropologically, is the home of such a
welter of tribes and mixed races and cultures that little direft com-
parison between peoples and environment is possible. Tswana
cattle-keepers, Masarwa hunters, Herero refugees from South-West

HABITAT 41

Africa, and Mpukushu tribes all form a varied population, largely
the scrapings of the Zambesi and the Kalahari.

West of Ovamboland lie the highlands of the Kaokoveld, sparsely
populated by the Tjimba. This is typical game country, and a great
variety of animals is to be found in the Etosha-Kaokoveld reserve.
The bulk of South- West Africa is made up of a southward extension
of the Kaokoveld, which forms a wide plateau at a height of some
6,000 feet, here and there enclosing valleys of typical Karroo country.
In the north is the Otavi limestone area, containing underground
water here and there revealed in a precipitous lake. At Tsumeb
is a great copper deposit originally worked by both Bergdama and
Herero smiths.

The greater part of this high country was the old Herero and
Mbandieru region, a poor cattle country which they used to the limit
with their heavy cattle in spite of the general dryness of the climate.
Their movements southwards were checked by the Nama Hottentots.
The Herero were the richest of a rtumber of related cattle-keeping
tribes, many of which after coming across the Kunene were forced
back into Angola by the pressure of the Nama peoples from the
south. Since the long Herero war with the Germans (1904-7) the
Herero have lost much of their stock, and their movements have
been rigidly confined to a small area.

The remainder of South Africa seems never to have had a great
Bantu population. Here and there small groups have pushed their
way, but with little permanent success. The limit of the Bantu coincides
roughly with the limit of the 10 in. summer rains, and they have
been confined there by the Namib strip to the west, the Hottentots
to the south, together with Kalahari and Karroo thirst-lands. On
the eastern side of the continent they could more easily have advanced,
and once the winter rain area had been reached, these people would
undoubtedly have spread and multiplied. It so happened that they
came into violent contacts with the Hottentot tribes in the region
of the Kei and adjacent rivers, and were held back until the European
colonizers advanced from Capetown along the south coast.

CHAPTER III
GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY

By N. J. VAN WARMELO

INTRODUCTION

INFORMATION concerning the history of the South African Bantu
tribes comes from two sources, European and Native. The personal
observations of the earliest European explorers and navigators, and
of shiprecked seamen, such as Perestrello (1554), the pilot of the
Santo Alberto (1593), and the men of the Stavenisse (1686), establish
beyond doubt not only that the Bantu were already dwelling in
South-Eastern Africa at that time, but also that in part at least they
were the identical tribes found in the same localities at the present
day. Much beyond that these early sources do not go. On the other
hand the European writers who witnessed the subsequent phases of
Native history in this country can only tell us about events of com-
paratively recent date, much too recent in any case to be of use in
an attempt to classify the tribes. Of course, the evidence of the
few men who, like Isaacs for instance, were actually on the scene of
Shaka's rise to power in Zululand, is of the greatest value ; but it
does not supply the wealth of detail we require regarding the course
of the speftacular events which changed the face of South-Eastern
Africa. Above all, these sources tell us little or nothing about the
distribution and names of tribes, their customs, and languages, as
they were before the storm broke that all but swept away many
of them.

The Native sources of history consist of the traditions, legends,
and tales handed down orally from generation to generation in each
tribe. Of these only that small portion is available which has been
recorded in print, mostly by Europeans, and then only too often
in a European language, without the original vernacular version.
This latter circumstance has reduced the usefulness of many of the
Native records in question to an extent unsuspected by the collectors.
It is not out of place here to stress that a scrupulous regard for the

44 N. J. VAN WARMELO

aftual letter and phraseology of Native tradition is essential in the
colleftion and editing of such material. But even were everything
still extant to be rescued from oblivion, it is well to remember that
this also would represent but a fraftion of the wealth of traditional
lore which existed up to say six score years ago, before wars and
famines laid waste to Bantu culture, and caused the premature death
of the aged repositories of tradition. And finally we must bear in
mind that, at the very best, Native tribal tradition is weak in chronology
and scanty in regard for truth. As a rule, three hundred years is the
limit of possibly reliable tradition. Beyond that, legend and fairy
tales begin to luxuriate.

Apart from the sources of information just mentioned, we are
guided, in making our grouping, by what we know of the ethnological
and linguistic charafteristics of the tribes under review. 1 The grouping
given below is intended to have some praftical use : it should serve
to indicate to the investigator where he is likely to encounter similarities
and affinities as he moves from tribe to tribe. Of what nature these
similarities and affinities are in each case, and what therefore are
the charafteristics of each group and subgroup, will appear more
fully in the succeeding chapters of this book. It will further be seen
that the grouping largely coincides with geographical distribution,
and also that the groups are almost a pifture of the language-groups
of South Africa. With primitive folk it cannot be otherwise. Roads,
travel, and communications being virtually non-existent, or at best
feebly developed, a geographical unit inevitably becomes the seat of
a particular dialeft and form of culture, provided it be left undisturbed.
It is the migrations, and the enclaves of not yet assimilated con-
querors or conquered which these leave in their wake, that therefore
make the exceptions and provide the surprises.

The Bantu peoples dealt with in this book fall into the following
major groups, to be reviewed hereL in the order given : Nguni,
Shangana-Tonga, Sotho, Venda, and Lemba. The Venda group is
small in comparison with the rest, although of paramount ethnological
interest ; and the same applies to the Lemba group, which numerically
is most insignificant.

1 Besides the existing literature and museum collections, I have drawn upon my own
observations. Readers familiar with the information already available will easily see for
themselves in how far my judgment has been guided by this fatar.

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 45

NGUNI GROUP

The tribes belonging to this group live, with few exceptions,
below the high plateau of the interior, between the escarpment of
the Drakensberg and the sea, and stretch, in a long broad belt of
hundreds of tribes, from Swaziland right through Natal far down
into the Cape Province.

The Nguni are markedly a " cattle people " ; and the presence
of " click " sounds in their language seems to be due, almost
undoubtedly, to contaft with that purely pastoral people, the
Hottentots. The problem is how, where, and when such contaft
was effefted. The existence of this problem is by itself sufficient
to cast serious doubt on the speculations of writers about early Nguni
history, for they do not Account for what we aftually find. The
presence of the clicks in all the Nguni dialefts,- even those of the
Transvaal Ndebele, who have been. living in that province for at
least three to four centuries, seems incomprehensible except on the
assumption of a focus point of Nguni development far in the South,
where contaft with the Hottentots was possible. All this is not in
accord with the theories hitherto put forward as to the way in which
the Nguni came down from the North and occupied their present
home. The accepted chronology tentative of course also does not
appear to meet the case. There is a third grave difficulty : the Lala
enclave which used to occupy approximately the present Southern
Natal. The Lala were largely wiped out a hundred years ago, but
enough remnants are left which may be studied. Not very much of
true Lala custom and speech has survived to be recorded, but even
this has not yet been done, and so we know almost nothing about
them. It is claimed for them that they were of Shona origin, and
some features of their language certainly are reminiscent of Shona
or Tonga; but beyond that nothing definite can really be said.
In addition, an almost impenetrable veil was drawn over the past
a century ago. In the Cape Colony destru&ive frontier wars were
waged, while in Natal it seems that hardly a tribe was fortunate
enough to be left undisturbed during Shaka's reign. Whole tribes
vanished, and everywhere traditions, culture, and material possessions
were lost.

Small wonder, then, that the early history of the Nguni group
as a whole is still a field for inquiry, but hardly a subjeft to be dogmatic
about. The massive volumes of Bryant (Olden Times in Zululand

46 N. J. VAN WARMELO

and Natal) and Soga (The South-Eastern Bantu) have at least achieved
this also that, by coming to conclusions which can by no manner of
means be reconciled, they have shown onlookers that progress is
not being made as merrily as some would have us believe. In short
as regards origins we are up against a wall we are not as yet prepared
to scale. The theories hitherto put forward are not worth repeating
here : they appear to be fanciful, and hardly meet the case. Those
further details of history which do require mention are given below
for each separate sub-group.

In conclusion we should note that, had the events of the past
century, due to Shaka's founding of the " Zulu " empire, not taken
place, praftically the whole Nguni group would have borne a different
appearance. One entire sub-group, for instance, that of the " Fingo
and others ", owes its existence to the tremendous happenings which
accompanied the birth of that empire ; and several other most impor-
tant Nguni offshoots, like the Rhodesian Ndebele, also came into
existence in the same fashion, In the storm centre, where these distur-
bances took their rise, things of course took such a turn that research
largely consists in the fitting together of fragments.

Cape Tribes Proper^

These are the southernmost Nguni tribes. They had already
been in occupation of the present Transkei and Ciskei for centuries
by the time die influx took place. of the immigrant Fingo and other
refugee tribes mentioned under the next sub-group. The Cape tribes
speak the same language with but small variations, but, while a common
descent is traceable for a number of tribes, this is not the case with
most of the others, between whom no sort of genealogical relationship,
as far as tradition goes, can be said to exist.

An example of a group of related tribes is found in the Xhosa,
represented by the Gcaleka of Chief Zwelidumile Sigcau, the Ngqika of
Archie Sandile, and smaller tribes like the Ndlambe, Dushane, Qayi,
Ntinde, and Gqunukhwebe. The last-named are said to be of mixed
Hottentot descent. Tradition regarding the genealogical ramifications
of Xhosa royal lineage and its offshoots has been well preserved, and
is of value as being virtually a synopsis of the relations of the Xhosa
tribes to one another. This Xhosa tradition, according to Soga,
says that some centuries ago the tribe dwelt along the upper reaches
of the St. Johns River, far to the north-east of their present home.
History before that is pure conjefture; while their subsequent

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 47

history, which is well described by Soga, is too recent to interest
us here.

Farther east and north-east of the related Xhosa tribes are the
Thembu and their offshoots, such as the Hala, Jumba, and N'dungwana.
With them may be classed the Bomvana, Qwathi, Nqabe, and
Mpondomise, which although not related are nearest to them in
culture. All these tribes also have traditions to the effeft that they
immigrated from the dire&ion of Natal. Otherwise their recorded
history is meagre, containing few indications of value.

Still farther east are the numerous tribes and septs of the Mpondo,
ruled over by several independent chiefs. The Mpondo are again
distinft, in some respe&s, from the tribes mentioned above. They are
divided into a great many clans, of which the largest though not
necessarily the most important in rank are, amongst others, the
Bhala, Kwalo, Gingqi, Kwetshube, Nyauza, Khonjwayo, Nci, and
Ngutyana. There are, further, amongst them some tribes not of true
Mpondo descent, but now looked upon as being praftically their
equals. Besides these we find many descendants of the refugees from
Natal, whom Chief Faku took under his protection. While some
of these managed to maintain their identity intaft, others simply
merged in the Mpondo population. There are for instance se&ions
of Tolo, Tshangase, Tshwawu, Zizi, Hlubi, Bhele, Ngwane, and
similar names commonly encountered amongst the immigrant Fingo.
The earliest known history of the Mpondo also shows them already
settled, several centuries ago, not very far to the North-East of
their present country. Of their relationship to other tribes nothing
definite is known.

Fingo and Other Recent Immigrants into the Cape

When Shaka embarked upon his career of empire building in
Natal, numerous tribes were dislodged either directly or indirectly
as a result of the ensuing state of war. Hence early in the nineteenth
century many thousands of refugees from Natal began to cross over
the Umzimkulu, seeking a new home among the Cape tribes, especially
the Xhosa, and among the European colonists. They came both as
solid tribes, and in large and small bodies of homogeneous or of
composite character. Their numbers were further augmented from
another dire&ion by the fugitive Hlubi of Mpangazitha, who had
been driven out of Basutoland, whither he had first fled, by Mathiwane
and his Ngwane, who were themselves also fugitives from Natal.

48 N. j. VAN WARMELO

The latter Chief presently came down into the Colony himself,
where in August, 1828, his tribe was broken up in an encounter with
European forces.

Many of these refugee tribes returned to Natal when peace was
there restored. But many others remained behind. The real " Fingo "
(Mfengu) were subsequently led out of Xhosaland, but when later
on part of the Western Transkei became vacant they were settled there
and still form the bulk of the local population. There are to-day
many thousands of completely detribalized Fingo. Of those still
carrying tribal names, whether they recognize chiefs or not, the
majority belong to the big Hlubi, Zizi, and Bhele tribes. Smaller
units include the Kunene, Maduna, Gubevu, Tolo, Miya, Khuze,
Mbuthweni and Zotsho. The question as to how far the Fingo still
form a cultural unit, and still know and submit to their hereditary
heads, has not of late been studied. It is not possible, therefore, to
give any indications on this point. Many of the Fingo of course live
in areas of the Transkei where they fall under the control of non-
Fingo chiefs.

The same applies to a large proportion of those immigrants into
the Eastern Transkei who cannot striftly speaking be called Fingo.
To these belong the Bhaca and numerous se&ions of the Wushe,
and clans related to the Bhaca. Others again are independent, such
as the two important Bhaca tribes in Mount Frere under Chiefs
Sikhanda and Mncisana. Two others are in Southern Natal, in
Bulwer and Ixopo districts. In the same sub-group as the Bhaca
may be put the Nhlangwini tribes of Griqualand East and Southern
Natal (Harding and Ixopo distrifts), and a number of small clans
said to be related to them, together with the Xesibe (chiefly in Mount
Ayliff) and the Xolo and Nzimakwe of Port Shepstone. Of some of
these tribes we know more or less how they came to be where they
are now, the exploits of the Bhaca Chief Ncaphayi especially being
fairly well recorded. But of what went before, and of the original
state of the people, as of their present customs and culture, we can
say little or nothing.

Natal Ngu.nl.

Were it not that from about the year 1815 onwards great changes
had occurred in Natal, a very different grouping of its inhabitants
would have been both possible and necessary. As it is, no other
grouping than that outlined below can or need now be formulated.

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 49

This is because early in the nineteenth century Shaka, Chief of the small
Zulu clan, began attacking and establishing his supremacy over his
neighbours right and left. Even when due allowance is made for the
inevitable exaggeration in Native accounts of fights, raids, and
massacres, all on an unprecedented scale, tremendous changes
undoubtedly took place in the province. Many large tribes and bodies
of people left the country in all direftions, never to return. Many
more small tribes were wiped out completely. It also appears
that at one time few, if any, people were suffered to live south
of the Tugela River, although as the power of the kings weakened,
many refugees returned and settled in their old homes, but only
to the extent permitted by the recent occupation of the country
by Europeans.

In consequence of these changes, the only grouping now prafticable
is to include all the Natal tribes into one common category. Before
1815 one would have classified them into separate groups : (<z) the
true Nguni or Ntungwa, with perhaps a subdivision for (K) the Mbo ;
and (c) the Lala tribes. But to-day this is impossible, for the rule
of the Zulu kings not only introduced their own Zulu culture every-
where, but also promoted the growth of standard language and
custom. This accounts for the large measure of uniformity found
throughout Natal to-day. Variations in cultural detail do still exist,
but they cannot be defined except in extremes, and they form such
an intricate pattern that dividing lines cannot be drawn. The mixture
of tribes under European rule helped further to stamp out differences.
In addition, the clans originally forming the groups just mentioned
are now scattered haphazardly all over the whole country. One can
say neither which tribes are of Lala stock, nor which were originally
Mbo. We must therefore consider the Natal Nguni as a whole. The
group is named after the province, but it must be noted that provincial
boundaries do not constitute the boundaries of the group. Some
of the Cape tribes previously mentioned live in Natal, and on the
other hand pra&ically all the Natives of the South-Eastern Transvaal
belong to the Natal Nguni.

The tribes of the Natal Nguni are mostly known by the family
or clan names (qitongo) of their Chiefs. These tribal names therefore
do not refleft the aftual composition of the tribes. Though a tribe be
known for instance as the Mthethwa, there may be twenty, fifty or a
hundred different clan names, i^ibongo, represented within that tribe.
The name Zulu is another instance, for it is, striftly speaking, only

SO N. J. VAN WARMELO

the name of the royal clan. To call all the Natives of Natal, or of
Zululand for that matter, " Zulu " is incorreft. It is of course con-
venient, but nevertheless, in all cases where the slightest modicum
of precision is required in stating exaftly what one means, the term
" Zulu " proves to be a most ambiguous and exasperating instrument.
One cannot discuss the " Zulus " except in the vaguest terms. The
use of " isiZulu " for the language, however, seems justified.

The Natal Nguni are divided into more than two hundred inde-
pendent tribes, of which we need name only a few of the most
powerful. To group them in any way whatever according to their
affinities is, as has been said, impossible. In the Southern and South-
Western distrifts of Natal are a number of Nyuswa tribes, the Dumisa,
Cele, Khuze, several tribes of Dlamini, the Nxamalala and many
others. They are flanked, farther north, by the tribes living under the
Drakensberg, the Ngwane and Ngwe (or Ngweni) and others. More
towards the centre are the Mabaso and the powerful and still very
raw tribes of Msinga distrift, the Bomvini, Cunu, and Qanyini.
Proceeding farther towards the coast, we find numerous seftions of
Mkhize and Mafunze, the Gcumisa, two large Zondi tribes, the
Makhanya, Ximba, several tribes of Thulini all near to the coast
from Umzinto to Stanger, the Qadini in Ndwedwe and adjacent
distrifts, the Khabeleni, the Ntuli, Butlielezi, Qwabe, and Mpukunyoni.
Farther to the west, in Msinga and neighbouring distrifts, are the
Sithole tribes, the Thenjini or Thembu, and, in the northernmost
districts, the Hlutyini or Hlubi, Nkosi, Khumalo, and Mdlalose.
Turning thence towards the east we encounter amongst others the
Mbatheni, Ntombela, Gazini, Mthethwa, and in Nongoma and there-
abouts the Zulu. To the extreme north-east are the tribes of Ubombo
and Ingwavuma divisions : the Nxumalo, Zikhali, Myeni, Nibele,
and others, and the Mngomezulu, Nyawo, and Mathenjwa, whose
next-door neighbours are the southernmost Shangana-Tonga, viz.
the Tembe.

Swaji

This sub-group is of recent origin. Before Shaka's time the present
Swaziland was partly occupied by various Sotho tribes about which
we know virtually nothing, but who are best represented to-day in
the Pai and Pulana referred to in the Sotho group. The southern
part of Swaziland was occupied by clans of Nguni origin, mostly
of the variety characterized by the teke^a way of speaking, and by

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 51

the customs commonly associated therewith. Commencing with the
increasing power of the Ngwane Chief Sobhuza (ca. 1820), the
" Swazi " people gradually began to come into being, especially
through the conquests of Sobhuza's descendant Mswazi (ca. 1840-
1875), after whom they are named. The latter subje&ed the Sotho
clans of Swaziland, or drove them out, and by extensive raiding
increased his wealth and power. The Swazi, having never been
subdued by force of arms, remained a nation in spite of the imposition
of European control, and are intensely proud and conscious of the
far. The circumstance, however, that the many thousands of Swazi
living outside the borders of Swaziland were freed from the conttol
of the Paramount Chief has weakened tribalism among them. Never-
theless several Swazi tribes near the border may be considered almost
integral parts of the Swazi nation.

In Swaziland itself the old Sotho population seems to have dis-
appeared, except in name. The descendants of the Sotho clans are
colleftively known as abeSuthu or amaKhandzambili. Another non-
Swazi element are the clans from Zululand, no distinction being
made between true Ntungwa and Mbo stock. Thirdly there are the
Swazi proper. To outline areas or to define groups in which these
elements of the Swazi culture-unit preponderate is impossible. The
difficulty lies both in the lack of attention paid to this problem, and
in the comparative uselessness of tribal names as a guide. According
to Nguni custom the tribes are known by the clan name (isibongo)
of their Chief. But since in a tribe any number of clans may be
represented, the Chief's isibongo is but a weak clue to the origin and
composition of his following. There is for instance a considerable
preponderance of Chiefs with the isibongo Nkosi, but this is explained
by the circumstances that Nkosi is the clan-name of the paramount
house. One infers from this that a large proportion of the followers
of these men are not true Swazi, for the latter would be ruled by their
own hereditary Chiefs who have other clan names. On the other
hand it is likely that, where non-Swazi are in control of tribes, these
latter are tribes also largely of non-Swazi origin. All we can do
for the present is to give some indications based on the clan-names
of the ruling families. About the elements that form the tribes
mentioned below it is not possible to say anything more definite.

Taking first the Swazi proper, there are fifty-odd tribes ruled over
by Chiefs with the royal isibongo Nkosi. Their following, as noted
above, is likely to be partly non-Swazi, but on the other hand the

52 N. J. VAN WARMELO

influence of the Chief and his entourage is not negligible. Other
true Swazi tribes are likely to be those under, e.g., Malangatonke
and Siboshwa (both Fakudze), and Chiefs with such vybongo as
Hlophe, Hlatywako, Mamba, Katse, Madvosela, Motsa, Mndzebele,
Shiba, Shongwe, and Tsabetse.

Amonst the clans of " Zulu " origin one finds such vpbongo as
Biyela, Mkhatshwa, Mtsetfwa (Mthethwa), and Zwane.

The original Sotho population of Swaziland is represented by
the " Khandzambili " clans, some of which, however, are said to be
not of Sotho origin. It is natural that when the Sotho turned Swazi
in language and custom, their clan names should also have assumed a
Swazi garb, and that they should -now all be provided with the
ipnanatelo (a sort of complement to the isitongo) 1 demanded by
Nguni usage. Amongst the Khandzambili there are such clan names
as Bhembe, Gama, Gamedze, Magagula, Maseko, Nkambule, and
Sukati. These are not tribal names such as commonly found amongst
the Sotho, but clan names. It is accordingly difficult, if not impossible,
to identify them with Sotho tribes, unless a study of the family names
of the Eastern Sotho is made. But in the case of Maseko at least there
is no shadow of doubt, for one of the three branches of the Pulana Sotho
is named baxaMaSexo. As previously stated, there is reason to believe
that the Pulana are the modern representatives of the old Sotho
population of Swaziland, and Maseko is doubtlessly the Swazi version
of Maiexo.

The Swazi living outside Swaziland, especially far afield, have
followed their own independent lines of development, while those
in the Highveld distrifts of Piet Retief, Ermelo, Wakkerstroom, and
as far west as Witbank and Rayton, have-been influenced by contaft
with the Zulu-speaking people of these areas. Of the Swazi tribes in the
Transvaal may be mentioned the Nkosi of Chiefs Mhola Dlamini,
Dantyi Nkosi, and others, the Shongwe and the Khumalo, all in
Barberton and Nelspruit ; the Hlatywako of Mhlaba and some smaller
tribes (Dlamini, Magagula, Sukazi, Shongwe, etc.), all in Piet Retief,
and a few more in Paulpietersburg distrift ; and finally those small
stray groups living under independent headmen in Sekiikuniland,
Nelspruit, and Pilgrimsrest. The history of these Transvaal Swazi
is not of much importance except to themselves. They are in part
small se&ions who lived on the periphery of happenings in Swaziland,
and were only too glad to be left unmolested in return for submission

1 See below, p. 83 f.

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 53

to Mswazi ; and in part they are people left behind by raiding columns
sent abroad by this enterprising Chief. While some of these outposts
subsequently had to be abandoned in the face of Pedi aggression
others managed to cling on and remained where we find them to-day.

Transvaal Ndebele.

These Ndebele tribes must not be confused with the Ndebele
now living in Matebeleland, Southern Rhodesia. The latter left the
confines of Zululand only a century ago under the leadership of
Mzilikazi, whereas the former had by that time already been settled
in their present territory for at least several centuries. Living as they
did surrounded by various Sotho tribes, they could not avoid being
influenced considerably by Sotho culture and language. Some of them
have in fa& become almost pure Sotho in everything but name.

The Transvaal Ndebele fall into two se&ions, Southern and Northern.
They are divided by a considerable stretch of country, which has
only of late been bridged by movements of small groups. They are
also distinft in point of language, for each of the two dialefts is
chara&erized by a number of features peculiar to it alone. The Ndebele
dialefts of the South are better preserved than those of the North,
which have been largely superseded by Sotho. The same may be
said of custom and possibly also physical chara&eristics.

The Southern group to-day comprises a single senior tribe, the
Manala, and a junior tribe, the Ndzundza, which was broken up fifty
years ago and is now represented by over half a dozen seftions. These
two tribes have clung to Ndebele custom and language with extra-
ordinary tenacity. This is not the case with the Hwaduba of Haman-
skraal distrift, who, though said to be descended from the same
source, are now to all intents and purposes a Sotho tribe. The tribes
of the Southern group trace their descent from the tribe of one Msi,
who long ago lived near Pretoria, where the Manala still are. A rather
vague tradition, which may, however, be accepted states that before
Msi's time they had come from the direftion of Natal. The same origin
may be postulated for the Northern tribes.

The Northern group is composed of the Ndebele of Langa (commonly
termed, in Sotho pronunciation, the Laka), represented by several
seftions, mostly in Potgietersrust ; and of the Maune or Letwaba,
likewise represented by several seftions. The Seleka living on the
Bechuanaland border are also said to be of Ndebele stock. This group
finally includes the Moletlane or Sebitiela, who, according to some

54 N. J. VAN WARMELO

traditions, trace their origin to the parent tribe of the Southern
Ndebele. They appear to have trekked away to the North very many
years ago, and settled near the great bend of the Olifant River. An
earlier offshoot of the Moletlane are the Mokopane just outside
Potgietersrust. There is also a recent offshoot under Johannes Kekana,
now settled very near the ancient home of his tribe in Hamanskraal
distrift.

Recent Nguni Offshoots.

Early last century three bodies of Zulu-speaking people fled from
Natal to escape impending destruftion at the hands of Shaka. They
marched north and north-west, living by rapine and plunder.
After many vicissitudes, each of these bodies eventually found a
permanent home, where they perpetuated their race, customs, and
language amongst the alien Bantu tribes which they subjefted to
their rule.

The body led by Mzilikazi trekked over the Highveld of the
Transvaal and settled for a while near Pretoria, and later near Zeerust,
harrying the Sotho tribes and raiding as far south as Basutoland.
When he turned his attention to the emigrant colonists the latter
retaliated and, the country becoming too hot for him, he led his
people over the Limpopo into the present Matebeleland. The Ndebele
kingdom founded there collapsed before the advance of European
colonization, but the language and culture of the invaders has survived
to this day, though in diluted form.

The " Ngoni " or Shangana led by Soshangane, alias Manukuza,
proceeded north and after a sojourn near Chipinga settled in Gasaland,
not far from Delagoa Bay. They were probably not very numerous,
but they were powerful enough to subjeft most of the Tonga com-
pletely and to introduce their own language and customs to such an
extent that the latter should now be termed Shangana-Tonga. When
their empire was also overthrown by Europeans, the Portuguese in
this case, a great many, including the heir apparent, sought safety
in the Eastern Transvaal, where they are still found, mostly in Pilgrims-
rest, but also in the Sibasa distrift, near the Zoutpansberg mountains.

The third body of Zulu-speaking emigrants was led by Zwang-
endaba. At the end of a comparatively brief rest in Gasaland, differences
with Soshangane's people compelled them to seek a wider field farther
north. After an amazing march of some thousands of miles, along
a route which they strewed with the wreckage of raiding and bloodshed,

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 55

they eventually settled in the neighbourhood of Lake Nyasa. Their
descendants, who still speak a Zulu of sorts, may be found dwelling
on both sides of the Lake, in groups now widely separated from
one another.

SHANGANA-TONGA GROUP

The Shangana-Tonga form a very large group, the northern
limits of which have never yet been accurately defined. To the South
and South-East they have long been in contaft with the Nguni, but
with the Sotho and Venda farther north contaft was made only
in recent times, by emigrant Shangana-Tonga.

The whole of the original Shangana-Tonga group lives in Portuguese
East Africa. The list and grouping of clans given of them by Junod
(in his Life of a South African Tribe) is not altogether satisfaftory,
but one must add that this is due in part at least to the complexity of
the situation created by the Ngoni conquerors, who purposely dis-
membered tribes and scattered portions of them far and wide. Generally
speaking, however, it may be said that the original Shangana-Tonga
group fell into tkree tolerably well-defined seftions : Southern,
Central, and Northern. To the first belong the clans of Maputa,
Tembe, Mpfumo, and others, classed together by Junod under the
name of Ronga. To the Central Shangana-Tonga belong the clans
of Khosa, Nkuna, Mavunda, Valoyi, Maluleke, Nhlanganu, and others,
classified by Junod into the sub-groups of Nwalungu, Bila, Hlanganu,
and Djonga. To the Northern seftion belong the Hlengwe, Tswa,
and others, extending far to the North and North-East.

About the early history of the Shangana-Tonga group remarkably
little has been put on record. According to Junod the traditions as
to the direftion of immigration differ from clan to clan, some having
come from the North, some from the West, and some from the South.
The inference is that the immigration of the Shangana-Toriga into
their present territory took place in remote times. This is supported
by evidence recorded in early Portuguese writings : Junod cites the
account of Perestrello (1554) as proof that " four or five hundred
years ago at least, the chiefs Tembe, Mpfumu, Manhisa, Libombo, all
of whom still have descendants, were already in the country round
Delagoa Bay ", 1 From the evidence of Shangana-Tonga culture and
language it is difficult even to surmise the nature of their early history,
except to say that they probably supplanted an earlier and different

1 H. A. Junod, 1927, i, 27.

56 N. J. VAN WARMELO

population, of which the Chopi and Tonga of Inhambane are a
survival, that they enjoyed a long period of undisturbed develop-
ment in their present environment, and that they may be, in origin,
the closest relatives of the Nguni. But this is not quite certain, for
the Shangana-Tonga were at one time a purely agricultural people,
possessing no cattle ; and they did not take part in that phase of Nguni
development in which the languages of the latter acquired the click
sounds.

After having lived undisturbed probably for centuries, the Shangana-
Tonga, like the other South African Bantu tribes, were suddenly hit
by the storm that arose when the rise of Zulu power caused many
Nguni tribes of those parts to seek safety in flight. To the Shangana-
Tonga territory came the conqueror Soshangane, with his following
of Zulu-speaking tribesmen. Establishing himself in Gasaland, he
proceeded to extend his rule over the Tonga tribes, while raiding,
exa&ing tribute, and drafting their young men into his ranks in the
process. After his death, his sons Mzila and Mawewe fought over the
chieftainship, the former though the junior remaining vi&orious.
His son again, Ngungunyane, was the last of the independent Ngoni
kings, for his rule was overthrown by the Portuguese. From the first
days of Soshangane's invasion to the end of Ngungunyane's reign,
there was continual fighting and general insecurity. Many of the
Tonga therefore sought safety elsewhere. It thus came about that
several great emigrations took place, with a steady trickle of migration
going on all the time in between. The emigrant Shangana-Tonga
took the only way open to them, to the West, over the Lebombo
hills into the dry low country of the Eastern Transvaal, a country
they had hitherto avoided, but which, being unpopulated, offered no
obstacle to their progress. Proceeding westwards from wherever
they happened to be living in the present Portuguese territory, they
settled all over the North-Eastern Transvaal. It is thus natural that
the bulk of the Shangana-Tonga in the Northern distrifts should
belong to the corresponding Northern seftions of the Shangana-
Tonga group, while those in the Eastern Transvaal are members of
the Central Shangana-Tonga sub-group. The refugees came over
the border in small parties, and settled down wherever they could.
Very often they became the subjefts of Sotho and Venda chiefs,
and though the tendency to reassemble and live together was there,
they usually failed to muster sufficient strength to form tribes of any
importance.

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 57

As representative of the Southern group of Shangana-Tonga there
is but one tribe living within the borders of the Union, viz. Chief
Mhlupheki's tribe of Tembe or (in Zulu) Mabhudu, round the west
of Kosi Bay in Ingwavuma distrift, Zululand.

The next sub-group are the Nhlanganu of the Lowveld of Pilgrims-
rest distrift, composed of the tribes of Sobyana, Ndjondjela and some
others, whose followings are, however, much mixed with Shangana.
The Shangana themselves form another sub-group. The name
Shangana actually denotes only those Ngoni who came from Zululand
with Soshangane (whence their name), and their descendants, who
are, of course, largely of mixed blood ; but it also embraces a number
of Tonga who have adopted their masters' language and customs.
To name these folk as members of the Nguni group is therefore only
partly justified, and it is right that they should be mentioned here
also. The Shangana tribes in the Transvaal are under Thulilamahashe,
Gija, Bantom, and other Chiefs of more obscure descent, though with
a considerable following, in Barberton distrift. Another sub-group
is composed of the tribes living about midway, in the distrifts of
Leydsdorp, Tzaneen, and Duivelskloof. By far the largest is the
Nkuna tribe of Chief Muhlava, the others being most insignificant.

The fifth sub-group is that of the Northern Shangana-Tonga.
It is composed of several fair-sized tribes under the Chiefs Mhinga,
Sikundu, Sigalo, and Nwamita, as well as literally scores of small units
under so-called " independent headmen ", many of whom have a very
small following indeed. The existence of all these tiny groups is good
proof that these Shangana-Tonga aftually did immigrate into the
Transvaal over a long period and in the haphazard and leisurely way
we have described. Their individual history has not yet been put oh
record.

SOTHO GROUP

The term Sotho is used for the whole of this group because all
its members, with the exception of some Tswana, call themselves
baSotho. These people differ from their Nguni and Shangana-Tonga
neighbours in some important respects, especially in regard to language
and social organization. The group falls into three distinft sub-groups :
the Southern Sotho of Basutoland and adjoining territories ; the
Tswana or Western Sotho ; and the Eastern Sotho of the Transvaal.
All these sub-groups may be further subdivided into smaller culture

58 N. J. VAN WARMELO

areas, the transitions between which are so gradual that their boundaries
are often difficult to define. The Southern Sotho sub-group as a whole
is easy to define, on account of its isolation from the others ; but a
satisfaftory dividing line between the Western and Eastern Sotho
is not so easily found. Moreover the Eastern sub-group contains
more diversity than any other, and the label, while convenient, is
not too precise.

The early history of the Sotho tribes is still much enveloped in
the haze of conjefture. That they all in the first instance came from
the North is obvious, and the traditions of a number of tribes contain
indications to that effeft. But by what route they came, how long
ago, and whether even the majority of the Sotho tribes are descended
from one parent tribe is all most uncertain and doubtful. The Tswana,
however, do seem to be related and to have come South in several
migrations, but of many other Sotho tribes one cannot say as much,
and it is hardly worth while hazarding a guess. It is not possible
to conneft up all the Sotho tribes with one another, even in the most
fanciful genealogies. This is because there are unmistakably foreign
elements amongst the Sotho, as for instance the Koni, whose name and
Eastern habitat have always been accepted as evidence of Nguni
origin.

Southern Sotho.

Prior to the troubled times attendant upon the rise of Shaka in
Zululand, the inhabitable western part of Basutoland and the adjoining
country were occupied by divers tribes, such as the Fokeng, Tlokwa,
Taung, Kwena, Kxwakxwa, Kxolokwe, Sia, and numerous others.
These were all Southern Sotho, though they differed from one another
in lesser points of culture and dialeft, about which very little is known.
The history of these tribes is admirably described by Ellenberger
(History of the Basuto). He distinguishes between several different
stocks from which the present-day Southern Sotho are descended.
There were the people who had come from the West, and were
therefore related to or descended from the Tswana, such as the
Phuthing, Kxolokwe, Sia, and Tlokwa, and, as later arrivals, the
Lihoya (Dighoya) and Taung ; and there were others who had come
from the East, viz. the Phuthi, who probably formed part of the old
Sotho population of Swaziland.

All these tribes lived peacefully and comparatively undisturbed
until 1822, when the first fugitive Nguni hordes, fleeing from Natal,

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 59

broke over the Drakensberg into their territory, and a new era was
ushered in. As elsewhere, tribes were ousted from their homes and
began to wander about. Political chaos and famine reigned. The Tlokwa
under Mantatise set out on a career of rapine and conquest, but ended
up by sustaining great losses themselves. Sebetwane and his followers
trekked northwards through Bechuanaland and the Kalahari until
they reached the upper waters of the Zambesi. Here they founded
the so-called Kololo kingdom of Barotseland, in which Southern
Sotho language and custom still survive to a considerable extent.
Meanwhile in Basutoland itself Moshesh followed another course.
With great political wisdom he accepted all stray people who came to
him for protection, warded off the attacks of Mzilikazi's Ndebele,
built up a great tribe, and, extending his rule, founded what we know
to-day as the " Basuto Nation ". At one time probably all the Southern
Sotho were under his control. This ceased when the boundaries of
Basutoland were defined. Since that day the Sotho in the Orange Free
State have lived a detribalized existence, with the exception of the
two tribes in the Witzieshoek reserve. The few tribes resident in
the Transkei remained under chiefs.

The policy of Moshesh and his successors was to put their kinsmen
in charge of areas, as governors, all over the country. This favoured
the general trend of development towards uniformity in custom and
language. The process is not yet complete, but its end is in sight. To
name, to define, and to classify the tribes constituting the Southern
Sotho sub-group cannot therefore be done satisfaftorily. There are
a great many chiefs of varying rank, many of whom are kin of the
Paramount Chief, the lineal successor of Moshesh. Others are
descended from the royal houses of formerly independent tribes.
The following of all chiefs is mixed up to some extent, but that of a
great number is so mixed that it is hardly possible to indicate which
elements preponderate. Chiefs with large tribes of this description
are, for instance, the Paramount Chief himself and Seeiso, both in
Maseru district, and Tsepo Nkuebe and Solomon, both of Quthing
district.

A large number of Kwena are found under Chiefs Mopeli of
Buthabuthe, Motsoene of Leribe, Sekhonyana and Khoabane of Maseru,
and many other minor chiefs, as well as under Jeremiah Moshesh and
Khorong Lebenya in the Transkei. There we also find the large
Hlakwana tribe under Motheo Sibi. The Fokeng live mostly in the
North, in Berea and Mafeteng districts. The Kxwakxwa (Khoakhoa)

60 N. J. VAN WARMELO

under Matumane and the Kxolokwe (Kholokoe) under Qobela live
in Buthabuthe distrift. Tribes of Sia and Taung are found especially
in Mafeteng. The very mountainous parts of Eastern Basutoland have
been partly occupied in more recent years by a mixed population
drawn from all tribes ; but the distri&s in question (Qacha's Nek
and Mokhotlong) also harbour the Tlokwa of Mosuwe. Another
branch of Tldkwa lives in Mount Fletcher distrift under Chief Scanlen
Lehana. The Phuthi are represented by the large tribe of Chief
Bereng in Mohales Hoek, by some other small ones in Quthing, and
by some groups living in the Transkei, where they are subject to chiefs
not of their own tribe.

In the Northern distri&s, finally, are a number of tribes known as
Tebele, under such chiefs as Boswane (Boshoane) in Leribe and Berea,
Madihotetso in Leribe, and others. They are people of Nguni extraction
who settled in these parts very long ago, and have in part adopted the
customs and language of their Sotho neighbours. Little more is
known about them, their history also being practically unrecorded.

Western Sotho.

This sub-group includes all the Tswana tribes, together with a
number of tribes in the Western Transvaal which are themselves
uncertain whether they should be termed Tswana or not. The Tswana
proper, living all along the fringe of the Kalahari, comprise the Thla-
ping ; the Thlaro ; the Rolong, represented by four sedtions, viz.
the Ratlou, Rathsidi, Seleka (at Thabanchu in the Orange Free State),
and Rapulane, the largest being the Rathsidi Rolong of Chief Monthsiwa
in Mafeking distrift; the Huruthse in Zeerust and Rustenburg
distri&s; some small seftions like the Kubung, Noxeng, and
Kolobeng; and the powerful tribes farther north in Bechuanaland
Protectorate, viz. the Kwena at Molepolole, Ngwaketse at Kanye,
Ngwato at Serowe, and an offshoot of the latter, the Tawana, now
living at Lake Ngami. The Ngwato rule over a number of small
tribes, whom they found already in occupation of the country, and
to whom they are not related, such as the Kaa and Phaleng at Shoshong,
the Khuruthse, the Matswapong, and some Shona (who are not of
Tswana stock).

Amongst those Western Sotho tribes whose Tswana identity is
uncertain, but whose affinities all point to the West, may be mentioned
the Kxatla, represented by the baxaKxafela at Mochudi and Pilansberg
in the West, the Mmakau and Mosethla in the centre (Pretoria),

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 6l

the MothSa in the East (Hamanskraal), and some smaller sections ;
the Fokeng or Kwena of Rustenburg, and several other Kwena tribes
in the same distrift (Mmanamela, Modimosana, Mmatau, etc.) ; the
Lete (baxaMmalete) at Ramoutsa in the Proteftorate and in Zeerust
distrift ; the Phalane or Tlase ; the Phiring ; the Taung ; the Thlako ;
the P6; the Tlokwa (mostly in Rustenburg, but with an outlier
at Gaberones) ; and the Hlalerwa. The Hwaduba in Hamanskraal
distrift belong in origin to the Transvaal Ndebele, but have so far
conformed to the ways of their neighbours that they must also be
mentioned here.

The history of all these tribes is imperfectly recorded and scant
in volume. It appears that many centuries ago the first Tswana came
southwards along the edge of the Kalahari. At first they arrived in
small numbers and, finding the Bushmen in occupation, mingled
with and became almost merged in them, the present-day maSarwa
being their descendants. Other early Tswana immigrants degenerated
into the Kxalaxadi of to-day. Of the Dighoya, probably Tswana,
and still visited by Arbousset and Daumas in 1834, no trace remains.
The advent of the bulk of the Tswana, from whom the present-day
tribes are descended, must also date back to many centuries ago.
There are traditions according to which the Ngwaketse, Kwena, and
Ngwato are descended from one original tribe, and other traditions
conneft this latter with the Huruthse and Rolong. The Huruthse,
it may be added, take precedence amongst all these tribes. There is,
of course, some truth in these traditions, which are, however, on the
whole only of the vaguest description. The same applies to the history
of the tribes farther east, for though of late many items of interest
regarding the Kwena tribes of the Rustenburg area have been published
in the vernacular, there is little or nothing of importance available
about the Kxatla and other tribes mentioned above.

Transvaal (Eastern) Sotho.

This sub-group consists of a large main body and several smaller
members which, being numerically so weak, have not hitherto received
much attention. The bulk consists of the tribes of the centre, viz.
those of Sekukuniland, Pokwani, and neighbouring districts. These
are the Pedi and those other tribes, either loosely called Pedi or
speaking the Pedi language, which have been under Pedi control and
influence for a long time, such as the Tau, Kwena (Mongatane and
K6pa), Ntwane, Koni (both those offshoots of Matlala's who migrated

62 N. J. VAN WARMELO

hither from Pietersberg, and those numerous other small groups with
the totems tlou, phiri, phuthi, nare, kwena, nkwe, tau and thSwene, which
are of quite different origin), and the Roka from across the Olifants
River. Farther north, in Pietersburg district, are the tribes of
Mphathlele, Thswene, Mathabatha, Matlala and Dikxale, all of them
Koni from the East, who scaled the mountains round Haenertsburg
and settled on the plains of Pietersburg. There are further the Molepo,
the Tlokwa and some Birwa (from South- Western Rhodesia), and
the big tribes of MoletSe (Kwena) and Xananwa of Blauwberg.

Smaller subseftions of the Transvaal Sotho, showing various
peculiar characteristics, are found in the extreme North-East and East
of the Sotho area. In the North-East are the Phalaborwa, the tribes
of Masisimala, of Mamidja and of Sekororo. The latter are, according
to tradition, of Shona origin, and with them therefore the related
Letswalo, who now live in the Woodbush. Finally there are the
Kxaxa, Mmamabolo's people, and the half-dozen tribes of Lobedu
who have the wild boar (kolobe) as totem and are more closely related
to the Venda than any other Sotho tribes. In the extreme East is a
subdivision formed by the Kutswe, Pai, and Pulana tribes, all except
the first being represented by numerous small independent sections.
They live in or just below the Drakensberg escarpment in
Pilgrimsrest distrift.

The tribes colleftively termed Pedi have had a common history.
The Maroteng, a small tribe of Kxatla origin, made its appearance
in Sekukuniland and gradually subjefted all the tribes living there.
Zulu and Swazi raids almost entirely overthrew this kingdom, but
Pedi power rose to fresh strength during the course of last century.
The history and origins of the tribes thus subjefted by the Pedi,
largely Tau and Koni, has only just been touched upon but not yet
"adequately investigated. Of the Tau it is said that they were originally
Swazi, while the very name of the Koni indicates that they are of
Ngoni origin, but beyond that we know little or nothing. With the
northernmost tribes, matters are equally complicated, for while the
Koni of Matlala and related tribes come from the East, other tribes
appear to have immigrated from the South, others from the South-
West, and the origin of still others remains quite obscure. None of
these tribes seems to have come direftly from the North, except the
Letswalo, who claim a Shona origin. The Phalaborwa again are
most certainly a people from rhe East. It is therefore a highly debatable
question how many of these tribes aftually are of Sotho stock. On

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 63

the other hand, there is little doubt that the small extreme Eastern
group, where the dialefts for instance present a striking departure
from normal Sotho, are nevertheless true Sotho, and furthermore
that they are the survivors of the old Sotho population of Swaziland,
to which reference has already been made.

VENDA GROUP

This group is distinguished by a language peculiar to themselves,
though reminiscent of both Sotho and Karanga, and by a culture
sufficiently charafteristic to separate them clearly from other Southern
Bantu. The bulk of the Venda appear to have dwelt in the mountains
of the Zoutpansberg from the earliest times, as they do to-day. They
are a timid, secretive people, and it seems that in their secluded retreat
they have been the guardians of much that is archaic, both in language
and culture. They were shielded from foreign influences by isolation.
The whole country to the south-east of the Zoutpansberg was devoid
of population until occupied by the Shangana-Tonga immigrants
less than a century ago, while the vast area north of the mountains
remains virtually uninhabited to this day. The only line of contaft
with other people, therefore, was to the South and South-West.

To the South the Venda appear to have extended their domain
for a considerable distance. There used to be colonies of them as far
as the Woodbush, amongst Mmamabolo's tribe. In a sense the latter,
together with the other kolobe (wild boar) tribes of that area, may be
regarded as related to the Venda, but the exaft nature of that relation-
ship cannot yet be defined. These southernmost Venda of Groot
Spelonken, Tzaneen, and Pietersburg distrift, who were living far
from the Zoutpansberg mountains, could not retreat thither when
the Shangana-Tonga immigration commenced ; and in the end their
culture and language were swamped, so that little remains of either.
Most Venda Chiefs living along the southern boundaries of Louis
Trichardt and Sibasa distrifts also count numerous Shangana-Tonga
amongst their following; and since, as a rule, the Venda are no
match for the enterprising Shangana-Tonga, the result here also has
been a serious decay of Venda culture. In the south-west, too, the
Venda have been affefted in both language and culture by prolonged
and fairly close contafts with the northernmost Sotho tribes, mostly
Tlokwa.

We may therefore divide the Venda into three sub-groups:

64 N. J. VAN WARMELO

Western, which has been subjeft to Sotho influences; Southern,
which has historical associations with the North-Eastern Sotho tribes,
and more recently has been in intensive contaft with Shangana-
Tonga immigrants, with whom otherwise they have little or nothing
in common ; and Eastern, which has been fortunate enough to escape
being influenced in any way whatever, except of course by the thin
trickle of immigrants and traders from the North and East, an influence
so weak that it escapes dete&ion and is lost to tradition. This last
sub-group has therefore been able to keep traditional Venda culture
almost intaft.

Amongst the Venda, far more than anywhere else in South Africa,
the Chief and his clan are something apart from the rest of the tribe.
The royal clans of the Venda are, with few exceptions, genealogically
related to one another, since most of them claim descent from a some-
what legendary chief, Thoho-ya-Ndou, about whom there are many
stories. His ancestors according to tradition crossed the Limpopo
from Rhodesia, and took possession of the country. They and their
descendants are really the Venda people. They found others in
occupation already, for instance the big tribe of Lwamondo, and the
Ngona, who survive in little more than name. Mphaphuli's people
again are said to have some sort of Nguni origin, hailing from some-
where in the South or South-East. Only the smallest fragment of the
history of all these different tribes has been colle&ed. Such early
history as still lingers refers almost exclusively to the affairs of the
royal house, for commoners do not count. Indeed the tribal divisions
are to such a small extent also cultural divisions that one might truly
say that the Venda have been cut up into tribes for the benefit of
the ruling houses. The relations between tribes are governed by
the feuds or friendships existing between their respe&ive royal houses,
and a tribe consists merely of all those who happen to own allegiance
to a particular dynasty. The Venda tribes, unlike many of the Sotho
tribes, do not differ amongst themselves. There is nothing distinctive
about a tribe as such, and in consequence even tribal names are lacking.
The adherents of a certain Chief are simply known as his people.
The Chief's, name, however, is one which is automatically assumed
by each successor to office, so that the name of the tribe does not
change.

The Western Venda sub-group is composed of the tribes of Chief
Mphefu and his relatives, Chiefs Sinthumule and Kutame, and the
smaller tribe of Musekwa. While Mphefu and about a third of his

GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY 65

people live in a reserve in the Nzhelele valley, the remainder live
scattered about on European-owned lands, both to the west and south-
west of the reserve, where they are in conta& with the neighbouring
Sotho, arid in and along the mountains to the South and South-East
where there is contaft with the Shangana-Tonga. Mphefu also has
more than half a dozen Sotho headmen with their followings subjeft
to him.

The Eastern sub-group, who have been least subjeft to foreign
influences and are no doubt the purest Venda to-day, include the
tribes of Chiefs Tshivhase, Mphaphuli, Lwamondo, Rambuda,
Ne-Thengwe, and Khakhu, all of whom have reserves, and the
smaller tribes of Chiefs Madzivhandila, Mugivhi, and Ne-Tsian$a,
who have no land of their own, and have accordingly forsaken Venda
custom to some extent.

The Southern Venda, as explained above, were formerly linked
up with the tribes farther south, and are now without exception in
close contaft with Shangana-Tonga or Sotho or both, the very tribes
themselves being partly composed of these elements. This sub-group
is composed of the tribes of the following Chiefs, none of whom is
really of much importance : Rasengane, Nngwekhulu, Tshimbupfe,
Masia, and Mashau. The followings of men like Nthabalala, Masakona,
M olema, Mashamba, and Magoro are so mixed that occasionally one
is in doubt whether the name of Venda may still be applied to them.

LEMBA

The Lemba are a small people numbering probably not^ more than
some hundreds of adult males in the Union (chiefly in Zoutpansberg
district) ; while in Southern Rhodesia, according to Mr. F. Posselt,
there may be about 1,500 males, mostly in Belingwe distrift, but also
in Marandellas and Viftoria. In the Union they have no Chief of their
own, but live scattered about amongst the Venda, to whose Chiefs
they are subjeft.

About the history of the Lemba nothing definite is known. They
are strongly suspefted of being Semitic in origin. The reasons for
this belief are, amongst others, that they speak, not Venda as one would
expeft, but a dialeft of Karanga, obviously acquired during a sojourn
farther north ; and that their features, though of course dark, are
distinftly non-Negro. They eat no pork, nor any animal which has
not been kosher-killed by a slitting of the throat; and they do not

66 GROUPING AND ETHNIC HISTORY

intermarry with those not of their race, all such being called
which is identical with washenfr a word used along the east coast
for " wild folk, pagans ". They live by barter only, and used to be
the best craftsmen in metal work and pottery. It is also said that they
were the first to introduce circumcision : at all events, Lemba men
certainly do often take a leading part in these rites.

CHAPTER IV

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION

By A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

INTRODUCTION

THE Bantu peoples have been divided, in the previous chapter, into
five groups of tribes, on the basis of data partly geographical, partly
linguistic, partly historical, and partly cultural. Each of these groups
has sub-groups within it. We shall, therefore, expeft to find the
greatest degree of cultural similarity between tribes belonging to
the same sub-group ; minor cultural differences between one sub-
group and another ; and major cultural differences between the basic
groups. At the same time, even the basic groups have certain types of
institution in common, though these appear in each group in
distinftive forms.

In the present chapter, we shall study those institutions which
together constitute what is known as " social organization " or
" social strufture ". By this is meant the more or less permanent
framework of relationships between the members of a community
which manifests itself in an ordered group-life, with reciprocal rights
and duties, privileges and obligations, of members, determining
behaviour-patterns 1 for each individual member towards other
members, and moulding the feelings, thoughts, and conduft of members
according to these patterns, so that it is only in and through them
that the individual can achieve his personal self-realization and
participate in the satisfaftions offered by the life of his community.

This framework of social organization, or social structure, is
permanent compared with the stream of human lives that, in the
succession of generations, flows through it. Each new generation
finds it there, as an inheritance from untold generations of its pre-
decessors. Yet the framework of social structure is not absolutely
rigid or fixed for all time, but is itself a thing of growth, capable of

1 Tliis term is especially applied to rules of behaviour between kinsmen of different degrees.

68 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

variation in detail, sometimes giving birth to new developments, at
other times undergoing disintegration and decay.

We shall deal, first with the general, or fundamental, organizing
principles common to the social strufture of all Bantu groups, and
then go on to study the distinftive modifications with which these
general principles are worked out in the social organizations of
different groups. One of these groups, the Nguni, with its sub-
divisions, we shall study in most detail, to have a pattern of reference,
as it were, for the points in which the social organization of other
groups differs from theirs.

The organizing principles underlying the institutions of the
Southern Bantu are to-day, as is shown in later chapters, being
subjefted to considerable strain under the impaft of Western Civiliza-
tion, but they still, to a large extent, control the communal life of the
Bantu. Hence, this chapter will be written in the present tense.

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS
The Trite.

The most characteristic all-inclusive grouping among the Bantu
is undoubtedly the tribe or chiefdom, though organizations on a national
scale are by no means unknown among them. Some of these tribes
number no more than a few hundred, the majority perhaps a few
thousand, while a few are somewhat larger. In Zululand and the
Transkei, some tribes have claimed a membership of more than
ten thousand at various periods of their history, while the more
important Tswana tribes have on the average between ten and twenty
thousand members each.

Each tribe is, in the main, a body of kinsmen, all believing in their
descent from a common far-off ancestor from whom the chief can
claim most direct descent, according to the system of reckoning
descent recognized by the people. But probably it would have been,
even in the very early days, difficult to find a tribe consisting exclusively
of people recognized as kinsmen. Even in the small original tribe of
Zulu, with its 2,000 tribesmen and its few dependent clans, we hear
in the days of Senzangakona (born c. 1757) of at least two groups
of non-related people having been absorbed, the Nzuza of Sotho
extraction and the Ntuli of the Bhele tribe. 1

Membership of a tribe is determined, therefore, more by allegiance

Cf. A. T. Bryant, 1929, 57, 58.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 69

to a chief than by birth, and the unity of the tribe depends funda-
mentally on the common loyalty of the tribesmen to their chief.
Chieftainship in consequence is a very important institution in the
whole political life of the people. A popular chief gradually enlarges
his tribe by accession of refugees from other chiefs, while an unpopular
one loses his adherents and becomes " chief of the pumpkins ", as
a picturesque Native saying puts it.

The Household.

Within the tribe, the outstanding social unit is the household, a group
consisting typically of a man with his wife or wives and dependent
children, together with any other relatives or unrelated dependants
who may be attached to him, but composed frequently also of other
combinations of close relatives.

In the Nguni and Tonga tribes these household groups are also
the local units. They are scattered over the tribal territory in fairly
small settlements or kraals (Zulu, umu^t; Xhosa, um{i) y distributed
irregularly at some little distance apart, and generally situated near
a stream or on the slope of a hill. Next to the kraal are the gardens
cultivated by its inhabitants, while their cattle graze on the common
pastures in the vicinity. Within this household, the individual family
or rather a mother and her children stands out definitely as a group
apart, inhabiting its own home (Zulu, indlu). For the Bantu universally
allow polygyny in their social system, and a fair proportion of elderly
men have several wives, as well as other dependants living in their
household with them. Nowhere are these wives equal. " Bantu
social structure knows no equals. . . . The first born of the same
parents is always the superior of those born after him/ 9 1 and this
superiority is extended to his descendants with varying consistency
among different tribes. " Children of the several wives of a polygamist
take their status from their mother. No co-wife of a polygamist is the
equal of a co-wife, but their rank is not determined in the same way
everywhere." 2 The different systems will be described presently.

The Sub-Distria and District.

A number of these kraals, grouped together on the same hill-ridge
or in the same river valley, form a distinft social unit which we may
call a sub-districi (Zulu, isigodi; Xhosa, ibandla), with its own

1 N. J. van Warmelo, 1931, n. * van Warmelo, loc. cit.

70 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

recognized administrative and judicial system under a headman
(Zulu, unum^ana). Varying numbers of these sub-distrifts are grouped
together into larger districts (Zulu, isifunda ; Xhosa, greater ibandla),
and all come under the jurisdiction of the Chief, who himself controls
such a distrifl and appoints or confirms subordinates in all the others.
In the Sotho tribes, the people tend to colleft together in villages
including a number of different household groups. In Basutoland
and the Transvaal these villages are numerous and as a rule fairly small,
including, say, from ten to fifty independent households. In Bechuana-
land, on the other hand, the members of each tribe live for the most
part in one large central town and several much smaller outlying
villages. 1 The central towns, where the chiefs of the tribes have their
headquarters, are often of considerable size, their population running
into several thousands. Owing to this mode of settlement, which is
determined largely by the scarcity of surface water and the consequent
necessity of congregating together at suitable spots, the cultivated
lands of each town are generally some distance away, extending as broad
belts for many miles across country, while the cattle are kept at special
grazing posts, often a day's journey away by foot Whatever the form
of settlement, however, each household group is always clearly marked
off from the rest.

The Kin (i) Relatives by Blood.

Beyond the intimate circle of the household there is the wider
circle of the kin, relatives either by birth (blood) or by marriage. A
child begins with relatives by descent only ; and these are always
bilateral, relatives through the father, and relatives through the mother.
It is only upon the child's own marriage that he acquires relatives-
in-law of his own. The attitude of his parents to their relatives by
blood and by marriage undoubtedly forms an important basis for
the behaviour patterns built up between the children and their kin.
Kinship bonds play a part of paramount importance in the lives of the
people. None of the tribes has any great degree of economic division
of labour. Each household is to a very great extent a replica of every
other, so that economic interdependence is not one of the main
principles of linking different households together. Instead, kinship
bonds, bonds of common descent, ramify through the country and link
together those, wherever they may be, who claim common descent
from an ancestor, be that on the paternal or the maternal side. This

1 I. Schapera, "The Old Bantu Culture," in Schapcra, 1934, 7.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 71

fundamental system of grouping is the same for all the tribes and so is
perhaps best described here.

The type of behaviour expected of the members of a family towards
one another is much more clearly defined and more similar throughout
Bantu society than is the case in modern European society. In all
tribes, the newly-founded family normally takes up its residence
among the relatives of the husband, and the chief control over the
children belongs by custom and in law to the father and his kin. Disci-
pline and authority, economic duties, legal affiliations, and controls,
therefore, play a great part in determining the behaviour of children
to their father and his kin, while affeftion and love find less restraint
in the relation of the children to their mother and her kin.

The father is undoubted head of his family and has complete
authority over his children as long as they remain in his household,
and even afterwards in lesser degree. If head of the household, he
controls the land and the animals to a very large extent, and he direfts
the lives of all his subordinates. He is responsible to the outside world
for all the aftions of the members of his household, prote&ing them
when they are in trouble and answering for their misdeeds. He is
their representative at the tribal courts and is the intermediary between
them and the world of ancestral spirits. Respeft, deference, and even
awe, are noticeable in the behaviour of his children towards him.
The same characteristics may be found, also, in the behaviour of the
wife towards her husband, however much this may be mitigated by
true devotion between them.

Between the mother and her children there commonly grow up
in Bantu society the deepest bonds of affeftion known to these people.
Obedience and respeft for the mother are demanded, but pure un-
selfish love really dominates her attitude to her children. She is
devoted to their welfare, watching over them and protecting them in
all aspefts of their lives. Not so much obedience, therefore, but an
ever-present expectancy of consideration dominates the attitude of
the children to their mother.

Among the children a striCt hierarchy prevails, based on the
seniority which serves as a fundamental principle of behaviour in
Bantu society. The elder brother always takes precedence between
brothers, and so, too, between sisters the privilege of age is maintained.
Between brothers and sisters the sex differentiation often dominates
the behaviour. Sisterhood and brotherhood most often overrule age
differences, and there is a prescribed type of behaviour for a brother

72 A. WINIFRED HOERNLIJ

towards his sister and vice versa. Ties of affeHon link these people
together through life, though in some tribes the marriage arrangements
may bring about strain through a son's marriage depending on the
lolola (or toxaJi) cattle obtained for his sister. 1

Outside this intimate circle of the immediate family, the same
principles of kinship and seniority hold sway. The father forms one
of a close-knit group with his brothers. The latter are everywhere
grouped under a kinship term which we may translate " father " ;
and these " fathers " are distinguished as " great " or " little " fathers,
according as they are older or younger than the child's own father.
To them, as a group, the same general deference and obedience are
due as to the father, mitigated somewhat for the younger ones, and
modified naturally by the experiences of life according to temperament
and general closeness of contaft.

If all these men are a child's " fathers ", their children are all his
" brothers and sisters ". The child behaves towards them on the same
general principles that he has learnt to pra&ise towards his blood
brothers and sisters in the intimate circle of family and household
life, subjeft to the principle of seniority. This is sometimes counted
on the basis of physiological age, sometimes on the basis of the status
of the parents, irrespective of the age of the children themselves.
The same general system applies to the children of a number of sisters,
and justifies the statement that " parallel cousins ", i.e. children of
brothers on the one hand and children of sisters on the other, behave
towards each other like blood brothers and sisters.

The behaviour to a father's sister is definitely controlled by her
membership of the same family as the father. If he is " father ", she
is " female father ", with the same background and traditions as he.
She knows the peculiar ways and traditions of the paternal home far
better than the mother is thought to do, so that on important occasions
she may be called in to see that family ways are maintained. The most
formalized relationship between such women and their brother's
children is probably to be found among the Tonga and Venda.

A maternal uncle similarly plays his pan in the lives of his sister's
children, on the basis of the behaviour controlling his relation to his
sister. If she is " mother ", he is " male mother " (malume) in most
of the tribes, a relative of the mother's family of the same generation
as she, and sharing in the whole gentle protective attitude of the mother
to her children. His role is more formalized in the Sotho, Venda,

1 See below, pp. 113 f.

PLATE V

(A) Mochucli village. Kxatla Re-serve, B.1*.
TERRITORIAF. ORGAN I/A FION

[/. Schaficta

[face p. 72

PLATE VI

(a) Natal Nguui

l&A.K. tuul H.

(6) Transvaal Sotho

(Kxaxa of Mphathlela's Location, Pictersburg)
NATIVE HOMESTEADS

L,V. J. van Warmth

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 73

and Tonga groups than among the Nguni, for in these groups the
families of brother and sister are drawn together in marriage, while in
the Nguni tribes no marriage is allowed with a blood relative less than
at least four generations removed, be it on the father's side or on the
mother's. This difference in the attitude to " cross-cousins ", i.e.
the children of a brother and a sister, ramifies in very important ways
throughout the whole of social behaviour.

Grandparents are inclined to spoil their grandchildren every-
where, and the Bantu are no exception to this rule. But the patrilineal
principles which play so big a part among these people, giving the
father's relatives the greater responsibility in the bringing-up and
control of the children, tend to make the paternal grandparents strifter
and more critical of the behaviour of their grandchildren than is
necessary in the case of the maternal grandparents.

Here, then, is a large body of kin drawn intimately into contaft
with the lives of each generation. Looking out of the world from his
own home, the Bantu child knows where he may seek hospitality and
succour of every kind ; where, also, he may of right be called upon
to render assistance in case of need. The barriers of reserve shutting
off human beings from one another are largely down so far as these
classes of relatives are concerned, so that for economic assistance,
for friendly counsel, in time of sorrow and in time of joy, these are the
natural categories of people to turn to, the core of people with whom
one is close-knit from birth in a web of reciprocal rights and duties.

The Kin (if) Relatives by Marriage.

Marriage being a contraft between two families as much as between
the two individuals chiefly concerned, the behaviour of a large number
of people to one another is changed by each marriage that takes place.
In principle, the behaviour of people related to one another by marriage
is somewhat restrained and striftly regulated. Relatives by marriage,
when they meet at each others' homes, behave most formally and
corre&ly. Meat and beer are prepared as for honoured guests, but
often there is no intimacy and ease of real human affe&ion. This formal
behaviour applies especially to relatives older than the husband or
wife, contaft with juniors being in all cases much less strained. Correft
behaviour is especially demanded of a man towards his mother-in-
law and of a woman to her father-in-law and all men of his status.
In the Nguni tribes, the behaviour especially of wives to their elder
relatives-in-law is so striftly regulated that there is a special term,

74 A. WINIFRED HOERNLfe

hlonipha, for this behaviour. Hlonipha afFefts all aspefts of a married
woman's life, regulating her movements about the household into
which she is married, her liberty in eating, even her vocabulary for
everyday things.

Other Groupings.

Other forms of organization, universal among these tribes, are
more formal descent-groups, such as lineage, clan, kxoro, and also
groups based on age and, in a less organized manner, on sex. It is on
one or other of these types of grouping that the military organization
rests ; but, as there are differences from group to group, these types
of social strufture are best dealt with separately for the different
groups. Social groups for fellow-craftsmen are so casual that they are
hardly to be called formally organized groups.

NGUNI GROUP

The Nguni must be clearly distinguished from all other groups of
tribes in their social organization, in that they rigidly prohibit marriage,
or sexual relations of any kind, with people related through any of
the four grandparents. This fundamental rule has most important
repercussions through the social strufture. In these tribes also we
find the most complicated organizations of the household. The social
system of the Zululand tribes was subjected to a severe strain through
the wars of Shaka and his immediate successors, and many of the
fundamental institutions were developed there in somewhat novel
ways, whereas the Southern Nguni, in spite of the disturbances which
eruptions of people from the North brought in their train, and in
spite of the many wars "waged between Bantu and European, have
preserved their social system in a less altered form. It will, therefore,
be as well to describe the Southern Nguni system first, and then indicate
the differences which we find farther north, without, however,
implying that the Northern Nguni system is a development from
precisely the situation which we find among the Southern Nguni.

(a) Southern Nguni
Urny.

Among all the Southern Nguni tribes, we find that each household
(urny) is -an independent territorial settlement with its own name.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 75

In each the cattle kraal forms the pivot of the arrangement of the huts.
The principal hut of the household faces the entrance to the cattle
kraal ; and the space between them, the ikundla (courtyard), is essen-
tially private to the owners of the w/wp, those there by right of birth.
In a semi-circle to either side of this chief hut are ranged the other
huts of the umfi. Formerly the um^i tended to be larger than it is
to-day. It consisted then of a patriarch with his wives and dependent
children, his married sons with their families, and possibly also un-
related married dependants (Xhosa, v(induna). An unify then, might
contain twenty to forty adult men related in the male line, each with
his family, whereas to-day " an average um^i contains four to five
adults, and four children." * The basic characteristic of this urny
is the overwhelming stressing of the bonds linking the adult males and
all the children, through the emphasis put on descent from a patrilineal
ancestor. Though from one point of view we have in this settlement
a number of " families " represented by the living-huts (i^inJlu) of
the married women, from another point of view we have a group
of close-knit relatives guarding their lineage traditions against " out-
siders ", i.e. the women brought by marriage into the lineage.

Polygyny is an ideal which every well-established man strives to
attain, and the more important households reveal a complex grouping
of wives. The first wife married is always the principal wife (inkosika^i) y
except in the case of a chief, whose principal wife is often chosen
only after he is well-established in the chieftainship, and whose
khay. cattle are collected from all the principal households of the tribe.
Among the other wives, one other stands out in the typical polygynous
household. She is the " right-hand wife " (urnfcqi wasekunene), so
called from the position of her huts in the household, the Xhosa
counting right and left from the point of view of a person who looks
out from the hut door towards the cattle kraal. 2 Any other wives
married are affiliated to the principal wives as subordinates and are
called Qadi. Each family, or " house " (indlu), whether principal or
supporting, forms an independent unit with its own property, except
in the case of a " seed-bearer ", who may be married if the wife of a
principal house proves to be barren. The house of a woman so married
has no independent property, and any children she bears are regarded

1 Cf. M. Hunter (1936), if, and also for whole detail of description.

The Zulu distinguish right and left from the point of view of one looking up into the
iMifi from the cattle-kraal gate. Thus, what is the " right-hand " se&ion for the Xhosa is
the '* left-hand " section for the Zulu.

7 6 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

as the children of the woman for whom she is " seed-bearer ' \ l An
important chief may have yet another type of wife. He marries a
woman, the ixiba or isipnJa wife, and places her, together with
dependants, within the principal ump (or an um^i called by the same
name) of his father, or grandfather, or other important relative, and
thus keeps " alive " a household with which much of tribal history is
closely linked.

Among the Xhosa tribes, the widows of a man usually remain
at their late husband's ump. Any children they bear at his kraal
after his death have the same status as children begotten by him. Many
widows, however, establish a separate urny with their grown-up
sons and each becomes the principal woman in her um^ while yet
others return to their childhood homes (kayo) where they join the
ranks of the numerous group of aS&zp, i.e. husbandless women
(whether unmarried, divorced, or widowed) who have borne children.
Such women, living with their own relatives, have a much easier
time than do women living with their husbands among relatives by
marriage. Among the Mpondo and related tribes, the widow, if still
of child-bearing age, is taken by the male next-of-kin to her husband
(father and ascending kin excepted). Any children born of this
union are regarded as children of the original husband. This is the
custom of ukungena.

The two principal wives, together with their supporting wives,
may each have quite a large seftion of the a/rap within which to
some extent life runs separately ; or, when there is a grown-up son
in the right-hand house, or this se&ion of the household is that of a
chief, a separate ump may be founded for it at some distance from the
principal um{i, or even in some different part of the country. Each
um^i has its own name, and each important family hut within it may
have its own name. The principal son of the family of the um{i has
the right to use this name, and many names of umji of important
chiefs have become the distinguishing names of groups of people,
since the adherents of a headman or chief may call themselves by the
name of the headquarters of their leader. This is true also of the
Northern Nguni tribes.

Within the amp, great or small, the principles of conduit already
described are constantly at work the principle of seniority ; the
principle of die categories of blood kin, with distinftive patterns

1 W. T. Browidee, " The Transkeian Territories of South Africa," /. Afr. Soc., xxiv (1914-5),
116.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 77

of behaviour towards each category ; the principle of sex differences ;
the principle of distinction between kin by blood and kin by marriage.

Unless she is the inkosika^i of an umji, a woman has a large duty of
hlonipha to the family into which she has married. She must not
intrude upon the men's side of the hut ; she must not cross the court-
yard past this side of the hut ; she must not unnecessarily cross the
courtyard itself or enter the cattle kraal. She must not mention the
personal names of the elder relatives of her husband or of her husband
himself; nor even use words containing the principal syllables of
their names. She must defer to them in every way. Should she meet
them in the pathway, she steps aside ; she does not eat freely with them
nor appear in working undress before them until she is thoroughly
established in the umg. by bearing children for them. Until special
ceremonies are performed to release her from the restriftion, she does
not drink milk nor eat meat at her husband's home. These eating
restrictions may be abandoned after the performance of an appropriate
ceremony, but those of speech and behaviour remain until a woman is
head of her own umji.

Co-wives of a polygynist may have a strong fellow-feeling for one
another. They are subjeft to the same restrictions ; they share in the
maintenance of the domestic life and care of the children throughout
the UM(I. Yet, beneath this co-operation, there is the still more closely-
knit little group within each indlu, the group of a mother and her
children ; and the supreme aim of a woman's life is to further the
interests of her own children first and foremost. There is, therefore,
an underlying tension and strain between the families of an um%i,
which often reveals itself in mutual accusations of sorcery and witch-
craft.

Whilst the ump is thus to a large extent a little world of its own,
with the head (unumjana) controlling the conduft and fortunes of its
members, it is also the smallest link in the chain of other types of
organization which play important roles in the life of the community.

Ibandla and Ihundla.

The group of people living in an ump of some size constitutes what
is known as the itandla of the ump head. The adult men, especially,
form a distinft social unit for many community purposes. In economic
undertakings, on social occasions, for legal obligations, in the army,
this little group constitutes the smallest unit of organization and is
treated as a whole.

78 A. WINIFRED HOERNL&

A number of households, generally closely related to one another
and living in a conveniently marked-off area, such as a valley or ridge
of a hill, constitutes the next group in the territorial, social, and political
hierarchy. This little group of households, but chiefly the adult
men thereof, constitutes a " great ibandla ", that of a petty chief
perhaps the head of the principal clan represented in the cluster of
households ; perhaps a friend or dependant of the Paramount Chief,
or some remote relative of his who has been given this small district
to control. The umji of the petty chief is called the ikundla of the
distrift. It is the social, administrative, judicial, and military centre
of the little area.

Many of these little districts are organized into a few much larger
distri&s, known also as umhlaba or ibandla. 1 The headquarters of a
chief, either a member of the ruling clan of the Paramount Chief,
or the head of a clan which has khon^ i.e. submitted to the supremacy
of the Paramount Chief in return for domicile in his area, is the
organizing centre of this area, and the people in it constitute the
ibandla of the chief. At the head of the whole hierarchy comes the
Paramount Chief, with all his tribesmen organized into amabandla 2
under him.

The amabandla of the Paramount Chief are organized in the follow-
ing way. The tribal area is divided out among different " houses "
of the Chief, who has several household settlements in different parts
of the country. The principal son of each house (or his descendant)
claims all the people in his distrift as his ibandla, and these may be
organized into several minor amabandla under sub-chiefs and head-
men. Dues in meat, beer, and labour, which are owed to the Para-
mount Chief, are paid not to his far distant headquarters, but to the
member of his family representing him in the area. Headship of an
ibandla is inherited, but the area controlled by the head of an ibandla
is not a fixed unit. If people do not like the head of their ibandla,
they may take their dues and their cases to the next headman, and if
this becomes a custom his area will be enlarged, that of his rival
decreased. In course of time, there may be a reorganization of the
headship, since each succeeding chief has sons to place, and often
puts a member of his own immediate family in the area controlled
by descendants of his brothers or other remote relatives. These
latter then sink to the rank of sub-chiefs, and the more immediate

1 The term umhlaba is sometimes used as referring to the territorial area ; whereas ibandla
refers to the group of human beings.
Plural of ibandla.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 79

representative of the Paramount Chief controls the area, if his per-
sonality enables him to grip the affeHon of his people. These
amabandla all have recognized names, sometimes the name of the
head of the clan under whom the area was first established, sometimes
the name of the urny. of the chief of the royal clan who first administered
the area. 1 In this latter case, in some of the tribes, e.g. Gcaleka,
Ngqika, Bomvana, the ibandla name may be the name of a favourite
ox in the chief's herd, and hence this name and the name of the group
is called the inkabi (ox). 2 Among the Mpondo, this custom is unknown :
ibandla and house names of chiefs are either descriptive or the names
of the first founders.

The subordination of all distrift chiefs to the Paramount was
formerly marked by the obligation of the district chiefs to pay the
Paramount death dues and fines for murder and witchcraft, and to
attend military reviews and first-fruit ceremonies. The distrifts
were in the past the administrative areas ; they were to a large extent
settled by a body of related people ; and they played a large part in
the social life of the people. Even to-day, at a feast, meat and beer
are laula (called out and distributed) by amabandla (or inkabi)
so many pots of beer to this ibandla and such and such joints to
that. At small feasts, meat and beer are laula by the minor amabandla
of private individuals and chiefs' sons who have no civil authority;
at bigger gatherings, they are laula by the amabandla of distrift
chiefs. 3

Among the Mpondo, the army was formerly organized on an
ibandla basis. Each petty headman collected his followers and made
his way to his immediate superior, who in his turn led his ibandla
to his superior, until finally in a few divisions, four or five, the army
gathered at the tribal headquarters. 4

The whole system of territorial settlement, only partly based on
kinship ties, is definitely co-ordinated through the dominant position
of one clan, members of which keep a grip on the different areas,
and render loyal support to the head of their clan through the all-
pervasive principles of rank, based on a hierarchy of seniority. From
time to time, however, a dominating personality may break through
this seniority principle and, wresting the leading role from a senior
house, may arrogate it to himself and his own " house ".

1 For this whole account, cf. Hunter, 1036, 378 ff.
Cf. P. A. W. Cook, 1931, 19 ff.
Cf. Hunter, 1936, 364 ff. ; and Cook, loc. cit.
4 Hunter, 1936, 400 ff.

8o A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

Isiduko or Clan.

The clan is a kinship group. It consists of a group of people claiming
descent, and taking its name, from a common ancestor in the male line.
Within the clan is a number of lineages (Xhosa, usapo or intsapo),
the members of which generally have a common grandfather in the
male line. Lineages and clans are named after a common ancestor, but
in addition there are isifongo, praise-names, conne&ed with each clan
and each lineage, which are used on all ceremonial occasions and when
it is desired to honour the members of the group. 1 These isi&ongo
names are often names of still more remote ancestors and are valuable
as revealing links of connexion between otherwise separate clans.

In any distrift a large number of people may be members of one clan,
that of the chief or headman, but the two types of grouping, territorial
and kinship, never coincide absolutely, and members of one clan may
be found even in several different tribes.

The lineage and clan are extremely important groups, the lineage
being, next to the household, the most intimate social group and
principal ritual group within the tribe. Among the Mpondo, the lineage
is the group within which alone milk is drunk, though the Xhosa
drink milk in any lineage of their clan. In all the tribes, marriage and
the custom of ukumetsha (premarital sexual relations) are strictly
prohibited within the clan, though lineages are constantly breaking
away to form new clans and then marriage is allowed. The clans have
a regular order of precedence, that of the Paramount Chief being most
direftly descended from the common ancestor of the tribal nucleus,
though there are always also clans of alien origin whose affiliation is
purely political, and whose position in the hierarchy a matter of
historical tradition.

The lineage undoubtedly is the most important purely kinship group
among most of these tribes, the group which exercises most social
control over the people and within which there is the most intimate
social contaft and the most stable system of reciprocal rights and duties.
Among the Xhosa alone would the clan seem to be a close-knit body
within which milk customs, military organization, and also ritual
customs prevail. While the Mpondo army was organized on the
ibandla basis, the Xhosa army was organized on a clan basis, 2 each
clan constituting a seftion of the force. Even to-day it is by no means
unknown for representatives of a Xhosa clan, wherever they may. be

1 Hunter, 1936, 52 f. * J. H. Soga, 1932, 68.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 8l

domiciled, to combine in sending a sacrificial offering of oxen to the
remote headwaters of that river in the Transkei which the clan members
claim as the first headquarters of their ancestors. The Paramount
Chief is, in all the tribes, the leading representative of the dominant
clan in the tribe, the " royal " clan, to which most of the important
chiefs under him also belong. The royal clan of both the Gcaleka
and the Ngqika tribes is the Tshawe ; of the Thembu, the Mtande ;
of the Mpondo, the Nyausa. Taking the Gcaleka tribe as an example,
we find that there are some twenty-five clans all tracing their descent
from the common ancestor, Xhosa, and strictly ranked according
to their direftness of descent. These clans have hived off from time
to time from the common matrix, as it were, sometimes because of
personal feuds and rivalries, sometimes because of intermarriage be-
tween the different lineages or " houses ", after the common descent
was at least four generations removed from the common ancestor.
These royal clans are grouped together as the inTshinga division
of the Gcaleka people. Another group of clans belonged originally
to Sotho or other non-Xhosa tribes, but to-day are subordinate to the
Gcaleka chiefs. They form the division called the iQauka, and though
they are the commoners among the clans they have to-day the con-
trolling influence in tribal affairs. 1

Age and Sex Groupings.

Though the hierarchy of age is as important among the Southern
Nguni as in any of the other groups, and though in many of these tribes
(e.g. Xhosa and Bomvana) circumcision and group initiation cere-
monies remain, while they have long since died out in other tribes,
(e.g. the Mpondo and all Northern Nguni tribes), yet no tribe-wide
organization on the basis of age exists among them. Within the house-
hold, rigid precedence is given to seniority, as we have seen, and so
also within the ibandla both on social and military occasions, but the
age grouping is subordinate to some other (clan or territorial) grouping.
It is among the Northern Nguni and tribes of other groups that we
find more institutionalized groupings on the basis of age. Groupings
on a sex basis form naturally on all social occasions, and sex differentia-
tion plays its part through the whole social system, but, as far as we
know, there exists in the Southern Nguni tribes no formalized
organization on a sex basis.

1 Soga, 1932, 22.

82 A. WINIFRED HOERNL&

() Northern Nguni

It has been shown in the previous chapter that probably three
different migrations of tribes are represented in the Zululand-Natal area,
and it is quite possible that there were originally many differences of
custom and perhaps also of social organization. Whether such exist
to-day we do not at present know, since we have no scientific study
of the Southern Natal tribal groups ; and the changes brought about
in the social system of all these tribes by the rise of the Zulu power have
been so marked, that for the present it is justifiable to give an account
of the system imposed on this area by the Zulu. For, even in spite of
vast changes brought about by white dominance and administration,
this social system shows a remarkable tenacity and to a large extent
still controls the lives of the tribes, not only in these special areas,
but also in other parts of Africa where offshoots of these people have
settled down (e.g. Ndebele, Ngoni).

Umuji.

As with the Southern Nguni, so too with the Northern : the house-
hold (Zulu, umuii\ or kraal, is the primary territorial unit. The
organization of this umu^i may, among chiefs and headmen, be even
more complicated than that of the Southern Nguni, but the funda-
mental strufture is the same. The core of the umuy, is a body of patri-
lineal relatives whose wives are all from clans not related otherwise
to them. The individual family, in its own indlu, or home, is a strongly
integrated group, owning its own cattle, its own lands, and its own
granaries, and forming through life the group with the most deep-
set emotional ties and common domestic experiences.

These families have different status within the umu^i. To-day,
the original outer fence encircling the whole umuy is gone praftically
everywhere, but typically there was such an encircling wall of palisades,
reeds, or bushes. With or without fence, the umiqi is still organized
into its different divisions all circling round the cattle kraal (isitaya).
Important polygynous households are divided into three seftions in
the place of the Southern Nguni two. 1 At the top of the umwp, opposite
the great gateway of the outer fence (where this exists), is the seftion
of the inkosikap, the mistress of the umup. This seftion is known from
its principal hut as the indlunkulu y but it may also contain the hut
of a seed-bearer (umloGokap), the huts of married sons, and unmarried

1 A. T. Bryant, 1923, 47-51.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 83

grown-up children, as well as the homes of servants or dependants in
the background. And the whole may well be screened off by individual
fences, secluding the living huts from the general gaze of members
of the umuii To the left l of this indlunkulu seftion is the ikhohlo,
or left-hand branch, of the polygynous family, with its principal
wife. She is in important families the first wife married in the youth
of the kraal head, but is relegated to second position in the kraal when,
later in life, he marries the daughter of some important man and places
her in the indlunkulu. The ikhohlo wife may also have several subordi-
nate wives (a/wa6/6/), as well as married sons and dependants, in
her seftion of the umuii. Usually, at the time when the indlunkulu
is founded, the headman also organizes the third seftion of his family,
the inQadi. One of his wives is appointed head of this seftion, with
others subordinate to her. This seftion is most definitely an appendage
of the indlunkulu^ and is called on to supply an heir if none is born
to the inkosika^i or to the wife specifically appointed as her seed-
bearer, whereas the ikhohlo seftion, once the indlunkulu. is founded,
becomes to a very large extent loosened from the other seftions of the
umu%i y and tends to move off to found a separate umu^ as soon as a
married son is able to take over the responsibility for his mother and
her dependants. In addition to these three important seftions of his
polygynous family, a chief may keep " alive " kraals of his father and
grandfather by placing in them i(v(inda in the same way as is done by
the Southern Nguni. 2 Within the umw(i there obtain the same rigid
distinftions as among the Southern Nguni between relatives by birth
and wives ; the same general kinship system with its principles of
seniority and deference to those of higher rank and status ; and the
same rigid system ofhlonipha for married women.

Isi&ongo.

The kin also play the same part as they do farther south, and the
exogamous patrilineal clan with eponymous name controls the more
intimate social life of the people, and definitely constitutes a group
within which sexual relations of any kind are prohibited. The clan
is called isfoongo, a word referring more particularly to the name
of the group, while the terms ufilo&o, umquba, or w*{a/o, indicate the
group itself. Each clan, in addition to its own eponymous isfoongo,
has an address name, called the isithakaielo, which is the name of a

1 Scil. " left " as one looks up from the great gate of the cattle-kraal ; cf. above, p. 75, note.
Bryant, 1923, 47-51.

84 A. WINIFRED HOERNLfc

famous ancestor in the ancestral clan from which many have sprung. 1
Many different clans have Mnguni for their isithakaielo, which is the
justification for calling the whole group "Nguni", since all the
tribes, or at least very many of them, seem to claim a far-off origin
from one unknown ancestor, Mnguni.

To-day, the government recognizes over 200 tribes (isvpve) in
Zululand and Natal. These are composed of a central core of representa-
tives of the chief's clan, together with seftions of a number of other
clans which are often more numerously represented in another tribe
where one of their clansmen is chief. This situation is the aftermath
of the rise of the Zulu political domination and its destru&ion by the
Europeans. Groups of people were scattered hither and thither and
now have settled down in smaller or larger tribes which are only
partly bodies of kinsmen.

Within the tribal area there is the small distrift area (isigodi) with
its headman, or induna, whose umu?i is the administrative centre ;
and the larger district (uifundd)^ of which there are a few in each
tribe, ruled over by the head of the clan dominant in that particular
area and subordinate to the Chief of the Paramount's clan.

The Zulu kings, from Shaka to Cetshwayo, maintained control
of their conquered domain by planting royal kraals at different spots
in the conquered territory, maintaining there a military force, and
putting in residence some close relative of their own who might
be trusted to act as their " eyes and ears " and represent their interests,
though the drudgery of administration was done by specially appointed
officials (isfinJuna). Uncles, brother, aunts, mothers, and wives might
be so placed in these royal kraals, called amakhanda? when they were
specifically the headquarters of certain regiments. More remote tribes
were simply decimated and their wealth carried off, or they were laid
under tribute to be paid from time to time as the di&ator ordered.

Age Grouping.

The hierarchy of age is more organized here than farther south.
In the large utnuy. of a polygynous man, the children of similar age will
constantly be found together and form, together with their age mates
of the little sub-distrift around their home, the intanga, the age set
the members of which spend so much of their childhood days together.

1 Bryant, 1920, 681 ff.

Plural of ikkanda. In the amakhanda the royal family occupied the upper part of the
kraal (in quarters called the isigodlo), while the regiments occupied the two wings of die ikhanda.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 85

From the age of about eight, in the heyday of Zulu power, these
young boys might act as mat-and-food carriers for their elders when
going to regimental meetings. Between the age of 18-20 they were
regularly enrolled by the king into a regiment, or fautko, with its own
name, its own regimental officers from a senior regiment, and its own
military headquarters, which might be a newly established ikhanda,
or a seftion of an already existing ikhanda^ to reinforce the numbers
of an older fautho. These amadut/io were formed very often in
the days of Shaka and Dingane, less frequently later ; but they are still
being formed to-day, though the system of military kraals is gone.
When the regiments are collefted together, they constitute the army
(imp'i) of the people. In the military drill the soldiers frequently march
many abreast, and such lines are called vpcheme, each consisting of
from three to eight or more men. Yet another division recognized
is the iviyo or isigada, a company of about 500 men. For mobiliza-
tion purposes the soldiers are assigned to one of a few royal kraals
within easy distance of each other. A divisional commander is at the
head of all the men so assigned to him. Sometimes the men are
organized in their regiments, sometimes the divisional group of each
regiment forms under its divisional commander. 1 During the Zulu
domination, these regiments were undoubtedly mainly a fighting
force. The younger regiments especially were a restless, unruly element
in the state. They did, however, also guard the king's cattle ; they
built their ihhanda and kept it in order ; and they might be called
on at any time to hoe the chiefs gardens ; to lay out a new head-
quarter utnu(i ; or to do any other work that the king might order.
From the regiments he drew his messengers, his administrative officers
for the distrifts, and his councillors. All these officials were drawn
from many different tribes in Zululand, as they were singled out
for bravery, or for some piece of work for the king which drew his
attention to them.

The independent Zulu kingdom really came to an end when
Cetshwayo was defeated by the British in 1879. To-day, the descend-
ants of Cetshwayo are still to a certain extent recognized as the supreme

1 In 1914, at the ihlambo of Chief Solomon Dinuzulu, 10,000 warriors were present at his
chief kraal, Mahashini, organized in the following regiments in order of rank, the highest
coming first: imbhokocrebomvu ; ufelaphakati ; udakwa; ucijimpi; uvukayibambe ;
inqab'ukucetshwa ; upondolwendlovu ; intabayezulu. These regiments belong to five
divisions, linked with five royal kraals : (a) gqikazi, linked with the gqikazi kraal to which
belonged both Cetshwayo's and Dinuzulu's mothers ; (6) mpisendlini Mahashini, Dinuzulu's
kraal ; (c) kubhaza, affiliated to Cetshwayo's Usutu kraal ; GO nodwengu, Mpande's chief
kraal; and () Undi, kraal built by Cetshwayo.

86 A. WINIFRED HOERNLt

representatives of all the Zululand tribes, but there is a tendency for
these tribes to split by grouping themselves round two different lines
of descent of the Zulu royal clan, 1 the descendants of Senzangakona
and those of his brother Sojiyisa. The one seftion is called the Usutu
seftion, after the name of one of Cetshwayo's umuy.\ the other,
the Mandlakazi seftion, after an umup of Sojiyisa. 2

Nguni Offshoots

Most offshoots of the Nguni group, such as the Southern Transvaal
Ndebele, the Swazi, the Rhodesian Ndebele, and the Ngoni of Nyasa-
land and Tanganyika, have preserved the same fundamental social
system. But there are one or two new principles which must be noted.
Among the Southern Transvaal Ndebele, each isfoongo, or clan, has a
special species of animal linked with it known as its {//a, or taboo,
which may not be named or eaten or used by the members of that
clan. This feature has undoubtedly been copied from the surrounding
Sotho tribes. 3 The Rhodesian Ndebele and the Nyasaland Ngoni
have introduced a new hierarchy of rank resulting from their conquest
of indigenous tribes in their new homes. Both groups have attempted
to maintain their purity of blood to some extent, and both have
maintained an amazing pride in what they consider their stronger social
system and their tradition of military prowess and might. The Rhode-
sian Ndebele recognize three social grades, the pure Ndebele, a middle
rank with Ndebele fathers and Shona mothers, and finally the
commoners, the Shona rank and file, merged in their social system.
The situation is somewhat similar among the Ngoni.

SOTHO GROUP
Kin by blood and ly marriage.

The Sotho tribes all allow certain types of kin to marry. This
different attitude to marriage between kinsfolk is reflefted right through
the social system, and makes for important differences in the social
groups, even where these are based on the same principles as among

i T, rS enzan g a k na Mpandc Cetshwayo Dinuzulu Solomon boy (Usutu kraal)
Jama ~~~LSojiyisa Mapita Zibebu Bokwe (Mandlakazi kraal)

* The Mandlakazi section sent no official representative to the ihlambo ceremony after the
death of Solomon Dinuzulu, but on the occasion of the visit of the Prince of Wales, the Maqdla-
kazi regiments fell in with the Usutu regiments and formed one great ukumbi, or crescent of
men, with them.

* N. J. van Warmelo, 1930, 15.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 87

the Nguni. There is the same basic type of classification of kin into
relatives on the father's side and relatives on the mother's side.
Seniority is stressed, and patrilineal filiation is dominant in the social
system. Relatives by marriage are, however, not striftly marked off
from relatives by blood, but, on the contrary, are to a large extent
the same people. There are not the same rigid categories of relatives,
but a more complex range of possibilities of behaviour towards the
same persons ; e.g. the maternal uncle may also be the father-in-law,
and so, too, the paternal uncle may be the father-in-law. Such com-
binations are quite impossible among the Nguni.

All Sotho tribes show a strong preference for a man's marriage
with the mother's brother's daughter, though they also encourage
marriage between the children of two brothers and allow marriage
with the father's sister's daughter and with the mother's sister's
daughter. This last type of marriage is, however, distinctly less
frequent than the other types and in certain tribes is forbidden. 1
Where the bride comes to her husband's home, not as a stranger,
a non-relative, but as a close kinswoman, known probably from child-
hood at least to the parents of the husband, if not to the husband him-
self, there is bound to be a less strained system of behaviour within
the household. True, the relationship between mother-in-law and
son-in-law is carefully controlled and regulated ; so, too, is the
behaviour of a bride to her father-in-law. But we find little of the
rigidly enforced hlonipha system of the Nguni tribes. In the Sotho
tribes, most of the restriftions on behaviour and in address can be
terminated by the performance of a ritual ceremony once the couple
has settled down.

A brother and sister are obviously very closely linked together
in the Sotho tribes when the son of one marries die daughter of the
other. They are intimately linked, however, in still other ways.
A father frequently pairs off his sons and daughters, as far as may
be possible, telling the son that he is to use the boxadi cattle 2 of such
and such a daughter in order to obtain a wife for himself. The children
of the sister, then, have definite claims on their mother's brother,
since he has benefited quite considerably from the boxadi cattle handed
over by their father. They have an honoured position in his home, 3

1 W. Eisclen, 19283, 81.

1 Boxadi is the term for the cattle given by a man to his wife's father when he marries her ;
cf. below, Chap. V.

* The children of a woman for whom no boxadl has been transferred are brought up at
their maternal uncle's or maternal grandfather's home, but they are there as dependants and
their position is much lowlier.

88 A. WINIFRED HOERNLt

and he may be called on to help in providing loxadi for his sister's
son. In these tribes, also, the maternal ancestors are thought to inter-
vene of right in the lives of their daughter's descendants, and the
maternal uncle may be called on to sacrifice for his sister's children
when they are ill. He receives a beast when his sister's daughter is
married, in return for the services he has performed for her. Between
his children and his sister's there is a joking pattern of behaviour,
which indicates immediately that the behaviour is exposed to stresses
and strains. When two families are so intimately linked and anything
goes wrong with one, the other is bound also to be upset. The sister's
children, in this situation, have the whip-hand, since the brother
established his home with cattle she brought into the family, so that on
occasion the maternal uncle's children may feel themselves awkwardly
placed in relation to their cross-cousins.

The Village.

In all three Sotho sub-groups, we find true village life in place of
the independent households of the Nguni tribes. In Basutoland, these
villages (metse, sing, motse) are small, rarely having more than 250
inhabitants and mostly not more than a score. 1 The inhabitants of a
motse are mostly relatives and chiefly in the paternal line, though not
necessarily so. Each close group of relatives builds its huts round the
lesaka, or cattle kraal, so that in a large village the individual groups
can be distinguished by the little paths separating the different hamlets
from one another, while the charafter of the whole as a unity is revealed
in the common khotla (Tswana, kxotla ; North Sotho, kxoro) which
is, as a rule, to one side of the village and usually has a tree for shade.
This khotla is the common gathering place of the men, and the centre
of village administration and control. The Northern Sotho system
is essentially similar, but in the Tswana tribes much greater develop-
ment is seen.

The Ward.

In these Bechuanaland tribes, the people are divided into wards,
consisting of a number of families united under the leadership of a
kxosana (headman), whose position is hereditary in the male line.
Most of the wards are named after some distinguished ancestor of
their headman. The constituent families are in most cases direftly

1 Cf. F. Laydevant, 1931, 216.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 89

related either by birth or by marriage to the headman, although this
is not necessarily the case. Intermarriage between members of the
same ward is permitted. Children normally belong to the ward of their
father, but in exceptional circumstances can become members of some
other ward, e.g. that of the mother or wife where this is different from
their own. The ward is essentially a localized administrative unit.
The central feature of each is the cattle kraal (lesaka\ and adjoining
it the kxotla^ or court, where lawsuits are heard and other local business
is dealt with under the supervision of the headman, assisted by the more
important heads of families. The headman is responsible to the
chief for all that goes on in his ward, and the headmen of all the
wards together constitute an advisory council to the chief, being
consulted by him in all cases of emergency. 1 Members of the same
ward form a distinft seftion within the mephato (age-regiments)
under the headship and immediate authority of the one most senior
in status. In tribal gatherings the people are sometimes ordered by the
chief to sit according to their wards ; and one or more whole wards
may be allotted to a son of the Chief as his particular adherents. 2
Among the Kxatla there are some sixty-eight of these wards in the
tribe, with a population ranging from a maximum of 1,500 to a
minimum of forty and an average of 280. Among the Ngwato there
are no less than 300 of these wards with a somewhat larger average
of population in each. A ward may constitute either a quite separate
village, or more generally part of a village (whereas among the Southern
and Northern Sotho the village and the ward are usually one), but
in the latter case it is always socially and administratively distinft
from the other wards in the village. 3

Larger Tribal Divisions.

Among the Kxatla and the Ngwato, the wards are grouped together
into larger divisions of the tribe. In the Kxatla tribe, " there are five
of these major divisions, named respectively BaKxosing, BaMorema,
BaThsukudu, BaMabodisa, BaManamakxoti. These divisions rank
in precedence according to the order in which they have just been
listed. The first division, the BaKxosing, embraces all the wards derived

1 On this whole section, see I. Schapera, " The Old Bantu Culture," in Schapera, 1934,
18 ff. ; and Schapera, 1935, 203 ff., from which this account is taken.

1 Schapera, 1935, 213.

* A ward is called kx6r6 or bcotla by the Kxatla ; rarely mots*. The Ngwato call a ward
most usually motse and less frequently kxotla. The Pedi use kx6r6 for the men's gathering
place in the village (mout), and maintain there a central fire from which women are excluded.

9 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

from the chiefs of the ruling dynasty for wards often come into
being through separation from some parent group. The next two
are more remotely conne&ed, but are also regarded as of true Kxatla
stock. The last two are made up for the most part of alien groups
absorbed into the tribe in the early days of its history. Each division
also contains some foreign groups more recently incorporated, the
general rule being that where a group of strangers is accepted into
the tribe, they are allowed to form a separate ward of their own,
with their leader as headman, and are then placed by the chief within
one of the five main divisions. Within each division, the wards are
graded in rank according to their seniority of descent or historical
status. This order of precedence was formerly striftly observed in
connexion with such communal ceremonies as the eating of first-
fruits, the initiation of boys and girls into adult membership of the
tribe, and the rites at the establishment of a new town or village ;
it is still of some social importance." l " Among the BaNgwato there
are only four major divisions in the tribe, and each division contains
wards of dihcosana (patrilineal relatives, however remote, of the
reigning dynasty) ; wards ofbathlanka (commoners of long-established
Ngwato stock) ; wards of bafhaladi (comparatively recent accretions
to the tribe) ; and even some wards of malata (subjeft peoples, such
as the MaSarwa and MaKxalaxadi). Nor are the divisions ranked in
any order of precedence, although within each division it is possible
to rank the wards of dikxosana according to seniority of descent,
and the wards of batUanka according to seniority of status. Another
notable point of difference is that, whereas among the BaKxatla the
Chief of the tribe always belongs to the BaKxosing division and is
the headman of its senior ward, among the BaNgwato the chief
has no ward of his own, while different Chiefs have belonged to
different divisions." 2 These major divisions do not seem to exist
among the Southern and Northern Sotho and have not been reported
for any other Western Sotho tribe.

The single Sotho ward certainly corresponds most closely with the
ibandla of the Southern Nguni, but the interconnexion of these
organizations in the tribal whole is very different in the two systems.
However, the inTshinga and iQauka divisions of clans among the
Xhosa show the same tendency to separate the lineal descendants of
the tribal ancestor from the descendants of ancestors taken into the
political system for a variety of reasons.

1 Schapcra, 193$, 205. * Schapera, 1935, 206.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 9 1

Households:

Within the ward we find the households, each with its own home-
stead or lapa. The members of a family husband, wife, and dependent
children live together in the same lapa, 1 but where there is more than
one wife each is entitled to her own lapa. All the huts of the same lapa
are enclosed within a courtyard by a low rectangular wall. The
malapa of close family connections, such as father and married sons,
may be found joined on to one another by connecting courtyard walls,
while separate family units will have a space between their walls and
those of their neighbours. In the old days when polygyny was
commonly practised, the general rule was that the wife first married
ranked as the senior or great wife. The other wives were of less
importance, but also ranked according to their order of marriage. The
only exceptions to this rule of precedence were : (a) when a man,
after marrying one or more wives, married the girl to whom he was
first betrothed, as in cases of infant betrothal ; or (K) when he married
the daughter of his maternal uncle. This new wife then took precedence
over all the others, and acquired the corresponding privileges. The
most outstanding expression of this difference in status between a man's
wives is found among the Pedi, where the mother of the heir to the
chieftainship must be a woman chosen by the tribe, whose loxadi
is collected from the tribe, and who, moreover, kindles with her
husband, when she comes to his mosaic, or capital, a new ritual fire,
from brands of which new fires must be kindled in all homesteads
of the tribe. This woman then becomes the wife of the country and
an intimate relationship exists between her son and the tribe from his
birth. 2

Totem Groups.

In all the Sotho tribes we find " a wider system of grouping which
cuts across the limits of the tribes. The members of such a wider group
(for which there is no special native term) all regard themselves as
intimately bound up, in some mystical way, with a certain species of
animal or natural object, known as their seano (object of reverence),
serito (honour), seila (taboo), or seboko (praise-name). The name of
this animal or object is used as a ceremonial or laudatory form of

1 Other close relatives may also be found living in their own lapa, e.g. a widow and her
children; cf. Schapera, 1935, 220.
1 W. Eiselen, 1931, 38.

9 2 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

address, just as is the isiOongo of the Nguni tribes. There are special
myths telling how each group originally obtained 'the seano y and all
the members of a group have to observe various taboos and other
usages in connection with the animal or objeft which they revere ".*
Formerly, " if it was an animal, no one of that group might eat its
flesh, use its skin, or even touch it, lest some serious misfortune befall
him. Still less would he dare kill it, unless it was harmful and did mani-
fest damage, and in that case he had to be ceremonially purified after-
wards." * There is no bar to marriage of people having the same
seanSy but in cases of mixed marriage the children take the seano of
their father. There also does not appear to be any kind of social
solidarity among the members of such a group. Frequently they may
be scattered over many different tribes, as in the case of those whose
seano is the crocodile (kwena) ; they are found all over the Sotho
area. On the other hand, a single tribe can also include members of
many different seano groups. In a single Ngwato ward, the following
seanS are to be found: kwena (crocodile); moyo (heart); tlou
(elephant) ; phuti (duiker) ; nare (buffalo) ; kxabo (ape) ; tau or
sebata (lion) ; kubu (hippopotamus) ; kolobe (boar). 8 Sometimes a
group, or part of a group, would for some historical or political
motive discard its existing seano and adopt a new one, with a corre-
sponding change in the taboos it had to observe.

It was groups of people with different seano or seboko who settled
in Basutoland and were gathered together in a confederacy of tribes
by Moshesh in the early nineteenth century. 4 Moshesh belonged to a
branch of the Kwena, which is the dominant group in Basutoland
to-day. Gradually his family has asserted its authority over the other
tribes in the country. He himself parcelled out large se&ions of the
country among the four sons of his principal wife. Their descendants
are the big chiefs in Basutoland to-day. But the Paramount Chief, the
principal heir to the chieftainship of Moshesh, is gradually gathering
the administration into closer touch with his own immediate family,
by rt placing" his own sons over the heads of the descendants of
other branches of Moshesh's family. The status of the different tribes is
thus being diminished, and the whole population welded together into
a " nation ", rather than a confederacy, with administrative authority

* Schapcra, " The Old Bantu Culture," in Schapera, ^1934, 18, 19.

Schapera,

, up. cit, 19. Schapcra, 1935, 214, note.

i of Kxatla, Pedi, Phuti, Kholokoe, Sia, Tlokoa, Tlou, Kwena, Tswene, Hlokoana,
Khoakhoa, as well as groups of people from Zululand and the Transkei. Cf. Laydevant,
1931, 207 ff. ; Ellcnbergcr and MacGregor, 1912 ; and J. C. MacGregor, Basuto Tra&tion*
(Capetown, 1905).

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 93

chiefly in the hands of the descendants of one family, the senior branch
of the family of Moshesh.

Age Sets.

In the Sotho tribes, the members of an age set (mophato, pi.
mephato ; also called thaka by North and South Sotho) used all to
undergo circumcision and a period of group-training of a very different
nature from that of the Nguni. 1 These age sets are ranged in a
hierarchy of men, and still to-day play a considerable part in the lives
of the people, especially among the Northern and Western Sotho,
where an age group may be called upon to perform many different
kinds of communal duties for the tribe or chief. In Basutoland, it is
rather specific villages, or distrifts, which are called upon for this work
for the chief of their area, who is entitled to use free labour for
ploughing, cultivating and reaping, not only a tribal land but also on
land allotted to his principal wife.

SHANGANA-TONGA AND VENDA

There is no space to go into similar detail concerning the social
organization of the other groups dealt with in this book. Funda-
mentally, the organization is of the same type, with the underlying
kinship stru&ure, the hierarchy of age, the dominance of one lineage
in the political stru&ure.

The Shangana-Tonga organization, since the overlordship of
Soshangane and his descendants came to an end, is once more of
the original simple tribal type. 2 Within the tribe, the patrilineal
lineage is the dominant kinship organization of the same eponymous
type as among the Nguni, and there is nothing corresponding to the
totemic grouping found among the Sotho. Within the kinship system,
attention must be drawn to a type of marriage among kin which links
the Shangana-Tonga with the Ndau of Portuguese East Africa and
the tribes of the Shona group. In all these tribes, marriage of cousins,
parallel or cross, is forbidden, but a man who has transferred cattle
for a wife has certain claims on her family which he may go far in
exafting. Should his wife prove barren or otherwise fail to fulfil
her marital obligations, the man can marry another woman from
his wife's family, her younger sister, her brother's daughter, or, in

1 See below, Chap. V, pp. 99 f.

1 Cf. H. A. Junod, 1927; A. A. Jacques, 1928, 3270348.

94 SOCIAL ORGANIZATION

the last resort, her brother's wife the woman who has been
established by means of his cattle ! In the Tonga tribes, further, the
most extreme type of behaviour is allowed between a man and his
sister's son, i.e. between the malume and the ntukulu. The ntukulu
has a preferential position in his malume s home and is permitted very
great liberty with his malume's property and his malume' s wife. The
malume^ on the other hand, must always be solicitous for his sister's
children, sacrifice for them if need be, and maintain contaft with them
at all times. We find, then, that the mother's family plays a much
greater part in the lives of her children in these tribes than is the case
with the Sotho or the Nguni.

The Venda * tribes praftise cross-cousin marriage, and the father's
sister is a person of dominant importance in the lives of her nephews
and nieces. The sister is closely linked to her brother right through
life, and, in the case of the chief, the father's sister (makhadi?) and the
sister play a part in the administrative and religious life of the people
not paralleled in the other groups with which we are dealing.

Here also we find the mutupo grouping, which is very similar to the
group called by its seano or seboko name among the Sotho. It is a
patrilineal system of grouping, usually named after some animal with
which there is a ritual connexion, preventing the members of the
mutupo from killing or eating that animal. The mutupo members
may observe various food- and other taboos, and generally there is
a number of praise phrases (tshikhodo) by which members can be
honoured in address. They are not exogamous and are not limited
in membership to any one tribe. In other respe&s the social organiza-
tion is very similar to that of the Northern Sotho.

1 Cf. H. A. Stayt, 1931, chaps, xi and xv; and-G. P. Lestrade, 1930, 306-322.

CHAPTER V

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT
By EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

CHILD LIFE

IN Bantu society, where the status of a man is measured largely by
the size of his kraal and that of a woman by the number of children
she has borne, the birth of a child is hailed with great joy as an event
of importance to the whole village. For a long time after birth the
young child is believed to be weak, peculiarly liable to be injured
by harmful magical forces in the outside world. It is therefore confined
to its hut until the umbilical cord drops off and then is allowed out
only after it has been specially strengthened. This treatment varies
from tribe to tribe. Among the Zulu, Xhosa, and other South-Eastern
tribes, the child is held in the smoke of burning animal charms, given
medicine to drink, and scarified and rubbed with the charred remains
of the charms. The amulets worn by infants, the rites performed from
time to time during babyhood, the belief of the Shangana-Tonga
that " the child grows by medicine ", all lend support to Junod's
theory that the Bantu look upon babyhood as a marginal period
a period of ill-health ended at weaning, among the Shangana-Tonga,
by a rite similar to that performed after a period of illness or mourning. 1

The Bantu child is not weaned until two or three years old. Should
the mother become pregnant before this, she would " cut the road "
of the first child, making him thin or paralysed, an a&ion that is
severely censured. Sexual intercourse will, however, have been
resumed long before weaning, very often, as among Tonga, Lobedu,
and others, accompanied by a rite to ensure the child against harm.

The name, that of an ancestor or one given to commemorate some
event at the time of birth, is received usually when the child is taken
out of the hut for the first time. Later in life it will be given other
names, but the birth-name is the one always used by the parents and
others of their generation. A very common rite found among

* H. A. Junod, 1927, i, 58-
95

96 EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

Shangana-Tonga, Venda, and Sotho, the significance of which is
difficult to discover, is showing the baby to the moon. The child
may simply be taken outside with the words " There is your rakhadi
(father's sister) ". Sometimes there is a special rite by means of which
the child " enters the law " or the parents " take possession of it "- 1

After weaning, the child becomes one of a group of many mis-
chievous toddlers to be seen about every Bantu village. 2 It is never
lonely nor does it lack playmates, for the village includes a number of
adult women with children more or less the same age. Toddlers are
looked after by their mothers and elder sisters, who take great pride
in teaching them the correft way of greeting their elders, of receiving
gifts, of dancing to the clapping of hands, and countless other things.
When naughty, they are frightened by tales of monsters who, in
Bantu folklore, carry off disobedient children. Their greatest danger
is that of falling into the open fires that burn in the huts ; but for the
rest they live a care-free life, with no clothes to keep clean, and few
of the dangerous instruments of civilization that take their toll of
child life. Parents are indulgent without unduly pampering their
children.

At an early age children learn not to sit with or eat with people
older than themselves. They spend most of their time with those of
their own age, play together or work together, and are recognized
by their elders as a group, from which colle&ive responsibility in
herding and other occupations is expefted. At first no wider than the
immediate family circle, this group, as the child grows and comes into
contaft with an ever-wider circle of people, includes first other
children in the neighbourhood, and finally, at circumcision or enrol-
ment into a regiment, embraces all of the same age within the tribe.
The educational value of these age sets is very great : not only are
selfishness, bad temper, and other faults more effectively checked by
the group than they could ever be by parents, but the younger children
are striftly controlled by the group just older than themselves.

The irresponsible period of early childhood does not last very
long, for at the age of five to six boys begin to herd lambs and calves,
and girls to nurse their brothers and sisters or help their mothers to
draw water, fetch firewood, and gather spinach. Loiter the girl begins
to grind, cook, and hoe with a light hoe, and by the time she is twelve
is capable of doing all the housework expected of a woman. The boys,

1 Junod, 1027, i, f6; D. Kidd, 1906, 12 f.

* Among the Shangana-Tonga and other tribes children are sent to their mother's people
for a year or two after weaning.

PLATE VII

" Daughters of Africa "

Kxatla children, B.P.
(Notice the method of carrying the babies)

PLATE VIII

f.V.,7. van Warm fin

(a) Vhushu rite of the Yenda

[J.Keynrke

(b) Kxatla maxwane (Male novices)

about to be whipped in the **0//a

(This ceremony is held annually until it is decided to send the boys through the

boxwera, or initiation proper)
INITIATION CEREMONIES

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT 97

after many a beating for letting the goats stray into the gardens, will,
at the age of ten or twelve, begin to herd cattle with the bigger boys,
an important step in their development which, in Zulu society, did
not take place in the old days till their " ears had been opened " in
the ear-piercing ceremony. 1

While herding all day, the boys acquire a wealth of veldlore. They
learn to know the names of all the edible birds and plants, they learn
to make traps and organize their own hunts and fights, becoming
adepts at killing birds on the wing by hurling knobkerries at them.

There is great similarity in the games played by children in different
South African tribes. Everywhere one finds boys and girls playing
with dolls, clay oxen, and string figures ; there are dancing and singing
games, tests of knowledge and also mixed games, played by both sexes
together. Many of the boys 9 games, such as stabbing at a tuber rolled
down a slope, give them an excellent training in exaftness of aim,
which will stand them in good stead later on when they hunt ; while
the miniature villages in which Sotho and Venda boys and girls play
at being grown-up, cooking, grinding, and hunting, just as they have
seen their elders do, afford a valuable training in the duties of later life.

The status of the child in later life will depend upon the accidents
of his birth his relationship to the chief, the importance of the clan
of which he is a member, and the position of his mother in the village
(whether she is a chief wife or a minor wife). During childhood, how-
ever, he is thought to be of very little importance. But, though he
has to show great deference towards everyone older than himself,
his individuality and his rights over any possessions that he may have,
such as goats, are always respefted. There are also occasions on
which, by virtue of his sexual immaturity and ritual purity, he plays
a leading part in ceremonial for the welfare of the whole tribe. Among
the Venda, Northern Sotho, and Eastern Tswana, it is small boys and
girls who must sprinkle the country with medicine to make the rain
fall 2 and, when birds become troublesome and have to be upa'd
or scared away by magic, children again play a leading part. 3 Among
the Zulu only boys under puberty may eat the remains of the black
bull strangled at the first-fruit ceremonies, and for the annual thevhula
ceremony of the Venda all preparations must be made by young and
innocent girls. 4 Children in Bantu society, therefore, besides being

1 Mahlobo and Krige, 1934, 163.

* W. Eiselen, 1928, 3*7-39* H. A. Stayt, 1931, 311 ; E. J. Krigc^ 1931, 223 ; I. Schapera,
1910, 211 ff.
1 Krige, 1931, 228-9. N. J. van Warmelo, 1932, 155.

98 EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

essential for the prestige and social position of both men and women,
are, as cattle-herds, nurse-maids, and general helpers in the village, of
considerable importance in the tribal economy, while at certain periods
their co-operation is essential in ritual for the general welfare of the
tribe.

EDUCATION AND INITIATION
General Education.

Bantu education, the preparation of the child for the work of life,
differs from that of the European, not only because the life led by
adults in these two societies is so different, but also because their
theory of the sort of preparation that is necessary is not the same.
European education is conceived largely as the handing down to the
next generation of a system of knowledge, essential for overcoming
the difficulties and solving the problems of adult life. In Bantu society
success and welfare are not bound up with knowledge alone, and
difficulties are overcome not so much by the application of science,
as by use of magic and appeal to ancestors. For the natural forces to
work, for rain to fall and crops to mature, it is essential that correft
ritual be observed, taboos remain unbroken, and custom be faithfully
adhered to. What a man knows is therefore less important than what
he does, how he lives and behaves ; success and welfare are closely
related to morality and any change from traditional ways is looked
upon with suspicion.

The moulding of the individual to the social norm is achieved
chiefly through ritual and ceremonial. By aftive participation in ritual
he is made to feel the importance of those things that are of
value to society, and the correft emotional attitude to cattle
and crops comes, not so much from any conscious teaching, as
from imitation and participation in rites in which these values are
emphasized.

Economic education is carried on within the family with a strift
dichotomy of sex. The Bantu child learns by doing and imitating.
A boy watches his father cut wooden pillows, helps him make baskets
and put up a door in the hut, till later on he is himself able to perform
these tasks. A girl helps her mother 'weave mats, fetches and carries
for her while she is making pots, till she becomes quite proficient
herself.

Training in social behaviour comes partly from the older members

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT 99

of the family, partly from one's own age set, while the educational
value of play and games is as great in Bantu society as in our own.
The riddles and folk-tales recounted on dark nights not only give
full play to imagination, but inculcate the values and moral ideas
obtaining in their society.

Initiation " Schools ".

Formal education is given in the initiation schools, which play
a very important part in the life of every individual. The Bantu
tend to conceive of the development of the individual as a series of
stages clearly marked off from one another. Puberty marks an
important stage, marriage another. To pass successfully from one
such stage to the next, it is considered necessary to secure the aid
of forces that can influence one's life for good or bad. It is usual,
therefore, at such times to have ceremonies by means of which a break
with the faults and weaknesses of the previous stage is efFe&ed, the
initiate is strengthened by magic and appeal to the ancestors, and is
instrufted in the duties and privileges he is about to assume. These
rites emphasize the change that is taking place ; and the emotions they
evoke, together with the impressionable age of the scholars, help to
give a lasting effeft to the precepts inculcated.

There are not many schools before puberty. The Zulu ear-piercing
ceremony takes place at the age of seven or eight, and the Venda
thondo is said to be a school in which boys from the age of about
eight may, together with others much older than themselves, receive
instruftion every evening till they reach puberty. 1 It is wrapped in
secrecy, is attended mainly by children of high rank, and an important
part of the instruction is training in stealth and individual daring,
so useful for military purposes. The young men serving as warriors
at the chief's kraal spend much of their time in the thondo^ which as a
permanent institution is the nearest approach to the European con-
ception of a school. It has, however, this advantage over our schools,
that it is an institution to which adults also belong and plays an
important part in Venda life. There is also a thondo for girls, in which
women and girls of rank are taught Venda etiquette. 2

1 According to van Warmelo (1932, 109), its main function seems to be that of a meeting-
place for the garrison of warriors who regularly spend the night in the Chief's kraal, in addition
to which it provides education for the young.

1 van Warmelo, 1932, in.

100 EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

Puberty Ceremonies.

Puberty, the great dividing line between childhood and the physical
maturity of adult life, is, among many tribes, notably those of the
South-East, the occasion of ceremonial in which the young boy or
girl is secluded in a hut for a while, given strengthening medicines
or committed to the care of the ancestors, and taught a number of
things. 1 The ceremonial is accompanied by much singing and dancing
by the age-mates of the initiate. 2 The Khoba or Vhusha ceremony for
girls in the Northern Transvaal is more severe. The girl is beaten
and made to repeat formulae (many of which concern sexual funftions)
while standing in water, and there is in the final dancing also a good
deal of mummery. At the Vhusha the Venda girl is warned not to
become deflowered before marriage, being shown how to have
intercourse without this occurring. 3 The educational importance of
these puberty ceremonies, however, lies not so much in the teachings,
as in the nature of the whole ceremonial, which is meant to impress
upon the individual the faft that he is now no longer a child.

Circumcision.

Circumcision is widespread in South Africa. 4 Among the tribes
practising it, it is regarded as an essential step in the life of every man.
The uncircumcised is considered a boy all his life, may take no part

1 Individual puberty ceremonies for girls at or about the time of their first menstruation
are found among all Nguni and Shangana-Tonaa, as well as among Venda and Northern Sotho.
The Tswana and Southern Sptho, on the other hand, have only the bale or byaU national schools
for girls, corresponding to circumcision of boys. In the North Transvaal puberty ceremonies
and ByaU exist side by side. Puberty ceremonies for boys are not as widespread as for girls,
being found, as far as published sources indicate, only among Venda, Natal Nguni, and, in
a vestigial form, among Shangana-Tonga.

* For a description of such puberty ceremonies, see E. ]. Krige, 1936, chap, v ; and
M. Hunter, 1936, chap. iii.

1 Cf. Stayt, 1931, 108. Cf. also Junod, 1927, i, 177-9, and van Warmelo, 1931, 37-51,
for descriptions of these ceremonies.

4 Once practised by all the South African Bantu, circumcision has died out in several Nguni
tribes. The Zulu discarded it in or just before Shaka's days, the Natal tribes no longer practise
it, the Swazi dropped it in the days of Malunge, regent during Mbandzeni's minority (Engel-
brecht, 1930, ai), the Mpondo abandoned it in 1867 under Faku's rule, thoudi a small seftion,
die AmaNqanda, which at the time of Faku's prohibition lived in Tembuland, as well as a
few Mpondomise and Fingo groups in Pondoland, still retain it (Hunter, 1936, i6j). Among
the Ronga seftion of the Shangana-Tonga circumcision fell into disuse more than a hundred
years ago Qunod, 1917, i, 72), though it is still practised extensively by the Shangana-Tonga
of the Transvaal. In Bechuanaland it has been abandoned by all tribes except the Tlokwa
and MmaLete (ed.). While dying out in some tribes, circumcision has been gaining ground
in others, and in recent years has been adopted* by the Venda, who did not circumcise.
The present distribution of circumcision cannot be fully plotted out, owing to complete lack
of information on many tribes. We do, however, know from published sources that it is practised
by Xhosa, Thembu, Fingo, and Bomvana ; some of the Tswana tribes ; the Southern Sotho :
the Pedi, Masemola, Lemba, Ndebele, Matlala of North-West Transvaal, Mmamabolo of
Woodbush, Transvaal Shangana-Tonga, Venda and Lobedu, Xananwa, Letswalo, and Khaha.
In Portuguese East Africa it is practised by Chopi and some Shangana-Tonga.

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT IOI

in the councils and deliberations of men, is looked down upon by
women and may not marry. Among the Sotho this school has a
national character not found in other tribes : it is held by the chief
every three or four years for the whole tribe, the boys are specially
taught to honour the chief and the tribe and all are enrolled into a
regiment at the end of the school. 1

Preparations for the school vary : Tswana novices are for a long
time previously subje&ed to taboos and severe beatings for the faults
of their childhood ; Pedi boys work for the chief for a few years
before the school. The night before the formal opening is usually
spent at the chief's kraal, where the first separation rites take place,
such as shaving and being beaten with medicated sticks. Next day
the operation takes place in a secluded valley in order of rank and
amidst loud singing to drown the cries of the boys. 2 Medicines are
applied to the wounds and it would seem that considerable skill is
shown by many operators. 3 The foreskins may be thrown into
running water, placed in the monumental stone filled with ashes at
the end of the school (Matlala), hidden by each boy in an antheap
(Xhosa), or even eaten in medicated meat (South Sotho).

For three months the initiates will now live in a lodge, which has
been specially prepared. Here they are completely cut off from
ordinary life, observe many taboos, use special terms for many obje&s
and are in the direft charge of those who went through the previous
school. The men who live in the lodge must refrain from sexual
intercourse, lest the wounds of the boys do not heal, and any man who
wishes to enter has to know the correct passwords. The uncircumcised
may not come near, on pain of death.

One of the main obje&s of this school is to train the boys in courage
and endurance. They are beaten on the slightest pretext, have to
sleep on their backs on the bare ground without covering, and are
severely punished if unable to repeat the formulae and songs that are
so great a feature of the school. They receive a good training in
hunting and in some tribes wooden figures of animals are shown the
initiates. Not only do many of the songs contain reference to sexual

1 For detailed descriptions of circumcision schools of these tribes, see C. Hoffmann, 1914-
15, 81-112; P. Ramseyer, 1928, 40-70; J. T. Brown, 1921, 419-427; W. C. Willoughby,
1909, 228-24; > C. A. Wheelwright, 1905 251-5 ; N. Roberts and C. A. T. Winter, 1915,
561-578 ; Junod, 1927, i, ?i~94 ; W. Eiselen, 1929, passim.

1 Among die Nguni, the boys are expected to show their manliness by uttering no cries.

1 For observations of a European doclor on the cleanliness and good results obtained, see
G. A. Turner, " Circumcision amongst South African Natives," ML J. S. Afr., x (1914-15),

102 EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

functions, but during the whole period language that at other times
would be considered obscene is used to the women who bring the food.

After the wounds have healed a great change occurs. Whereas
the initiates have hitherto always sat facing the west, they are now
made to face east : they turn from the darkness of childhood to the
light of manhood. This is sometimes the occasion of a feast, and
among the Lobedu it is now that the boys are given strengthening
medicine. What this consists of, we do not know, but among the
Southern Sotho and the Transvaal Ndebele it contains human remains. 1
A pole, probably of phallic significance, is now brought into the lodge.
The boys have to greet it respeftfully and from here instruftion is
given. At the end of the school the hair is shaved, new clothes and
a new name given, and the initiates are received back into society
amidst great feasting. The lodge is burnt. The period of circumcision
is a critical one for the whole tribe : there must be no quarrels and
jealousies at home and dancing is taboo.

Circumcision among the Xhosa and other Transkei tribes has
neither the secrecy nor the formality of the Sotho schools. It is local
in character, only from two to twenty boys forming each school,
and it is not connefted with the formation of regiments. 2 In fact,
circumcision here differs little from the ordinary ear-piercing
ceremonies of the Zulu. The seclusion, strift only until the wounds
have healed, seems to have no other significance than the medical
need for keeping the boys from " uncleanness ", sexual and other,
that is believed to affect wounds. There is said to be no formal
teaching except of dancing, no hardships are undergone, and, once
their wounds have healed, the boys spend their time day after day
dancing and love-making at feasts held by each father in turn, till the
school is concluded by a lefture on how they should behave in
future. 3 Basutoland schools fall midway between those of the
Transvaal tribes and those of the Nguni ; the boys are in the charge
of only one or two teachers, there is more formality and secrecy than
among the Xhosa, while there are in addition elements, e.g. the
eating of medicated meat and the manner in which boys express their
desire to undergo initiation, 4 that appear to be borrowed from puberty
and Sutwa ceremonies in Natal.

1 Cf. H. Dieterlen, Sesuto-English Dictionary, s.v. sehocre; and H. C. M. Fouric, 1921, 134.
1 Xhosa regiments are clan-, not age-groups.

* For descriptions of these ceremonies, see P. A. W. Cook, 1931, 71-64; A. Schweiger,
1-6$.
H. E. Mabille, 1905-6, 247-8.

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT 103

The Boxwera.

Among the Northern Sotho and Tswana circumcision is supple-
mented by the boxwera, a school taking place sometimes a year later,
but often, as among Pedi and Letswalo, only four or five years later. 1
During the period between the two schools the boys find themselves
without status : they are looked down upon even more than the
uncircumcised, and should they beget a child it would be killed.
This school and the girl's byak, which occur at the same time and in
many respefts supplement one another, last a whole year. 2 The lodge
of the boys, like that of the girls, is in the chief's kraal, their seclusion
being by no means as strift as during circumcision, though they may
not be seen without the reed mask and costume chara&eristic of the
boxwera. Many months are spent in the preparation of these elaborate
costumes. When addressed by the uncircumcised, the boys have to
reply in the whistling language. 3 Apart from the work done for the
chief, cutting poles, softening skins, hunting, the boys are taught
" laws ", mainly rules of conduft in married life, the necessity for
providing for one's mother in her old age, and in dealings with men,
keeping peace and order. An important feature is the songs and dancing
in very heavy, clumsy costumes which cause real suffering to the
wearer, constituting a great test of endurance. The boys are now
initiated into the secret of the wonderful bird or beast, the ruling
spirit of the by ale. This consists of a conical frame covered with
strings of bark, which serves to cover the man or men afting the
part of this mysterious creature, the whole being surmounted by a
head. It is said to come from a deep pool, it whistles out its commands
on a peculiar flute and appears in the village only on moonlight
nights. During the period that follows its appearance, the whole
tribe is subjeft to strift rules : it is taboo to make a noise in the villages,
it is taboo to dance in the day or get drunk or beat one's wife. The
school ends in a feast for both boys and girls, after which the lodge

1 Pedi, Khaha, Mmamabolo of Woodbush, Letswalo, Lobedu, Matlala, and probably many
other North Transvaal tribes hold this school. For accounts of its nature, which has nowhere
been fully studied, see Junod, 1929, 131-147 ; C. Hoffmann, 1914-15, 100-111 ; W. Eiselen,
1929, 40 f. ; G. Beyer, 1926, 258-9. Note that the term boxwira is used by Tswana and others
who have only one school for the circumcision school. (Note by editor : Some Tswana tribes
have two schools, the first being termed " the white boxwtra " and the second " the black
boxwlra ").

* Among Khaha, Lobedu, and other North Transvaal tribes Box w era and byale occur together ;
but it is not clear if this is also true of the Pedi and others.

Bantu languages being tone-bound, it is possible to convey by whistling almost as much
as one can by the words themselves.

104 EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

and costumes are burnt. Among the Pedi, Letswalo and Matlala, the
boys receive cuts from chin to ear, a rite that in other tribes belongs
to the Komana school. It would seem that this is a merging of the two
schools.

The Komana.

The komana is a rain rite as well as a school, which, among the
Lobedu, used to be held twice a year for about ten days. 1 It was
opened in the usual way by running the gauntlet, after which each
boy received four circular cuts from mouth to ear on either cheek,
a painful and lengthy process. The main objeft of this school appears
to be the introduction of the boys into the deepest secrets of the tribe.
They are, among the Lobedu, shown the sacred drums, among which
is the rain drum, and learn for the first time that the badaja or spirits
of ancestors, who are supposed to come back to earth after certain
ceremonies, throwing stones when offended, to frighten the uninitiated,
and speaking in the whistling language, are in reality old and trusted
men who aft the part. Many special songs are sung, but there are no
thrashings or hardships of any kind.

Byale or Girls 9 " Circumcision " School.

While the tyale appears to be a single culture complex in South
Africa, the ceremonies held in Basutoland and Bechuanaland differ
from those in the Northern Transvaal in the complete absence of the
mysterious beast which controls the whole school in the north. 2 The
opening rites in the Northern Transvaal consist of beating the girls
with medicated rods and smearing those holding official positions
(the chief's daughters and some others) with the stomach contents
of an ox that has been slaughtered for the occasion (Lobedu). The
initiates wear skin skirts and bands across the chest of woven bark
and grass, 3 which are believed to ensure fruitfulness, and they may
not smear their bodies with fat. The day is spent working, and
besides being made to perform various exercises, such as hopping
on one leg and picking up stones, they are subje&ed to other hardships.

1 There is no adequate description of this schopl, found among the Lobedu and other North
Transvaal tribes. It is mentioned by Junod, 1929, 144, and more fully described by . J.
Krige, 1931, 216-220.

( For 'descriptions of this school, see : Mabille, 1905-6, 250-1 ; Ellenberger and MacGregor,
1912, 288-9 ! T. Brown, 1926, 89. For ceremonies in the North Transvaal, see : G. Thilenius
1915, 72-5 ; H. M. Franz, 1929, 1-5 ; Stayt, 1931, 138-141 ; van Warmelo, 1932, 79-103.

In Basutoland they wear masks as well.

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT 105

They are severely beaten, their meals of dry porridge must, like those
in the boys' circumcision school, be eaten very quickly, and unpleasant
tasks, such as that of eating fresh cow-dung, are set. They must be
very humble and respe&ful to all and have to use the special terms
characteristic of the school whenever they speak.

The nights are spent elongating the labia minora, for which medicine
made of parts of a bat is effeflive, and in singing and dancing. Some
of the songs among the Lobedu are in praise of various important
sibs, others have reference to sexual fun&ions, while the most im-
portant song of all, that in honour of the Bird of the School, contains
advice (in metaphorical terms) not to be deflowered. Sometimes the
Bird terrifies the girls by coming into the courtyard and stamping out
their fire. When mosabetho songs are sung, the men who have been
through all three schools come and " choose " the women they like,
with whom they have sexual intercourse after the dance, and towards the
end of the school the iyale girls are allowed to join in, though, should
anyone be impregnated, the usual fine will have to be paid.

The " showing of the dihSma ", or mummeries, plays an important
part in the school. One of the Xananwa dikoma is called Phudi. It is
the model of a goat with eyes of a certain red fruit used in rain medicine,
and is a sign of fruitfulness. The girls are asked what it is and beaten
if they do not know. Another, Mapono, is a woman disguised in a
dress of reeds with a headpiece of horns. She comes dancing in and
chases the girls, who flee in terror. Another kSma, Motlankana, is
a girl dressed as a man, with imitation penis, who, after inviting every
girl to accompany " him ", seizes one and simulates sexual intercourse
while a song is sung. Some time during the school the operation,
usually a cut on the clitoris, 1 is performed and the ceremony is ended
in a dance and feast. The significance of the by ale has not been properly
studied, but there can be no doubt that it is closely associated with
fertility and is, like the boxwera, a preparation for marriage.

Venda boys and girls are prepared for marriage in the domba^ which
appears to be a fertility rite, the central feature of which is the python
dance. The python is closely associated with rain in Venda thought :
when killed it must be thrown in the river lest rain be withheld, while
python skin renders a barren woman fertile. 3 In the domba, boys and
girls are, by means of formulae and the use of mummery, taught about

1 This is true for Lobedu and Venda. Xananwa, Tlokwa, and Moletse make a diagonal
cut below the urethra (Franz, op. tit.), while the Mmamabolo deflower the girls with a cow horn.
* Stayt, 1931, 111-124; van Warmelo, 1931, 52-79.
Stayt, 1931, 309-310.

106 EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

childbirth, marriage, and sexual life, but so indireft is this teaching,
and so generally unintelligible to the European who approaches
the matter without a full knowledge of its significance, its context
and setting and the whole configuration of values and institutions
in v which it fulfils its true moral funftion, that it is described,' except
by a few investigators, as merely obscene.

Methods of Teaching in the " Schools "

Every Bantu child, in addition to the education received in his own
home, which enables him to satisfy his economic needs, thus passes
through at least one and often more than one school. 1 If we are to
understand the value of these schools in tribal life we must not judge
them by the knowledge inculcated, so much as by the manner in which
they fit the individual (or are thought to fit him) for the life he is to
lead as an adult. The fun&ion of each school is different, but, broadly
speaking, we can say that every school is a preparation for a new
step in the life of the individual, in which an attempt is made to
imbue him with the qualities and the knowledge necessary for that
stage. The qualities believed by the Bantu to be most important for
success in adult life are ability to bear children and strength, courage,
and endurance in the work of life ; hence these things are emphasized
in the schools. In addition they learn to honour the chief and tribal
custom, respeft those older than themselves, value those things which
are of value to the society, and observe tribal taboos, especially those
conne&ed with sex life.

The methods employed vary. Fertility and other qualities of adult-
hood can be obtained only by means of rites, medicine, and invocations
to the ancestors for their blessings, and we must never lose sight of
the fad that Bantu initiation schools are primarily rites, the inculcation
of knowledge and precepts being of secondary importance. A common
method employed, in the teaching of precepts and of showing initiates
their new duties is the use of songs and mummery, a method that
has a great appeal to primitive and illiterate people. To train them
in courage and endurance they are subje&ed to hardships and tests.
Teaching in Bantu schools is seldom direft and usually symbolical :
boys in the circumcision school are taught to be truthful, not by
exhortations, but by having their tongues clamped with a piece of

1 In the North Transvaal and in Zululand, girls have two schools, boys three ; in Basuto-
land and Bechuanaland, girls and boys have one, while there are tribes that have two schools
for boys and one for girls. The Venda are so school-ridden that, in addition to three of their
own for both boys and girls, they have two foreign adoptions, one for girls and one for boys.

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT 107

stick, and the formulae that they learn are couched in language that
only the initiated can understand. 1 Some of the formulae teach pre-
cepts useful in everyday life, others contain sexual teachings. These
formulae, often described as licentious and valueless, may appear to
the observer or reader, unaware of their setting and significance, as
crude ; but to the native they do not appear so. Out of their context
they might convey to the native mind some obscenity, corresponding
somewhat to the translation into licentious language by indiscriminate
use in ordinary social relations of the scientific terminology of a
professor in physiology. But even if that is so, they are taught in
an atmosphere of such awe and respeft for the school, and all it stands
for, that their psychological effeft cannot be otherwise than to
emphasize the importance of the things that are taught. One cannot
respeft the obscene, nor can precepts approved of and inculcated by
society as a whole be thought obscene by the individuals composing
that society. Even when judged from the European standpoint,
Bantu schools do achieve success in inculcating obedience, discipline
and general good behaviour, qualities that make many a European
employer prefer " boys " that have been through the schools to
others.

The growing popularity of initiation schools in the Transvaal
is not unconnected with the faft that they are a valuable source of
income to the chief, who not only receives fees from initiates, but
also enjoys their services before, during, and after the school. The
secrecy and mystery surrounding the schools is an attradtion to the
young. The schools of the Sotho have many elements in common
with the secret societies farther north, and appear to have been
influenced by them.

SEX LIFE AND MARRIAGE
Sex Life.

Bantu initiation schools and many other customs can be better
understood when looked at in the light of the Bantu attitude to sex.

1 Many of the formulae are so archaic as to be almost meaningless, others may not be grasped
at first, but are understood better after the individual has been through a number of schools
in other capacities, such as shepherd, older teacher, and so on. It is often stated that much
of what happens in the schools is meaningless to the Natives themselves. Care must, however,
be taken not to be too hasty in our judgments. We know very little of the schools and most
of what we do know has come at second-hand from individuals who have been through the
schools only as initiates. Much of what we teach in our own schools is neither understood
nor remembered by the pupils. Yet it would be misleading to conclude that our schools as
institutions have no value. Further, it is the ritual, rather than the teachings, that is of primary
importance in Bantu schools.

io8 EILEEN JENSEN KRICE

The Southern Bantu have not that horror of sexual intercourse that is
associated with the Christian idea that sex and sin are almost
synonymous. They look upon the union of the sexes as something
natural and good. Further, the value of the sex aft in perpetuating
the race, and its close association with human fertility and thus with
social welfare, make it an integral part of a number of rites. There
are times when sexual relations are essential when moving to a new
village (among the Shangana-Tonga), when a widow (Shangana-
Tonga) or a homicide (Zulu) has to be purified and there are
occasions when the sex aft is striftly taboo after a death, after
childbirth. 1

The sex life and funftions of the individual are believed to influence
nature : a menstruating woman is a danger, not only to any man who
has relations with her, but also to the cattle who would become ill
if she were to go into their kraal and, among the south-eastern tribes,
to drink their milk. Any irregularity in child-bearing, such as the birth
of twins, an abortion, or a miscarriage, is thought by many tribes
to have an effeft on the rain. If a Pedi woman has an abortion, it is
considered enough to desiccate the country with heat, and a rite will
have to be performed before rain will fall, 2 while among the Lobedu
abortions and twins have to be buried in wet soil, lest they cause
drought. It is clear that here the fertility and sexual funftions of
human beings, and the rain, so essential for the fertility of the fields,
are thought to be so closely connefted that irregularities in the one
easily affeft the other.

If the sex aft is a powerful means for good, it is at the same time
considered to be full of dangers. It brings in its train a certain
" uncleanness " or defilement which may prevent the healing of
wounds and the recovery of sick people. Hence, among the Zulu,
people who have had sexual conneftion, together with menstruating
or pregnant women and mourners, are debarred from coming near
anyone who is ill. Similarly, during circumcision ceremonies or in
dme of war (Shangana-Tonga) the sexual aft is taboo. It is also
possible for a man, through intercourse with a woman, to leave in
her a mysterious power of conveying disease to the next person who
has conneftion with her ; hence the dangers of adultery.

In all the Southern Bantu tribes the birth of a child out of wedlock

1 According to Junod, 1910, 146, it is only the sex relations of the married that are important
in ritual. Among some Shangana-Tonga, when the sex aft is taboo, e.g. during the mourning
period, the gangisa custom (sex play of the unmarried) is not taboo.

1 Junod, 1910, 140.

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT 109

is frowned upon as an offence, and sexual morality consists in avoiding
this and in observing sexual taboos of the type mentioned above.
Bantu children, even before puberty, indulge in play at sexual inter-
course ; but this is either connived at or looked upon with amusement
and toleration by adults because it can have no social consequences.
After puberty, however, care must be taken that no children are born,
and we find some form of social control, which varies from tribe
to tribe. 1 Premarital sex intercourse is a recognized institution and
among Venda and Zulu definite instru&ion is given at puberty on
how to have intercourse without becoming deflowered. 2 Only
external intercourse is, however, allowed, to facilitate which the
Zulu pluck the pubic hair. The Swazi guard against possible con-
sequences by placing a piece of soft goatskin over the female organ. 3

If a Shangana-Tonga girl has no lovers people laugh at her, saying
she must be malformed, while a boy who lacks -lovers is subjefted
to a certain rite to render him more successful. 4 In this tribe, as among
Mpondo and Venda, both boys and girls may have many lovers.
The Zulu, however, are strifter. Here the praftice of klobonga is
allowed only between couples that are qomad (privately betrothed)
and permission has first to be obtained from the group of elder girls,
who control the girl's aftions very striftly. 5 A girl may thus hlobonga
only with one man, but the man may have several lovers, since he is
not confined to one wife. The Mpondo boy must send certain presents
to the parents of his lover (ior. to the mother, goats and later an
umryobo beast to the father), 6 while the lover of a Venda girl works for
Jier father, often side by side with her husband-to-be. 7 Ceremonies
and occasions more particularly associated with these pra&ices are
girls' puberty ceremonies (among south-eastern tribes), marriage
ceremonies, and the domba and byale schools.

Girls are periodically examined by their mothers to see if they are
intaft 8 and there are effeftive sanftions to secure virginity at marriage.

1 Premarital sex intercourse is a recognized institution among Venda, Lobedu, Zulu, Shangana-
Tonga, Swazi, Mpondo, Fingo, Xhosa, Pedi, and Mmamabolo of Woodbush. There is no
definite information for other tribes.

* Stayt, 1931, 108; Kohler, 1933, 34. * Engelbrecht, 1930, 21.

* Junod, 1910, 146. * Krige, 1936, 105-6; cf. Kohler, 1933, 31 f.
' Hunter, 1936, 181. Though such unions sometimes lead to marriage, this is not generally

approved of, parents preferring their daughters to marry someone she does not know so well.
(Hunter.)

f Stayt, 1931, in. Venda informants state that it is considered wrong for a man to dhavula
with his fiancee. If, as among the Lobedu, a taboo sets in between couples the moment they
are betrothed, this is quite comprehensible.

* See Kohler, 1933, 39-40, for a discussion on whether it is possible for these women to
establish the virginity or otherwise of a girl.

EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

Among Zulu and Mpondo, defloration brings defilement on the whole
age-group of girls, who will maltreat her for the shame she has brought
upon them, while the Kxatla songs of mockery were said to be a
most powerful deterrent in the old days. 1 Furthermore, there is
always a distinction made in marriage ceremonies between brides
who are virgin and those who are not. Boys are discouraged both by
public opinion and the fine imposed as damages.

Premarital intercourse is thus a socially recognized and socially
controlled institution among the Southern Bantu, who regard r as
striftly moral so long as it conforms to the rules. These praftices form
part of a system and philosophy of life and for this reason, while we
may disapprove of them we cannot, with justice, label them as
immoral. 2

Within marriage, too, there is considerable sexual freedom, though
the attitude towards adultery is not the same in all tribes. It is strictest
among Shangana-Tonga and Zulu, where adultery is a ground for
divorce. 3 Among the Cape tribes, the Swazi, Tswana, Pedi, 4 and
others, adultery is not a ground for divorce and, though legally
punishable, is very common indeed. The Sotho of Woodbush dis-
approve of adultery in theory, though in praftice and in private it is
looked upon as something desirable. 5 Boys are, moreover, taught
in the circumcision school here and in neighbouring tribes to over-
look adultery on the part of their wives and to refrain from gossip
about the love affairs of others. Women are allowed considerable
freedom as long as they aft with discretion and it is not unknown for
husbands to indicate to their wives men who may be suitable as lovers.
Even here, however, adultery is punishable by a fine.

Men are, subjeft to the fine payable for adultery, allowed greater
freedom than women, and there is in many tribes a recognized class
of women with whom married men may have relations with impunity.
This includes amadika^i (divorced women and unmarried mothers,
for the seduftion of whom no fine is payable unless pregnancy results) 6
among Cape tribes ; " wives " of women among Lobedu ; and

1 Schapera, 1933, 67.

* Kohlier, 1933, 34, calls external intercourse a " perversion of the natural funftion " and
draws attention to " nervous disorders " which it brings in its train. This would be an interest-

ing subjeft for investigation.

Junod, 1927, i, 195. Yet adultery is
4 Among Pedi adultery is common and ir

common among the Shangana-Tonga.

, I in certain circumstances considered even justifiable,

e.g. if the husband remains away from home after his wife's child has been weaned.

Hoffmann, 1933-34, 229.

Whitfield, 1929, 413. Among Thembu no fine is payable in the case of a second pregnancy
of an unmarried woman, but custom in this case varies.

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT III

widows, who among the Xhosa are expefted to have intercourse with
strangers to raise up seed to their dead husbands, 1 and among Pedi
and other Transvaal tribes are looked upon as " every man's wives ". 2

Marriage.

When the individual has passed through whatever schools and
ceremonies obtain in his tribe for initiation into adulthood, he is
ready for marriage. To regard Bantu marriage as the culmination
of sex love would be giving this institution a wrong perspective. In
marriage it is the social, legal, and economic aspe&s that to the Southern
Bantu are the most important sex relations may, as we have seen,
be had outside marriage. 3 Further, marriage is primarily an affair
between groups, involving the two families concerned even more than
the individuals. The personal predileftions of the couple do not
carry nearly the same weight as the good name of the family of the
girl, her ability to bear children, work well, and get on amicably with
her mother-in-law, for whom she will at first have to work.

The choice of a partner in marriage is thus not surrounded by the
romantic conceptions of many Europeans. Further, if the individual
concerned belongs to the Sotho group, he will have known all his
life whom he is destined to marry, for here a man is expe&ed to marry
his mother's brother's daughter, if one of suitable age is available. 4
Marriage with the father's sister's daughter is permitted but not very
common, as well as marriage with the father's brother's daughter. 5
Individual choice is further limited among the central tribes by infant
betrothal. 6 The Nguni group and the Shangana-Tonga, on the other
hand, do not allow marriage with relatives, and here there is therefore
greater freedom of choice, though parents nevertheless arrange many
marriages. Some girls, among Venda, Lobedu and other Northern
Transvaal tribes, become the " wives " of women, for here any
woman with the necessary lobola may marry a girl. She will point
out some man with whom the girl may have children, allow her

1 Whitfield, loc. cit. * Eiselen, 19280, 49.

1 The relative importance of social and economic faftors and purely romantic love in European
marriage varies greatly. Very often social factors unconsciously determine the choice of the
individual.

4 Marriage with the mother's brother's daughter is found among Venda, Sotho, and Transvaal
Ndebele.

6 Whereas the Huruthse prefer cross-cousin marriage to that with die father's brother's
daughter, the Pedi prefer the latter form.

Very common among the Pedi (Harries, 1929, 3), and found also among Venda, Lobedu,
Tswana (Brown, 1926, 159) and Swazi (Engelbrecht, 1930, 21). In such cases lobola is usually
handed over while the girl is still young, so that she can be nurtured on its milk. Cattle may
even be handed over before the child is born.

EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

own husband to have access to her, or leave her free to choose her
own lovers. 1 If a young man dies without issue among Venda,
Lobedu and Swazi, a woman may be married for him and his house
will continue. 2 This is, however, rare. Nevertheless, in spite of all
these customs, it does happen that a young man when attracted to a
girl asks his father to arrange a marriage, which may be done in the
usual way : and if things go badly, recourse can be had to elopement.
If a girl really dislikes a man she is seldom forced to marry him.

Marriage negotiations may be opened either by the parents of the
boy or by the parents of the girl, in addition to which there are one
or two other forms. While by far the most widespread method is for
the boy's parents to take the first step, both methods may be found
side by side, and among the Xhosa it was, in the old days, more
usual for the girl's people to open negotiations ; this is still the most
usual method among the Zulu in cases where the girl is of high rank. 3
The Zulu and other tribes of Natal have what is known as the ukulaleka
or ukuganisela custom in which the girl, at the instigation of her lover,
her father, or without the knowledge of either, presents herself at
the kraal of the man she wants to marry. His people will then have
to report her arrival to her father and open marriage negotiations.
For a man to refuse such a girl is almost unheard of in Zululand ; so
much disgrace would be attached to it that the girl would immediately
balekela someone else. This custom leaves a girl considerable freedom,
for if her father wishes to marry her to someone she dislikes she can
always run away to her lover.

The Nguni peoples have the ukuThwala, a kind of abduftion or
forced ukubaleka in which the boy and his friends carry off the girl
(sometimes even at the instigation of her own father). Among the
Zulu this takes place when an engaged girl, or her father, breaks her
contraft, and a penalty over and above lobola will be demanded only
if the boy had no right to thwala. It is not at all clear from the evidence
whether the ukuThwala obliges the girl's parents to accept the position
or whether they may still refuse to consent. 4 Abduftion or elopement
among the central tribes and Tonga has not the recognition that

1 A woman who has no sons herself has a claim on her brother's daughter who would have
married such a son. In Basutoland a widow with cattle could marry a wife and get some
male relative or friend to beget children for her. Further, if the first wife of a chief had only
daughters, a wife could be married for the eldest and handed over to the next male relative
to raise seed. /The eldest son of this union was the heir (Whitfield, 1929, 175).

* Whitfield, 1929, 213 ; Engelbrecht, 1930, 8.

* Among the Mpondo there is some stigma attached to the first step being taken. by the
girl's people unless she is of high rank (Hunter, 1936, 187).

4 See Whitfield, 1929, 79-8;.

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT 113

ukuThwala has. The girl will run away with her lover to some
indulgent relative and the boy's people have to report the matter
to her father who, among Venda and Lobedu, usually accepts the
position but exacts lobola. Such an aftion is considered a disgrace.

Once negotiations have been opened, the all-important question
of lobola arises. No custom has been so widely discussed or given rise
to so many misconceptions as this one of lobola, or the handing over
of cattle in marriage. Because it involves material possessions and is
often accompanied by considerable bargaining, it was looked upon
by Europeans at first as a sale. Apart from the fact that the words for
selling and for paying lobola are not the same, the husband has no
rights of property or possession over the woman, nor can he dispose
of her or ill-treat her. Lobola is not a dowry, for " the cattle are where
the girl is not " and though she may, when in trouble, claim help
from anyone who holds her lobola, she is not able to use it and does
not necessarily benefit by it. Only through lobola can a man claim
the children of a woman ; once this has been paid, all her children
are his, too, whether he is their real father or not. There is some truth
in the idea that lobola is a compensation to the group that has lost a
member, to restore the disturbed equilibrium. There is, however,
no direct relation between the amount of lobola and the value of the
girl and where, as has been the case in times of famine, such things
as stones and mice are handed over, it can hardly be looked upon as
compensation. It is rather an attempt to soften the blow and try to
obtain the friendship of the girl's family. That lobola is not mere
compensation is shown also by the fact that there is a lifelong bond
between a man and his parents-in-law. He is expe&ed to assist them
whenever they need his help 1 and for this reason is called by the
Zulu " the handle of a hoe ", being, like this most important implement
in society, a friend and helper. Furthermore, the. gifts handed over
by the girl's father may sometimes equal or even exceed the lobola
paid (Cape Nguni). Lobola has many aspects ; but its importance
lies in the fact that lobola is marriage and to the Southern Bantu
marriage without lobola is inconceivable.

The amount handed over varies, according to the times and the
wealth of the boy's family, though everywhere it is considered an
honour to give a high lobola. The nearest approach to a fixed amount
is found among the Lobedu, where there are seven named beasts
(in addition to the virginity beast), but even here there can be variations

1 See Stayt, 1931, 144-

114 EILEEN JENSEN KRICE

between a minimum of two cows and calves and the option of giving
three additional beasts. 1 In most tribes a special beast, often a cow
and calf, is handed over to the girl's mother in recognition of her
virginity. 2

Among many tribes the handing over of lobola is a life-long process.
The Swazi man need not pay a single head of cattle till late in married
life, and often instalments are handed over after the birth of each
child. 3 The essential feature of lobola among the Xhosa, according to
Soga, " is that there is no finality in it. Cattle pass from the husband
to his wife's parents or their family throughout the lifetime of the
husband and beyond it." 4 The ukuteleka custom is much in vogue
among the Cape tribes, whereby the father of a girl from time to
time impounds her until the husband hands over an additional amount
of lobola*

The Shangana-Tonga, Pedi and most of the central tribes prefer
the full amount to be handed over before marriage ; but in practice
this is seldom done. The Huruthse feel that lobola should be handed
over before the birth of the first child, but it'is often left till the initiation
of the eldest, when it is handed over in a lump sum 6 (which these
tribes prefer). The Venda complete payment of lobola usually only
after the marriage of the wife's first daughter. Marriage can be arranged
without lobola if a man be poor, on the understanding that the lobola
for the first daughter will be given to the wife's father, a custom known
as ethula among Zulu and Cape tribes, and found also in other tribes,
such as the Kxatla and Pedi.

The person primarily responsible for payment of lobola (in the first
marriage of a man) is his father, who usually pairs off brother and
sister, the girl's lobola being used to acquire a wife for the boy. Other
relatives may, however, also be liable for contributions ; and among the
Sotho, as among the Swazi, 7 the mother's brother is held responsible
for at least one head of cattle, which the Huruthse can legally force
him to pay.

In the protrafted ceremonial that is necessary for Bantu marriage
the most important aftors are the two families rather than the

1 J. D. Krige, 1934, 1 35-14 9.

This beast, payable also by a seducer, is the ingquthu of Zulu and Transkei tribes, Lobedu
tsotd* ya musJune, Huruthse serufd, Venda /u/{<z</{f , Swazi umsula nycmbeti.

Engelbrecht, 1930, 13. Soga, 1932, 266.

The Venda have a similar custom. See Lestrade, 19306, 198.

Lestrade, 1926, 939-940.

' Engelbrecht, 1930, 14. The malumt is on the other hand entitled to one or more of his
niece's lobola^ which he holds for sacrifices when things go wrong with her or her children.

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT 115

individuals. The father of the girl will neither accept nor rejeft a
suitor without the consent and support of other members of the
family or lineage, who will be called in to discuss the matter. Hence
it is always said of a girl " She has been married to such and such
people " or " over at such and such a kraal ". In a matter so delicate
as marriage negotiations the Bantu consider it essential to have
" go-betweens ", through whom all transaftions are made, and who
will be better able to withstand any rebuffs. There may be a go-
between on each side, as among the Lobedu, or the go-betweens may
be chosen by one of the parties, bridegroom's among Tswana, Zulu
and Xhosa, bride's among the Venda.

The moment negotiations have been opened, there is a barrier
between the two families, which must be bridged by the tireless
efforts of the go-betweens. The distrust is shown in a number of ways
and continues right until the marriage feasts are held. The girl's
family will be rude and insulting when the first instalment of lobola
arrives and very often a mock-fight takes place, the girl's male relatives
trying to prevent the drivers of the lobola cattle from entering the
kraal. They are made to feel that the girl is a loved and valued member
of her family, who are in no way anxious to give her up. This hostility
is ceremonially expressed also in the mutual vituperation between the
two families when 'the marriage nears completion (Zulu, Shangana-
Tonga). Simultaneous with these expressions of hostility are efforts
at friendliness. When lobola is handed over the girl's father will
slaughter a goat or beast, part of which may be sent to the boy's
people. Meanwhile ceremonial visits between the boy and girl will
be taking place ; among the Tonga these visits are from both sides,
among the Lobedu only on the part of the boy. Such visits help to
promote feelings of friendship.

When finally, after years of negotiation, the bride sets out for her
new home, 1 a beast will, in most tribes, be slaughtered to secure for
her the blessings of her ancestors. 2 Among the Shangana-Tonga,
this is the marriage feast at which boy and girl are publicly recognized
as man and wife. The Xhosa do not hold a feast at the girl's kraal,
both families contributing towards that held at the groom's ; other

1 Among Venda, Pedi, and some Tswana a man lives with and must work for his father-
in-law for a year or more before being allowed to take home his wife.

1 Among the Tswana and Southern Sotho the sheet of fat round the entrails is rubbed with
medicine and placed round the girl's neck, probably to secure fertility. Among the Huruthse
this ceremony seems to be associated with payment of lobola^ for if a child whose mother's
lobola has not yet been paid has to enter the initiation school it is performed on the child to
give it the necessary status.

n6 EILEEN JENSEN KRICE

tribes have feasts at both kraals. The girl must show extreme relu&ance
to leave home. Among Sotho tribes the bridal party sits down
at frequent intervals, refusing to go further till persuaded by a present ;
among the Zulu the bride makes various attempts at flight during
the festivities at the boy's kraal.

While showing unwillingness to join the boy's group, the girl
does not leave home empty-handed. She takes with her presents
for various members of the boy's family, her own household utensils
and, among Nguni tribes, also a number of beasts, one of which is
slaughtered at the wedding feast. 1 The exchange of gifts between the
two families does not stop at marriage. The Zulu woman once or
twice a year carries beer to the kraal of her son-in-law and a Lobedu
wife never returns empty-handed after a visit to her former home.

For the bridegroom, marriage is a transition to full manhood ;
for the woman it is this and more. She has to be aggregated into a
new family and for her the proceedings are marked by separation
from her own home and seclusion at the new one until she is accepted
into the family. 2 One of the first aggregation rites for the girl takes
place, among the Zulu, when she has to touch the gall of the beast
slaughtered at the marriage by her husband's people. But the process
of incorporation is a slow one, marked by very humble and submissive
behaviour on the part of the bride and the observation of a number
of taboos. The entry of bride and groom into their new life is marked
sometimes by mutual inoculation or " mixing " ceremonies (Venda
and Lobedu), sometimes by sitting together on one mat or being
smeared with fat (Shangana-Tonga and Southern Sotho).

No marriage is complete without children. Should the wife be
barren or die childless, a sister or other younger relative would have
to take her place. 3 Any children born will be considered children of
the barren sister, and the seed-raiser has no hut or status of her own.
No lobola is due for her, 4 though a gift of from one to three head of
cattle is usually given to thank the parents. If, however, the deceased

1 The Xhosa girl brings from one to three beasts, and often many more if her father is rich.

* She is, however, never fully incorporated. When she is ill, sacrifice must be made to
her own ancestors. For a comparison of the position of married women in the village among
Nguni and Sotho respectively, cf. above, Chapter IV.

1 The Huruthse go so far as to send a woman who has already been married, if necessary ;
while Zulu often send a younger sister of the bride as her inhlan^i to remain with her in her
new home and take her place, if need be*

4 This is mentioned for the Southern Sotho (Whitfield, 1929, 175), Swazi (Engelbrecht,
1930, 6), Venda (Lestrade, 1930, 202), Huruthse (Lestrade, 1926, 941-2), and is common all
over the Union. Among Pedi a " nominal charge " never exceeding three head of cattle,
is always made (Whitfield, 1929, 208).

INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT "7

has borne children, her husband would have to pay lobola in the
usual way on marrying her sister. Among some tribes, e.g. Shangana-
Tonga, 1 Ndebele, 2 Swazi, 3 marriage with the wife's sister is at all times,
not only on the death or sterility of the first wife, considered very
appropriate, and it is usual for a Swazi man when visiting his wife's
people to engage one of her sisters to spend the night with him. If
a child is born he would either give lobola for the girl or, if on friendly
terms with her people, he might be allowed to give a beast and take
the child, leaving the girl to be married to someone else.

A form of marriage related to the sororate is that with the wife's
brother's daughter. Among the Venda, a man may, failing his wife's
sister, be given one of her brother's children. 4 This brother, having
used his sister's lobola, is responsible for satisfying the just claims of
her husband. Among the Swazi, too, a man is entitled to his wife's
brother's daughter, 5 while Shangana-Tonga and Lobedu consider
this kind of marriage appropriate at any time. The Lobedu kinship
term for a girl's father's sister's husband is " husband ".

Should a woman's husband die there will never be the bogey of
destitution before her. She will be able to remain in the village of
her husband's people and be cared for by them. The levirate obtains
everywhere except among the Xhosa, where the brothers of the
deceased are not allowed to have sexual connexion with the widow,
though even here she is expefted to " raise seed " to the deceased by
intercourse with strangers. 6 Though in certain circumstances an
elder brother may inherit the wife, 7 it is, on the whole, the junior
levirate that obtains, and the union is always recognized by the
slaughter of a beast, accompanied by some sort of purification. In
cases where a son succeeds his father as village-head, with responsibility
for all kraal inmates it is, among Sotho and Shangana-Tonga, possible
for him to have sexual relations with a young wife of his father, never,
of course, his own mother. Other tribes look upon such a union with
horror. The widows are always allowed to choose which of the
eligible male relatives they would like as seed-raiser, and, in general,

1 Junod, 1927, i, 247. * Eiselen, 1928*:, 417-

Engelbrecht, 1930, 6. * Stayt, 1931, 152.

*. Engelbrecht, 1930, 2. _ , v .,

The levirate is nevertheless present in all neighbouring tribes Mpondo, Thembu, Xesibe,
Bhaca, Fingo, Hlubi. .

7 Among the Venda either an older brother or a younger may " raise seed , but among
the Huruthse, if an elder brother inherits a woman, the resulting children are regarded as his
own and inherit from him. Here it has, however, been known for a paternal uncle to raise
up seed in the ordinary way (Lestrade, 1926, 242). It would seem that among the Swazi
the eldest brother of deceased has a prior claim to the chief wife (Engelbrecht, 1930, 9).

Ii8 EILEEN JENSEN KRIGE

a woman who has borne her husband a number of children would not
be prevented from returning to her own home as long as her children
remained in their father's kraal. The socially approved aftion, is
however, to remain where she is and raise seed to her husband.

After marriage the individual is recognized as a full member of the
community with all the privileges and duties that this entails. As the
years go by, his status grows ever greater in this society in which
respeft for age is so marked a charaftertistic. Mature age is the Bantu
ideal : the old man is honoured for his wisdom and experience while
the old woman enjoys respeft and freedom from many taboos of her
younger days.

CHAPTER VI

DOMESTIC AND COMMUNAL LIFE
By G. P. LESTRADE

MOST of the aspe&s from which Bantu tribal life may be regarded
social, political and economic organization, law, religion, art, and
ceremonial have received fairly adequate and connected treatment
in the scientific literature concerning these peoples. The more prosaic
features of domestic and communal life have, however, been curiously
neglected. Either anthropologists have felt that these sides of Bantu
life are of minor importance compared to the other aspects with which
they have dealt ; or, perhaps, they have considered that daily routine
and even special occasions are made up of a series of incidents forming
part of one or other set of cultural activities which they have described,
so that such routine and such occasions need no independent descrip-
tion of their own. The result of this attitude has been that these
subjects have had but scant and sporadic treatment in the scientific
literature, and that it is chiefly in popularized, imaginary and often
rather fanciful portrayals of tribal life that we have any detailed and
connected descriptions of the daily routine of a typical individual,
family, clan, or tribe, or of the communal activities in which groups of
these from time to time indulge.

Since the conditions under which the various Bantu-speaking
peoples live vary considerably, and since their social and economic
systems show many important differences, it is impossible to give
one generalized picture that will be applicable to all, nor would a
detailed description of the life of one particular tribe in this regard
serve as a guide to the rest. Under the circumstances, it has been
thought wise to adopt here a method midway between the two
extremes, and to give a fairly generalized description of the domestic
and communal life of a single group of tribes. The group chosen
is that with which the writer happens to be best acquainted, namely
the Northern Sotho. Such a description will, it must be repeated, not
suit other tribes, and will not, in its details, be entirely applicable to
every tribe even in the group chosen. But in its main features it may

119

120 G. P. LESTRADE

be taken as applicable not only to other Sotho tribes but also to the
adjacent Venda and Shangana-Tonga of the Transvaal ; and will,
it is thought, form not too inaccurate a guide to the life in these respefts
of the other Bantu-speaking peoples of South Africa.

It must be stressed beforehand that daily routine and the nature of
communal a&ivities are influenced to a very important extent by a
number of fa&ors in tribal organization. Chief among these are
habitat, domestic and communal organization, the division of labour
among sexes and according to age, and the distribution of special
offices and funftions among individuals. As all these are described
in detail in other chapters, it will be unnecessary to do more than
merely mention them here. Further, no attempt will be made here to
deal with the life of children, since this also is dealt with elsewhere.
Our main concern will be with adult life as lived from day to day,
and as interspersed with special occasions, in the tribal village.

THE DAILY ROUND
The Village.

Let us imagine, as the scene upon which the events we are going
to describe take place, a typical village of this area : a cluster of huts,
a dozen or so in number, with an open square leading into the settle-
ment, which also has a council-place, a cattle-kraal, and smaller
stockaded enclosures. Each hut is surrounded with a courtyard, and
has various appurtenances, such as storage-places, drying-places,
cooking-places, etc. The various courtyards are separated from each
other by palisading, winding alleyways connefting courtyard with
courtyard. The whole forms a compact and close unit of habitation.
The lands for cultivation, the pasture-grounds for the stock, the
watering-places, the drinking-water supply, the washing-places, the
spots where wood is gathered all these are, however, a considerable
distance from the village which uses them. The surrounding villages
are also not near-by reckoned by European standards : the average
distance between villages is at least a mile or so. The chief's village is,
it may be, a good many miles off. A village such as we have been
describing would be occupied by a man with his wives and their
children, together with perhaps an unmarried younger brother of
the man and, it may be, one of his father's widows, while the wives
of young married sons would help to swell the number. The huts
would be allotted for occupation by the inhabitants of the village on

PLATE XI

(a) Drawing water (Kxatla-

f/.

. . L (?) Smearing a courtyard floor (Kxatla)

(llic designs on the floor arc traced out with a mixture of fresh cowdunic and

earth)
HOUSEHOLD OCCUPATIONS

PLATE XII

() Children at play (Kxatla

(b) An informal beer drink (Kxatla)
DOMESTIC SCENES

. Schape,a

DOMESTIC AND COMMUNAL LIFE 121

the principle that each wife, with her children, is entitled to a hut
of her own, while the other huts are allotted according to the sex
and marital condition of the remaining inhabitants. The head of the
village occupies each of his wives' huts in turn, young unmarried
men and elder boys share a hut or huts as do young unmarried women
and elder girls, and young married couples are allotted a hut to them-
selves. Let us follow such a little community through one of its
typical days.

Early Morning.

The Bantu are early risers, however late a night they may have had.
They get up as soon as the sun shows above the horizon, or even
earlier on the slightest provocation, when, in their own phrase, the
horns of the cattle are just visible. Since they sleep completely naked
in their blankets, since full bathing, when done, is done at the bathing-
places some distance off and later in the day, 1 and since other ablutions
are performed in public view, their first aftion after waking is to dress,
after which the huts, which have been shut tightly all night, are opened
to let in some light and air. The women usually get up first, and wash
before going about their morning work. They then see to it that there
is water for the menfolk to wash, and proceed to their other work.
If the water supply is some distance off, washing-water may have
been fetched the previous evening, as well as wood for making the
fires. If the watering-place is comparatively near-by, the women
go out to fetch water and gather wood. In the meantime the men
have got up, though, especially if they have been several times during
the night to have a look at the cattle-kraal, they may sleep a little
longer. Youths and boys, who have to take the stock to pasture, are
up betimes, and may break their fast with some scraps of food left
over from the previous evening's meal before doing the morning
milking. If there is nothing left over, they may either take some
uncooked meal and some cooking-utensils with them to prepare their
morning meal in the veld, or they may eleft to live on such small
game as they can trap or kill there, or they may even go hungry till
they return home ravenous for the evening meal. Those who have
to be off on a journey are also away betimes, with or without some
scrap of food. By this time the men are also up. Early morning washing

1 Except by young people who have recently gone through the initiation ceremonies;
these, for some period after they have returned home, keep up the habit, acquired during the
initiation-period, 'of bathing in the early morning.

122 G. P. LESTRADE

is not so obligatory with them as it is for women and recently-initiated
youths, and many eleft to remain unwashed till just before the morning
meal. They usually sit for a little while outside in the sun, and issue
orders to the younger men about what is to be done during the day.
The latter are also soon off to their various tasks, such as building or
repairing a hut, or any other of the manual work which falls to their
share. The men then repair to the council-place, where, unless other-
wise engaged, they usually spend most of their day. The younger
women and girls who may not have gone with the other women
to fetch water and to gather wood now set about other tasks in the
home, such as sweeping and cleaning, washing cooking-utensils,
stamping maize, and looking after the children.

The Morning Meal.

As the middle of the morning is reached, the women who have been
out return with water and wood, and begin to prepare the morning
meal, the first of the two meals of the day. This usually consists only
of porridge, though occasionally some relishes are also prepared with
it, such as monkey-nut sauce or a sort of puree of wild spinach. When
this is ready, usually between ten and eleven o'clock, it is ladled out
into the wooden food-bowls, and allowed to cool and harden slightly.
Those who are out in the veld or on a journey of some little distance
do not return home for the morning meal, nor do the men and youths
who are at the council-place or engaged in manual labour respectively.
The women and children eat their share at home in the courtyards,
usually under the eaves of the huts. The share of the others is brought
to them in their bowls by the younger women, usually together with
water for washing the hands. Nothing, except perhaps a calabash of
water at the end, is drunk with the meal. But the men at the council-
place may already have drunk a little beer supplied to them by the
head of the village. The men usually eat in age-set groups, sharing
their food with one another. The young men and youths at work
eat where they happen to be, the food being brought to them there
by their people. After the morning meal is consumed, the bowls
are fetched back by the younger women, and the work of the day
goes on.

The Later Morning and Early Afternoon.

It is here that a brief reference to the activities of the men at the
council-place is best made. Most of the time is spent in talk, with or

DOMESTIC AND COMMUNAL LIFE 123

without a background of work to accompany it. The talk may be
merely desultory, in which case most of the men engage in some seated
handicraft as well braying skins, carving objefts out of wood or
horn, making wire-work, weaving baskets, etc. The talk may also
be important, in which case accompanying work tends to stop. Tribal
and village news is exchanged, affairs are discussed, messengers come
and go, visitors are announced and received, petty disputes are talked
over and settled, lines of common aftion are determined upon. At
ordinary times there is a pleasantly informal air about the proceedings
at the council-place. The men sit about in scattered fashion, on the
ground, up against a tree, on logs of wood, or, if they have them, on
little stools, which they carry about with them or leave where they
usually sit. They may even lie about, and, if there is no important
business going on, if they have had a late or interrupted night, and if
the day is warm, they may indulge in a quiet nap while the others go
on talking.

But this informality changes when something occurs which demands
more formal attention. Then everybody sits politely upright in a
body, listening attentively to what is being said and taking an aftive
part in the proceedings. It may be, for instance, that an important
visitor arrives, or that a matter of some moment is before them. Then
the loose desultory talk stops, side-pursuits are suspended, everybody
is quiet, paying close attention to what is happening, and speaking each
in his appointed turn as occasion requires. The formal procedure in
connexion with the trial of petty cases will be described elsewhere :
this is perhaps the best place to indicate briefly the pi&uresque
ceremonial, common among the people we are describing, in the
formal reception of an important visitor other than the chief of the
tribe. The visitor, accompanied by his own entourage of spokesmen,
first comes to the outskirts of the village, where he is met by a
messenger, to whom his spokesmen announce him. The messenger
departs to the council-place, and soon returns inviting the visitor and
his men to accompany him there. They are seated on the outskirts
of the group. After a little preliminary silence, the senior man in
the council-place asks after the visitor's health. The word is passed
from mouth to mouth through a number of intermediaries, and finally
reaches the visitor's entourage, who communicate it to him. He
answers in the same way, but in the reverse order, speaking first to his
own spokesmen, who pass the word to the hosts, till it finally reaches
the first speaker. Several such formal questions and answers pass

124 G. p - LESTRADE

between the parties for a while. After a time the proceedings become
less formal and cumbersome, the intermediary spokesmen gradually
fall out, and the visitor talks direftly with his chief host. When the
time comes for the visitor to leave, formality is resumed, ending
in formal permission to depart, and the visitor and his men being
formally conducted away from the council-place by the messenger.
If beer is available, some will be brought and consumed, the hosts
drinking first to show that it is not poisoned. If there is no beer, the
hosts will apologize for its absence, usually in the hyperbolic phrase
that the whole village is dying of hunger. If the visitor intends to
make a somewhat longer stay, food will be cooked for him and his
spokesmen and brought together with that of the other men. For a
very important visito^ a goat or sheep will be killed, or, on a first-
class occasion, a beast.

While the older men are at the council-place, the younger men and
older boys, or such of them as are not out with the cattle, will be busy
at their manual labour. The proceedings here are of course quite
informal, many jokes are interchanged and much talk and shouting
goes on. The exchanging of rude jokes with the younger women who
pass by, on the part of the young men who may stand to them in
cross-cousin relationship, forms a rather noticeable feature in the
course of the day's work. Occasionally, one or more of the older men
from the council-place will come to inspeft the progress of the work,
and issue further orders as to how it is' to be carried on.

The women, in the meantime, busy themselves about their manifold
household duties. One or two will remain at home, usually the older
ones, to look after the home and the small children, while perhaps
one or two others will busy themselves making pots or stamping
maize or preparing beer. Others, accompanied by young girls, and with
their small babies on their backs, will set out to the lands, where they
remain till the late afternoon weeding, hoeing, sowing, reaping, etc.
When the work in the fields is done for the day, they will go to the
water-supply to fetch water, and will gather some wood, all in pre-
paration t for the evening meal. The work on the lands is often
performed communally. In theory, every woman has her own piece
of land, which she is supposed to look after herself, and for which
she is responsible. In prafHce, women often club together over this
work. One woman may invite a number of others to help her work
her piece of land, on the understanding that she will help them with
theirs when the time comes. As a reward for this co-operation,

DOMESTIC AND COMMUNAL LIFE 125

she usually provides them with some beer and, it may be, some
food, which is consumed when the hard work is over.

It is toward the commencement of the late afternoon that the usual
time for bathing occurs. Older and younger people, men and women,
have their own appointed bathing-places. The women usually bathe
on their way home from the fields, and the others who have remained
at home, men and women, go out to bathe when the day's work
proper is done.

The Late Afternoon.

The later afternoon ushers in the less strenuous part of the day.
Important matters at the council-place are settled by then, and it may
be that someone, perhaps the head of the village, provides some beer
for the men to drink. Beer-drinking is carried on with a fair amount
of ceremonial. The pot is brought by a young woman, who places
it before the men. Several calabashes are brought at the same time.
One of the men, usually the right-hand man of the village-head, takes
charge, ladling out the beer with one calabash and pouring it into the
others, which are handed round in turns. The man whose wife has
provided the beer usually drinks first, to show that it is not poisoned.
Others drink after him, the few calabashes being used by all the men
in turn. Older and more important men are given the first share,
others wait till later. If there is nothing to do at the council-place,
the men will wander off, some going to visit friends, exchanging
gossip and snuff and possibly getting a calabash of beer in the process :
or they may go off to a regular beer-party somewhere in the neighbour-
hood, perhaps at the chief's kraal, or at some other village where some
festive occasion is being celebrated. As the afternoon wears on and
the men are more and more full of beer, voices grow higher and
tempers may rise, vociferous disputes and wranglings and sometimes
a&ual fighting may occur. In a plentiful season, no man reaches the
end of the afternoon perfectly sober.

The women also, on their return from the fields, or after their day's
work at home, indulge in a certain amount of relaxation till the rime
comes for preparing the evening meal. They go out visiting,
exchanging gossip, and, in the case of the older women, getting
some snuff, and, if it is a fairly plentiful season, usually managing to
obtain some beer as well. Women do not sit in on men's beer-parties,
but have some beer provided for them separately, which is drunk
with considerably less ceremonial. In the course of such visits, a

126 G. P. LESTRADE

certain number of business transa&ions, such as the purchase and sale
or exchange of household utensils, take place, and a good deal of
good- or ill-natured wrangling takes place over such and other items.
As the afternoon wears on towards dusk, the youths and boys come
home with the stock, which has fed and been watered. The men will
by this time be drifting home gradually, and, as soon as the stock
has returned, they will go to inspeft it, after which the evening milking
takes place. If a goat, sheep or beast has been slaughtered, its meat
will have been cut up by this time, and the various portions will be
allotted to those entitled to them. There is a regular system about
the division of the various parts of the carcass, certain houses and
certain persons being entitled to certain fixed portions. The same holds
of any animal that may have been killed in the chase and which is
brought home to be divided.

The Evening Meal.

The younger women will by this time have got the fires going and
the cooking-pots on. The women, old and young, now busy them-
selves about the preparation of the evening meal. Its basis, like
that of the morning meal, is of coarse porridge ; but it is a more
substantial meal. Meat, or in its absence some relishing sauce,
forms a substantial accompaniment to the porridge. The porridge is
once again ladled into the individual wooden food-bowls, the sauces
and meat are served up in cbmfnon dishes made of clay. When the
food is ready, the members of the family sit down to the evening meal.

The evening meal is essentially a family affair. For the morning
meal, as has been stated, the members are dispersed and served where-
ever they happen to be. But everybody is at home for the evening
meal, including of course any guests that may have arrived. The meal
is eaten outside, usually under the eaves of the huts, but sometimes
elsewhere. Among the tribes under strong Venda influence, important
persons, and nearly all the men, eat inside the huts. The older men,
the younger men, the women, and the children, constitute little groups,
each eating apart from the others, with a common meat-dish and
individual porridge-bowls. Eating is done with the fingers, the hands
being usually washed before the meal is taken. The children often get
only the scraps of meat left over by the grown-ups, but are allowed
literally to lick clean the grown-ups' platters. Since the evening meal
is the only substantial one of the day, the quantities of food consumed
at a sitting are very great according to European standards of capacity.

DOMESTIC AND COMMUNAL LIFE 127

The youths and boys especially, who have been out on scant rations all
day, put away enormous amounts of the thick heavy porridge.

The Evening.

After the evening meal the whole family relaxes, and family life
appears in its most pronounced and cosiest form. People sit round the
fires, the men and older boys in one group, the women and children
in another. It is then that tales are told. The men will relate such of
the day's happenings as they are disposed to communicate, or will tell
hunting-stories or tales of long-ago events ; or they may indulge in
some of the typical men's games, such as the moruba game, 1 or they
may exchange proverbs, or, in lighter mood, riddles, and generally
joke and pass the time away. The children crowd round the older
women, for this is when grandmothers' tales are told tales of ogres
and witches, animal-stories, and the many other tales referred to in
the chapter on tribal literature. The children indulge freely in riddle-
games, and in other games of various kinds. For the young people,
the evening is the time of love-making, to which the older people,
still under the benign effefts of the afternoon's beer and the soporific
influence of the heavy evening meal, turn a judiciously blind eye.
Assignations are made and trysts are kept, especially at times when
there is dancing of aa evening, as often happens on moonlight nights.
Dances are the only things, as a rule, that entice people away from their
own homes in the evenings ; but dancing of this kind, as distinft
from ritual dancing, which falls into another category, is for the
younger people, the elders contenting themselves with looking on
and consuming such beer as may be provided.

When the evening draws on toward night, the inhabitants of the
village retire to rest one by one as sleep overtakes them. Some of
the men may go out for a last reassuring look at the cattle-kraal,
the women will look to see that the fires are dead or at least so far
died down that there is no risk of anything catching fire during the
night. The courtyard entrances are barred, and then everybody
retires to his or her hut. Sleeping-mats are spread out, some improvised
headrests are put ready, and, dressed only in their sleeping-blankets
or skins, young and old retire to rest. The doors are tightly closed,
and windows there are none. Everything must be shut to keep off
not only possible evildoers but, more dangerous still, the evil spirits

1 Described for the Shangana-Tonga people by Junod (1927, i, 345 ff-) under the name
tshula. The name mancata is often applied to this game in general anthropological literature.

128 G. P. LESTRADE

that go about during the night and get into the huts through any
available openings to attack the defenceless inhabitants. During the
night, especially if the cattle are uneasy, some of the men will be up
several times and go to the cattle-kraal to inspect. For the rest, every-
thing is peaceful until dawn, when the next day's round commences.

SEASONAL CHANGES IN DAILY LIFE

As may be imagined, seasonal changes play a considerable part
in modifying ordinary routine. During the ploughing- and reaping-
seasons, for instance, when every able-bodied woman and, especially
nowadays, every available able-bodied man, is at work in the fields
for a considerable part of the day, the villages stand practically empty
except of children and very old people for a great deal of the time ;
and daily routine is changed accordingly. In the middle of winter,
when pasture for the cattle is scarce, the flocks with their herdsmen
have to be taken far afield to graze, often so far that it is impossible
for them to go out and come back in the same day, so that the cattle
are kept for some period at the cattle-posts, the herd-boys staying
with them, with a consequent change in the habits of the village. At
another time, the chief may call out most of the young men to perform
their share of labour for him, and the younger women may be similarly
called upon to till the chief's fields ; and again such a process results
in a considerable disturbance of ordinary daily routine. It would be
impossible and unnecessary to enumerate and describe such disturb-
ances of daily routine in detail ; but their possibility must be clearly
kept in mind.

OCCASIONAL INTERRUPTIONS OF DAILY ROUTINE

But there are various occasional disturbances of daily routine
which we shall have to note, since it is on these occasions that we
find the communal, as distinct from the domestic, side of village
life in its most pronounced and striking form. We refer here to
festive occasions, such as a wedding, or a birth-ceremony, or the return
of the initiates after their period of seclusion in the tribal schools, or,
in fact, any occasion of the kind which serves as a reason for inter-
rupting the normal flow of daily domestic life.

Let us imagine ourselves on the eve of the wedding of some
important man's daughter. We will remember that, for a considerable

DOMESTIC AND COMMUNAL LIFE 129

period, the even tenor of life in the villages has been slightly disturbed
by the going to and fro of the messengers who have arranged the
details of the marriage, which, incidentally may have formed one of
the staple topics of conversation round about for some time. But now
the arrangements are made, and the day for the a&ual wedding-
ceremony is near. Messengers are sent out to the neighbouring villages
to acquaint them formally with the faft that the wedding is to take
place, and to invite them formally to be guests thereat. No invitations
are sent to those blood-relations who will attend as of right, nor are
invitations sent to those whose presence is not desired, although the
absence of such an invitation seldom succeeds in keeping them away.
For some days beforehand, an air of excitement prevails in the villages
affected. Many preparations are made : the men decide which of the
cattle are to be slaughtered for the occasion of the feast, the women
are busy making beer, stamping maize, and preparing the ingredients
for the dishes that will accompany the porridge and meat.

On the day itself, excitement rises to a very high pitch. Little if
any work is done. All activities that can wait at all are completely
suspended, and even essential services, such as the pasturing and
watering of the cattle, are scamped as much as possible. In the very
early morning, life goes on very much as on ordinary days, except
for the prevailing air of excitement. But soon the nature of the day
makes itself manifest in the unusual nature of people's activities. The
men proceed with the killing of the animals destined for the feast :
there is much shouting at every step in the business, much earnest
confabulation about how the pieces are to be cut and distributed. The
women have got the beer in readiness, and a portion of it is consumed
already in the morning, while the morning meal is usually but a
scanty one in anticipation of the feast to follow.

The aftual wedding ceremony now begins to take place. This is
described elsewhere in this book : but some indication ought to be
given of the demeanour of hosts and guests, of young and old, of
men and women. It is the duty of the hosts to provide the most lavish
hospitality they can, aided by their relations and intimate friends :
and the guests are by no means modest in their demands, or shy about
accepting their rightful share of the hospitality, or about voicing their
complaints when it is not lavish enough to their taste especially when
they have already had enough beer to loosen their tongues. The Bantu
soon grow noisy in crowds, especially when there is some beer going,
and the din at a wedding feast is enough to make the uninitiated think

130 G. P. LESTRADE

that some violent free fight is going on, when in faft people are only
amusing themselves talking and exchanging jokes and a few personal
pleasantries. The younger people, who are not given any beer, are
usually fairly quiet, although many a conversation has to be shouted
to be mutually audible. The older people let themselves go fairly
thoroughly, particularly the older women, who will from time to
time break out into high-pitched ululations, trilling with their tongues ;
or, if they are very excited, doing mimic dances in pas seul, running
about, accosting people in an otherwise quite unseemly manner, and
generally behaving quite differently from the way they do on ordinary
occasions. The men are a little more restrained in their enjoyment :
but, as the beer begins to do its work, they too become noisy. One
may start a mimic dance, imitating the killing of an enemy in battle
or of an animal in the chase ; another may burst forth into a praise-
poem, reciting his own praise-poem or that of the bridegroom's or
bride's clan ; yet another may start a song, or, in quieter mood, begin
telling some interminable tale to which few listen. The children lark
about, playing games and generally getting in everybody's way,
while dogs and pigs run about squealing and adding to the hubbub.
As food is brought in the course of the feast, there is no general return
home for the evening meal as on ordinary days, and the meal, being
one of the central points of the day, is usually got ready and eaten
some time before the usual hour. Men, women, and children all eat
in separate groups, and are further divided according to age-sets,
each person eating in company with his or her coevals, separately
from the others.

Towards evening, a dance usually ends up the proceedings : there
is more beer, more excitement, more shouting, more din generally,
and merriment is kept up till late into the night. A considerable
amount of sexual licence prevails, especially among the younger
people. Impromptu dancing- and singing-competitions are held,
" choosing-games " are played, and these usually result in a clandestine
meeting later outside. When the night is so far advanced that even the
most indefatigable reveller is tired out, people start going home as
best they can. Soon the village sinks into the calm of exhaustion, to
return next day to its ordinary humdrum routine. But the events of
such a day form an ever-fruitful topic of conversation for a long time
afterwards.

CHAPTER VII

WORK AND WEALTH
By I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

COMMODITIES AND THEIR PRODUCTION
Foodstuffs*

THE Bantu live partly upon the natural resources of their environment.
Wild animals provide them with meat, and wild plants and fruits
with vegetable food. But they control the bulk of their own food-
supply by cultivating plants and breeding livestock. Their principal
crops are maize, introduced originally from America via Europe,
and millet or " Kafir corn " (sorghum vulgare), indigenous to the
country. Kafir corn is still the staple food in Bechuanaland, but almost
everywhere else is now less extensively used than maize ; except for
making beer. Sweet cane (eleusine) and several species of melons,
pumpkins, peas, beans, ground nuts and sweet potatoes are also grown,
but in lesser quantity. The principal domestic animals used as food
are cattle, goats, sheep, and fowls. The cattle originally kept seem
to have been of two main stocks, the one small, long-horned and
straight-backed, the other large and humped ; but they have become
considerably mixed with breeds introduced by the Europeans. The
goats and sheep are short-legged, long-haired animals of hardy
but inferior stock. The fowls are mostly of the common small hybrid
variety.

The principal daily dish in most tribes is of maize or Kafir corn.
Green mealies (maize) are sometimes boiled or roasted on the cob ;
but more generally the shelled grains are either roasted dry to pop-
corn or boiled in water until soft, or stamped and then boiled. Kafir
corn is generally stamped or ground, and then stirred into boiling
water to make a stiff porridge. Fire, it may be noted here, is every-
where made by friftion : a thin, hard stick is twirled rapidly between

1 The sections marked with an asterisk were drafted by A. J. H. G., and extensively revised
by I. S., who is also alone responsible for the rest of the chapter. Apart from museum specimens
in Capetown, studied for the sections on technology, the following secondary sources have
been principally used : Junod, 1927 (Shangana-Tonga) ; Krige, 1936 (Zulu) ; Hunter, 1936,
and Soga, 1932 (Cape Nguni) ; Stayt, 1931 (Venda). Quotations, abstracts, and specific
citations are acknowledged more fully below. All references to the Tswana, unless otherwise
indicated, are based upon observations in the field by I. S.

132 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

the hands into a notch cut in a softer stick, and the resulting spark
caught up in dry grass. The subsidiary crops are sometimes eaten
separately, but serve mainly as relishes with the staple foods. They too
can all be prepared in several different ways to lend considerable
variety to the daily menu. Wild fruits and berries, a welcome addi-
tion in season, are generally eaten raw. Wild herbs are boiled in a
little water to form a vegetable stew, often eaten mixed with meal.
They are regarded as essentially women's food, eaten by men only
when away from home hunting or travelling. In times of crop failure,
however, they may become indispensable food for all. Locusts, when
procurable in large quantities, are dried and ground to meal ; while
caterpillars and flying ants are often made into sauce for flavouring
food.

The milk of cattle and goats is everywhere an important item of
food, especially among the Nguni, where it rivals cereals as the staple
dish. It is generally allowed to ferment and thicken in a calabash or
skin bag. It is then either eaten separately, or mixed with some other
dish like boiled ground maize. Among the Nguni no person may take
it as food at the home of people not related to him ; while women may
not eat it at all when menstruating, immediately after childbirth,
newly bereaved, or in some other way ritually impure. Sweet milk is
often given to children, but seldom drunk by adults ; although when
cooked it is freely used in the preparation of some vegetable dishes.

The only other beverage, apart from water, is beer. Several varieties
are made. The most popular, known as utskwala (Nguni) or iyalwa
(Sotho), is brewed from Kafir corn. It is less alcoholic than light
European beers, and must be taken in large quantities to produce any
marked effect. It contains a fair amount of solid matter, and so is
nourishing as well as stimulating. Children, however, are not as a
rule allowed to drink it. A much milder beer, known as leting (South
Sotho) or mahewu (Nguni), can also be made from Kafir corn, although
maize is more generally preferred. The Venda and Shangana-Tonga
make other drinks, often highly intoxicating, from the fruits of the
morula tree (ScUrocarya caffrd), the leaves of the prickly pear (Opuntia
vulgaris), or the sap of the fan palm ; and some Tswana tribes brew
a potent honey mead. These beverages, however, are not so commonly
used, and on the whole are not so well liked, as the ordinary grain
beer. 1

1 For a detailed account of Native beverages, their alcoholic content and nutritive value,
cf. Turner, 1909, 31-54.

WORK AND WEALTH 133

Beer is regarded by the Bantu as an essential food. In times of
plenty it is not only freely consumed, but often is the principal or
even sole food for many men for days on end. But it also plays a very
important part in their social life. " The whole social system of the
people is inextricably linked up with this popular beverage, which
is the first essential in all festivities, the one incentive to labour, the
first thought in dispensing hospitality, the favourite tribute of subjeQs
to their chief, and almost the only votive offering dedicated to their
spirits." l Among the Lobedu, a Northern Sotho tribe, " beer is a
common means of exchange or payment for services rendered, and
is in evidence in a number of transactions that in other tribes are
conducted by means of mealies and goats " ; and " it is in evidence
in almost all ritual and ceremonial as a celebration of important
occasions, binding together different groups or individuals, (and)
effefting a reconciliation where things go wrong ", 2 To a considerable
extent this applies also to all other tribes ; and it may be added that
in most of them the harvest thanksgiving takes the form of a national
beer-drink, preceded by an offering of beer to the ancestors of the
Chief.

The Bantu are much less fastidious than Europeans about the
kinds of wild animal they will eat, although carnivora, dogs, monkeys,
crocodiles, snakes, as well as such birds as the owl, crow, and vulture,
are generally taboo. The Sotho and Venda also prohibit people from
eating their own totem animals, a taboo not found in other tribes,
although certain clans among the Swazi and Transvaal Ndebele
have analogous taboos. The Shangana-Tonga eat fish, but most other
tribes, even those living along the coast, refuse to do so, regarding them
as unclean food akin to snakes. Hunting, however, is carried on too
sporadically to be a regular source of meat. The domestic animals,
again, are slaughtered as a rule only on special occasions, although all
dying of disease or other causes are eaten. Meat accordingly figures
so seldom in the everyday diet as to be considered a distinft luxury,
eagerly sought for; and whenever available is consumed in large
quantities at a time. It can be prepared in several different ways, the
most common being to boil it in water or to roast it on wooden spits
over an open fire. Women may not eat the flesh of a domestic animal
which has aborted or died in calving, lest they become similarly
affii&ed; nor may they eat eggs, which are held to make them
lascivious. Among the Cape Nguni, too, men will not normally eat

1 Stayt, 1931, 48. E. J. Krigc, 1932, 347, 357-

134 I- SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

poultry, regarded as essentially women's food ; while almost every-
where animals killed by lightning are taboo.

Meat and most vegetable foods are generally eaten salted. The
salt is either collected from natural deposits along the coast or in
salt pans, or, as among the Venda and Shangana-Tonga, is recovered
by evaporating solutions of salted earth. Water, used for drinking,
cooking, and washing is obtained from streams, springs, and other
natural sources. No attempt is made to conserve it, nor are any
precautions taken against pollution, cattle being allowed access to
the same sources of supply.

The principal narcotic is tobacco, formerly cultivated extensively.
It is taken as snuff, the ground tobacco leaves being mixed with the
ashes of some special tree, such as the prickly aloe, to make it more
pungent. It is freely used by both men and women. Some people
also smoke hemp, which, however, is not nearly so widely cultivated
or used.

* Horticulture.

Among food-producing a&ivities cultivation of the soil is on the
whole most important. The fields are in most tribes situated within
walking distance of the homesteads, from which they are visited
daily when necessary. But among the Tswana they are frequently
a good distance away, owing to the concentration of the people in
large village settlements ; and most families therefore have special
homesteads alongside their fields, where they go to live during the
agricultural season. Fields are scattered about somewhat irregularly
wherever suitable soil is available. The Bantu realize that soils vary
in fertility, and in selefting sites for cultivation are guided by such
signs as the kind of grass or bush growing on the land. Fields also
vary considerably in shape and size, but are on the whole fairly small,
seldom exceeding two or three acres in extent. 1 Isolated fields are
prote&ed by fences of dead thorn bush or some similar material ;
but where the fields of several people lie side by side they are not
usually enclosed, although uncultivated strips or other conventional
boundary marks clearly distinguish them.

The sajne field is cultivated for several successive seasons until
it shows signs of exhaustion. It is then left lying fallow, while new
land is cleared and worked. The Bantu thus praftise the shifting
cultivation characteristic of primitive agriculture in many parts of

1 Stayt, 1931, 34; Hunter, 1936, 72 f.

WORK AND WEALTH 135

the world. Among the Mpondo, and probably in most other tribes also,
" it is customary for each um^i (household) to turn over some new
ground each year, either by enlarging an existing field, or taking new
ground on one side, and leaving a part of the old fallow, or beginning
a new field altogether. New fields when begun are quite small, but room
is allowed for expansion, and the area is increased each year." l The
bigger trees on virgin land are burned down, the smaller ones, and
bushes cut with axes, and the grass and weeds uprooted with the hoe.
The loose foliage is then piled up in heaps and burned, the ashes
providing the only fertilizer the ground ever receives, apart from the
manure incidentally deposited by cattle grazing on the stalks after
reaping.

Planting generally commences as soon as the first rains have fallen.
The seed is scattered over the surface by hand, or spat out from the
mouth, and then progressively covered in with an iron-bladed hoe
or, as among the Cape Nguni, with a simple wooden spade or pointed
stick. The Shangana-Tonga, however, first hoe the ground and then
make shallow holes into which the seed is carefully placed, a few
grains at a time. 2 All the different crops are grown together in the
same field, their seeds being mixed and simultaneously sown. Since
most people cultivate more than one field, planting is a fairly long task.
As the young crops shoot up, they are thinned out by hand, while the
accompanying weeds are removed with the hoe. This is an arduous
and lengthy task, as weeding is generally done twice. Pumpkins,
melons, and sweet cane ripen first, and, together with green mealies
(maize), are harvested and consumed as they become available. No
one, however, may eat of these first fruits until the Chief has cere-
monially done so. Kafir corn and mealies take much longer to ripen.
From the time they start seeding, the people spend all day at the
fields, often perched on specially-erefted platforms, and endeavour
by throwing stones, shouting, and other methods to scare away the
granivorous birds flocking there in great numbers. The agricultural
season ends with the final harvest, when the ears of Kafir corn and
maize are broken off by hand, loaded in large baskets, and stacked in
temporary granaries until thoroughly dry. The stalks are left standing
as food for the cattle. Peas, beans, and ground nuts are generally
gathered in at about the same time.

Some ears of maize and Kafir corn are set aside as seed for the next
planting. The remainder are threshed. Kafir corn is threshed with

1 Hunter, 1936, 72 f. * Junod, 1927, ii, 23.

136 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

heavy wooden flails on a specially-prepared floor of hard, beaten
earth. Maize may be threshed in the same manner, but more often
is husked and shelled by hand. All grain not immediately required is
stored away. The Nguni and Venda generally bury it in pits dug in
the cattle-kraal. The pits are covered with flat stones, sealed with
cow-dung, and hidden by loose manure or earth. Supplies are taken
out as required, and the pit resealed. 1 Sometimes, however, they store
it in a wicker cylinder, plastered with mud, and perhaps raised on a
wooden platform. This form of granary is found in most other tribes
also ; but the Sotho and Shangana-Tonga more generally use large
baskets of coiled weave, or a clay drum raised on clay legs reinforced
by poles or stones and covered with a small thatched roof. 2

An essential element of agricultural technique is the employment
of magic, held to be indispensable to the success of every enterprise.
Certain " medicines " are buried in the corners and centre of the
field, or burned so that the smoke blows over it; in order to ensure
an abundant crop ; others are burned, buried, or otherwise used to
keep away worms, birds, hail, and other pests ; and still others are
used to prevent the diminution of the crops by witchcraft or theft
once they are on the threshing-floor or in the granaries. There are
also many taboos of various kinds to be observed by the cultivators
lest the growing crops meet with disaster. These medicines and rites
are independently used by every cultivator. 3

Other rites are performed by the Chief on behalf of the tribe as a
whole. The Bantu, as Miss Hunter says, have no scientific control
over the supply of water necessary for growth no irrigation is
used 4 ; but to satisfy this most pressing of their agricultural needs
they have developed " an elaborate magical technique ", in the form
of numerous rainmaking ceremonies performed either by the Chief
himself or by his professional rainmakers. In the well-watered parts of
South Africa these ceremonies are generally carried out only in times of
drought ; but in the more arid regions of the west, inhabited by
Tswana and Northern Sotho tribes, they take place every year. In
these tribes, too, various important taboos (e.g. on the cutting of
certain trees) must be observed by the whole community during the
early part of the rainy season, lest drought, hail, or some similar
disaster destroy the young crops. These taboos are proclaimed afresh

1 Hunter, 1936, 86; Krige, 1936, 44; Stayt, 1931, 36 f.

* Junod, 1927, ii, 27 ; Schapera and Goodwin, field data.

* Cf. Junod, 1927, ii> 28 & ; Krige, 1936, 192 ff. ; Hunter, 1936, 76 ff.
4 Hunter, 1936, 79.

PLATE XIII

/j" Kxatht fields

hmi; Horns can In* sfvii in ih- lorr^rouud in ihr light

Threshing corn (Kx.nl.i 1
(The woman in the foreground, right, has a baby on her back)
AGRICULTURAL LIFE

I face p. 136

WORK AND WEALTH 137

every year by the Chief, who also formally lifts them in due course.
In most tribes, again, the Chief distributes among his people seed
specially " doftored " with certain ingredients, including very often
portions of flesh from the body of a human being killed for the purpose.
This they mix with their own seeds to promote the fertility of the
crops. It may finally be noted that elaborate public ceremonies are
almost everywhere held before sowing, at the time of the first fruits,
and after harvest, when the Chief's ancestral spirits are either invoked
for a bountiful season or thanked for having provided it. 1

* Animal Husbandry.

Agriculture may be the principal source of subsistence, but the
Bantu themselves attach more importance to their cattle. Animal
husbandry is perhaps most strongly developed among the Nguni,
who inhabit the most favoured parts of the country ; whereas among
the Shangana-Tonga and Venda disease, warfare, and other faftors have
greatly reduced the size of the herds, and the presence of the tsetse-
fly in many parts is an insuperable obstacle to stock-farming. But
cattle are kept wherever it is at all possible. They are not merely
a source of food, in the form of milk and occasionally meat. Their
skins provide material for clothing, shields, bags, and other useful
objects ; their horns are made into receptacles; and their dung is used
both as fuel and as the cement plastered on walls and floors. The
oxen in many tribes serve as beasts of burden and as a means of
transport. Often, too, they are trained specially to race without
riders, contests between them being one of the most favoured sports ;
and such racing cattle are sometimes commemorated in tradition
long after their death.

Cattle are further " the principal medium of exchange, and the
medium in which court fines are levied. . . . (They) are the means
of keeping on good terms with the ancestral spirits, and so of securing
health and prosperity, because the maintenance of good relations with
the ancestor spirits depends upon making the proper ritual killings of
cattle at various stages in the life of the individual, and in sickness. . . .
Cattle are also the means of obtaining sexual satisfaftion, since a legal
marriage cannot take place without the passage of cattle, the right to
limited sexual relations is legalized by the passage of a beast, and the
fines for illegal relations are levied in cattle. The possession of cattle
gives social importance, for they are the means of securing many

1 For descriptions of these ceremonies, see below, Chap. XI.

138 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

wives and adherents, and of dispensing hospitality and showing
generosity, on which virtues status largely depends. Also the posses-
sion of cattle in itself gives weight and dignity to the owner "- 1

Cattle therefore loom largely in a man's thoughts. They are his
principal form of wealth, his most treasured possession ; and anything
concerning them and their welfare focuses his attention. The Bantu
languages abound in terms minutely differentiating cattle according
to sex, age, colour, and shape of horns, and reflecting the intense
interest taken by the people in their beasts. A man often knows his
cattle by name ; and his bull, the pride of his herd, is hailed in laudatory
phrases as it comes out of the kraal. The slaughter of an animal is
normally reserved for ceremonial occasions, whose importance is
heightened by the magnitude of the sacrifice. Some Cape Nguni
tribes, especially the Bomvana, even have sacred herds of cattle,
held inalienably by the Chief in trust for the tribe, and sacrificed to
his ancestors in times of national importance. Cattle raids are among
the most frequent causes of warfare, and cattle theft one of the most
serious offences. Kxomo modimo wa moxae, modimo wa nko e meetse ;
hcomo kotlanya dithSaba, o bolaile banna ba le bantsi, says a Tswana
song : " cow god of the home, god with the moist nose ; cow that
makes the tribes fight, you have killed many men " an apt summary
of both the religious and political importance of cattle.

The cattle-kraal, a circular enclosure of stout poles in which the
cattle are kept at night, is not only the central feature of most village
settlements, but also the centre of village life. Inside it the cattle
are killed for sacrifices ; here men meet for secret discussions ; women
may not enter unless they belong to the family, and even then not
when they are menstruating ; and here, too, the family head is often
buried, wrapped in the skin of a newly-slaughtered ox. Adjoining
it is the meeting-place of the men, where they sit daily to eat and gossip
round the fire and sometimes to feast, where justice is administered,
and where strangers arejreceived. Women may not come there except
when bringing food, and must in other ways hlonipha (respect) it.

But despite this intense pre-occupation with cattle, the Bantu
pay little atention to quality. For most social purposes one full-
grown beast is as good as another ; and if anything preference is shown
for animals of a particular colour or with horns of a certain shape rather
than for well-developed oxen or good milch cows. The cows give
little milk, and then only after calving, so that this important source

1 Hunter, 1936, 69.

WORK AND WEALTH 139

of food fluctuates considerably in yield. And since it is every man's
ambition to have as many cattle as possible, no matter how poor
they may be, there is little attempt to prevent the propagation of
inferior stock. Most bulls are castrated, only one or two being kept
in each herd for breeding purposes ; but they are not castrated early
enough, and as bulls always run freely with the herd, mating is indis-
criminate, although the widespread custom of lending out cattle
mitigates to some extent the dangers of constant inbreeding. 1

No fodder of any kind is grown for the cattle. They feed solely
upon the available pastures, except after harvest, when they graze
on the stalks in the fields ; but the pra&ice is widespread of burning
parts of the veld to provide early spring grazing. All land not aftually
under cultivation is common pasturage. " There are no clearly
defined areas to which particular individuals have prescriptive grazing
rights." 2 But among the Mpondo, and probably other Nguni tribes
also, people living in the same locality regard the area surrounding their
villages as their special grazing ground, and try to exclude others, even
to the extent of driving away their herds ; while among the Tswana
each ward similarly has its own special area, where no other cattle
may graze without permission.

In the rainy season cattle graze near to the villages, but during the
dry winter grass must often be sought many miles from home. On
tHe well-watered eastern side of South Africa the uplands form
summer grazing, while in winter the cattle are taken down to the deep,
sheltered valleys, where grass is lush and abundant. In the more
arid regions to the west, where as among the Tswana the people are
settled in large villages, the cattle are kept all the year round at special
grazing posts, often a day's journey or more from home. These
cattleposts are during the dry season located close to river beds, where
pits are dug to water the cattle ; in the rainy season they are moved
away to fresh pastures. No cows at all are kept at the villages. Milk is
sent there from time to time in the milksacks, but appears less fre-
quently in the daily diet than it does farther east.

By day the cattle are let out to graze in the vicinity of their kraal,
to which they return at sunset. In autumn, when there is plenty of
grass and water after the summer rains, they may be unattended. But
during the rest of the year they are always herded, especially during
the dry season, when they must be taken to water. At such times,
in the more arid regions, they are often watered only every two

1 Stayt, 1931, 38. Hunter, 1936, uy

140 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

or three days. The cows are in some tribes milked in the morning
before they go out and in the evening after they come back ; but in
others they are brought back in the forenoon to be milked for the
only time, and then taken out again to graze. The calf sucks first,
but is soon driven off; the milker, sitting on his haunches to one side
of the cow, then fills his wooden pail, after which the calf is allowed
to suck again. The calves are always separately herded near the kraal,
the very young ones being kept in it all day.

The Bantu know from practical experience where to find good
grazing and water for their herds, how to proteft them from wild
animals, and what remedies to apply for such common ailments as
liver disease, ophthalmia, and protrafted delivery. But, as Stayt
remarks, they really understand little about cattle diseases, "and
epidemics are quite beyond their control." l In these and such other
aspe&s of stock-raising where experience alone cannot afford. them
safe guidance, they fall back once again upon magic. They bury
" do&ored " sticks in the kraal to proteft the cattle from witchcraft
and disease ; they sprinkle their cows and inoculate their bulls with
certain " medicines " to stimulate fertility ; they burn other " medi-
cines " to promote the general well-being of the cattle ; and as an
additional safeguard forbid newly-widowed and other ritually impure
persons to approach the animals closely. Women generally are pro-
hibited from handling the cattle in any way, or even from walking
through a herd, particularly when menstruating, newly pregnant,
or in some other way " impure ". 2 But there do not appear to be any
tribal ceremonies relating to cattle similar to these noticed above in
regard to horticulture.

Goats and sheep are kraaled and herded separately from the cattle.
Sheep are not numerous, but even the poorest people have goats,
which among them fulfil the same uses as cattle. They provide milk
and meat ; their skins are made into clothing ; and they also serve as
mediums of exchange, lobola payments, and sacrifices. "The
distinguishing terms applied to cattle are applied also to goats, and
they are supposed to suffer from contaft with umla^a (ritual impurity of
women). But emotions are not aroused by goats as by cattle. No one
ever makes praises of goats." 3 Fowls, the only domesticated bird,
are very common. They are occasionally fed with grain, but otherwise

1 Stayt, 1931, 40.

1 Schapera, 19346, 561 ff., gives a detailed account of Kxatla herding rites.

1 Hunter, 1936, 71.

WORK AND WEALTH 141

left to fend for themselves. They generally roost on trees or on
specially-erefted perches in the household enclosure. They are often
killed for eating or sacrificed to the spirits, and are also used as mediums
of exchange. Dogs, the only other indigenous domestic animal,
are used principally in hunting. They are never eaten or sacrificed,
and are often half-starved and brutally treated ; but good hunting
dogs are much valued and sometimes well cared for.

^Hunting.

The meat obtained by the slaughter or death of domestic animals
is supplemented by the spoils of the chase. In Bechuanaland and other
areas where game is abundant this may be an important source of
food. But hunting is nowhere a regular occupation, except with a
few people. It is carried out fairly sporadically, as occasion and
opportunity permit, especially during the months when other food is
growing scarce. Game is therefore " merely a welcome addition
to the daily diet ; compared to the importance of vegetable produce
it cannot be described as in any way a staple food ", 1 The skins and
hair of the animals killed also provide material for clothing and certain
forms of decoration, their horns are made into receptacles and musical
instruments of various kinds, their teeth and claws are used as orna-
ments, and their fat mixed with the " medicines " for many forms of
magic.

The principal weapons employed in hunting, as in warfare, are the
spear, the axe, and the club. The two former have wooden shafts
and iron heads ; the latter is a short stick knobbed at one end. The
Venda alone make much use of the bow and arrow. The Southern
Tswana have borrowed this weapon slightly from the Bushmen;
but it is found nowhere else among the South African Bantu. 2 For
proteftion against the attacks of wild animals and other enemies,
all the tribes use shields of untanned hide. Among the Sotho the shape
varies considerably, from a wide hour-glass to a circle ; the Nguni,
and the tribes they have considerably affe&ed, prefer a plain oval.

People may hunt wherever they like within the tribal territory,
no private rights to hunting land being recognized. Hunting by
pursuit is generally carried on colleftively, and big communal hunts
are often organized by Chiefs and headmen. The men sometimes form
a huge circle round a spot where game is known to be abundant,

1 A. I. Richards, 1932, 106.

Cf. L. F. Maingard, " History and Distribution of the Bow and Arrow in South Africa/'
S. Afr /. Sci., xxix (1932), 711-723.

142 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

and close in gradually, shouting and sending their dogs ahead of
them to draw the animals, which are then speared when attempting
to break through. Sometimes again, as when hunting big game,
they patiently stalk an animal, or pursue it with their dogs, until it is
cornered. One or two men then rush in to hamstring it with their axes
so that it cannot move, when it is killed by spear. This method of
hunting is often exceedingly dangerous, especially against the elephant,
rhinoceros, buffalo, or eland; and men skilled in it are renowned
for their courage and dexterity. Single hunters similarly pursue smaller
buck with their dogs until the exhausted animal is cornered. Another
common method of hunting by large parties is to construft a long
fence with occasional openings at which pits are made. The game is
driven towards the fence, and in attempting to escape through the
opening falls into the pits. Such pits, their bottoms lined with upright
stakes, occasionally poisoned, upon which the animals fall and are
impaled, are also dug for big game along river banks or on the way
to waterholes. Smaller game and game birds are trapped in snares of
various kinds, the commonest being a running noose and slip-knot,
or are thrown down with the club.

As in agriculture and animal husbandry, various forms of magic
are employed to ensure success. Hunters of big game are ceremonially
purified before setting out and on their return ; they are inoculated
in the wrists with medicines to ensure steadiness of hand and aim ;
they carry various charms, and must observe certain taboos while out
in the veld. Women may never accompany a hunting party, nor should
any reference be made to matters of sex ; the animal pursued must
not be mentioned by its real name, a conventional substitute being
employed ; and careful attention is paid to omens, of which there are
many. Dogs and weapons, similarly, are washed with medicines or
doftored in some other way to make them more efficient. Without
these precautions,- the people maintain, the hunters will fail in their
quest, and may even be seriously injured.

^Clothing and Ornaments.

The old Bantu dress has been widely replaced, either completely
or partially, by clothing of European material and pattern. But it can
still be seen in some less influenced tribes and localities, where it is
made principally of skin. The type of clothing varies somewhat from
group to group, and within the group from person to person according
to sex, age, and rank. Generally speaking, however, women wear long

WORK AND WEALTH 143

aprons or skirts, hanging down before and behind from the waist.
A much smaller apron is sometimes worn underneath over the pudenda.
Nguni women further have a bodice across the breasts and under
the armpits, but in other groups the upper part of the body is left
uncovered. In cold weather cloaks of soft skin or fur, often carefully
made and decorated, are added to the ordinary dress. Babies are
carried on the back in cradleskins slung round the waist and knotted
over the breast. They go about completely naked except possibly
for a bead or string girdle and an occasional necklace or charm. Young
girls wear short fringes of skin, beadwork, or vegetable fibre to cover
the pudenda. Older girls wear similar fringes or aprons reaching to
the knee, and, among the Sotho, a longer apron at the back. Among the
Venda, however, they wear a loinskin brought between the legs and
tucked behind into the waist girdle to hang down in a flap. Girls
passing through the initiation ceremonies wear elaborate dresses of
vegetable fibre ; and in such tribes as the Zulu there are also distinftive
forms of dress for betrothed girls and pregnant women.

Men among the Cape Nguni and Shangana-Tonga wear nothing
but a penis sheath of calabash or palm-leaf covering the glans ; but
among the Natal and other Northern Nguni they also wear skin aprons
or tail and fringe sporrans both before and behind. Elderly men have
a hard ring of polished beeswax built into the hair of the head. The
Sotho and Venda wear a loinskin, one end of which is drawn between
the legs and tucked in or knotted at the back or side. They have
neither the penis sheath nor the headring. In cold weather the men don
skin cloaks like those of the women, but only members of the royal
family may use leopard or lion skins. The bigger boys wear the same
dress as the men, the smaller boys tiny skin flaps shielding the genitals.
Boys undergoing the initiation ceremonies are often completely
covered in dresses of vegetable fibre. Both men and women further
use flat sandals of oxhide, attached to the foot by a thong, and caps
of skin or fur. Among the Sotho conical hats of woven reed are often
seen.

The ornaments used by women consist mainly of beads and wire.
The wire, made in varying thicknesses of iron or copper, is generally
twisted into bracelets worn round the neck, arms, and ankles, often
in great numbers. Certain kinds of copper bracelet and ornament are
among the Venda and Sotho worn only by women of rank. Beads are
worked into headbands, necklaces, breast ornaments, waistbands, and
bracelets of varying size and colour. Except for ostrich eggshell

144 I- SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

beads, locally made by some tribes or, as in Bechuanaland, bought from
Bushmen, beads have always been imported ; and no ceramic beads
of Native make are known, save for a few crude earthenware specimens,
unbaked and ill-glazed. Among the Venda, Northern Sotho, and some
other tribes certain kinds of beads are greatly prized and handed
down as heirlooms. Other ornaments are made of shell or bone, ivory
bracelets being in most tribes a prerogative of rank.

Men generally content themselves with wire bracelets worn round
the wrists and ankles ; but among the Nguni, young men, especially
when courting, often decorate themselves with beadwork. The Zulu
have developed a special " language of the beads ", different combina-
tions of colour and pattern having conventional meanings attached to
them. 1 Warriors, magicians and youths in ceremonial dress also wear
wild animal tails and strips of skin tied round the arms, loins, legs,
and ankles in various forms and sizes, necklaces of teeth, and head-
dresses of ostrich and other feathers. In some groups of tribes (e.g.
Northern Sotho and Cape Nguni), bead necklaces of a special type are
a symbol of Chieftainship.

^Dwellings and Household Goods.

Huts are used principally as bedrooms and stores, most a&ivities
taking place in the open, except in wet weather. They vary consider-
ably in stru&ure and shape. Two main varieties may, however, be
distinguished : the beehive hut of the Nguni, and the cone-and-
cylinder hut of the Sotho, Venda, and Shangana-Tonga. The former
has a framework of long saplings, planted in a circle in the ground,
and bent inwards and tied together to form a hemisphere. Shorter
saplings are tied horizontally across the frame at frequent intervals
to strengthen it. The whole is then completely covered with a strong
thatch of grass. The roof is supported from the inside by one or more
upright poles ; and a semicircular opening, generally so low that people
must crawl in to enter, is left as a door. The Cape Nguni plaster the
interior with mud and cowdung, but this does not appear farther
north. The Zulu, however, sometimes spread rough mats of grass
on the outside over the thatch.

The other type of hut has a cylindrical wall. This generally consists
of vertical poles bound together with wickerwork and plastered both
inside and out with mud and cowdung, although sometimes, as

1 Cf. F. Mayr, " Language of Colours among the Zulu expressed by their Beadwork Orna-
ments," Annals, Natal Museum (1907), i, 159-165.

PLATE XIV

[I. Schaleia

(b) Hcrdboys riding oxen (Kxatla)
PASTORAL LIFE

\fateti. 744

PLATE XV

Setting a snare for birds (Kxatb)

(b) Potter at work (Kxatla)
ARTS AND CRAFTS

L/.

WORK AND WEALTH 145

among the Tswana, it is made entirely of earth. An opening big enough
for people to walk through comfortably serves as a doorway. The
roof is of saplings bound together with wickerwork to form a conical
frame, which is then thatched. It is separately made, and when finished
is put on the wall, which it often overlaps considerably. Its point is
often, but not always, supported from the inside by a central pole ;
and sometimes its edge also rests on an outer circle of vertical poles,
between which and the wall a small circular veranda is thus created.
The floor in both types of hut is made of beaten earth smoothed over
at frequent intervals with coatings of mud and cowdung. A shallow
depression serves as a fire-hearth for cooking and warmth in wet
weather. There are no windows. Air gets in and smoke escapes
through the thatch and the door.

The huts belonging to one household are clearly marked off from
all others. Among the Nguni and Shangana-Tonga, where the house-
hold is also a separate local settlement, the huts are ranged in strift
order of seniority round the cattle-kraal. Sometimes, but not always,
the whole settlement is enclosed by a wooden palisade. Among the
Tswana, on the other hand, representing the extreme trend of Sotho
development, great numbers of households cluster together to form
large villages. The huts of each household are located irregularly
within a low, rectangular courtyard, formed by a fence of wickerwork
or reed mats or by an earthen wall or wooden palisade. The cattle-
kraal, owing to the peculiar conditions of local settlement, is always
separately built. The floor of the courtyard is made and smeared like
that of the huts ; and the walls of both are often ornamented with
broad geometric patterns of charcoal, kaolin, ochre, and other clays.

Huts and homesteads are fairly often renewed. The ravages of white
ants necessitate frequent rebuilding ; while in many tribes, especially
Nguni and Shangana-Tonga, huts are burned or pulled down after
the death of an occupant, and on the death of the household-head
the whole homestead is destroyed and a new one built elsewhere.
The site is often sele&ed beforehand by divination, and is always care-
fully " doftored " against witchcraft and other evils. Husband and
wife must have ritual sexual intercourse in a new hut before it can be
occupied. Among the Sotho the Chief must annually renew the
boundary charms protecting the village and its inhabitants.

Household utensils, all made from materials at hand, are fairly
numerous. Big-bellied, wide-mouthed pots for fetching and storing
water, for brewing and drinking beer, and for cooking, are made of

146 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

clay. The base of the pot is moulded in a sherd ; the sides are built
up with clay rings or strips, pressed to shape, and the whole smoothed
off. In the larger pots the lower half is moulded separately from the
mouth ; the two halves are then brought together, and the join made
good. The pots are finally placed in a shallow pit, surrounded with
piles of wood or cakes of cowdung, and fired. To proteft them from
spoiling in the process, various taboos must be observed, the most
widespread being that no ritually impure person may be present at the
firing. Both the shape of the pot and the choice of applied designs
vary somewhat from group to group. The Sotho prefer a single band
of recurring triangles, black on the red of the pot, painted on and
burned in. The Nguni prick up the wet clay with a pointed stick
to give the effeft of patterns worked in raised keloids. The Sotho
further make clay images of animals and human beings for use in
the initiation ceremonies ; while children everywhere make and play
with unbaked toy cattle of clay.

Headrests, bowls, platters, spoons, grain stampers and stamping-
blocks, milk pails, and porridge stirrers, as well as sticks, clubs, weapon
shafts, pipes, snuff-boxes, divining bowls (Venda), certain musical
instruments, poles for hut-building, and palisades for cattle kraals
and fences, are all made of wood. The Nguni peoples are on the whole
poorer in wooden utensils than the Sotho and Venda, some of whose
products show a high artistic finish and may be elaborately carved
and decorated. The common household utensils are laboriously
carved from seftions of tree trunks ; the rest are shaped from branches
according to need. An axe is employed for chopping, an adze for
trimming, a gouge for hollowing and scraping, and a knife or more
usually a spear for whittling. Boring and the application of design
are generally done with a hot wire.

Drinking vessels, ladles, snuff-boxes, resonators for some musical
instruments, and receptacles for ointments, beer, and milk are made
from calabashes, specially grown for the purpose. Basket containers
of various shapes and sizes, beer strainers, sleeping and eating mats,
trays, brooms, and string are made of reeds, grass, and other vegetable
fabrics. String is usually twined from the inner bark of such trees
as the Acacia, which is stripped, chewed and rolled on the thigh.
A bundle of reeds tied together makes a simple broom. Basketwork,
generally of the coiled or spiral variety, is adapted to many purposes.
The vast grain basket of the Sotho is of a composite grass strand,
sewn together with string. The small milkpail of the Zulu is made of a

WORK AND WEALTH 147

similar base, so tightly sewn together with rushes or grass into a solid
receptacle that liquid poured into it quickly expands the strands and
makes the basket water-tight. The conical baskets widely used for
carrying grain and other commodities are made with a light alternating
basketry stitch. Beer strainers, for separating the crudely-ground
grain from the thinner liquid, are roughly shaped conical baskets of
twilled flat reed, or a bias check or multiple plait of grass.

The horns of animals are used as holders for medicine, or converted
into musical instruments, pipes, and snuff-boxes; their bones and
tusks are made into ornaments of various kinds, awls for basketwork,
snuff-spoons, and divining tablets ; their teeth and claws are used for
necklaces and other ornaments ; and their hair is used as the base for
wirework or made into switches and ornamental headdresses. Their
skins are made into clothing, shields, bags, and bellows. Skins used
for clothing are pegged out on the ground, cleaned and allowed to dry ;
then carefully scraped with an iron blade, rubbed witlj some sort
of fat, beaten, and finally worked in the hands until quite soft and
pliable. They are then cut to the necessary shape, or sewn together
with animal sinew to make a cloak. They are not often tanned, although
use and the deliberate application of ochres and fats give the impres-
sion of a heavily-loaded leather. The bag carried by every man
consists of a whole game-skin worked to a soft leather and tanned or
dyed in a bark infusion.

The adzes, axes, gouges, and knives used in making wooden and
other utensils are of iron, as are hoes, spears, wire bracelets, and
many other objefts. Most tribes can mine in a simple fashion, but the
Cape Nguni and Shangana-Tonga are largely dependent upon others
for their supply of the metal, local deposits being rare. The Bantu
are unable to melt iron ore, but can obtain sufficient heat with their
double-bag bellows to reduce it to a " bloom " in an enclosed char-
coal furnace, either of termite-heap or built of clay. The bloom is then
wrought to shape with a stone hammer. All tools and weapons are
tanged, the tang being heated and forced into the wooden handle.
Copper is also worked in the Northern and Western Transvaal, where
it is found in fair quantities. The ore is melted in the furnace, cast
into rod-like ingots, and drawn through the graded holes of a simple
drawplate to make wire. This is bound round wildebeest or cattle
hair for bangles and other ornaments, or used as a lashing on spears
and clubs. Gold is worked in limited areas only, of which Mapungubwe
in the North-Western Transvaal may be taken as typical. Here, in

148 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

addition to wirework, gold plates and tacks are extensively used for
ornamenting obje&s.

CALENDAR OF WORK

The aftivities outlined above are not all carried on simultaneously
and continuously throughout the year. The Bantu, like most primitive
peoples, depend essentially upon the rotation of the seasons for their
food supply, and their aftivities are accordingly determined. This is
most clearly seen among the Tswana, whose life falls every year into
two clearly-distinguished phases. Their villages are fully inhabited
during the winter months only, when there is much bustle and activity.
As soon as the first rains fall, about November, the people go out to
their fields, remaining there right through the agricultural season
until the harvest is reaped in June. During this time village life is
almost at a standstill. In the other tribes, whose fields are within easy
distance of their homes, there is not the same sharp division ; but here
too agricultural work determines the time for most other occupations.

The periods of most intense agricultural aftivity are at planting
(late November, December, and early January in Bechuanaland),
weeding (January, February, and March), scaring away the birds (May),
reaping and threshing (June and early July). Most other occupations
are carried on at suitable moments in between. 1 The clearing of new
fields is generally done during the two months preceding planting.
Basketwork and woodwork are done mostly in the months between
harvest and planting, but also between weeding and reaping ; pot-
making is confined mainly to the warm, damp period immediately
before and during the early rains ; while hut-building is in Bechuana-
land done only after the harvest, but in other tribes between weeding
and harvesting as well. Cattle-herding, too, as we have seen, is affected
by the seasons, the cattle having separate winter and summer grazing ;
while hunting, especially of big game, is carried on most aftively
in the dry winter months, when the movements of the animals are
restricted by the scarcity of surface water.

Running parallel to this seasonal a&ivity is the food consumption.
The first fruits of the new year become available in the Matter half
of the rainy season. For the next three months or so the people revel
in the green mealies, pumpkins, melons, and sweet cane supplementing
the staple cereals, while milk is abundant. With the gathering-in of
the harvest, grain, and therefore beer is plentiful ; and as the people

1 Cf. Hunter, 1936, nof., for Mpondo seasonal calendar.

WORK AND WEALTH 149

now have more leisure, this is the great festive season. 1 Weddings,
initiations and other ceremonies of a similar nature are most often
celebrated ; tribal meetings, lawsuits, and other public business are
most aftively pursued ; and there is much informal visiting and
entertaining. The green foods, however, are more and more replaced
by the standard diet of boiled or roasted mealie grains and Kafir
corn porridge ; while the milk supply gradually diminishes as grazing
becomes poorer and the cattle are taken further away. The spring and
early summer months see the people reduced almost entirely to the
standard cereal foods and such wild plants as can be gathered after
the first rains have fallen. What Bryant says in this conneftion of the
Zulu applies equally well to most other tribes, as far as vegetable
produce is concerned. " Thriftlessness was, and is, one of the
characteristic defefts in the Zulu nature. He has inherited nothing of
the saving instinft. No sooner are the fruits of the new season mature
and permitted for general consumption than he forthwith initiates a
wholesale attack upon them. This habit so materially reduces the
amount left over for harvesting that, after a very few months, his
total store of food is at an end. In perhaps eight families out of ten
there is a normal annual recurrence of severe dearth throughout the
spring or early summer months. During the whole of this period,
members of all such families, children as well as adults, have to be
usually content with but one full meal a day, generally taken in the
evening time. Very often I have known whole districts of children
who got not even that." 2

DIVISION OF LABOUR

In many forms of production the only division of labour is between
the sexes. Everywhere among the Bantu different occupations are
traditionally assigned to men and to women ; and despite occasional
variations, the lines of division are fundamentally the same throughout.
In agriculture, the men clear the new fields of bush and grass, except
among the Shangana-Tonga, where this is women's work. 3 The
a&ual tilling of the soil, from the initial planting to the final reaping
and threshing, is very largely done by women and the older girls,
although younger children of both sexes assist in driving away birds,
and men occasionally take part in planting, weeding and reaping.
The women also look after the fowls. But all work connefted with
cattle, goats and sheep herding, milking, making thick milk, washing

1 Hunter, 1936, na. Bryant, 1908, 9. * Junod, 1927, ,

15 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

the milking utensils, and slaughtering is essentially within the
province of the men, women, as we have seen, being prohibited by
taboo from handling these animals. Adult men really do not often
herd or milk, unless poverty compels them to adopt this as a means
of livelihood. The younger boys go out with the small stock and
calves, while the older boys and youths look after the cattle ; but the
men closely supervise their a&ivities. Hunting is done by the men
and youths. Women gather edible wild plants, but men may also
gather wild fruits and berries when out in the veld.

Both sexes take part in hut-building, each having special tasks
to perform. Among the Nguni and Sotho the men cut wood and do
all timberwork, while the women cut grass, thatch, and make the
floor. Where necessary, women also plaster the wall of the hut or,
as among the Tswana, themselves make the earthen wall. Among
the Venda and Shangana-Tonga the men not only do all timberwork
but also thatch. The women merely make the floor and plaster the
wall. Cattle-kraals, grain pits, fences and wooden palisades are all
made by the men, but the earthen walls surrounding many Sotho
courtyards arc built by the women, who also do all the decorating.

Housework is almost entirely done by women and girls. They
stamp and grind corn, prepare food and make beer, wash the cooking
and eating utensils, smear the walls and floors of the huts and court-
yards, clean the huts and keep them in good repair. Men, however,
occasionally cook meat, particularly at feasts or when by themselves,
while boys at the cattleposts prepare and cook their own food. The
women also fetch water and colleft firewood, and do most other
carrying work, such as transporting grain home from the fields, or
bringing in the poles cut by the men for building.

The occupations just dealt with are in no way specialized. Every
man is expefted to be able to herd cattle, hunt, and do all the other
work normally performed by men ; and so too every woman is
expefted to be able to till the soil, cook, make beer, and do all the
other work normally done by women. The necessary knowledge is
acquired mainly through increasing participation in the work of the
household. Children are required and taught from a fairly early
age to be of assistance to their parents. Girls are made to help in fetching
water and firewood, stamping or grinding corn, cooking, and smearing
and cleaning the huts. They start by imitating these activities in their
play, and are gradually drawn into aftual domestic work under the
instruction of their mothers and older sisters. As they grow older,

WORK AND WEALTH 151

they begin to take part in agriculture. Young boys are put to herding
small stock and calves. Older boys herd and milk the cattle, learn to
handle weapons, hunt for themselves or accompany the men, help
build the cattle-kraals, and do other work of a similar nature. At the
initiation ceremonies marking the transition from childhood to man-
hood they are emphatically reminded that cattle-herding and warfare
are the two dominant spheres of masculine aftivity, while girls are
similarly exhorted in regard to agriculture and housework.

To a considerable extent, too, all such work is carried on by every
household for itself. Each has its own fields, cultivated by its women,
and generally also its own livestock, looked after by its men and boys ;
every man hunts, and every woman gathers edible plants. It is thus
able to produce dire&ly the food it consumes. Every household
further builds its own huts as required, and all the necessary cooking,
cleaning and other housework is done by its women and girls.

Household tasks are as often done colleftively as individually.
Even in such simple aftivities as fetching water, collefting firewood
and stamping corn, the women and girls prefer to work in company,
the presence of others affording a welcome relief from the monotony
or burden of the task. The boys herding cattle spend much of their
time playing together while their animals graze ; and hunting, as we
have seen, is undertaken for the most part by groups of men. The
major a&ivities, like clearing a new garden, planting, weeding, reaping
and threshing, building the framework or wall of a hut, thatching,
putting on the roof, fencing a field or cutting timber, are almost
invariably done by several people working in co-operation to save
time and energy. Each married woman, e.g. has her own fields, but
usually the fields of the same household are worked colleftively,
each being planted, weeded and reaped in turn by all the women
and girls. 1

Sometimes the members of a household are sufficient for the
purpose. More generally the assistance of outsiders is invited. Often
enough help is given by near relatives, who are indeed expefted to
assist. But in all the tribes there is also found the institution of the
work-party (Nguni, ilima ; Sotho, letsema). 2 Anybody with a big
task on hand with which he and his household alone cannot cope, or
which he wishes to complete reasonably soon, will invite his neigh-
bours and friends to help him. He brews a large quantity of beer,
or slaughters an animal, and makes it known that with this he will

1 Cf. Hunter, 1936, 87. Schapera, 1935 MS. ; Hunter, 1936, 88

15* I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

entertain all those coming to work with him on a certain day. Any-
body wishing to do so can take part and receive his share in the feast.
Payment is sometimes also made in milk, porridge, salt or tobacco.
The work is lightened by rhythmical songs of various kinds and by
the presence of so many other people, while the feast awaiting them
is a stimulus to eager a&ivity. But it is not only this material reward
that makes people lend a hand. Poor people have no other method
of getting sufficient labour to carry out big tasks and, as they are
therefore all dependent upon one another for assistance, it is good
policy to help others and thus ensure their willing co-operation when
required for one's own work. And people notoriously slack in
attending work-parties often find their neighbours equally reluctant
to help them in turn.

It is only in regard to the making of household utensils and imple-
ments that some degree of specialization is found. Here there is also
a primary division of labour between the sexes, determined mainly
by the material employed. All work in wood, leather, bone and metals
is done by men ; potmaking and beadwork by women ; and basket-
work, except among the Shangana-Tonga, where it is restricted to
men, is carried on by both sexes, although each makes baskets of a
different type. But many of these crafts are known to only a small
number of people of the sex concerned. The outstanding examples of
such specialization are metalwork (men), and pottery (women),
the craft in both cases being largely confined to certain families,
within which it is handed down from parent to child. This is true
also of basketwork among the Shangana-Tonga, woodwork among
the Venda, kaross-making among the Tswana, and certain forms of
basketwork done by men among the Mpondo. 1 But woodwork,
leatherwork, beadwork and basketwork are on the whole more
generally diffused. Most if not all people are able to make at least
certain utensils, and thus supply their own needs. In each case, however,
a few people are also noted for the superiority of their produts,
since there is considerable variation in skill which here is of greater
significance than in food-producing or building ; or else make certain
objefts which others cannot. Magic, seen above to be an essential
part of produftive technique, is also very largely a highly-specialized
art. A few forms of magic connefted with agriculture, animal
husbandry and hunting are commonly known and praftised ; but
most of the rites and their associated medicines are known only to

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 125 f.; Stayt, 1931, H; Hunter, 1936, 99; Schapera, field data.

WORK AND WEALTH 153

the professional magicians, who may be either men or women. Among
the Shangana-Tonga certain men are also professional hunters of
big game, 1 but specialization of this kind appears to be on the whole
uncommon.

No specialist, however, ever devotes himself exclusively to one
particular occupation as a means of livelihood. They all herd and
hunt, cultivate their fields, build their huts, and carry out the ordinary
domestic work like the rest of the tribe ; the special craft they also
pradtise is merely a subsidiary source of income. This is as true of
the smith and the magician as of the potter or worker in wood. Nor
is there any special craft which cannot also be learned by outsiders.
Any person wishing and able to do so may become a magician or
smith, a kaross-maker, woodworker, or potter, although the first two
occupations require an apprenticeship for which a fee must be paid
to a praftising professional. Perhaps the only major instance where
any particular occupation is confined to a special caste is with the
Lemba, until quite recently the only coppersmiths and potters of the
Venda and neighbouring tribes. 2 Certain forms of magic, notably
rainmaking, are however often traditionally confined to members of
special clans, apart from the chief.

EXCHANGE

The general self-sufficiency of the household in regard to food,
shelter and many other produ&s, the faft that everybody is a herds-
man or cultivator, builder or housewife, and the relatively slight
development of specialization in other occupations, are refle&ed in
the marked absence of systematic trade. There is little produftion
for exchange, except with pots, baskets, iron goods and similar
utensils and implements ; and even here " there are no emporia where
one may regularly acquire these articles, no markets, periodical or
otherwise, at which they are offered for sale, no merchants going about
buying them up and selling them again ". 3

A certain amount of irregular trade is nevertheless carried on. A
man requiring metal goods, pots, baskets, wooden utensils, skin
cloaks or similar objefts which he does not himself make will procure
them from an expert craftsman. He goes direftty to the latter, and
either buys the objeft he wants, if it is already available, or, as is
frequently necessary, orders it to be made. Such articles may also

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 59 ff. Stayt, 1931, 18, 52, 58 f.

1 Lcstrade, 1934, 440-

154,1. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

be acquired by exchange from other people possessing more than they
need at the moment. Livestock, too, are fairly often obtained in this
way ; while in times of food shortage grain is sought from more
fortunate neighbours. There is no standardized medium of exchange.
Grain, meat, cattle, small stock, fowls, hoes, and spears are all
exchanged for one another and for other objefts, or used as payment
to magicians and herdsmen. There are, however, certain stabilized
relative values. Pots and baskets are almost universally exchanged
for their content in grain. Among the Tswana, again, two goats are
given for a sheep or a bag of corn, and ten goats or five bags of corn
for a heifer ; among the Mpondo ten spears are given for a young
beast and ten goats for a full-grown beast ; while among the Venda
two hoes are given for a goat. 1

Barter of this description, always on a small scale, takes place not
only within the tribe, but also between members of different tribes.
In Bechuanaland, e.g., people are in times of famine often compelled
to purchase corn in some neighbouring tribe less sorely afflifted.
The Shangana-Tonga, who do very little work in iron, obtain most of
their metal goods from the Venda; the Tswana buy skins from
Bushmen and Kxalaxadi for spears, knives, tobacco and dogs ; the
Mpondo get copper rings from the tribes farther east, in exchange for
corn ; and the Southern Sotho formerly traded " otter skins, panther
skins, ostrich feathers and the wings of cranes " to the Zulu, as
ornaments for warriors, in exchange for cattle, hoes, spearheads,
necklaces and copper rings. 2 Permission to trade must in such cases
be obtained from the Chief, who usually expefts and receives a present
in return.

Commodities are not only used in this vay to acquire goods which
people cannot produce for themselves. They may also be given in
exchange for labour. We have already seen that people helping in
work parties are paid with beer, meat or other foodstuffs. So, too,
the magician is paid for his special services, generally in livestock,
sometimes in grain or metal goods. It is fairly common also for a
man with no sons or young male relatives to look after his cattle to
employ some other man or boy to do so. The herdsman is paid a
heifer, which with its offspring then belongs to him. This form
of wage-labour must be distinguished from the widespread custom
of uhusisa (Nguni) or xo fisa (Sotho), by which the wealthy man

1 Stayt, 1931, 75; Schapera, 1935 MS.; Hunter, 1936,134.

1 Casalis, iStfi, 169 (S. Sotho); Junod, 1927, ii, 138 (Shangana-Tonga); Schapera
1935 MS. (Tswana); Hunter, 1936, 134 (Mpondo).

WORK AND WEALTH 155

places one or more of his cattle in the keeping of another. The herds-
man is entitled to use their milk for his own purposes, and may be
given some of the meat when an animal dies, but he may not sell or
slaughter them. It is also usual, if the cattle flourish under his care,
to reward him with a heifer from time to time.

Serving another man like this is perhaps the principal way in which
a poor man can acquire cattle. " Cattle raiding afforded an opportunity
for enterprising men to get rich quickly, but the principal way in
which a poor man acquired wealth was to serve a chief, or wealthy
man, and receive in return the loan or gift of cattle ... A fundamental
idea of (Bantu) social economics is that it is in no way degrading to
ask a gift of another, that to dispense gifts is the mark of a chief,
and that he who is given gifts becomes the giver's ' man '. Every
chief and every wealthy man has . . . men come to ask gifts, and
prepared in return to perform services. The gift may be of stock or of
produce ; most frequently it is a loan of cattle. . . . The services usually
performed are building huts, cutting bush for the kraal, assisting m
cultivation, going messages, a&ing as mouthpiece of his ' chief '
in public (e.g. arranging a marriage agreement for him), and praising
(ukubonga} his ' chief '." l And the man lending out his .cattle not only
has the task of herding them simplified. It serves partly to insure
against total loss from disease, witchcraft or some other agency which
might annihilate them should they all be concentrated in one kraal ;
and is also a means of disguising the full extent of his riches, and so
of escaping the jealousy and evil designs of less fortunate neighbours.
Above all, perhaps, it is a means of acquiring prestige : the greater
the number of retainers thus attached to a man, the higher his status
and the more considerable his influence in the tribe generally.

Barter and payment for special services are only two of the
mechanisms by which goods are circulated and thus made more widely
accessible. Lobola payments, the fines and compensations levied at
the courts, the various gifts made by relatives to one another, and the
various forms of tribute paid to the Chief, all serve the same end.
They will be dealt with below in discussing the special obligations
arising from kinship and citizenship. But it may also be noted that a
good deal of miscellaneous borrowing goes on in regard to such
objefts as household utensils, food and even livestock; and is a
frequent means of making good any immediate deficiency in a
particular commodity.

1 Hunter, 1936, 135.

IS 6 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

PROPERTY AND INHERITANCE

The food, livestock, dwellings, clothing, household utensils and
other objects acquired by direct production, by barter, or in return
for serving others, are used by each household to satisfy its own
needs. But the rights exercised over these goods by members of a
household are defined in various ways by tribal law and custom.
Possession of goods entails certain obligations, not only within the
household itself, but towards other people also. These rights and
duties vary according to the nature of the commodity.

Land.

The livelihood of the Bantu is intimately bound up with their
system of land tenure. They erect their dwellings on the land, cultivate
it, graze their livestock upon it, and hunt over its surface. They use
its water for domestic purposes and for their herds .and flocks ; they
eat the wild fruits and other foods it produces, and make medicines
from its vegetation ; they convert its wood into huts, palisades and
various utensils, and its reeds and grass into basket-work, thatch
and string ; and they extract from it metals, clay for their pots, and
earth for the floors and walls of their huts. In the regulation of the
land and its resources provision is made for each method of
exploitation.

All the land occupied by the tribe is vested in the Chief and
administered by him as head of the tribe. This he does through his
sub-Chiefs and headmen, who regulate the distribution and use of
land in their respective areas. The land is not his personal possession
with which he can deal as he pleases. " With the exception of that
portion of land which is reserved for the Chief and his family, on
more or less the same basis as for anyone else, none of the land belongs
to the Chief, nor can he dispose of it except gratuitously and to
members of his own tribe." l The natural resources of the land
earth, water, wood, grass, clay, edible plants and fruits are all
common property, never reserved for the use of any particular
persons. 2 So, too, anybody may graze his cattle and hunt wherever
he pleases ; although, as we have seen, people living in the same
area often tend to assert exclusive claims over its grazing, while in
Basutoland the Chiefs reserve special areas for winter grazing. It

1 Lestrade, 1934, 430.

1 Little information is available regarding rights to mineral deposits. Among the Tswana
it is said that their exploitation was striUy controlled by the Chief; but no further detail;
could be obtained, as Native mining has long since disappeared.

WORK AND WEALTH 157

is only in regard to land for residence and cultivation that private
rights are universally recognized. Every household-head has an
exclusive right to land for building his home and for cultivation.
Generally he can take up such land for himself within the area con-
trolled by his sub-Chief or headman, provided that he does not
encroach upon land already occupied or cultivated by others. Failing
this, it is the duty of his headman to provide him gratuitously with
as much land as he needs.

Once a man has taken up or been granted such land, it remains in
his possession as long as he lives there. He has a prescriptive right
over his arable land, whether it is still uncleared, being cultivated,
or lying fallow. Other people can graze their cattle on the stalks
once his crops have been reaped, and any woman can gather firewood
or wild plants from it ; but no one else can cultivate it without his
permission, and on his death it is normally inherited by his children.
He also has the right, subjeft to the approval of his headman, to give
away part of it to a relative or friend, or to lend it to someone else.
But he can never sell it or dispose of it in any other way in return for
material consideration. Should he finally abandon the spot, his land
reverts to the tribe as a whole and can subsequently be assigned to
someone else. The only other way in which he can lose his right to
the land is by confiscation, if he is found guilty of some serious crime.

The household-head in turn must divide his land among his
dependants according to their needs. Each of his wives is entitled
to at least one field for her own special use. No other wife can cultivate
this field, nor can her husband alienate it from her house without
her permission, and on her death her own children have a preferential
right to it. The household-head must similarly find arable land for
the wives of other married men living under his immediate jurisdiction.
Often enough he also has a common household field, not assigned to
any special wife, but worked by them all for the household as a whole. 1

Livestock.

Cattle and other domestic animals are all private property ; and
have their ears slit, lopped or perforated in different ways as dis-
tinftive marks of ownership. The Chief has no say in their distribution,
save in regard to cattle looted in war ; nor has any man the right to
demand cattle from him or other political authorities by virtue merely

1 On Bantu land tenure, cf. especially Schapera, 1935 MS.; Harries, 1929, chap, in;
Hunter, 1936, 112 ff.

IS 8 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

of tribal membership, although, as we have just seen, he has such a
claim to land. Moreover, cattle once acquired can not only be given
away outright, but can also be sold, slaughtered or otherwise disposed
of by the owner. 1 A man may, however, be made to surrender one
or more of his cattle as damages for a wrong he has done, or ate punish-
ment for an offence he has committed. In the former instance, the
cattle will belong to the victim of the wrong ; in the latter, they go
to the Chief or other political authority. In exceptional instances the
Chief may even confiscate all the cattle of a man who has committed
some very grave offence. The Chief, too, is entitled on certain
occasions to receive tribute in cattle from his subje&s, and a man's
relatives also have certain claims upon his cattle. These special claims
will be dealt with more fully below.

Men, women and children may all possess cattle in their own right.
A man may acquire cattle through natural increase of cattle already
owned, through inheritance, as lobola for his daughter or sister, by
gift from a relative or friend or the Chief, by service, by barter, and
through some other more or less fortuitous circumstance, e.g. as
damages. A married man must set aside some of his cattle for the
house of each wife. The cattle thus allocated, together with some of
those received as lobola for the daughters of any house, belong to
that particular house. No house has any claim to cattle belonging to
another, except by way of loan ; the husband cannot use such cattle
except for the benefit of that house, nor can he alienate them without
the consent of its wife and eldest son. These cattle provide food for
the inmates of that house ; they and their increase are used to lobola
wives for its sons ; and when the man dies they pass to its heirs.
The cattle a man does not specifically allocate in this way he may do
with as he pleases. He may lend them out to other people to herd
as mafisa y or he may sell or slaughter them. He may and should consult
the other members of his family before thus disposing of them, but
is not bound to follow their advice. If, however, he squanders them
recklessly, his heirs may appeal to the Chief, who will then take him
to task. In some tribes (e.g. Tswana), a man should in any case during
his lifetime set aside one or more heifers or other livestock for each
of his sons if he can afford to do so. He must also both among the
Sotho and the Nguni give each daughter one or more beasts at
marriage. He should further, out of such cattle, make the necessary
sacrifices to his ancestors on behalf of his dependants.

1 Lestrad* 1934, 4 33-

WORK AND WEALTH 159

Cattle belonging to an unmarried man are controlled by his father
or guardian. A son has no right to give away, sell, lend or otherwise
dispose of them without the consent of his father. The latter, on
the other hand, may use the cattle as he thinks fit on behalf of his son.
But should he dispose of them for his own ends he is expefted to
replace them. Once the son is married, and sets up his own household,
he can dispose of his cattle as he pleases, subject to the obligations
noted above.

A woman may acquire cattle in her own right by gift from her
father or husband, as her share of the lobola given for her daughter,
and as payment for specialized work (e.g. magic). These cattle run
with her husband's but he cannot treat them as his own. They also
do not form part of his estate, being separately inherited by the
woman's own children. On the other hand, she normally cannot
dispose of her cattle without her husband's consent and through
his agency, although if he objects unreasonably she can appeal to her
own relatives or to the headman. A divorced wife takes her own cattle
back to her parental home. Her husband, however, is generally
entitled to keep back any that he has himself given her, while if she
has any children the cattle must remain behind to be inherited by them.

Produce.

The milk yielded by cattle belongs to the house to which they are
assigned, and is reserved for the use of its inmates. Similarly, every
woman normally has her own granary, in which she keeps all the corn
reaped from her field, except for the small tribute which must in many
tribes be paid to the Chief. From her corn she prepares daily the food
for her children and other dependants, as well as for her husband.
She must also send to her co-wives part of whatever dish she has
prepared, so that in this way the produce of the whole household is
shared by all its members. The husband does not generally interfere
with his wife's use of her corn ; but she cannot sell it, give it away, or
grind it in large quantities to make beer without his consent. The corn
from any common household field is direftly controlled by the
husband. It is used mainly for brewing beer for work-parties or feasts, for
purchasing cattle and other commodities, and for entertaining visitors.

Meat obtained from the slaughter of any domestic animal is shared
by all members of the household. Special portions are allotted to
the wives, older sons and older daughters. Some it it must also be
given to such near relatives as paternal and maternal uncles and aunts ;

160 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

and in every tribe well-defined rules lay down which particular
portions must be given to each category. Game is generally divided
among all the people taking part in a hunt. The first man to strike
an animal claims the body and the skin. Others wounding it are
entitled to the legs or other portions, according to the order in which
they helped kill it l ; and some of the flesh is shared with the rest of
the party. The Chief also is entitled to hunting tribute in various
forms, the nature of which will be dealt with below.

Huts, Household Utensils, and Personal Belongings.

Huts, although built by the whole household, often with the
assistance of outsiders, are generally referred to by the names of the
wives occupying them. Each married woman is entitled to her own
hut. . The allocation of huts is controlled by the husband ; but once
a wife has been provided with her hut, she is regarded as its mistress,
and supervises everything connected with it. But her husband has
the right to enter it whenever he pleases 4 and if she is divorced, it
remains behind with him.

Household utensils are for the most part controlled by the wife.
She generally brings with her at marriage such things as pots, baskets,
hoes, and sleeping-mats, the gift of her parents. Others, she makes
for herself, or purchases with corn, fowls or beer, or is given by her
husband. But among the Mpondo it is the duty of her parents to
replace her utensils when they wear out or break. 2 She may do as she
likes with these objefts, without consulting her husband; but if
he finds her dissipating them recklessly, he may intervene to stop
her. If divorced, she takes back all that she has brought from her
own home. The rest may also be awarded her, or divided between
her and her husband, as the court decides.

Personal effefts are the private property of the people for whom
they are made or acquired. In the case of women and children they
consist mainly in clothing and ornaments. Men also have sticks and
weapons. Skin clothes are made by each man for himself, his wife and
children, except among such tribes as the Mpondo, where a woman's
clothes, even after marriage, are provided by her father or brother. 3
In all tribes, too, certain forms of clothing, like karosses, must often
be bought from specialists. Ornaments are made by women for them-
selves, their lovers, husbands and children, but are as often purchased.

1 Cf. Junod, 1927, ii, 56 ; Krige, 1936, 206.

Hunter, 1936, 128. Hunter, 1936, 128.

3
J3
N

WORK AND WEALTH l6l

Men generally cut their own sticks, but purchase or inherit their
weapons. The proceeds obtained by people from the sale of the
obje&s they make are also regarded as their exclusive property.
Adults may do as they please with their personal belongings, but
children may not dispose of them without the consent of their parents.

Family Obligations.

We may now conveniently review the principal obligations between
members of the same family in regard to property and services. As
already shown, most produ&ive aftivities are carried on within the
household. Both husband and wife must perform on behalf of the
household the various tasks imposed by tribal life. It is the special
duty of the wife towards her husband and children to till her fields,
cook food, and carry out her other domestic tasks. It is the special
duty of the husband towards his wife and children to provide them
with huts in which to stay, land to cultivate, and cattle to milk. He
must further see that they are properly clothed and have the other
necessities of life. The property each acquires must be administered
for the benefit of the others as well. A father must help his sons with
cattle to lobola wives ; must see that his daughters receive domestic
utensils to take to their new home ; and must allocate cattle to his
wives, so that on his death there is provision for the sons of each
house. Children, again, must help in all the work of the household
according to their age and sex. Sons when grown up must support their
parents, and should place at the disposal of their fathers anything
they obtain by hunting, purchase, or service for others.

Brothers and sisters must similarly help one another. Most tribes
among the Sotho and Nguni have the custom of " linking " a sister
to a brother. 1 The latter is then responsible all his life for the special
needs of this sister. He must provide her with clothes when necessary,
give her meat whenever he slaughters, and, as among the Mpondo,
supply her " with some of the stock necessary for initiation rites
before her marriage, as well as with a wedding outfit, and with clothing
and utensils after marriage ". 2 In return he receives the lobola cattle
given for her, while after his own marriage she must come to assist
his wife in any important domestic work. Brothers are ampng the
Tswana, and probably elsewhere, linked together in the same way.
An elder brother must support and proteft his younger " linked "

1 Cf. especially Schapera, 1935 MS.; Hunter, 1936, 123 f.
1 Hunter, 1936, 129.

162 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

brother, help him with lobola cattle, and should give him other cattle
from time to time. The younger brother, in turn, must always help
his senior in work, and, if their father is dead, should place at his
disposal whatever he earns. Each must give the other meat whenever
he slaughters.

Inheritance.

Inheritance among the Bantu is governed by various traditional
rules coming into force at the death of a person. A man may before
his death indicate what he wishes done with some of his personal
belongings ; but his other property must be inherited in the customary
manner and cannot be dealt with otherwise. The principal heir is
generally the eldest son of the great wife. But the father, given good
cause, may disinherit him by publicly disowning him before the Chief.
The heir will then be the eldest remaining son.

When a married man dies, leaving a wife and children of both sexes,
his eldest son, as general heir, inherits all the livestock which at the
death of his father have not been allotted or donated to any special
house or person. He also inherits any livestock specifically assigned
to his mother's house. He must out of these provide for his younger
brothers, in particular by helping them to lobola wives for themselves.
Daughters normally receive no cattle at all, nor does the widow;
but the heir must maintain and support them while they are living with
him. Should he fail to do so, they can complain to the Chief. The
estate of a polygamist is similarly divided. The eldest son in each house
inherits all livestock assigned to that house. The eldest son of the
great house further inherits such property as has not been assigned
to any house ; but must see that each house has sufficient stock to
provide wives for its sons. The fields, the huts, and the household
utensils remain with the widow or widows, who use them as long as
alive. But in many tribes, especially Nguni and Shangana-Tonga,
the homestead is destroyed on the death of the household-head.
The heir of each house then builds his own home, where he is joined
by his mother and her other children. These tribes also burn or bury
most of a dead man's personal belongings. Any weapons and other
objefts that may be preserved go to the principal heir, who must
share them with his younger brothers and with certain other relatives.
Deceased's maternal uncle, e.g., is among the Sotho entitled to some
of his weapons, as well as to a bull from his herd.
If a married man dies leaving no sons, his estate comes under the

WORK AND WEALTH * 6 3

control of his nearest male relative, generally his younger brother.
This man must maintain and support the widow and any daughters
from the property in his charge. He is expefted by cohabiting with
the widow, or by arranging for this to be done by someone else, to
see that she duly bears a son, who will ultimately inherit the dead
man's property. In a polygamous household, if there is no son by
the great wife, the general heir will be the eldest son of her affiliated
wife, and failing one the eldest son of the house next in rank. Failing
a son in any house, the nearest male relative of the dead man becomes
the general heir. But here again he is expefted to " raise seed ", either
in person or by proxy, to the various houses in which sons are desired.

If no heir is found by any such praftice, a man's property is inherited
by his father, if still living ; if not, by the eldest brother in the same
house. Failing a brother in the same house, the heir is the eldest
brother in the great house. Failing a brother there, the eldest brother
of the house next in rank inherits. In the entire failure of brothers,
the heir is the father's eldest brother in the same house, or his senior
male descendant. Failing one, the estate passes to the father's eldest
brother in the great house, or his senior male descendant ; and so on,
descending from house to house according to their rank, until a
male heir has been found to inherit the property and look after the
widow and daughters. In the entire absence of a male heir, the estate
falls to the Chief. 1

When a married woman dies childless or without sons, her husband,
if still living, may bring in another woman, generally her younger
sister or some other near relative, to " raise seed " for her. This woman
will then use the cattle, fields and other property assigned to deceased's
house, and they will be inherited in due course by her own children.
But if the dead woman leaves any children, all property belonging
to her in her own right, including livestock, are among the Mpondo
inherited by her youngest son, who also inherits her fields. 2 Her hut
and certain personal belongings are however destroyed or buried
with her. Among the Tswana, on the other hand, the youngest son
inherits the huts as well as the fields and livestock ; but the corn and
household utensils go to the eldest daughter, who must out of them
provide for her younger sisters and for the maternal relatives of her
mother. 3 Accurate information regarding other tribes is not available.

The estate of an unmarried man is administered by his father, if

For general discussion of inheritance, cf. WhitfieW, 1929, chap. yi.
Hunter, 1936, 119 f. ' Schapera, 1935 MS.

164 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

still alive. After the latter's death it goes to the heir of the house to
which the deceased son belonged. The property of an unmarried
woman goes to her mother, passing after the latter's death to the
other daughters. Her cattle, however, are inherited in the same way
as those of an unmarried son. But if she, although unmarried, has
children of her own, they inherit all her property.

SPECIAL GIFTS AND SERVICES

It has been noted above that a man's property and labour are not
only utilized to satisfy his own wants and those of his household, but
must on occasion be placed at the disposal of others. Among obliga-
tions of this kind hospitality plays a large part. Every visitor should
be offered some food, great stress being laid upon the observance of
this rule. Moeng xoroxa dijo di a tonale, say the Tswana : " stranger
arrive, so that there may be food." At feasts there are always a number
of uninvited guests, but certain pots of beer and portions of meat are
invariably set aside for them. And whenever a man slaughters he
should reserve some of the meat for the neighbours attracted to his
home. A selfish or niggardly man is despised ; a generous man is
warmly praised, and is generally a welcome guest in turn when he
visits others. We have also seen that people are often asked to assist
their neighbours at work. No one is compelled to do so ; but the
tradition of reciprocal help, without which many common tasks
could not be satisfactorily accomplished, is generally a sufficient
incentive, quite apart from the feast rewarding those taking part.

Obligations towards Relatives.

There are, however, in all the Bantu tribes more special obligations.
Relatives by blood or by marriage are entitled of right not only to
hospitality, but also to gifts of various kinds and to labour assistance.
They should visit one another frequently, and must be specially enter-
tained whenever they do so. They must be invited to all feasts, where
they frequently sit in small groups according to their status, each being
given special portions of meat, beer, and whatever else is available.
And, as we have seen, whenever a man slaughters he must send special
portions of the meat to the relatives living near him. Those out of
reach should from time to time be given an ox or goat instead. They
are expe&ed to reciprocate in kind on some future occasion. A man
given meat, e.g., will somewhat later repay it with several pots of
beer, or with a substantial bowl of porridge. So, too, whenever a

WORK AND WEALTH 165

man has any big task on hand, he may instead of organizing a work-
party call upon his relatives for assistance ; and they are expefted to
provide it. When a woman is confined after childbirth, her own female
relatives as well as those of her husband help to fetch water, colled
firewood, cook and do all the other household work to which she
cannot attend. They help her in the same way to prepare for a feast.

A few more specific instances of kinship obligations may briefly
be reviewed. 1 A man's paternal relatives are preferential partners in most
co-operative aftivities. His senior uncles and aunts should contribute
towards the lobola he gives for his wife, having in return the right
to receive part of the lobola obtained for his sister or daughter. They
must also contribute towards the gifts of cattle, food, clothing and
ornaments made to boys and girls on passing through the initiation
ceremonies. If a man is unable to pay a fine imposed upon him at
court, they should assist him to do so. If childless, or having children
of one sex only, they may be given a nephew to help herd their cattle,
or a niece to help in the household work ; and they may even com-
pletely adopt such children.

Similar obligations are created by marriage. The lobola transaction
itself, with all the other accompanying gifts, is one of the principal
means of circulating goods. Moreover, once a marriage has been
established relatives-in-law must help one another at work in the same
way as relatives by blood. A married woman assists and is assisted
by her husband's female relatives in the various major domestic
and agricultural tasks, they share their food, and generally fun&ion
as interdependent units of one social group. Her own relatives make
her and her family gifts of food, clothing, household' utensils and
similar objefts, help them at work, and frequently adopt their children
for a while. Her husband is expefted to reciprocate in kind. He should
help his wife's people at work, not only when requested but also of his
own accord, make them occasional gifts of meat and other kinds of
food, and invite them to all feasts in which he plays a leading part.

A child for whose mother lobola has been paid is always treated with
great respeft and has many privileges at her parental home. His
maternal uncle has many special duties to perform towards him,
especially among the Sotho and Shangana-Tonga. The uncle must
slaughter for the feast at the birth of a nephew or niece, provide them
with new outfits of clothing when they are initiated, help them with
food and clothing when they get married, and contribute towards
1 Cf. especially Schapera, 1935 MS.; Hunter, 1936, 47 ff., 121 fF.

166 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

the lobola paid by his nephew. The nephew has the right, among the
Tswana, to slaughter a beast at his uncle's kraal for food, or to take
a heifer for breeding purposes ; or he may give his uncle an old
bull, a damaged kaross,or some other useless objeft, claiming in return
a young bull or heifer, or a new kaross. The uncle, in return, always
receives a substantial portion of the lotola given for his niece ; he
receives the first animal earned by his nephew, part of every animal
he slaughters or kills in the chase, and any objeft he picks up in the
veld ; for every animal his nephew kills or takes from his kraal he
can later exercise a similar privilege; and he inherits part of his
nephew's estate. 1 Cross-cousins among the Tswana similarly can
help themselves freely to one another's personal belongings, the only
relatives to whom this privilege is accorded.

These forms of service and gift to relatives are not compulsory,
in the sense that people can be sued at court for failing to provide them.
But it will be said that they do not show their relatives due honour
and respeft, and considerable ill-feeling may result, together with
refusal on the part of the slighted relative to work with or take any
interest in the welfare of the culprit. The main incentive to conformity
with these obligations is reciprocity. In the relative absence of
industrial specialization and consequent economic interdependence,
kinship serves to establish greater social cohesion within the com-
munity, and to integrate its activities into a wider co-operation than
obtains within the restricted limits of the household. The so-called
" communal system " of the Bantu is largely the manifestation of this
close bond of solidarity and reciprocity arising out of kinship and
affe&ing well-nigh every aspeft of daily life.

The Position of the Chief.

Apart from being obliged to help his relatives in this way, a man
must pay tribute, both in labour and in kind, to his Chief and other
political superiors. 2 But whereas relatives cannot in court enforce
fulfilment of their special rights and privileges, the Chief has the
power to punish anybody failing to render him the customary tribute.
The nature of this tribute varies somewhat from group to group.
Generally speaking, however, the Chief has the right to send any
member of the tribe where and on what errand he likes. Moreover,
he can call upon them collectively to perform various tasks for him

Junod, 1927, i, 267 ff. ; Schapera, 1935 MS.
* Eiselen, 1932,1, 297-306; Schapera, 1935 MS.; Hunter, 1936, 384 ff.

WORK AND WEALTH 167

and his household, as well as on behalf of the tribe at large. Among
the Sotho and Northern Nguni work of this kind is generally done for
him by the regiments, whom he summons for the purpose whenever
he wishes. Among the Tswana, e.g., the men's regiments not only
constitute the tribal army, but in time of peace are often called upon
to round up stray cattle, to destroy beasts of prey, to hunt for the
Chief, to clear new fields for his wives, or to build his huts and cattle-
kraals ; while the women's regiments help build and thatch the huts,
fetch earth and smear their walls and floors whenever required, fetch
water and colleft firewood for the Chief's wives, and cultivate their
fields. 1 In other tribes similar work is generally done locally, through
the sub-Chiefs and headmen.

Although the Chief thus has a right to the services of every member
of the tribe, he also has many servants direftly attached to his house-
hold and performing its work. Among the Nguni and in many other
tribes young men come from all parts of the tribe to serve at the
Chief's court, where they perform such menial tasks as fetching wood
and water, making fires and herding cattle. Among the Tswana he
has also a large number of serfs, recruited from inferior communities
like the MaSarwa (Bushmen) and the Kxalaxadi. Many of them live
in the veld, hunting for the Chief; others stay at his cattleposts
herding his cattle; others are brought into the town, where they
live in his homestead and do all the routine domestic work. Most of
them are attached to him in person, and are taken over by his successor.
Others are allotted to his different houses, and are then inherited in
the house to which they are attached. They are not free to leave or to
transfer their allegiance to some other master, and if they desert can
be followed up and brought back. Their spouses, if they marry outside
the Chief's household, also become his servants. He can, on the other
hand, give or lend them to someone else, whose servants they then
become ; and it is usual that when his daughter marries he gives her
some of these serfs to help her in her new home. They are regarded
now as her sole property, and will be inherited by her children. Other
servants are drawn from the ordinary members of the tribe. Each
house of the Chief is put under the care of a certain ward or certain
families. These retainers remain attached to the same house, their
children continuing to work for it and its descendants. They live at
their own homes, and have the same rights as other members of the
tribe ; but they also have special obligations towards the house to

1 Schapera, 1935 MS.

168 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

which they are allotted. Some of the men are put in charge of its
cattle, while some of the women and girls help in the daily domestic
work ; and the group as a whole cultivates the fields of that house,
builds its huts, and performs all similar work. 1

The Chief is also entitled to various forms of tribute in kind. There
are in most tribes one or more large public fields specially cultivated
for him every year by local divisions of the tribe. He provides the
seed ; but the people do all the work, from clearing the field to
harvesting and threshing the produce, all of which is then given to
him. Among the Sotho and Shangana-Tonga he further receives a
basketful of corn from every woman .after she has reaped her own
harvest. The presentation of this corn is an occasion of great ceremony,
constituting part of the harvest thanksgiving. The Chief must also
be given the breast-portion of every big game animal killed in the
chase, ostrich feathers, the skins and claws of all carnivora, especially
of the lion and the leopard, and the hides and tusks of the elephant,
hippopotamus and rhinoceros. The skins of all animals killed in any
communal hunt organized by him are also his property.

But his most important source of wealth is cattle. He possesses
by far the largest herds in the tribe. All cattle looted in war are brought
to him. Some of them he distributes among the successful raiders
or among men who have otherwise distinguished themselves ; but
he always keeps a generous portion for himself. Stray cattle must be
brought to him by their finders ; and if not claimed within a certain
period, are held to belong to him. He receives gifts of cattle from the
head of every family on his installation as Chief; and among the
Tswana similar gifts are made to him by the leading members of the
tribe after his initiation. The lobola paid for his great wife is frequently
made up of contributions from the tribe ; while the lobola he receives
for his daughters forms a substantial addition to his wealth, since the
amount paid for a Chief's daughter is much higher than that for a
commoner's daughter. Among the Sotho, again, the father of every
boy going through the initiation ceremonies must pay the Chief
a fee of one beast. He is entitled to all the fines imposed in his court for
homicide and serious bodily assault, and to a portion of the damages
paid in civil cases brought to his court for settlement. So, too, when-
ever an important tribesman dies, one of his cattle must be sent to
the Chief as formal notification of the loss. He can even confiscate the
entire property of tribesmen found guilty of witchcraft or some other

1 Schapera, 1935 MS.

WORK AND WEALTH 169

grave crime. Finally, people anxious to keep in his favour find it
expedient to make him occasional gifts of cattle ; and he sometimes
makes special tours of his territory to colleft such gifts.

But all this accumulation of wealth by the Chief, all this labour
rendered to him, must be utilized by him not only for his own benefit,
not only for the maintenance of his large household, but also on behalf
of the tribe as a whole. One quality always required of a Chief is
generosity. He must provide liberal hospitality in beer and meat
for people visiting him or assisting at his court, or summoned to
work or to fight for him. He rewards with gifts of cattle and some-
times wives the services of his councillors, warriors, and retainers.
Many of his cattle are distributed for herding among his retainers,
who live upon the milk ; while in times of famine he must provide
the people with corn from his granaries. The annual tribute of corn
he receives he must use to make the beer given to the people at the
harvest thanksgiving ; every man bringing him the skin of a lion or
leopard must be rewarded with the gift of a heifer ; the meat of the
game killed at a tribal hunt he distributes among those taking part ;
the breast-portions of big game animals he cooks for the men at his
court, or sends to paupers or invalids. The Chief is thus looked upon
as the source of wealth, of reward, and of sustenance in times of
trouble ; and this constitutes a powerful sanction for his authority.
A Chief too niggardly to provide lavishly for his subjefts readily
becomes unpopular, and may even find them tending to desert him
for some more liberal rival, serious an offence as this is.

The Chief, moreover, must perform certain special duties for
the material welfare of his people. As we have already seen, he controls
the use and distribution of the tribal land ; he also organizes big
tribal hunts, especially when beasts of prey have been ravaging the
cattle; he organizes raids on neighbouring tribes to obtain more
cattle, and must also see to the defence of his own people's herds
from attack by others ; he is responsible almost everywhere for the
rainmaking ceremonies upon which the growth of the crops is held
to depend, while in many tribes he also distributes charmed seed
among his subjefts. Very often he also direftly organizes their
agricultural aftivities. Among the Tswana, Northern Sotho and
many others, he summons his people at the beginning of a new agri-
cultural season to hoe and sow his various public fields. Until they
have done so, they may not under penalty of punishment do the
same work on their own fields. Again, when the first fruits of the

170 I. SCHAPERA AND A. J. H. GOODWIN

new season are ripe, no one may eat of them until the Chief has
ceremonially done so. So, too, no one may harvest or thresh his crops
until this has been done with the produce of the Chiefs fields. In
this way the Chief" ensured that these operations would be performed
at a time which the experienced elders of the tribe knew to be most
favourable "- 1

Sub-Chiefs, and headmen also are entitled to exaft free labour from
their people for all public purposes, and to send them about freely
on official business. But they cannot claim tribal labour for their own
private purposes, although if popular may willingly be given assistance.
They may occasionally also be given presents of beer, meat, and similar
commodities. But there is no recognized form of tribute to be paid
to them other than the fines levied in their courts. In some tribes,
however, a Chief may permit vassal-Chiefs under his rule to claim
from their own people the various forms of hunting tribute to which
he himself is entitled, and also to have fields cultivated for them.
But they are allowed this by grace, and not by right ; and he may
whenever he wishes withdraw the privilege.

THE BREAKDOWN OF TRIBAL ECONOMY

The coming of the European has brought to the Bantu new forms
of organization largely incompatible with the traditional ways of
earning a living, and fresh needs which cannot be met by the traditional
methods of production and exchange. These innovations and their
effefts are dealt with more fully in a subsequent chapter, 2 but may
conveniently be outlined here to bring out the contrast between
Bantu and European systems of economy. The Native, while
attempting to cling to his own scale of values, finds it impossible not
to admit the competing claims of a system in which exchange is
carried out and values adjusted by means of prices. This has afFefted
domestic industries : the potter is no longer so aftive where the trader
has tin-ware for sale; the Native adzes and axes are everywhere
giving way to the European article. The traditional arrangements for
storing foodstuffs come to be upset by the pra&ice of sale to the
Europeans immediately after the harvest for cash or chits giving the
right to purchase goods. Imitation of the Europeans gives rise to
wants unknown before, for clothing and utensils of all kinds, and for

1 Rtpon of Native Economic Commission, 1930-2 (U.G., 22, 1932), 56.
1 See below*

WORK AND WEALTH 171

school education, which in the Native teachers creates a new class
of specialists who, on account of their training, often play a larger
part in public life than their age or social origins might seem to
warrant.

At the same time, the spread of European rule is depriving the
Chief of many of his fun&ions, limiting his rights of dispensing
justice, and, by striftly limiting the amount of land at the tribe's
disposal, is even preventing him from fulfilling his primary obligations
as father of his people. This again lessens the respeft in which he is
held, and makes difficult the full exercise of his claims over the labour
and property of his subjefts. The Government, moreover, demands
tax payments in money, thereby increasing the breach in the old
system of produftion and exchange. The need for earning tax money,
together with their relu&ance to sell cattle, drives many men out to
work for wages in mines or industries or on farms away from the
tribal home. Their absence, often prolonged, means changes in the
organization of family work; their additional earnings mean a
different scale of family incomes. The communal solidarity which is
the key to the traditional Bantu methods of making and sharing
wealth is lessened ; ties of relationship or neighbourhood, of respeft
for the elders and loyalty to the Chief, become less binding.

So a new class arises, who, in the words of one Tswana Chief, are
like bats : neither birds nor mice, neither Natives nor Europeans.
This description is not unjust. For the Bantu have certainly not yet
learned to make the most of the European method of catering for
wants by means of constantly adjusted price-changes. The Native
is not a close bargainer, and it will be long before his introduction to
money is complete. None the less, it is a dying system which we have
been describing above, a form of organization already well on the
way to being transformed in many parts of South Africa.

CHAPTER VIII
POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS

By I. SCHAPERA

THE basic unit in Bantu political life is the tribe (Nguni, isipve;
Shangana-Tonga, ri$aka y nyimta; Sotho, sethfaba, morafe; Venda,
lushaka). This may be defined, for all practical purposes, as the body
of people organized under the rule of an independent Chief. Each
tribe has its own name, occupies its own territory, manages its own
affairs, and afts as a single united body in war. But it is primarily
through their allegiance to the same Chief that the members of a tribe
are conscious of their unity ; and indeed the tribe is most often named
after the Chief himself or one of his ancestors. So, too, the Chief
himself is spoken of as Chief over his people, and not as Chief of the
territory they inhabit : e.g. Griffith Lerotholi is not " Paramount
Chief of Basutoland ", but morena e moholo oa BaSotho, " the great
Chief of the (Southern) Sotho."

The nuclear stock of a tribe is generally composed of people all
claiming descent from the same line of ancestors as the Chief. But even
the smallest tribe contains many alien families or groups, while in the
larger tribes only a small proportion of the people may belong to the
original stock. Usually as a Chief gains in power, prestige, and wealth
his tribe will be enlarged by the accession of refugees from other
Chiefs ; while, on the other hand, the unpopularity of any Chief will
gradually lessen the number of his adherents. Disputes over succession
to the Chieftainship, or quarrels arising from other causes among
members of the royal family, may lead to a split, the malcontents
either seeking refuge with some other Chief or setting up as an
independent tribe of their own. Then again, conquest by war may
lead to the incorporation of several different tribes under the rule
of one Chief, or to the disintegration of others, whose members scatter
all over the country seeking refuge where they can. The tribe is thus
not a closed group, like the clan. It is an association into which people
may be born, or which they may voluntarily join, or into which they
may be absorbed by conquest ; and which they may, for one reason
or another, leave again.

173

174 I- SCHAPERA

From time to time there have arisen in South Africa large Bantu
States, in which many different tribes were amalgamated into a single
political unit. The Zulu under Shaka, the Rhodesian Ndebele under
Mzilikazi, the Shangana under Soshangane, the South Sotho under
Moshesh, the Swazi under Sobhuza and Mswazi, the Pedi. under
Thulare, and the Ngwato under Kxama and his predecessors were
all powerful combinations in which one Chief had brought under his
rule many of his neighbours. 1 The Nguni rulers introduced certain
new features of social organization, to which reference will be made
below ; the others simply extended the traditional system of adminis-
tration to embrace the conquered tribes, allowing them a large measure
of autonomy under their own hereditary leaders but often appointing
sub-Chiefs to watch over them. Most of these large States have since
broken up, mainly as a result of wars with the Europeans, and have
reverted to the original system of small tribes. But in Basutoland,
Swaziland, and Northern Bechuanaland (Ngwato) the composite
" nations " still flourish. Here, however, allowing for the difference
in scale, the administrative system has on the whole remained funda-
mentally the same as that of the smaller tribes.

At the head of, the whole tribe is the Chief (Nguni, inkosi ;
Shangana-Tonga, host; Venda, khosi; Sotho, morena, kxosi). He
is assisted in the execution of his duties by various forms of council.
Local divisions within the tribe, such as distrifb, sub-distri&s, villages,
and wards, are in turn administered by their respe&ive heads, assisted
by small local councils. Each petty local authority is responsible in
the first place to the head of the larger local unit within which he
dwells. The latter, again, is responsible dire&ly or through some
senior local authority to the Chief. There exist also such institutions as
the army, age-sets, civil and ritual assemblies, through which the
tribe as a whole is on occasion marshalled direftly before the Chief.
In effeft, therefore, the government of the tribe is ultimately concen-
trated in the hands of the Chief; but the existing social and territorial
organization is used to delegate matters of more purely local concern
to subordinate authorities.

THE CHIEFTAINSHIP
Succession and Minority.

Chieftainship is hereditary. Many instances are known where it
has been usurped or acquired in some other way by trickery or force ;

1 For die history of these tribes, see above, chap. iii.

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 175

but as a rule the Chief succeeds automatically to his office by right
of birth. Kxosi ke kxosi ka a tsetswc, say the Tswana : (< a Chief is
Chief because he is born to it." But the rules of succession vary some-
what from group to group. Among the Nguni, Sotho, and Venda
Chieftainship normally passes from father to son. The rightful heir
is the eldest son of the Chief's " great wife ", the woman for whose
lobola cattle have been contributed by members of the tribe. 1 Among
the Shangana-Tonga a Chief is usually succeeded by his brothers in
turn, and only when the last brother has died does the succession revert
to the sons of the eldest. 2 Failing a direft heir, the Chief is everywhere
succeeded by the man next in order of seniority. Frequently, however,
the succession is disputed by rival claimants, even when the real
heir is well known ; and there will be strife and tribal disruption.
Women do not normally succeed, although they may at times a&
as regents. But among the Lobedu and certain other small North
Sotho tribes the Chief must always be a woman. She is, however,
for social purposes regarded as a male, marries " wives " (who then
cohabit with her male relatives), and is succeeded by the eldest daughter
of the " great wife ". 3 This form of Chieftainship is, as far as the
Southern Bantu in general are concerned, decidedly exceptional.

The heir is normally installed as Chief soon after the death of his
predecessor. Occasionally the leading councillors of the tribe, if
they consider him unsuitable for the Chieftainship, will intrigue
against him and bring about the succession of a more satisfactory
though junior relative. But as a rule the claims of legitimacy are more
than sufficient to counterbalance personal disqualifications. The new
Chief is first " doctored " with various medicinal charms to give him
the power of commanding the obedience and respect of his people.
He is then formally invested with the insignia of Chieftainship, the
occasion often being one of elaborate public ceremonial ; is entrusted
with the sacred tribal regalia, and enters into the inheritance of his
predecessor's household and property.

If the heir is still too young to take up office, the dudes of Chieftain-
ship are entrusted to a regent. The regent is generally, among the
Sotho and Nguni, the late Chief's senior surviving brother or an
older son by a junior wife. He normally afts alone, but sometimes,
especially among the Swazi, the heir's mother may have as much or

1 On the "great wife", aee above, chap, iv, pp. 75, 83, 91.

1 Junod, 1927, I, 4io-4.

Cf. A. A. Jacques, 1934, 37T-3 8 *-

i?6 I. SCHAPERA

even greater authority in the direction of tribal affairs, and the male
regents merely a&s as her mouthpiece. The regent while in office has
all the powers, rights, privileges, and duties of the Chief. He also
receives and keeps as his own the various forms of tribute customarily
paid to the Chief. He is expe&ed to hand over the Chieftainship when
the heir comes of age, i.e. when he has passed through the ceremonies
admitting him into adult membership of the tribe. But tribal histories
show that a regent has often enough been tempted by the fruits of
office to retain the Chieftainship permanently. If he has been a success-
ful and popular ruler, he is generally assured of support, with the
result that there may be a split in the tribe. But if on the other hand he
has abused his position, he will be forced, perhaps even sooner than
really necessary, to make way for the heir; and should he resist
the penalty may be assassination. 1

Prerogatives and Wealth.

The Chief, as head of the tribe, occupies a position of outstanding
privilege and authority. He is the symbol of tribal unity, the central
figure round whom the tribal life revolves. He is at once ruler, judge,
maker and guardian of the law, repository of wealth, dispenser of
gifts, leader in war, priest and magician of his people. Among the
Venda and some Northern Sotho, as among Shaka's Zulu, he is
elevated to an almost godlike eminence: his person is sacred, his
subjefts bow before him in humble adoration and obeisance, and his
smallest gesture is greeted with a chorus of fulsome adulation. 2 Among
the Venda, indeed, " not only is the Chief thus regarded as semi-
divine during the greater part of his life : towards the end of it, or
sometimes long before, he actually confers godhead upon himself,
when after abjuring all contaft with women, and putting away his
wives, he performs a solemn solitary dance (u pembela) which makes
him in very truth a god (MuJiimu)." 3 In other tribes, such as the
Tswana, he is far more approachable ; but even here he is greatly
revered and always treated with a good deal of outward respeft.
His deeds are extolled in magnificent eulogies recited on all public
occasions by special bards. He himself is often addressed not merely
by his official title but in words or phrases of extreme adulation,
while among the Tswana he is correftly known by the personification

1 Cf. Schapera, 1935 MS. (Tswana); Lestrade, 19300, 319 (Venda).

1 Cf. Stayt, 1931, 201-3; Lestrade, 19300, 311-12; Krige, 1936, 237-9.

* Le^irade, loc. cit.

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 177

of the tribal name. 1 His initiation, installation, and marriage are
occasions of great public festivity. There are certain insignia of rank,
such as leopard skins, ivory armlets, or bead necklaces of a particular
kind, which only he is allowed to wear ; and he alone, in the Nguni
tribes, is entitled to the royal salute bayede.

The Chief's household is usually far larger and more elaborate
than those of ordinary tribesmen. He always has many wives, both
at his own residence and (as among the Nguni and Shangana-Tonga)
at military kraals or other places of importance throughout the tribe ;
while numerous officials, retainers and other adherents cluster round
him and his court. He has the first choice of land for building upon,
for cultivation and for grazing his cattle. He and his family take
precedence in the tribe in matters of ritual, e.g. at the first-fruits and
initiation ceremonies. This precedence is a prerogative so jealously
guarded that anyone daring to infringe it is severely punished as a
potential rival. The Chief alone has the right to convene tribal
meetings, arrange tribal ceremonies, and impose the supreme penalties
of death and banishment. He receives various forms of tribute from
his people, both in kind and in labour. 2 He further has the right in
general to obedience from his subje&s in all matters of public interest,
as well as in minor matters of more personal concern. Failure to
comply with his orders is a penal offence. All other offences against
him are generally punished more severely than similar offences against
ordinary tribesmen ; while disloyalty or revolt against his authority
is a major crime, punished as a rule by death and the confiscation of the
culprit's property.

Duties and Obligations.

But the Chief's life is not merely one of immense privilege. He has
many duties to perform for the tribe, duties which if faithfully carried
out may impose an enormous burden upon his time and energy. He
must in the first place watch over the interests of his subjefts and
keep himself informed of tribal affairs generally. He is said to be the
father or herdsman of his people, and as such has to look after them,
treat them well and justly, and see that no harm or misfortune befalls
them. He must give ear to all his subjefts, irrespeftive of rank ; and
much of his time is spent daily in his official courtyard (Sotho,

1 The Chief of the Ngwato, e.g., is addressed and referred to as MoNgwato, and the chief
of the Kxatla as Mokxatla.

Cf. above, chap, vii, pp. 166 ff.

178 I. SCHAPERA

kxotla\ Venda, khoro\ Nguni, inkundla\ Shangana-Tonga, hubo\
listening to news, petitions, and grievances from all parts of the tribe.
His accumulated wealth, as shown in the last chapter, must be used for
the tribal benefit as well as for his own maintenance ; and much of
his popularity depends upon his reputation for hospitality and
generosity.

The Chief is the executive head of the tribe. Nothing of any
importance can be done without his knowledge and authority. But
in administering tribal affairs he must always consult with his councils,
both private and public ; and it is one of his main duties to summon
and preside over meetings of these councils as occasion arises. With
them he must decide upon questions of peace and war, and see to the
proteftion or relief of his people in case of war, pestilence, famine, or
some other great calamity. He must see that the local divisions of the
tribe are effe&ively governed by their sub-Chiefs or headmen, and
take any a&ion that may be necessary to ensure this. He controls the
distribution and use of the tribal land, of which he is often figuratively
termed the owner ; and he must in many tribes regulate the sowing
and harvesting of crops, the organization of tribal hunts, trade relations
with strangers, and other economic aftivities. He is the head of the
tribal army, and as such organizes military expeditions, often accom-
panying them himself, performs the necessary war magic for the
success of his troops, and disposes of the prisoners and loot. He is
also the representative and spokesman of his tribe in all its external
relations, and so must receive and entertain other Chiefs or their
messengers, and communicate in the same way with his neighbours
when necessary. All strangers visiting the tribe must be reported
to him, while none of his own people may go away without his know-
ledge and permission.

The Chief is further responsible for maintaining law and order
throughout the tribe. He must proteft the rights of his subjefts,
provide justice for the injured and oppressed, and punish wrongdoers.
He is the supreme judge, whose decision is final. Appeals lie to him
from the verdi&s of the lower courts ; while certain serious offences,
such as treason, homicide, assault, rape and sorcery must be dealt
with only by him and his court. He may further initiate and, after
discussion with his councillors and the tribe as a whole, promulgate
new laws and regulations for the better conduft of tribal affairs ;
and similarly abolish old usages which the tribe has outgrown.
Legislation of this sort does not seem to have played a conspicuous

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 179

part in the old tribal life, the Chief being more concerned to maintain
the existing laws than to alter it ; but in more recent rimes decrees
have often been found necessary to meet the new conditions produced
by contaft with the Europeans.

As religious head of the tribe, the Chief always plays an extremely
important part in its ritual life. He must arrange for the celebration
of all the great ceremonies, such as rainmaking and other agricultural
rites, tribal purifications, initiations, and the charming of the army,
upon which the welfare of his people is held to depend. He is the
custodian of various sacred obje&s symbolizing the unity and
prosperity of his tribe, such as the inkatha or sacred coil of the Zulu
and the mhamba of the Thonga, both containing among other
ingredients " dirt " from the bodies of past and present Chiefs.
He further possesses horns or vessels filled with a potent magical
paste giving him power over his enemies, and must use them for
" doftoring " the tribe in time of war or other emergency. Even if
he himself has not learned to perform the necessary fites, he has
official magicians to do so ; and they always work at his request and
under his direft supervision.

In many of these rites the Chief is the link between his people and
the ancestral spirits governing their welfare. His dead ancestors are
held to afford supernatural protection and assistance to the people
they once ruled; and on all important occasions he will sacrifice
and pray to them on behalf of the tribe as a whole. The role he thus
plays as tribal priest a role which only he, as ruling Chief, can
fill helps to explain the great reverence in which he is always held
by his people. He himself becomes a tribal god after his death. He is
buried in some traditionally sacred spot ; apd, especially if he has
been renowned or well-beloved, his descendants will come there with
their people to pray to him for rain and harvest, peace and prosperity. 1

Relatives of the Chief.

The Chief's paternal relatives (Sotho, diheosana, borrangwanakxosi ;
Venda, magota ; Swazi, bantanenkosi, etc.) share to a varying extent
in the rights and privileges of his exalted position. Generally speaking,
the more closely a man is related to the Chief, the more powerful
a person he is in tribal affairs generally. If in addition he is personally
capable, his authority will be correspondingly greater. If on the other

1 See below, chap, xi, for a fuller account of the Chief's religious position.

l8o I. SCHAPERA

hand he is incompetent, a waster or a drunkard, his influence will
be correspondingly less. But owing to his inherited status he will
nevertheless continue to command some respeft from his social
inferiors. The Chief's brothers and uncles, in particular, have the
right to be consulted by him on all important tribal matters, and often
exert considerable influence and authority as his private advisers.
One of them generally afts for the Chief during his absence or illness ;
and in certain tribes (e.g. Venda, Ngwato) this man's position is
constitutionally demarcated. 1 Others are appointed by the Chief as
sub-Chiefs over outlying distrifts or vassal-tribes, while among the
Sotho they may further have individual jurisdiction as leaders of
mephato (age-regiments). Without their aftive support he can do
little ; but if they are solidly behind him his hold over the tribe will
be greatly strengthened.

On the other hand, it is usually these men who form the Chief's
most dangerous rivals, especially when he is weak or tyrannous.
They are jealous of their rights, and adtively resent any failure on
his part to co-operate with them in ruling the tribe. Even if they do
not dispute the succession with him before he is installed, they may
subsequently intrigue against him, relying for support upon the
prestige of their birth and such personal popularity as they possess.
Dynastic troubles of this sort are of frequent occurrence in Bantu
society ; and although they may not always lead to civil war or to the
secession of an ambitious brother or son of the Chief with his
following, they split the tribe into fa&ions whose continual disagree-
ments greatly disturb the general peace and prosperity. The success
of a Chief's reign is therefore often determined by his treatment of
his close relatives and by their own attitude towards him.

The Chief's mother, especially when her lobola cattle have been
contributed by the whole tribe, is its most important woman. She is
spoken of as the " mother " of all his people, and is treated by them
with the utmost respeft, so much so that among the Sotho and others
her home is a recognized asylum to which vitims of persecution can
flee. She sometimes afts as regent during her son's minority, or if not
must be consulted by the regent in all matters affefting the royal
family and estate ; while after his accession the Chief frequently
seeks her advice in political matters. Among the Swazi she occupies
a position of unique importance. She is, next to the Chief himself,
the leading member of the tribal government, and afts as the principal

Stayt, 1931, 197-8; Schapera, 1935, MS.

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 181

regent during his minority. She has her own kraal, which is the ritual
capital of the tribe ; the annual first-fruits festival is held there, as
well as meetings of the tribal councils, and a regiment is always
stationed there to proteft her and to work for her. She exercises
separate judicial powers ; she is the custodian of the sacred rain
medicines, which her son uses in collaboration with her > he invariably
consults her before taking aftion in any important matter, and should
follow her advice ; and she can take an aftive part in all council
meetings. 1 Among the Venda the Chief's senior paternal aunt
(makhadii), or failing her his senior sister, has a somewhat analogous
position. She must be consulted on all important tribal affairs, exercises
a very great influence over the Chief's personal and political conduft,
and is treated with most of the respeft and formality accorded to him. 2
The sisters and daughters of the Chief, as leaders of the female
age-regiments, may among the Tswana also command special
authority over the women of the tribe, apart from the general respeft
they enjoy by right of birth. It is fairly common in all tribes for the
Chief to marry them to sub-Chiefs or headmen with large followings,
and so consolidate more strongly his hold over his people ; or to
other Chiefs with whom he is anxious to be allied. The Venda and a
few neighbouring North Sotho tribes appear to be exceptional in
that among them a Chief may appoint one (or several) of his sisters
as headman over some village or even distrift, the succession to this
office then tending in some cases to be confined to females. 3

TRIBAL COUNCILS

In administering the affairs of the tribe, the Chief is assisted in the
first place by a small number of confidential advisers, with whom he
consults informally and secretly. Most of them are his own close
relatives, such as his senior uncles and brothers ; a few others may
be influential sub-Chiefs or headmen ; and there may also be one or
two devoted personal friends and adherents. A Chief when he succeeds
will generally retain the advisers of his father, but as times goes on may
discard some of them and seleft his own. The office is not necessarily
hereditary. These men help the Chief to formulate policy, and discuss
with him every measure which will subsequently have to be referred

1 B. A. Marwick, Th* Natlvts of Swaziland, MS. 1934.

Stayt, 1931, 196-7; Lestrade, 19300, 314.

Lestrade, 1930*1, 314-15; Stayt, 1931, 315; Jacques, 1934, 177-3*2 passim.

1 82 I. SCHAPERA

to the great tribal council. They should keep him informed of public
opinion and of what is happening in the tribe generally, and must
remind him of matters needing consideration and attention. He is
not bound to follow their advice, and may even ignore it if he wishes ;
but he will not as a rule deliberately oppose their united opinion.
They must further keep check over his own behaviour, and are
expefted to warn and even reprimand him if he goes wrong.

One of these advisers is the special official commonly known as
the Chief's induna (North Nguni). 1 He is not as a rule a member of
the royal family, but a commoner of conspicuous loyalty, ability, and
trustworthiness. The office often descends from father to son, but not
necessarily, as the Chief has the right of selection and appointment.
But the induna of one Chief will generally continue to serve in the
same capacity under the latter's successor. He is the Chiefs right-
hand man, afting as intermediary between him and the council and
tribe, and as his mouthpiece on all formal and many informal occasions.
All matters referred to the Chief for discussion or a&ion must go to
him in the first instance. He receives all cases that come to the Chief's
court, makes the necessary arrangements for their hearing, and may
himself aft as judge in the absence of the Chief; he assists the Chief in
leading the army and in carrying out the great tribal ceremonies ;
he is responsible for the fulfilment of all the Chief's orders; and he also
supervises the running of the Chief's household. Important Chiefs
ruling over large tribes may have several such officials, sharing between
them the various functions just mentioned. 2

The Chief must on occasion consult a much wider, more formal
council. The exaft strufture of this great tribal council (Nguni,
itanJla, inkundla; Venda, kAoro; North Sotho, kxoro\ Tswana,
lekxotla ; etc.) varies somewhat from group to group. It is, however,
made up as a rule of the Chief's private advisers, some of his more
distant relatives, all sub-Chiefs and headmen of local divisions and
portions of the tribe, and various influential commoners appointed
because of their ability. Some of these councillors are always in
residence at the Chief's kraal or village, or come to live there for a
while, helping him to deal with the cases brought to his court. But
on important occasions the whole body is specially summoned together.

1 The corresponding terms elsewhere are : umphakathi omkhulu (Xhosa), ndjuna (Shangana-
Tonga), mukhoma (Venda), monna-kx6r6 (N. Sotho), ntona or kola ya kxosi (Tswana).

Among the Venda, e.g. the mfhasi (" master of the ground M ) is the legal adviser and
Assessor judge ; mukhoma (" leader ") runs the Chief's household j and ntgota is the Chief's
head councillor and ceremonial assistant (Stayt, 1931, 198-9).

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 183

It deals with all matters of tribal policy ; and no aftion can be taken
nor can any new law come into force until it has been approved of
here. The decision previously arrived at by the Chief and his private
advisers is put before the members of the council, who then freely
discuss and criticize it. They may accept, modify, or rejeft it ; and
whatever decision they reach is generally carried into effeft. The
Chief is in strift theory able to override their unanimous opposition,
but in praftice he rarely ventures to do so. Their co-operation is
essential for the successful government of the tribe ; and should any
Chief aft contrary to their collective advice the result will probably
be a split. It is this council also which exercises the greatest check
upon his behaviour, inasmuch as the members seldom hesitate to take
him severely to task for his shortcomings.

Among the Nguni, Shangana-Tonga and Venda this council
is in effeft the governing body of the tribe. It represents the people
and their opinion, and is the link between them and the Chief. After
the meeting each local official returns to his own distrift, where he
informs his assembled followers of the decision arrived at, which is
now binding upon the tribe as a whole. But among the Sotho all
matters of public concern are dealt with finally before a general
assembly of the initiated men. This assembly (pitsS) must be summoned
by the Chief whenever occasion arises. It is usually, but not invariably,
preceded by a meeting of the great council. The Chief, who presides,
puts the issue before the people. Anybody present can then take part
in the ensuing debate, although preference is given to influential or
elderly men. In theory great freedom of speech is permitted. In
praftice it is not always exercised, except under provocation or a
sense of grievance, owing to the fear, by no means unfounded, of
subsequent reprisals from the Chief. But if the occasion calls for it,
he will be contradifted, criticized, reprimanded, and even violently
attacked with little hesitation. Should most of the speakers express
different views from those favoured by the Chief and his advisers,
the latter will attempt to argue them round ; but no Chief would dare
oppose public opinion as here revealed unless he is looking for trouble.
Normally, however, the voices of the councillors, if they support him,
will carry sufficient weight with the general assembly for the decision
previously arrived at to be approved, and thus enable the Chief to
carry his policy into effeft. 1 Similar tribal assemblies are held among
the Nguni and Shangana-Tonga before war and during the annual

1 Schapera, 1935 MS.

184 I. SCHAPERA

firstfruits ceremonies ; but they are of comparatively rare occurrence
otherwise, and do not play nearly as conspicuous a part in the system
of government.

The existence of these councils greatly limits the Chief's aftual
exercise of his power. Political life is so organized that effeftive
government can result only from harmonious co-operation between
him and his people. Kxosi ke kxosi ka morafe, say the Tswana :
" a Chief is Chief by grace of his tribe." Despite the faft that ultimate
control over almost every aspeft of tribal life is concentrated in his
hands, and the very considerable authority he consequently has,
he is very seldom absolute ruler and autocratic despot. In order to
get anything done, he must first gain the goodwill and support of his
advisers and councillors, who play a considerable part in restraining
his more arbitrary impulses. Any attempt to aft independently of
them is not only regarded as unconstitutional, but will also generally
fail. A good deal, of course, depends upon the personal character of
the Chief. A forceful and energetic man can succeed in dominating
his subjefls and ruling to all intents and purposes as a di&ator. The
great Ngwato Chief Kxama (Khama) was an outstanding man of this
type. Cases are even known where such Chiefs have been able for
many years to exercise the cruellest of tyrannies. The most notorious
of all was Shaka, although he was by no means unique. But the
average Bantu Chief depends for much of his power upon the assistance
of his councillors, and his behaviour is accordingly controlled. Under
a weak and incompetent Chief their influence is very pronounced,
fa&ions arise, and " kingmakers " are by no means unknown.

Moreover, the Chief himself is not above the law. Should his
aftions run counter to accepted standards of what is right and proper,
he is severely criticized by his councillors and the people at large.
Should he injure any of his subjefts, he is expefted to make the cus-
tomary reparation ; and in some tribes (e.g. Swazi, Tswana) may even
be tried and punished by his own council. If he persists in flagrantly
misruling, his people will begin to desert him ; or a civil war may be
instigated, in the hope that he will be overthrown and one of his more
popular relatives take his place ; or, as a final resort, he will be poisoned
or assassinated at the first suitable opportunity. 1 Instances abound
in which despotic or hopelessly unsatisfactory Chiefs have thus been
put out of the way by their despairing or infuriated subje&s, as happened

1 Cf. Lestrade, 19300, 312-13, for a concise statement of the limitations upon the absolute
autocracy of the Venda Chiefs.

PLATE XVII

s/?> The great tribal Avil/d, Moc-ImeH, B.P,

(I.

I/. Stkupnm

(b) Graves of the k\\ena duels ^.Sechele an<l Sebcle)
in the tribal cat tic-kraal, Molepolole, B.P.

POLITICAL LIFE

PLATE XVIII

[i.

(a) Morning gossip at a kxotla (Mochudi, IIP.)

(b) Hearing a lawsuit (Kxatla)
POLITICAL LIFE

f /. &hafiira

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 185

to Shaka himself. So great, however, is the reverence attached to the
Chief by virtue of his birth and ritual position that his people will put
up with much from him that would never be tolerated in one of
lesser rank ; and it is only under extreme provocation that drastic
action will be taken against him.

LOCAL ADMINISTRATION

Apart from the central Government, composed of the Chief and
the councils mentioned above, there exists in every tribe a system
of local government. The territory occupied by the tribe is divided into
local units, varying in size and importance, each of which comes under
the jurisdiction of a recognized authority. The structure of these
units has already been dealt with in a previous chapter, 1 so that we need
do no more here than briefly outline the manner in which they are
respectively administered.

Although every household or kraal is to some extent a distinct
legal and administrative group, the smallest effective political unit
is the sub-district or ward, under the control of a local headman.
The headman is sometimes a member of the Chief's family, sometimes
a commoner. He is either formally appointed by the Chief, or at least
confirmed, the latter being the more usual since the office tends to
be hereditary. The headman is responsible to the Chief for the peace,
order, and good government of his area, in which he is the Chief's
representative. He must help his people in their troubles, and sponsor
them before the Chief; he regulates their occupation and use of land,
and controls the right of strangers to settle there ; he prays and
sacrifices on their behalf to his ancestors, and performs other cere-
monies for their well-being and protection. He deals with cases which
the kraalheads have not been able to settle, or have referred to him
in the first instance ; and he has the power to impose fines and other
forms of punishment. But he must himself refer all cases of serious
difficulty to his superior authority, and there is also an appeal from his
verdict. He must further see that his people pay the customary forms
of tribute and carry out the commands of die Chief, conveyed to
him by special messengers or at council meetings. He must himself
visit the Chief from time to time, not only to assist at the council
but also to report upon the affairs of his area. 2

1 Cf. above, chap. iv.

* Schapera, 1935, MS. (Tswana) ; Lestrade, 19300, 308 f. (Vcnda).

186 I. SCHAPERA

His own privileges are relatively few. His home is built in the
most favoured part of his area, and he has the pick of the land for
cultivation and grazing. He can claim free labour from his people for
such public services as building and repairing his official courtyard,
taking messages or executing the verdiCb of his court ; bat he does
not as a rule receive any private tribute, either in labour or in kind,
except 'with the special permission of the Chief. By virtue of his
office, however, he is as a rule greatly respefted, not only by his own
people but in the tribe as a whole ; and if he has a large following he
may play an important part in tribal politics generally.

The headman is assisted by a small council (ibandla, etc.) embracing
his own senior male relatives and the more important kraalheads,
together with any other elderly men of repute in his area. They sit
with him in judgment over the cases that come to his court; he
discusses with them all other matters relating to the public life of
the group, and consults them on tribal questions generally in connection
with meetings of the Chief's council. They also keep check upon his
own behaviour. They can, if need be, reprimand him severely;
but more generally, if he is negligent, incompetent, or unduly severe,
they report him to the Chief, who may then fine him or even depose
him in favour of a more suitable man.

Large districts (or, among the Tswana, outlying towns) are in the
same way administered by what may be termed sub-Chiefs. These
men are sometimes close relatives of the Chief, or important
commoners specially placed there by him as his representatives
and deputies ; sometimes they are the headmen of the senior local
clans or wards ; and sometimes they are the hereditary rulers of the
vassal-tribes inhabiting that district. In the larger tribes there are often
several grades of sub-Chiefs, their importance varying with the size
of the area and the number of people under their jurisdiction. An
important sub-Chief may thus have jurisdiction over several minor
sub-Chiefs, who in turn each have separate jurisdiction over several
headmen. The functions of the sub-Chiefs are on the whole similar
to those of the headmen of sub-distriCts or wards ; but they also aft
as courts of appeal from the verdiCts of the latter, and have an over-
riding authority in all other matters. They are assisted by councillors
embracing the headmen of their district as well as their own private
advisers. They are themselves direCHy responsible to the Chief. He
issues orders to them, which they must carry out under penalty of
punishment ; he can receive appeals from their courts ; he can alter

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 187

their boundaries at any time ; and he can, if their conduCt of affairs
is unsatisfactory, install someone else in their place.

The system of local administration may thus be regarded as one of
ever-widening jurisdiction extending upwards from the household
or kraal. In many respeCts the kraalhead, the headman of a sub-distriCt
or ward, the sub-Chief of a district or town, and the tribal Chief himself
have identical or similar functions. The main difference lies in the
size and composition of the group over which each of them has
jurisdiction, and in the corresponding range of his power. But within
the limits of his jurisdiction he has undivided power: judicial,
administrative, economic, and on occasion also military and religious.
One point of special interest in all these groupings is the extent to
which the personal character of the head plays its part. The more
popular a man is, and the higher his prestige, the greater the number
of followers he can retain and attraCt. His power is based upon their
support ; it is therefore necessary for him, if only to satisfy his ambition
and pride, to treat them generously and justly. This is as true of the
kraalhead as of the tribal Chief; and its practical recognition has
contributed greatly towards ensuring what, in spite of many lapses,
is on the whole an equitable system of administration.

CITIZENSHIP AND STATUS

A distindion is made in every tribe between its own members and
aliens. Membership of the tribe, as previously noted, is defined not
in terms of birth, but of allegiance to the Chief: it is possible for
people not born into a tribe to become subjeCts of its Chief either by
conquest or by placing themselves voluntarily under his rule. Every
member of the tribe must conform to its laws, and must also carry out
certain special obligations, such as working for the Chief, paying him
tribute, fighting in his army, and attending tribal meetings. He is
entitled in return to land on which to ereCt his home, cultivate his
crops, graze his cattle, and to all other facilities for earning a liveli-
hood ; and to protection by the tribal authorities against undue inter-
ference with his person, his activities, and his property.

The extent to which members of the tribe enjoy the advantages and
protection of the law varies according to their rank, sex, and age.
Hereditary rank in the Bantu social system is largely confined to the
Chiefs, sub-Chiefs, and headmen, with their respective families. The
special rights and duties of these political authorities have already

l88 I. SCHAFERA

been discussed. Commoners can acquire individual prestige or
influence through knowledge of the law, conspicuous loyalty to the
Chief, ability in debate, the praftice of magic, bravery and skill in
war, wealth, or some similar faftor ; but distinctive qualities of this
kind do not necessarily lead to enhanced social status, unless such a
man is made a headman or tribal councillor. Social distinftions are
often also made according to tribal origin in matters of ritual and
public life. Incorporated foreigners or their immediate descendants
seldom command the same influence or receive the same consideration
as tribesmen of long-established stock; and among the latter a
similar range of differentiation exists according to seniority of descent.

Apart from the political authorities, all members of the tribe, both
male and female, can generally be grouped, as far as personal status
is concerned, into : (a) heads of households, and () other inmates of
households. The head of the household occupies his position by
hereditary right : he is not appointed or even formally confirmed by
higher authorities, save in cases of disputed succession. He not only
controls the social, economic, and religious life of his dependants,
as elsewhere described, but is also their legal and administrative head.
He is entitled to their respeft, obedience, and service ; keeps order
over them, and deals with any disputes or quarrels arising among them ;
is responsible for their conduct in matters afiefting outsiders, watches
their interests at the tribal courts, and can be held liable for their
misdeeds and debts. He is assisted in the performance of his duties
and the exercise of his rights by the older men of his household, with
whom he informally discusses matters of immediate domestic concern.
But his authority is moral and persuasive, rather than compulsory.
He can inflift corporal punishment upon his own wife, children, or
servants, but in regard to other members of the household he has no
means of enforcing his will except through general domestic discipline,
and must refer all important issues to his local headman, to whom
there is also an appeal from his decisions. The continuity of the house-
hold is secured by a recognized system of devolution, the eldest son
of the principal wife being the general heir and legitimate successor
of his father. He not only takes the latter's place in respeft of the use
and enjoyment of property, but also undertakes his duties and respon-
sibilities, and must shoulder any outstanding liabilities.

Children claim descent from their father (i.e. the husband of their
mother) ; and succession to office and inheritance of most forms of
property go normally from father to son. Legitimacy is determined as

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 189

follows. The child of an unmarried woman belongs to her own family,
and is subject to her father or guardian. Its own father has no claim
to it unless he makes a special payment in cattle. Even then the child
is subordinate to his legitimate children in social and economic rights
and privileges, nor can it inherit except in default of male issue on the
part of his wives. The child of a married woman, born during the
subsistence of her marriage, belongs to her husband, whether he is
actually its father or not. From this it follows that a child born of
adulterous intercourse does not belong to its natural father, even
although he may have paid damages to the woman's husband in
respeft of the conception of the child. The child born to a widow at
her late husband's home is regarded as his ; it bears his name, and
has the same rights as the children born to her during her husband's
lifetime. This is particularly so where the widow has been taken over
by her husband's brother or some other approved relative under the
" seed-raising " custom. The child born to a divorced woman by
any man to whom she is not married belongs to her former husband
if his lobola cattle have not been returned, and to her own people if
they have been. If a widow or divorced woman remarries at her own
home, and a new lobola is paid, any child subsequently born to her
belongs to her new husband.

The status of a child is sometimes altered by adoption. This is most
commonly practised among the Sotho, where a married couple with
no children of their own, or children of one sex only, will adopt the
child of a close relative or friend. An adopted child comes under the
authority of the foster-parents, and has all the rights and duties of
their own legitimate offspring. Such adoption must be distinguished
from another widespread custom by which a child is sometimes sent
to live for a while at the home of its mother's people or other relatives.
Its father is expected to contribute towards its keep while it is there,
which he generally does by paying an ox or more as " maintenance
fee ". This fee must be paid before he can regain control of the child.

Unmarried people are all regarded as minors, even if they have
passed through the initiation ceremonies. They are under the particular
control of their own parents, especially of the father, and are also
subject, in household affairs generally, to the authority of the house-
hold-head. If they are still minors on the death of their father, one
of the paternal uncles or some other close relative takes his place as
their guardian. He has full control over their persons and property, but
must account to the Chief for his stewardship. Should he abuse his

190 I. SCHAPERA

trust, either by ill-using the children or by squandering their property,
the Chief appoints another guardian from among the members of the
family. There must always be a male guardian, even if the mother
is still alive. The Chief himself afts as " upper guardian " of all widows
and orphans, and should see to it that they are properly cared for.

Minor children cannot leave home or marry without the consent
of their father or guardian. They may not sue or be sued unless
assisted and represented by him. They may own property, but cannot
dispose of it without his consent. They must give him all their earnings,
refer to him all their business transactions, and generally obey him
in all matters. In return they have the right to maintenance, proteftion,
and good treatment ; to be informed of all household affairs ; to be
instru&ed and properly initiated into tribal life ; and to be provided,
when the time arrives, with a wife or husband, as the case may be.

A man when he marries and sets up his own household passes for
all praftical purposes out of the tutelage of his father ; but even so is
expefted to render him a good deal of obedience and service, to show
him every respeft, and to support him in his old age. On the other
hand, so long as he lives in the same household, he is subjeft to the
same authority as its other inmates in matters pertaining to the
household generally. But he controls his own wife and children, and
must be consulted by the household-head in all dealings with them ;
and is capable of suing or being sued in respeft of his own private
dealings or transa&ions. He should, however, refer all such dealings
to his household-head, as by doing so he is prote&ed ; and is bound to
inform him of all his movements and responsibilities. The same rights
and duties apply to other married male inmates of the household.

A woman when she marries passes from the legal control of her
parents into that of her husband, who now becomes her guardian,
and as such responsible for her aftions. She cannot sue or be sued
except through him, while if she does wrong he is generally held
liable and must pay any fines or damages incurred. It is his duty to
proteft her and to treat her kindly and considerately; to cohabit
with her regularly, subjeft however to the special taboos on sexual
intercourse between married people; to provide her with a hut,
food, clothing, and maintenance generally, and to .assign fields, cattle,
and other property to her house for her use. If ill-treated, she can go
back to her own home, and her husband cannot reclaim her until he
has paid one or more cattle to her people as damages. The wife, in
return, must work for her husband and be faithful to him, bear and

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 191

nourish children for him, work her fields and prepare the food, and
generally occupy herself with the many domestic duties which family
life entails. She can acquire property in her own right, but must
consult her husband in all her business dealings. She must be in all
respefts subservient to his will, and must live wherever he chooses to
build his home.

In public life generally women do not have the same rights as the
men. They are never consulted on questions of tribal policy, and all
the political offices are kept in the hands of the men. Among the
Venda and Swazi, it is true, the Chief's female relatives may play an
important part in the tribal government ; but such instances are on
the whole exceptional, and in no way enhance the political status of
women generally. Moreover, certain spots in all the village settle-
ments, such as the public courtyard, and under various conditions the
cattle-kraal, are reserved for men, and normally inaccessible to women.
Finally, preference is everywhere given to sons, and a woman bearing
daughters only is often regarded with contempt. She may even have
to request her parents to provide a " substitute wife " to bear a son for
her house.

Among the Tswana the most subordinate position in the tribe is
occupied by the MaSarwa (Bushmen) and Kxalaxadi. The former
especially constitute a distinft servile class. They are attached to the
Chief and other wealthy or prominent members of the tribe, for whom
they must perform all kinds of menial services. They can be transferred
altogether or lent by one man to another, irrespe&ive of their own
wishes ; if ill-treated they have no other remedy than to run away if
they can, but are often followed up and brought back forcibly;
if living in the veld, they can have their children taken away from them
and brought to their master's home for domestic service ; they have
no right of a&ion against their master for any wrongs he infli&s
upon them, such as seducing their women ; and they have no share
in the tribal government, being deprived even of membership of the
regiments. 1

INTER-TRIBAL RELATIONS

The boundaries between tribes are as a rule roughly defined by
natural barriers or objefts, such as rivers, mountains, or watersheds.
If relations are friendly, a good deal of visiting takes place between them.

1 Cf. E. S. B. Tagart, Report on the Conditions existing among the Masarwa of the Beckuanaland
Protectorate (Pretoria, 1932), 4-10 ; and London Missionary Society, The MaSarwa : Report
of an Inquiry (Tigerkloof, 1935).

IQ2 I. SCHAPERA

Intermarriage is also fairly common, although generally people prefer
to marry within their own tribe. Traders and magicians go from one
to the other seeking business ; the courts of the one are open to the
members of another with grievances against some local tribesman ;
or refugees may flee from one to the other. All visitors of this kind
must be reported to the Chief or local sub-Chief, and their presence
explained. If they have come to trade, they must first obtain his
permission to do so, generally by making him a payment " to open
the way " for them. If they have come as refugees, they must offer
him allegiance (Nguni, ukuhhonia) and secure his goodwill by a similar
payment, generally of livestock, in return for which they are given
permission to settle. Temporary visitors mostly reside with a relative,
friend, or acquaintance, who, in accordance with the widespread
tradition of hospitality, must entertain them and give them presents.
They are under the proteftion of the local sub-Chief or headman.
If anyone injures them, they are entitled to justice and reparation. But
they in turn are expected to behave with great circumspeftion and to
obey the laws of the tribe ; and should they commit any offence they
will be punished and ordered to leave the country.

Diplomatic relations are maintained between neighbouring Chiefs
by means of recognized court messengers. Each Chief informs his
neighbours of all important events in his tribe, such as the holding of
an initiation school, the outbreak of some pestilence, or the death of
his predecessor ; and invites them to his own installation or marriage.
If there is trouble between a Chief and members of his tribe, it is often
the praftice for one of the parties to call in some neighbouring Chief
to try and reconcile them. Chiefs descended from the same ancestor,
but now ruling over different tribes, frequently continue to recognize
in some way their relative status by birth. Thus among the Tswana
no Chief would in the olden days celebrate the firstfruits festival,
or hold an initiation school, until he had received permission to do so
from the Chief of the Huruthse, who was regarded as senior to all the
rest in line of birth. 1 So, too, among the Xhosa there exists a so-called
" paramountcy ", under which the Chiefs of junior tribes recognize
the Chief of the tribe from which they have separated as their superior.
Cases are sometimes referred by them to him for settlement, or carried
to him on appeal from their verdi&s ; and they pay him a certain small
nominal tribute. 2

1 J. Mackenzie, Ten Years North of the Orange River (Edinburgh, 1871), 356.

* Dugmore, in MacLean, 1858, 30; Lestrade, MS., Notes on Xhosa Political Organisation.

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 193

Formal requests may also pass from one Chief to another for rain, or
for a military or matrimonial alliance, or for the extradition of fugitives
from justice. Matrimonial alliances between Chiefs are often contrafted
for political purposes, the two tribes henceforth regarding themselves
as related and therefore often lending each other assistance in war.
Where a direft request is made for military assistance, some cattle or a
young girl of the Chief's family generally accompany the request as a
gift to the Chief approached. A request for rain is also paid for in cattle.
Fugitives are as a rule returned only if the two Chiefs are on very
friendly terms, for every Chief gladly welcomes new accessions to
his tribe. If the man is a criminal fleeing from justice he may be sent
back ; but if he has fled because of ill-treatment or other injustice, and
does not wish to go back, he will be protected by the Chief to whom
he has fled. His own Chief cannot follow him up and take him by
force, but is expe&ed to send messengers to ask for his return.

Hostile relations between neighbouring tribes arise most frequently
out of disputes at the boundaries over land or water rights ; cattle
thefts ; interference with visiting subjefts ; or the refusal to hand over
fugitives. Messages will pass between the Chiefs, claiming or refusing
satisfaction, until, unless one of them gives way, armed conflift is
inevitable. Wars were fairly common in the olden days. They were
generally short, sudden affairs. The usual mode of attack was to
surround an enemy village by stealth during the night, rush it at dawn,
kill as many men as possible, capture the cattle, women, and children,
burn the huts, and then beat a hasty retreat home. The captive women,
children, and cattle were taken to the Chief, who, after keeping for
himself what he wanted, distributed the rest among his warriors and
councillors. Such raids and counter-raids would continue until one
of the Chiefs sent formally to beg peace from his more powerful
neighbour. This granted, the weaker tribe would have to pay its
conquerors a regular tribute of cattle and other valuables, in token
of submission and allegiance. It was, however, often allowed to
retain a large measure of autonomy under its own Chief. It might
after a time refuse to continue paying tribute, in which case an attempt
would be made to exaft it by force. If the attack was beaten off, the
people would once again regard themselves as completely independent.
But if defeated, they and their territory were often wholly absorbed
into the tribe of their conquerors. The vanquished Chief might in
such cases be retained as sub-Chief over his own followers and distrift,
although more frequently one or more brothers or sons of the victorious

194 I. SCHAPERA

Chief would be placed in charge with a fairly considerable following of
his own.

Shaka and his imitators not only conducted their wars on a far
larger scale and in much more ruthless manner, but pursued a some-
what different policy in regard to the tribes they conquered. Shaka's
own policy, where he did not completely exterminate or expel a tribe
from its ancestral lands, was to obliterate every vestige of tribal entity
by merging under his direft rule, as integral parts of his tribe, all who
survived his conquests. In this way the Zulu nation was built up
out of the remnants of more than one hundred tribes. 1 His generals
who fled with their armies to carve out their own kingdoms established
still another form of organization, in which the Nguni nucleus became
the ruling aristocracy, while the indigenous tribes were reduced to a
servile condition. This is best seen among the Ndebele of Southern
Rhodesia, where, under Mzilikazi and his successor Lobengula, the
people were divided into three distinft social classes : ate^ansij the
descendants of the original Nguni nucleus ; abenhla, the descendants
of the Sotho and other peoples absorbed into the tribe during its stay
in the Western Transvaal ; and finally the amahole, Shona captives
taken in raids in Southern Rhodesia. The latter were regarded as a slave
class, with whom neither of the others should intermarry. 2

Some reference is necessary here to the system of military organiza-
tion. As a rule the army consists of all the able-bodied men in the tiibe.
But differences exist in regard to the manner in which they are
organized. The Zulu army, with its system of age-regiments dis-
tributed over the tribal territory in special military kraals or barracks,
has already been described in a previous chapter. 3 The kindred Swazi
and Rhodesian Ndebele both have somewhat similar systems of
organization. Among the Cape Nguni, on the other hand, the army
is not organized on an age basis. The members of each clan (isiduko)
together form a single unit within the tribal army, under the command
of their hereditary headman or under an appointed fighting captain.
These clans, among the Xhosa, are grouped into two large divisions,
the first embracing all the clans of royal descent, and the other all
clans of common or alien descent. Each division has a separate com-
mander, but the two are united under the tribal Chief as supreme
commander. 4

1 Cf. Bryant, 1920, passim.

H. M. Hole, "The Rise of the Matabele," Proc. Rkod. Set. Ass. t xii (1912-13), 144.

' Cf. above, chap, iv, p. 8y.

Soga, 1932, 63 ff.

POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS 195

In the Sotho tribes, e.g. the Tswana, age once more forms the basis
of military organization. Each regiment (mophato, age-set) consists
of men simultaneously initiated into adult membership of the tribe.
These regiments are formed at intervals of several years apart. In
time of war each fights as a separate unit in the army, under the com-
mand of a son or brother of the ruling Chief, initiated at the same time
as the other members. The whole army is led by the Chief, or in
his absence by the commander of the senior regiment in order of
formation, assisted by the Chief's induna. There is no formal retire-
ment of any mophato from aftive service, but as a rule the army in
time of war is made up of those regiments still strong in numbers and
whose members are not on the average too old to be aftive fighters.
In time of peace these regiments, as among the Zulu, Swazi, and
Rhodesian Ndebele, have to perform various kinds of labour service
for the Chief. 1

1 Schapera, 1935, MS.

CHAPTER IX
LAW AND JUSTICE

By I. SCHAPERA

INTRODUCTION

Nature and Sources of Bantu Law.

BANTU law in its traditional manifestations is not emoodied in any
formal codes. There are no written laws ; and although many rules
of conduct are epitomized in proverbs and kindred sayings, there is
also no well-defined corpus of legal maxims and principles. The laws
of the Bantu are to a considerable extent inherent in the social system
of the people. They exist as rights and duties developed through the
course of time out of man's efforts to adjust his behaviour in relation
to his fellows and to the physical environment he shares and exploits
with them ; and have become accepted from their very nature, from
the fa& that they satisfy the more fundamental and common needs of
life in society, as binding and obligatory. The Bantu themselves often
speak of their laws as having always existed, or as having been created
by God or by the ancestor-spirits. This does not mean that no laws
at all are held to have been made by man. But it does direft attention to
one important fa& : the great bulk of Bantu law is derived from the
authority of tradition and precedent in social behaviour.

Various mechanisms exist to ensure that all members of the tribe
conform to the law. Children are carefully taught by their parents the
difference between right and wrong conduft. At the initiation cere-
monies associated with or following upon puberty more formal
instruftion of the same nature is given, certain definite rules of
behaviour being firmly impressed upon the minds of the young people.
Later, as an adult, every man may attend and participate in the hearing
of lawsuits, and so learn in practice the legal usages of his tribe.
Throughout his life his behaviour is thus being moulded into con-
formity with the social norms making for law and order. Diligent
observance of the law earns for him the approval and respeft of his

197

198 I. SCHAPERA

fellows, and may lead to more material rewards from the tribal authori-
ties. Failure to comply with it is on the other hand penalized in various
ways. He will suffer loss of social esteem, or be treated with ridicule
or contempt ; he will be denied services akin to those he has failed to
render ; or, it is said, he will be afflicted with sickness or other mis-
fortune by the offended ancestor-spirits or some similar supernatural
agency. The ultimate legal san&ion, however, is the material power of
compulsion vested in the tribal courts. They may force a man to carry
out the obligations he has negle&ed to fulfil, or to make restitution
or pay compensation for the damage he has done, or to suffer punish-
ment for the offence he has committed.

The mechanism of the courts is used for the most part to enforce
the observance of rules which have already established themselves
in pra&ice. The courts do not create or even confirm the rule : they
merely recognize it as good law. But their decisions afford a preqedent
for similar declarations in the future. When there is any dispute regard-
ing the nature or validity of the law, it is settled by discussions among
the old men, or in rare instances by further reference to neighbouring
Chiefs, appeal being made to what has been decided in similar cases
in the past. It is only when no precedent can be found that the court
feels called upon to supply one in the form of an ad hoc decision.
Even when a former decision can be quoted, it may often be given
a new definition or application to meet the particular conditions of the
case in question ; and so an addition or modification is made to the
existing law. Bantu law has undoubtedly grown and expanded in the
form of such decisions, so that it has become very largely a system of
oral " case law ".

A more direft mechanism for changing or adding to the law is
legislation. As shown in the previous chapter, the Chief has the power,
if he afts according to recognized procedure, to make new decrees.
Any projected measure must first be discussed by the tribe in council :
and if they approve of it, but only then, the Chief issues an order
" which, while it lasts, has the force of law, but which may be changed,
withdrawn, or neglefted when the need has passed "- 1 The traditions
of many tribes contain instances of such changes in the law.

Civil and Criminal Law.

Bantu law is in pra&ice, although not in theory, divided by the
people themselves into two main classes. These may quite conveniently

1 Lestrade, MS. on Huruthse law.

LAW AND JUSTICE 199

be called civil law and criminal law, although their categories are by
no means identical with those of European systems of law. The
civil law establishes inter alia the private rights of people in regard to
personal status, property, and contrafts ; and provides for redress,
if such rights are violated, by compelling restitution or compensation.
The criminal law treats certain afts not merely as injuries to individual
persons, but as offences harmful to society generally, and therefore
deserving of punishment. The principal crimes thus recognized in
Bantu law include all offences against the tribal authorities afting
in their official capacity ; homicide, serious bodily assault, and similar
offences against the person ; sorcery, incest, and other " unnatural
afts ". It must be noted, however, that many civil injuries are on
occasion also treated as crimes, the offender not only being forced to
make amends to his viftim but suffering punishment as well. Similarly
certain crimes, especially against bodily security, may on occasion
also give rise to civil remedies. In European systems of law the two
aspefts of such an offence are kept quite distinft, and dealt with in
separate proceedings. But among the Bantu the offence is tried in a
single aftion, and it is only in the verdift of the court that its dual
nature is given explicit recognition. Nevertheless, the manner in which
the offence is brought to trial is generally sufficient to show whether
it must be regarded as primarily civil or criminal.

When a civil wrong is committed, the viftim may, if he likes, take
no aftion at all ; or he may come to a private settlement with the
wrongdoer ; or, if this fails, may sue him in court. He will then, if
his claim is upheld, be awarded some form of redress. The court
will at times go further and also inflift punishment upon the wrong-
doer, if his offence is regarded as sufficiently reprehensible. But unless
the viftim himself, or his representative, brings the matter to trial,
no such aftion can be taken by the courts. A criminal wrong, on the
other hand, can never be compounded. It must be reported to the Chief
or some other tribal authority, who will then summon and prosecute
the accused person in his court. The accused, if found guilty, is
punished ; and where the punishment takes the form of a fine, this is
paid, not to the viftim of the wrong, but to the court, i.e. to the Chief
(or other authority) afting in his official capacity. Here again, however,
the court may on occasion also award the viftim something by way
of compensation.

The principal remedies open to the viftim of a civil wrong are restitu-
tion and compensation. The former aims at cancelling the wrongful

200 I. SCHAPERA

aft, so far as that is possible. A trespasser will be removed, borrowed
or stolen property will be restored, an unfulfilled contraft will be carried
out, a disputed right will be upheld. Compensation is paid, usually
in livestock, for a wrong which cannot be undone, such as seduftion,
damage to property, and defamation. In many tribes the amount of
such compensation is traditionally standardized for certain kinds of
wrong. Both restitution and compensation can be obtained either
through agreement between the parties concerned, or through the
verdifts of the courts. Another remedy sometimes exercised is
vengeance or self-help, where the viftim " takes the law into his own
hands " and forcibly exafts what satisfaction he can. The general
tendency in Bantu law has been to limit self-help as far as possible,
and it is condoned only in exceptional instances, such as the killing or
assaulting of an adulterer, homicide, or thief caught red-handed.

The most common punishment is the imposition of a fine, generally
also in livestock. The amount varies, " according to the position of
the offender, the enormity of his offence, his previous record and his
ability to pay," l from a single beast to the confiscation of his entire
property. Among the Tswana and Northern Sotho corporal punish-
ment is frequently imposed as an alternative. This does not appear
to be praftised elsewhere. The Tswana are exceptional also in that
their courts may in cases of assault, particularly where women are
concerned, order the application of the lex talionis : the vi&im of the
assault inflifts a similar injury upon her assailant. Certain other
offences, in most tribes, may be punished by bodily mutilation, such
as depriving an habitual offender of his ears or hands. Serious crimes,
finally, are commonly punished by death or, in some cases, banish-
ment, both usually accompanied by confiscation of property.

CONTRACTS

Contracts of various kinds are known in Bantu law. Apart from
betrothal and marriage (including the incidents flowing out of lobola,
to which reference will be made below), the most common forms of
contraQ are for alienation of property by gift, barter, or sale ; permissive
use of property; and service. All but the most unimportant contrafb
must be concluded before witnesses (no special number is required) ;
and the property to be alienated or lent, or the service to be rendered,

1 Stayt, 1931, 221.

LAW AND JUSTICE 2OI

must be produced or specified at the time. There is no other set form
or ceremony to be carried out before the contraft is regarded as valid.
Failure to fulfil a contraft entitles the person suffering by the default
to receive compensation, or an order of the court that the contraft
shall be carried out. Women and children are normally incapable of
entering into contracts without the consent of their guardian. He has
the power to nullify any independent contraft they may make;
but can on the other hand be held liable for their breach of any contraft
of which he has approved.

Special reference may be made to certain forms of contraft round
which litigation often develops. Most forms of property can be given
freely and without consideration by one person to another, or bartered
for something else. In the latter case, where the transaction is not
completed on the spot, payment of the purchase price and delivery
by word of mouth completes the sale, and ownership passes. A time is
generally specified for the delivery pf the property itself ; and failure
to adhere to it renders the debtor liable. If he himself is unable to
pay, his near relatives, such as his father or brothers, may be required
to do so for him. A dead man's heirs are in any case expefted to
pay all his outstanding debts before taking over his estate.

Under permissive use the most widespread form of contraft is the
ukusisa custom, by which a man places one or more of his cattle into
the keeping of another. The herdsman is entitled to the usufruft of
these cattle, but may not sell or slaughter them. He should look after
them as if they were his own, and answer to the owner for their
welfare ; report immediately any losses through death, theft, or other
causes, and in the case of dead beasts produce the skins as well; failing
which he will be held liable ; restore the cattle to their owner whenever
required, and faithfully account for their increase. It is usual, if the
cattle flourish under his care, to reward him with a heifer from time to
time. But unless a specific agreement is made regarding remuneration,
he cannot claim this beast by right. 1

Service contra&s include the maintenance of children by people
other than their parents or lawful guardians. For this a special fee
(Nguni, isondhlo ; Sotho, dikotld), usually of one beast, can be demanded
when the parents or guardian reclaim the child. The professional
services rendered by magicians fall under the same category. Their
fees for " doftoring " huts, or fields, or cattle, are payable on the

1 Schapera, 1935, MS. (Tswana) ; Harries, 19*9, 132-3 (Transvaa ISotho) ; Stafford, 1935,
144-7 (Natal Nguni); Whitfield, 19*9, 383-7 (Cape Nguni).

202 I. SCHAPERA

completion of the rite ; but for " doftoring " illness their fee is payable
only if the treatment has been successful Payment is seldom refused
in such cases, as it is feared that the magician may then use his art
to undo the effe&s of his " doAoring ", or even to bewitch his default-
ing clients ; but if not paid within a reasonable time he can sue in the
courts and obtain judgment in his favour.

Marriage is subjeft to many conditions. Marriages are normally
arranged by the parents of the two people concerned. Infant betrothal
is fairly common among the Sotho and Venda, although apparently
not in other tribes ; but in either case neither boys nor girls may marry
until they have passed through the initiation ceremonies admitting
them into adult membership of the tribe. The Sotho tribes have no
marriage restriftions outside the immediate family circle, and encourage
the marriage of cousins. The Venda encourage marriage between a
man and his maternal uncle's daughter, but forbid marriage with all
other blood relatives, however remote. The Nguni and Shangana-
Tonga not only forbid marriage between blood relatives of any kind,
however remote, but further have clan exogamy. 1 Breach of these
prohibitions is regarded as incest and dealt with accordingly. Apart
from other punishment, the marriage itself is nullified.

The main essentials of a legal marriage are the consent of the two
families concerned, as reflefted in the formalities of betrothal ; the
payment of lobola ; and the handing over of the woman by her people
to those of the husband. Any form of cohabitation between man and
woman not satisfying these conditions is treated as concubinage.
Here neither party is under any legally enforceable obligation towards
the other. The man is not bound to support the woman, nor she to
remain with him ; and no right of a&ion lies if the one abandons the
other. As mentioned previously, children born of such a union legally
belong to their mother, and not to their father ; although he may
under certain conditions claim them by a special payment of cattle.
Normally, it is only through the payment of lobola that a man obtains
a right to the children he begets by a woman, or to any other children
she may bear during the subsistence of the marriage.

The marriage contraft is complete from the time that the betrothal
has been confirmed. Should the girl then become pregnant by some-
one else, her intended husband can claim damages from her lover.
Should she and her family refuse without just cause to let the marriage
take place, they are liable for the return of all payments and gifts

1 For further details, see above, Chaps. IV and V.

LAW AND JUSTICE 203

made to them by the boy and his people. But if the latter without good
cause break the engagement, they not only forfeit their payment and
gifts, but may also, as among the Tswana, be made to pay damages,
according to the nature of the case.

The marriage itself is not complete until the woman has been
formally handed to her husband and consummation takes place.
In some Sotho tribes the husband generally lives for a while with
his wife at the home of her parents, moving back with her to his own
people after the birth of a child. In all other cases she joins him there
immediately after the wedding festivities. These may take place
either before or after the lobola cattle have been handed over. The
number of cattle to be handed over is generally agreed upon between
the two families, although in most Tswana tribes the boy's people alone
decide how many should be given. In principle they should all be
handed over before the wife goes to live with her husband, but in
praftice this is by no means always observed. The husband's people,
however, are in the latter event liable to the wife's people ; and where
the agreed number is not completed within a reasonable time aftion
can be taken against them to enforce payment. On the other hand, the
wife's people are themselves liable if they do not allow her to join her
husband after an agreed instalment has been given.

The cattle given as lobola for a man's first wife must be provided
by his father or guardian, assisted by contributions from certain other
members of the family. They are placed by the girl's father, after
satisfying the traditional claims of certain relatives (e.g. the maternal
uncle among the Sotho), in the " house " from which the girl came,
and should be used again to lobola a wife for her brother.- For any
additional wives a man must provide the lobola out of his own cattle.
In this connexion the custom exists in most tribes that if cattle are
taken from any special " house " to lobola a new wife, the wife thus
married is affiliated to that " house ".

Polygyny is praftised ; but, except in the case of Chiefs and other
prominent or wealthy men, not to any marked extent. Among the
Shangana-Tonga, Venda, and Tswana the first wife married is normally
the great wife, the rest ranking as minor wives in order of marriage.
The Nguni, however, also give special rank to a second wife (the
" right-hand wife "), and in some cases (e.g. Natal tribes) to a third
wife (the " left-hand wife "). Any other wives are attached in a
subordinate capacity to one or other of these principal houses. The
Southern and Northern Sotho have adopted a somewhat similar system

204 I. SCHAPERA

of domestic organization. 1 The great wife takes the lead in all domestic
affairs and, as already mentioned, her eldest son is heir to the general
household property and to the status of his father.

A man may repudiate his wife because of sorcery, barrenness,
repeated adultery, wanton capriciousness, desertion, refusal or non-
ability to render conjugal rights, or non-performance of domestic
duties. A woman may leave her husband because of flagrant ill-
usage, desertion, excessive cruelty, or non-support. If a reconciliation
cannot be effe&ed, the marriage is dissolved. A divorced woman
returns to her parental home, where as a rule she reverts to the status
of an unmarried daughter, and can be married again. If the wife leaves
her husband of her own free will, and refuses to go back, or if for
any good and sufficient reason he has sent her away, the lobola is
returned to him, unless there are children, in which case none, or
only some, of the cattle will be handed back. But if the wife is forced
by ill-treatment or other just cause to leave her husband, he has no
claim at all to his cattle. The children, in either case, always belong
to him.

CIVIL WRONGS

Apart from breaches of contraft, the main civil wrongs recognized
by the Bantu are sedu&ion, adultery, and similar offences against
family rights ; theft, trespass and other offences against property ;
defamation and other wrongs against reputation. In each case, as
already stated, the matter may be settled by private agreement between
the parties concerned, failing which the viftim of the wrong will sue
the transgressor for damages. In many instances the amount payable
as damages is traditionally fixed, but it may be varied according to the
particular circumstances of the case ; while at times the court may in
addition fine the transgressor if the nature of his offence seems to
warrant it.

Wrongs against Family Rights.

These wrongs arise mainly from illicit sexual relations. In Bantu
law such relations are regarded as a wrong against the father, husband,
or guardian of the woman concerned, and not as a wrong against the
woman herself. " In sedu&ion and illicit intercourse cases the father
or guardian is the aftual sufferer because the marriageable value of the

1 On the ranking of wives, see above, chap, iv, pp. 75 f., 81 , 91.

LAW AND JUSTICE 205

girl or woman has been reduced. In adultery cases the husband has
suffered the insult, and likewise in abdu&ion cases the husband, father,
or guardian is the injured person. In none of these cases may the girl
or woman sue under Native law." l The a&ion must and can only
be brought by the injured male guardian, and the damages paid almost
always belong to him. 2

Seduftion is among the Nguni an aftionable wrong whether
pregnancy follows or not, the only difference being that in some tribes
of this group the amount of damages payable is less in the latter instance
than in the former. Among the Sotho, Venda, and Shangana-Tonga,
however, no a&ion lies as a rule unless pregnancy follows, nor in
some Sotho tribes (e.g. South Sotho, Kxatla) can the matter be judged
in court until after the girl has given birth to a child. Most of the
Nguni, as well as the Southern Sotho, allow aftion to be taken each
time that a girl is seduced, but among the Northern Sotho and Tswana
if damages have once been awarded no aftion lies in respeft of subsequent
seduftions of the same girl. The amount of damages recoverable for
seduftion is often standardized (e.g. among the Natal Nguni at one
head of cattle, among the Venda at two, and in certain Tswana tribes,
viz. Kxatla and Huruthse, at four and five respeftively). 3 But it is
equally common for the girl's father or guardian to claim what he
likes, the aftual award, however, being subjeft to the discretion of
the court. In most tribes a seducer has the right to marry the girl,
if the two families consent. In such cases the cattle paid as damages
are usually reckoned as part of the lotola. Among the Shangana-
Tonga, apparently, the seducer is not liable at all if he agrees to marry
the girl but her parents refuse. 4

The adultery of a married woman does not entitle her husband to
divorce her, unless the offence is frequently repeated. But he can
recover damages from her lover. Some of the Cape Nguni distinguish
in regard to the amount claimable according as to whether the woman
becomes pregnant or not, damages in die latter event being less sub-
stantial than in the former 5 ; but this distinftion does not appear to
be made elsewhere. The amount is sometimes standardized (among
the Venda at two head of cattle ; among the Cape Nguni at five

1 Stafford, 1935, 121.

1 Among the Nguni, however, the mother of a virgin can claim a beast (known as the
ingquthu) in respect of her defloration.

Stafford, 1935, 126-7; Stayt, 1931, aai ; Schapera, 1933, 74 i Whitfield, 1919, 44*,
'ting Lestrade.
* Junod, 1927, i, 441.
1929, 415.

206 I. SCHAPERA

if the woman becomes pregnant, at three if she does not ; and among
the Shangana-Tonga at the equivalent of a full lobola)? although
generally it seems to vary according to the wishes of the husband,
subjeft again to modification by the court. The onus of proof always
rests upon the husband, who is expefted in many Nguni and Sotho
tribes to produce, if possible, material evidence in the form of some
article of clothing taken from the adulterer. It may be noted also that
the husband has the admitted right, if he catches the adulterer in
flagrante Jeliclo, to thrash him severely or even to kill him, such aftion
being regarded as justifiable. Adultery with the wife of the Chief is
in any case regarded as a crime subjeft to capital punishment or
mutilation and confiscation of the culprit's property. A woman,
on the other hand, has no right of aftion at all if her husband commits
adultery.

Widows and divorced women living at their parental homes fall
in general under the same category as unmarried women, their father
or guardian being entitled to claim damages if they are seduced. A
widow living in the home of her late husband is treated as if she
were still a married woman ; and any man who cohabits with her,
other than the one specially approved for the purpose as a " seed-
raiser ", can be sued by her guardian for adultery.

The abduftion of an unmarried woman is among the Nguni one
of the recognized preliminaries to marriage. In such cases there is
normally no liability for the abdu&ion, apart from the incidental
marriage payments. 2 But if for any reason the marriage does not take
place, special damages can be claimed, especially if the girl has been
seduced. The Sotho tribes do not generally recognize abduftion as a
preliminary to marriage, and treat it in the same way as a case of
seduftion. The abduftion of a married woman is as a rule regarded as
an aggravated form of adultery, and therefore liable to greater damage.
The Tswana go so far as to permit the injured husband to take for
himself all the cattle belonging to the transgressor. 3

Wrongs against Property.

Encroachment upon the gardens of another person is not usually
an aflionable wrong. The transgressor is simply asked to move away.
If he continues to trespass, he can be forcibly ejefted, if necessary with

\ SS^ 1 , 931 ' " I; Wto^d* '9*9, 4" ; Junod, 1927, i, 197, 44*

1 Whitheld, 1929, 79-8$, passim.

Schapera, 1935, MS. Lestxade, MS. notes on Huruthse law.

LAW AND JUSTICE 207

the aid of an order or messengers from the tribal courts. On the other
hand, if cattle enter a garden and damage the crops, the owner of the
garden is entitled to compensation. The parties concerned usually
inspeft the damage together and settle the matter between them.
If they cannot agree, it is taken to court, and messengers are sent
to assess the damage, compensation being awarded -accordingly.
This general rule does not however seem to 'have prevailed among the
Cape Nguni. They do not regard injury to cultivated lands or standing
corn as a&ionable, but the remedy of self-redress exists, in that the
women upon whose gardens the cattle have trespassed have the right
to drive them back into the gardens of their owners. 1 Damage to
other forms of property entitles the owner to restitution or compensa-
tion, which in the case of arson or some other form of malicious injury
may often greatly exceed the value of the damaged property.

Theft, like other offences against property, is a civil wrong which
can be compounded. The thief must as a rule not only restore the stolen
property or its equivalent, but pay an additional amount, equal in
value, among the Sotho, to the property stolen : the general principle,
that is, is twofold restitution. If the case comes to court, he may further
have to pay a fine of the same value, which goes to the Chief or
other tribal authority. Cattle theft is looked upon as a particularly
serious wrong ; and among the Tswana a man caught in the aft
of stealing cattle could formerly be justifiably killed or mutilated by
having his hands cut off or burned away.

Defamation.

The law of defamation varies somewhat from one group of tribes
to another. Among the Cape Nguni " The most serious charge that
can be made against anyone, and the gravest crime that anyone could
be accused of, was that of causing the death of any person by means
of witchcraft, and in Native law the only aftion that could be entertained
for defamation was if a person was said to have pra&ised witchcraft." 2
In Natal and Zululand, however, allegations such as that a person has
committed a crime, or that a girl is unchaste, are also regarded as
defamatory and a&ionable, unless made in good faith to a person in
authority. 8 The Tswana and Venda do not appear to regard defamation
as an aftionable wrong unless the allegation has exposed the vi&im

1 Whitfield, 1929, 428, citing Warner, in MacLean, 1858, 67-8.

Whitfield, 1909, 405.

Stafford, 1935, iiaf.

208 I. SCHAPERA

to some risk, e.g. a trial at court, in which case, if the evidence has
shown that the charge made against him is palpably false, he is entitled
to damages " to clear his name ".*

PENAL OFFENCES
Crimes against the Person.

The basic principle underlying such cases among the Nguni has
been well stated in an oft-quoted passage which bears repetition.
" Native law . . . recognizes some distinftion between crimes, and
those wrongs which give rise only to civil remedies. But this distinftion
is built upon the theory that all the members of the tribe belong to,
and give strength to, the Chief. Any injury to the person of any
member of a tribe, whether male or female, is therefore looked upon
as an injury to the Chief, to whom, and to whom alone, reparation is
due. So-called " blood cases " come under the special jurisdiftion of
the Chief, and no reparation or damages can be claimed by the person
or family injured through violence or wrong to the person. The Chief
not only throws his shield over the person of every member of the
tribe, but an injury to the person of anyone is a wrong to the Chief,
through the " Chief's man." Hence it is that all cases of killing are
dealt with in the Chief's court, and that compensation can by him,
and by him only, be exa&ed in such cases. No member of the injured
man's family can claim any benefit out of the blood of the Chief's
man. As the Chief is alone wronged, he alone receives the fine or
blood-money. Again, in cases of serious assault the same principle
applies. No compensation can be claimed by the person injured, but a
fine is levied, which goes to the Chief. The Chief may, and sometimes
does, give a portion of the fine to the person injured; but this is a
gift by him, and not compensation claimable of right by the injured
man." 2 It will be realized, of course, that the Chief in such cases afts
in his official capacity as head of the tribe. Homicide and assault are
therefore not wrongs against him as a private person, but wrongs
against the tribe of which he is the public representative. It may be
added that if a homicide is caught in the aft he may be killed on the
spot ; but all other cases of killing, must be reported to the Chief,
who will seize all the culprit's property, although sometimes a smaller
fine is imposed, of from five to ten head of cattle, where the killing is

1 Schapera, 1935, MS.; Stayt, 1931, 221.

1 Report of Cape Government Commission on Native Laws and Customs (G. 4, 1883), ai-2.

LAW AND JUSTICE 209

not deliberate murder. Any man taking the law into his own hands
and killing a homicide except when caught red-handed is himself
punished for the same offence. 1

Not all the Bantu tribes treat murder and culpable homicide in
the same way as do the Nguni. Among the Venda the penalty is
death, or in some cases banishment. In addition, the culprit's property
is confiscated, and his whole family taken by the Chief. Here, as
among the Nguni, no compensation is paid to the relatives of deceased. 2
Among the Northern Sotho, on the other hand, not only is the culprit
himself killed, but his relatives must in addition give the vi&im's
people cattle with which to acquire a woman to replace deceased,
if she was a woman, or to raise seed to him, if he was a man. 3 The
Shangana-Tonga formerly killed a homicide, but nowadays he and his
people must pay the victim's family the equivalent of a full lobola,
so that they may obtain a girl to bear someone to replace him. 4 The
Tswana appear to have only the death penalty, modified in some
instances by a heavy fine, with no compensation to the family of
deceased. 5 It will be seen from this that only among the Nguni and
Venda, and sometimes also among the Tswana, does the Chief, and
not the viftim's relatives, receive " blood-money " ; that the homicide
himself is in most cases killed, and not merely fined ; and that among
the Shangana-Tonga and North Sotho compensation is further paid
to the vi&im's relatives, and not to the Chief. No group of tribes,
however, permits the vendetta system of self-help. It may be added
that any homicide who is not himself killed must in any case undergo
a special purification ceremony to free him from the pollution of having
shed blood.

The same variations are seen also in regard to other offences against
the person. Accidental homicide is among the Cape Nguni treated
along the same lines as culpable homicide, except that the fine paid
to the Chief is usually not so heavy. 6 The Venda also impose a fine. 7
The Tswana impose no penalty at all if the killing has been quite
accidental, but punish negligence by a fine. 8 Among the Shangana-
Tonga the culprit's people must give the viftim's family a girl to
raige up seed to his name. The girl is afterwards free to return to
her own people, unless the viftim's family agree to lobola her. 9 The

1 Warner, in Maclean, 1858, 60-1 ; Brownlee, in MacLean, 1858, no; Cook, 1931, 151-2.

* Stayt, 1931, 223. * Harries, 1929, 103-4.

* Junod, 1927, i, 441-3. Schapera, 1935 MS.
9 Warner, in MacLean, 1858, 60-1. 7 Schapera, 1935, MS.

* Stayt, 1931, 224. Junod, 1927, i, 441-2.

210 I. SCHAPERA

Pedi also do not punish accidental homicide, but if a woman is killed
another must be given to her family to take her place, while if a man
is killed cattle must be given to provide a woman to raise up seed to
him. 1

Certain forms of homicide, e.g. killing an adulterer or homicide
caught in the aft, or a nofturnal wizard found in one's homestead,
or a thief taken with stolen cattle or found in the stock enclosure,
are regarded as justifiable. Normally no penalty is attached to them,
except among the Nguni, where a fine must be paid to the Chief, unless
he chooses to forgo his claim. 2 In all groups except the Nguni it
is not only justifiable but also customary to kill one or both of twins,
or children born feet first, or cutting their upper teeth first, or present-
ing some other abnormality. Such children are regarded as evil omens
who must be put out of the way as soon as possible lest they bring
disaster upon their families. In such cases no aftion is taken against
the parents. But all other forms of infanticide, including the procuring
of abortion, are treated as penal offences if they come before the Chief,
although often enough, especially where an unmarried woman kills
her illegitimate child, the matter is kept a secret within the family.
The Tswana, where such cases are brought to light, severely thrash
the woman concerned, and also " do&or " her body with a strongly
irritant medicine to wash away the pollution which, it is held, may
keep off the rain. 3

Assaults where blood is shed, or where maiming or serious injury
has taken place, must also come before the Chief. Among the Nguni,
Shangana-Tonga, and Tswana, the usual penalty is a fine, but the Chief
may at will give part of it as compensation to the vi&im of the assault ;
while among the Venda the fine is a beast, killed and eaten at court. 4
Among the North Sotho, " this offence was treated more as a civil
than a criminal one, and the penalty of a fine (sic), which went to the
injured party, was invariably imposed " 5 ; while among the South
Sotho also compensation is paid to the viftim. 6 The Tswana some-
times allow the vi&im to avenge himself by wounding his assailant
with a similar weapon and upon the same part of the body as he has
himself been wounded. The court mostly orders this to be done in
cases where women have fought together, and one has severely bitten

Harries, 1929, 103-4. * Warner, in MacLean, 1858, 61.

Schapera, 1935 MS.

Junod, 1927, i, 441 ; Schapera, 1935, MS. ; Stayt, 1931, MI.

Harries, 1929, 109.

Whitfield, 1929, 44j.

LAW AND JUSTICE 211

or struck the other. 1 There is no penalty, in most tribes, if the assault
has been provoked or purely accidental.

Cases of rape are generally treated along the same lines as assault,
being tried by the Chief. The normal penalty is a fine, of which part
goes to the Chief and part to the family of the woman.

Vulgar or obscene abuse against an older or senior person is among
the Tswana and Shangana-Tonga an offence, for it often gives rise to
fights and so to a breach of the peace. Among the Shangana-Tonga
the penalty is a heavy fine, of which part goes to the Chief and part
to the person abused. Among the Tswana such cases are generally
dealt with by the regimental courts, which either thrash the offender
or fine him, the animal being killed and eaten by the court. 2

Crimes against Tribal Authorities.

Disobedience of any order given by the Chief or other tribal
authority afting in his official capacity is an offence punishable as a
rule by a fine. This applies also to aftions constituting what may be
termed " contempt of court ", such as " misbehaviour in court,
impudence, and refusal to give evidence ", 3 In cases where the offender
is deliberately insubordinate, and refuses repeatedly to comply with the
Chief's orders, a more severe penalty may be inflifted in the form of
" eating up ", i.e. the sudden seizure of some or all of his stock. Aftual
rebellion against the Chief, or any conspiracy against him, is one of the
greatest crimes in Bantu society. The offender is killed, often secretly
and without open trial, unless, being forewarned, he manages to escape
to another tribe. His property is in any case confiscated.

Sorcery and other Unnatural Offences.

Sorcery or witchcraft, the malicious use of magic to inflift harm
upon other people or their property, is one of the things most dreaded
by the Bantu ; and it is usually drastically punished. The offence cannot
be tried in the ordinary way by the courts, for the sorcerer or wizard
himself is often unconscious of the evil he is doing ; and so various
forms of divination are employed, in which the legitimate magicians
use their art to deleft him, or some infallible ordeal is undergone by the
suspefted person. If his guilt is established in this way, he is brought
before the Chief, and immediately, often cruelly, punished. At best

1 .Schapera, 1935, MS.

Junod, 1927, i, 445 Schapera, 1935, MS.

* Ashton, MS. notes (S. Sotho law and procedure).

212 I. SCHAPERA

he is driven away from the locality and his property confiscated by the
Chief. More generally he is killed, often by torture, and his property
confiscated, while among the Venda his wives and children also are
taken by the Chief. 1

Incest, bestiality, and other perverse sexual aberrations are similarly
looked upon as ill-omened aftions ; and the people concerned are in
most cases killed, often savagely. 2 Among tribes practising clan
exogamy, however, sex relations or marriage between members of the
same clan are not necessarily regarded as incest if the relationship
between them is sufficiently remote. In such cases it often happens that
the branches of the clan to which they respectively belong will become
recognized as separate clans, so as to legalize the marriage and permit
of future inter-marriages between other members. It is in this way,
in fact, that many Nguni clans have come into existence. 3

PROCEDURE 4
Courts and their Jurisdiction.

The administration of justice is for the most part in the hands of
the political authorities described in the last chapter. Each has his own
court in which he tries the cases over which he has jurisdiction. He
is assisted in this work by a small panel of assessors or " remembrancers",
whose special function it is to advise him on points of law and to help
him arrive at a verdift. They must attend and participate in all the
cases coming to his court. Some of them are his own senior paternal
relatives, others are middle-aged or elderly commoners noted for their
sagacity and knowledge of precedents. These men, in the case of the
Chief's court, are drawn to some extent, but not exclusively, from the
ranks of his private political advisers ; and they must be specially
appointed to their office. The Chief's induna is always a member of
this group, with the special task of receiving all complaints, trans-
mitting them to the Chief, and arranging with him for the hearing

1 Brownlee, in MacLean, 1858, 123 ; Cook, 1931, 153 (Cape Nguni) ; Krige, 1936, 226-7
(Zulu) ; Junod, 1927, i, 443-4 (Shangana-Tonga) ; Stayt, 1931, 223 (Venda) ; Schapera, 193$
MS. (Tswana).

1 Sehapera, 1935, MS. (Tswana) ; Harries, 1929, 106 (N. Sotho) ; Stayt, 1931, 224 (Venda) ;
Krige, 1936, 224 (Zulu). Among the Shangana-Tonga, however, father-daughter incest is
obligatory before a specialist hunter sets out to kill a hippopotamus ! For the rest, it is merely
said that the al " is strongly taboo in ordinary life " (Junod, 1927, ii, 68).

* See above, Chap. IV ; and for examples Bryant, 1929, passim.

4 For more detailed accounts, most of which have been here utilized, cf. Sehapera, 1935
MS.; Harries, 1929, 98-101; Junod, 1927, i, 434 #; Stayt, 1931, 218 ff.; Krige, 1936,
229-232 Ashton, MS. notes (S. Sotho); Lestrade, MS. notes (Huruthse).

LAW AND JUSTICE 213

of cases. He must also see that all fines are paid, and detail messengers
for any work to be done in connexion with the administration of
justice. Many Chiefs have regular court messengers, but normally
any available man or men can be called upon to summon litigants or
witnesses as required by the court, or to enforce the payment of fines.
In addition to the permanent assessors, the Chief's or headman's
other councillors generally assist from time to time in the hearing of
cases, while every adult man has the right to be present at any case and
to take part in the discussion.

Apart from these ordinary courts other bodies settle or help to
settle disputes. " Nearly all cases affefting family relations, such as
disputes between husband and wife, or the non-fulfilment of kinship
obligations, are first discussed by a family council, embracing all the
near male relatives of the parties concerned. It is convened and
presided over by the senior man of the kinship group. Where women
are directly involved, the mothers and wives will be included in the
council." l The matter is if possible settled here, and if it is one involv-
ing the payment of damages the council will suggest that the usual
amount be paid. But it cannot enforce such payment, nor can it
inflift any penalty on the offender without his consent, Where the
parties cannot come to an agreement, or the offender refuses to accept
the decision, the case will be referred to the local court. There are also
regimental courts, especially among the Sotho, which deal with
offences committed in conneftion with the initiation schools or
regimental duties. These courts have the right to punish offenders by
thrashing or fining. The Sotho further have special women's courts,
presided over by the leader of a female regiment, or the wife of the
headman or Chief, which deal with matters particularly affe&ing
women. They can take disciplinary aftion where women quarrel over
a man, or break any of the sexual taboos, or negleft to carry out their
regimental duties.

Cases are usually tried first in the court of the authority immediately
under whom the defendant is residing. But if the court is not competent
to give a final verdift on the case, it will simply discuss it, and then
send it on to a higher court. "The competence of courts varies according
to their importance, and corresponds roughly to the position of the
different authorities in the tribal hierarchy." 2 The headman's court
is the most inferior, and has, in faft, very limited jurisdiftton. Immedi-
ately above it is the sub-Chief's court, which can try cases on appeal
1 Ashton, MS. notes (S. Sotho). Ashton, MS. notes (S. Sotho).

214 I. SCHAPERA

from the headman's court as well as cases beyond the latter's juris-
diftion but within its own. The Chief's court is the supreme judicial
body of the tribe, competent to try cases on appeal from all courts
below it, as well as all other cases beyond the competence of these
courts. Such cases, in most tribes, include all the penal offences,
except refusal to obey orders and contempt of court, which are dealt
with in the first instance by the court of the authority against whom
they are committed. The headman's court can deal with all forms of
civil injury, but where the matter is at all important or difficult the
headman is bound, after discussion, to forward it to a superior court.
Generally speaking, all cases involving a prominent person or a
complicated matter are usually transferred in this way, " partly out
of courtesy and partly out of commonsense in the knowledge that
an appeal is sure to be made." 1

Trials.

The procedure varies slightly in the different types of court
the smaller the court, the simpler the procedure. The pattern of
procedure is, however, the same throughout the judicial system,
the differences being chiefly those of detail. Generally speaking,
when an injured person wishes to take aHon against the man who has
wronged him, he officially reports the matter, either in person or
through a representative, to defendant's headman, and announces his
intention to prosecute. The headman then appoints a day for hearing
the case, and notifies the defendant and other men of his group,
who are all supposed to attend the hearing of the case. There are no
fixed sessions at any of the courts. They meet only when there is a
case to be settled. Cases are heard as soon as possible after they have
been reported, a few days generally being allowed for the colleftion
of witnesses.

All interested parties gather at the court early on the morning of
the appointed day. The judge, together with his assessors, close
relatives, and other advisers, faces the rest of the people. The latter
sometimes sit in separate groups, corresponding to their role in the
case, but more generally cluster together in a semicircle, with the aftual
parties to the case, surrounded by their witnesses and supporters, in
front and towards the middle, where they can be seen by all. Witnesses
may be present throughout the hearing of the case, and are not kept
away till their evidence is required. As already mentioned, any

1 Lestrade, MS. notes (Huruthse).

LAW AND JUSTICE 215

number of the tribe, even a stranger, can be present if he wishes,
for all trials are condufted in the open and in public. But women may
not be present unless aftually involved in the case. Each party to the
case is responsible for the presence of his own witnesses. If he has
duly notified them, and they do not appear, messengers are sent by the
court to fetch them. Failure to comply with this order is punished by a
fine, the beast being killed and eaten at the court. But if one of the
parties or an essential witness is kept away by sickness or some other
valid reason, he is not punished. The case will be postponed until
he is able to appear.

The judge opens the proceedings by outlining briefly the circum-
stances in which the case was brought to him. Plaintiff is then called
upon to state his grievance. This he does at considerable length, while
the people listen attentively and without interruption. It is held that
each man should be allowed to have his fair say ; and even if he strays
from the point he is seldom called to order. Defendant is next asked
to reply, which he does in the same way. They may then be questioned
on their respeftive statements by any of the people present, and
particularly by the judge and his assessors. Then, if necessary, the
witnesses on either side are called, and after making their statements
are questioned in the same way. When all the parties concerned and
their witnesses have spoken and been questioned the matter is thrown
open for general discussion. Sometimes, as among the Southern
Sotho, the judge and his assessors then retire to some private spot,
where they discuss the case and their findings, and try to agree on their
verdift. 1 In other tribes they decide the matter in public. The assessors
speak one by one, in ascending order of seniority, " pointing out what
appear to them the rights and wrongs of the case according to the
evidence, and also stating the law on the subjeft, referring if possible
to precedents." * The judge finally sums up the evidence and the
various opinions advanced by the people, discusses them, and gives his
verdift. In theory he should base it not on his own opinion, but
on what he thinks to be that of the majority. Where he agrees with
it, this causes no difficulty ; but if he does not he will try to win
them over to his way of thinking. He cannot, however, go behind the
united opinion of his assessors in giving his verdift.

The evidence relied upon in arriving at a verdift is generally
that of eye-witnesses, as in cases of trespass, fighting, abuse, or breach
of contraft ; or some material faftor, such as a garment belonging

1 Ashton, MS. notes. * Lestrade, MS. notes.

2l6 I. SCHAPERA

to an adulterer, or a thief's possession of stolen property. In some
instances circumstantial evidence is also accepted : e.g. the faft that
a man was found at night in the hut of a woman would, under certain
conditions, be accepted as reasonable proof of adultery. The court
further relies to some extent upon evidence as to the charafter of
defendant, particularly if he has offended in other similar cases ; and
statements regarding the general character of any of the parties con-
cerned or of their witnesses play a great part in determining the value
placed on their evidence. Hearsay evidence is also admitted, but is
not given much weight in the absence of more direft proof. No oath
is taken from a man before he gives his evidence, nor is there as a
rule any form of ordeal or divination, except in regard to witchcraft.
But every man is expefted to tell the truth, and the extensive question-
ing to which he is subje&ed if there is any doubt attaching to his
statements is generally sufficient to show whether he is telling the
truth or not. Moreover, if convifted of false witness, he may among
the Southern Sotho be punished, while among the Tswana and
Venda he can be held liable for defamation of charafter. A woman
is competent to give evidence against her husband or in his favour ;
and in cases of adultery or sedu&ion great weight is generally attached
to the word of the woman concerned, just as in cases involving
cattle the evidence of the herdboys is given special consideration.

If the case is heard before a junior court, and the judge, owing
to conflift of evidence or of opinion, feels unable to give a satisfac-
tory verdift, he must refer the matter to a higher court. Similarly,
if either party is dissatisfied with the verdift, " he may there and
then give notice of appeal ; and the execution of the sentence will
be stayed pending the judgment of this- higher court." l The case
is there heard all over again, from the very start. Proceedings
are conduced along the same lines as before. But the headman
or sub-Chief who first heard the case must be present to state how
he arrived at his verdift. The Chief may either confirm the judgment
previously given, reverse it, or modify it, as he thinks fit. The
appellant, if again found in the wrong, must not only abide by the
previous decision, but may also have to pay an additional fine to
the court for having taken the matter so far without any good cause.
If, however, his appeal is upheld, the verdift of the lower court
becomes inoperative.

The Chiefs judgment is the final judgment, and must be accepted

1 Lestrade, MS. notes.

LAW AND JUSTICE 217

by both parties. But if a man feels that he has been unjustly treated,
he has the right to appeal to one of the Chief's senior relatives, or
to his inJuna, who must take up the matter on his behalf with the
Chief. The Chief may then diminish the penalty or remit it altogether,
if good cause is shown ; but if he is satisfied with the corre&ness
of his judgment he may refuse to alter it. The man's only alternative,
in such cases, is to leave the tribe altogether and settle somewhere
else.

The sentence, where it involves corporal or capital punishment,
is carried out immediately after being pronounced. But among the
Sotho a man sentenced to thrashing will, if he succeeds in breaking
away and taking refuge in the homestead of the Chief's wife or
mother or some other prominent relative, be regarded as having
found asylum and cannot then be thrashed. 1 Where damages are
awarded to one of the parties, a day is generally appointed by or
on which they should be paid. Fines are paid in the same way to
the headman of a district court, or to the induna of the Chief's court ;
and it is usual for one of the beasts to be killed and eaten by the
men who are there, the rest going to the headman or Chief as his
own property. Should any man delay unreasonably in bringing
in the cattle, whether as damages or as fine, messengers will be sent
to seize them at his kraal. In such cases one or more additional beasts
are usually seized as penalty for contempt of court, the animals
either being slaughtered at the court or taken as their fee by the
messengers.

Factors affecting Liability.

Every adult person is presumed to know the law, and to have
intended the results that follow an aft he has committed. Motive
is not generally taken into consideration; but allowance is made
for provocation, e.g. homicide or assault are in certain cases held
to be justifiable and so are excused, while on the other hand malicious
prosecution may entitle the viftim to damages for defamation.
Negligence as a rule involves liability for any resulting damage, but
purely accidental wrongs are almost invariably excused or far less
heavily penalized. Less liability attaches to an unsuccessful attempt
to do wrong than to one which has succeeded. The former, indeed,
is not often brought to trial, as Bantu law in the main takes cognisance
only of wrongs aftually perpetrated. So, too, the amount of damage

* Schapcra, 1935, MS.

2l8 I. SCHAPERA

aftually inflifted is taken into consideration in assessing the punish-
ment or compensation : a thief stealing two head of cattle is not
as severely penalized as one stealing four.

The charafter of a wrongdoer plays an important part in the
attitude adopted towards him. If he readily admits his offence, he
may be dealt with lightly, and sometimes even excused altogether ;
whereas if he is insolent or obstreperous, even in the face of over-
whelming evidence against him, he will be penalized more severely
than usual. Similarly, an habitual offender is always more severely
penalized than a first offender. The relative status of the persons
concerned in a case is another important faftor. Generally speaking,
offences against a person senior to the wrongdoer in age or position
are regarded as more reprehensible than they would be if the positions
were reversed, and the sentence of the court is determined accordingly.
This is particularly the case when the offence is committed against
the Chief. Conversely, it is difficult, sometimes impossible, to obtain
justice where the offender is the Chief himself or one of his senior
relatives. Similarly, offences against a kinsman or member of the
same local group are often treated more lightly by the viftim than
where the offender is an outsider. There is a greater readiness to
claim nominal damages, or even to overlook the offence altogether.
So, too, offending foreigners are on the whole more harshly judged
than members of the tribe.

There is no law of prescription among the Bantu. Molato xa o
bole, xo tola nama, say the Tswana : " A wrong does not decay,
it is meat that decays," i.e. a case can be heard against a person when-
ever he is available. A case cannot be tried in the absence of one
of the parties, unless he is dead, in which case, e.g., aftion can be
taken against his heirs for the recovery of a debt. But it is held
that the sooner a case is dealt with the better. Instances do occur,
however, where people run away or hide if they know that they
have done wrong. The complainant accordingly has the right to
take up his case whenever the opportunity occurs, even if it is years
after the offence was committed ; and if he is dead, his successors
will do so in his place. But a man is expe&ed to lodge his complaint
with the wrongdoer's people immediately after he has been wronged,
even if the wrongdoer himself has fled. This will justify him in
taking up the matter afterwards; whereas if he delays to lodge
his complaint at the time, any subsequent attempt to bring it forward
will be regarded with great suspicion.

LAW AND JUSTICE 219

Special mention should finally be made of the principle of collec-
tive responsibility playing so large a part in Bantu law. Every man,
in the first place, is held responsible for the delifts of his wife and
unmarried children, and must pay their debts, as well as any fines
imposed upon or damages awarded against them. Moreover, if a
man is himself unable to pay a fine or damages, his near relatives
are expefted, and can sometimes Le forced, to come to his rescue.
This does not normally apply to those cases where corporal punish-
ment or a capital sentence is imposed ; but in some tribes (e.g. Venda)
if a man is sentenced for sorcery or treason not only he but his whole
family may be punished. 1 The famous " spoor law " of the Nguni
further illustrates the operation of this principle. If the tracks of
missing cattle are traced to a certain kraal, the onus of proving that
the cattle are not there lies upon the members of the kraal. If they
fail to do so, they are held colleftively liable for the missing animals. 2

1 Stayt, 1931, 223.

1 Warner, in MacLean, 1858, 6?.

CHAPTER X
MAGIC AND MEDICINE

By A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

THE student who approaches for the first time the subjeft of Bantu
medicine and magic needs more than ever to remember the famous
saying of the Roman poet : Homo sum, humani nihil alienum a me
puto. He will meet with beliefs and praftices which Western Science
would deem " superstitious ", and European morals and law would
deem immoral and illegal. But he will err gravely if, for this reason,
he allows himself to regard these beliefs and practices as manifesta-
tions of a kind of mentality with which he, as a European, has nothing
in common. On the contrary, they lie within the scope of our
common human nature. The very same beliefs and practices same
in principle, if not in detail were an integral part of the European
civilization of our own ancestors. Right down into modern times,
the belief in witchcraft was not felt to be in conflict with Christianity.
It was shared, and a&ed on, by learned and unlearned alike by
priest and do&or, by judge and magistrate, no less than by the private
burgher in towns or the peasant of the countryside. Our modern
" scientific " medicine has only slowly sorted itself out from its
original alliance with "quackery" or " magic", whereas among the
Bantu medicine is still of one piece with magic. Compared with
our " science " theirs is an unscientific approach to all natural pheno-
mena, but so, too, is the approach of many unscientific Whites, even
at the present day, in South Africa and elsewhere in the world.

Further, one thing is common to our science and their magic :
both are attempts to control the environment, natural and human,
in the interests of the practitioner and the community. Both exemplify
Bacon's aphorism, scientia est potenda knowledge is power. That
their " magic " is not " knowledge " from our point of view, but
error, illusion, superstition, is not to the point. The point is, rather,
that witch-do&or and magician aft on certain beliefs concerning
the nature and behaviour of things, which beliefs are " true " to them
and, therefore, constitute their " knowledge " of the universe. And,

222 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

through aftion, this " knowledge " becomes, or at least is believed
to become, power : it is not mere " theory " of what things are
or do, but practical knowledge of how to make them be or do what
we want them to be or do ; knowledge of how to control them
" for the improvement of man's estate ", as Bacon put it*

But this is not all. If we would approach the study of Bantu
medicine and magic with sympathetic insight and understanding,
we must prepare ourselves by reflecting, further, on two additional
points, viz. (i) how man comes to experience the need for special
means of controlling his environment , and (2) the difference between
" scientific " and " unscientific " control.

(i) What feature of the world challenges efforts to bring it under
control ? Is it not the fact that amidst a great measure of uniformity
and regularity in natural events, there is also an incalculable variability
impinging on human life whether individual or tribal now as good
luck, now as bad luck ? In short, there is haphazard accident, there
is chance. Even we who believe in cause and effect for every natural
event cannot exclude the element of chance in the coincidence of
causally disconnected natural events. If a man happens to be passing
a scaffold where a new building is being put up, and a brick, dislodged
at that moment, falls and strikes him on the head, we say that there
is a cause for the falling of the brick at that moment, and a cause
also for the man's being there at that moment : but for the inter-
section of these two events at that moment and that spot we know
no cause. We can only call it an " accident ". At any rate, no
human agent is responsible, it is just " bad luck ".

Now, where OUT world, in effect, exhibits order thus shot through
with accident, Bantu thought, whilst apprehending less of impersonal
system and order, utterly refuses in most cases to admit mere chance,
or accident or luck. It conceives nearly everything that befalls
the individual, or the tribe, for weal or woe, as the working out
of forces in Nature, often regarded as personal or semi-personal,
which intend just that effect, or of powers in the possession of
certain private individuals, or of official persons, like chiefs, or of
specialists in strange powers, like magicians powers enabling their
owners by the use of appropriate methods to ward off evil and to
procure differential advantages.

From this point of view, there is, and can be, no sharp dividing
line, e.g. in the treatment of disease, between the use of drugs to which
we, too, would ascribe a therapeutic effect, and the use of magical

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 223

manipulations which, if they have any effeft at all, have such effeft,
not on the physical plane, but on the mental plane, i.e. through
the beliefs and emotions of the persons who praftise magic or on
whom it is pra&ised. And, indire&ly, as we, too, know and admit,
intense emotion and passionate belief have their effefts on the human
body.

In the light of these general reflections, let us look, next, at the
Bantu's experience of Nature and human nature. Economically,
they have their sound, if limited, knowledge and technique for winning
a living from the soil, for managing their herds and using the wild
plants and animals of their environment for various purposes. But,
within this general framework of economic aftivities, what varying
success and failure ! What insecurity ! Alternating periods of plenty
and want, abundant harvests one year, shortage and famine the
next. One year sufficient rains fall in due season, the next a drought
shrivels up the young shoots on the parched fields ; the next, perhaps,
there are destructive floods. Epidemics of disease may attack man
and his beasts ; locusts may ravage his crops ; or other pests destroy
other sources of his food-supply. There is no counting with certainty
on good fortune : evil-working forces lurk everywhere. The problem
is, so to speak, to domesticate the good, and keep at bay the evil ;
and the methods which the Bantu practise for this purpose vary
from those having genuine causal efficiency to those which are magical
and are pra&ised by specialists men of more than common know-
ledge and endowment.

Again, apart from large-scale events striking upon whole com-
munities for good or evil, there are events which affeft individuals
differentially, for all that they are fellow-tribesmen on an equal
footing. One man has a run of what we should call " bad luck ",
whilst his neighbour prospers. One man's fields are devastated
by hail, another's escape the scourge. That the industrious worker
should reap and the slothful one miss his harvest is intelligible ;
but when things work out quite otherwise, Bantu thought suspe&s
that there is a power at work which is responsible for the difference
and which this is the important point can be controlled, if only
man can discover how to control it.

And, so again, there is incalculable variability in the social world
of human relations. There are times when the life of the umu^i or
of the tribe runs smoothly. The members of the umu^i enjoy good
health ; they get on well with each other ; each is at peace with

224 A. WINIFRED HOERNL

his fellows. But then, again, frifUon occurs ; tempers rise ; enmities
and jealousies disrupt the little group. Or disease comes and seizes,
perchance, not upon the old and worn, but upon the young and
strong, or upon the babies. Once more, the explanation is sought
in the a&ion of some hostile, as before of some friendly, power and,
once more, the demand is for some means of control which will
preserve, or restore, the happy conjunftion of circumstances and
proteft against the manifold possibilities of suffering and disaster.

(2) Now, it is just in the type of answer sought to the problem
of controlling the infinite variability of all faftors entering into human
life, that the difference most clearly appears between the unscientific
thinking of Bantu culture, and scientific thinking like that of European
culture at its best. That difference may be briefly described in three
ways.

In the first place, the unscientific thinker never succeeds in detaching
himself sufficiently from the intense emotions aroused in him by the
impaft of events upon the weal and woe of himself and his group.
His well-being, his success, his very existence are always at stake,
are either promoted or threatened. Consequently, he is so deeply
engaged with his emotions, his hopes and fears, that he cannot achieve
the dispassionate objectivity of the scientist who " knows no judg-
ments of value ", i.e. who studies the concatenations of natural events
as if they had no bearing on human life, or, at any rate, as if in their
bearing there were no difference between good or bad, weal or woe.
It is one thing to ask, What cause has what effeft ? It is another thing
to ask, Is the effeft good or bad for me ? The scientific interest in
truth is a disinterested interest : unscientific thinking is never dis-
interested.

Hence, secondly, the emotional effefts of natural happenings on
the men that experience and undergo them are unconsciously used
as a clue to their nature. If strong emotions are aroused, a corre-
spondingly strong power must be at work in the objeft or event which
arouses the emotion. If a man's whole being is filled with a surge
of joy, triumph, success, heightening his vital pitch, as it were ; or
if he is made to feel utterly downcast, defeated, powerless, his vital
pitch being lowered to hopeless inertia and despair, powerful forces,
friendly and inimical, must be operative. Thus the emotional efieft
is projefted upon the objefts and events in the outside world, and
things and events are thought to be amenable to the sort of influence
and control to which men are known to be amenable. Here, too,

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 225

comes in man's experience of the influence of mind on mind, and mind
on body. We say, " stick and stones can break our bones, but names
and faces can't hurt us." We do not wholly believe this ourselves :
the Bantu certainly do not believe it. We know ourselves that the mere
harbouring of an evil wish, of a grudge, of a spirit of hatred and
revenge, can " poison " the mind of the person who has those feelings,
even to the point of destroying, not merely mental balance, but also
physical health. And the viftim of such feelings, if he knows himself
to be the objeft of them, is worried and agitated in his turn, and
responds, perhaps, with like feelings of his own, having like effe&s
in himself. In the often fierce competition of polygynous house-
holds, or underneath the fixed order and regular ranking of the members
of age-sets, there may be rival ambitions, breeding bitter jealousies
and hatreds, which may issue both in aftual attempts to defeat the
enemy, or rival, by sorcery, or in the convi&ion that one is oneself
the viftim of an enemy's sorcery a conviftion which may be none
the less firm for being objeftively groundless, and which may lead to
accusations of sorcery and the fixing of an imaginary guilt on an
a&ual enemy.

And, lastly, thinking in such an emotion-charged atmosphere fails to
discriminate, in the welter of simultaneous happenings, the events
which belong together and are, as scientists say, " causally connefted,"
from those which are merely associated by the same emotional
rea&ion to them. And so Bantu thought takes to be essentially
connefted and leads to aftion on the basis of this fancied conne&ion
things which for scientific thought have nothing to do with each
other. It perceives identities of essence, where we can see only differ-
ence and disconnexion. It assumes relevancies of power, where for
science there is no relation of cause and effeft at all. And so it comes
about that natural objefts of all sorts leaf, bark, root, flower, birds,
fishes, animals, humans, or parts of these, or excrements of these
are conceived to possess some " virtue " (efficiency), some relevance
for bringing about a desired, or avoiding an undesired, effeft, where
science can see no connexion at all. They come to be linked in Bantu
thought chiefly because the efleft experienced by man is charged with
strong emotion, and this emotion extends to and draws into its grip
things which, by the chance of their presence at the moment or by
some fanciful analogy, seem to have " something to do " with the good
or bad effeft. This is the way of thinking which leads to " magic "
as opposed to " science " , which studies Nature not dispassionately,

226 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

but through the eyes of hope and fear, desire and aversions ; which
lets emotion di&ate identities and connexions for which there is no
ground in the nature of things , which projefts into natural objefts
and processes the workings of the observer's own emotion-clouded
mind.

But, given such a type of thinking and of practical dealings with
Nature in terms of it, we can easily see how just as we have our
experts in scientific thinking and in the pra&ical application of such
thinking there will develop experts, men of special skill and training
and endowment, in the methods of this type of thought and of the
technique of its practical uses. These men will be specialists in different
fields, from practising like our doctors as healers of sick bodies and
sick minds, to making rain or averting lightning, assuring the fertility
of fields, herds, and wives, or success in dangerous undertakings, like
hunting and war. And, just as all human knowledge and power, even
modern science, can be used for immoral and anti-social purposes no
less than for moral and social ones, so the specialist in magical
knowledge and power may put his secret methods to dark and evil
uses. Hence, the sharp distinction we shall meet with between " white "
and " black " magic (where the substances used may be the same,
but the purpose to be achieved is different), and again between the
sorcerer or witch to be " smelled out " and the witch-doctor who
discovers the social enemy. 1

The inyanga (Sotho, ngakaj Xhosa, ngqika).

The inyanga is a specialist, a man skilled above his fellows ; and
the number of different types of inyanga is very great in the different
tribes. Some of them are great tribal officials, for some of the conditions
of life are of such vital concern to the well-being of the tribe as a whole
that the chief himself and his officials are responsible for controlling
them. In other cases, the inyanga is a practitioner at large, putting his
skill at the disposal of those prepared to pay for it.

The tribesman's ever-present desire is for health in body, and success
and protection in all his undertakings. Hence, it is in connexion with
disease and misfortune of every kind that we can best understand
the place of the inyanga in Bantu society.

1 Shangana-Tonga : bungoma, legitimate magic and medicine ; buloyt, sorcery and witch-
craft ; practised by mungoma. Iqyi respectively. Sotho : ngaka y legitimate praclitioner of magic
and medicine (bongaka) ; motoi, practitioner of sorcery and witchcraft (boloi). Zulu : inyanga,
legitimately using his umuthi ; umthakathi, maliciously employing uButhi. Xhosa : Inyanga
or ifpra, using his amaye^a ; umthakathi, or igqwira, using uButhi. See later sections of this

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 227

The Bantu have a crude knowledge of human anatomy but know
praftically nothing of physiology. The bones of the skeleton have
their names ; so, too, the organs in the body ; but nerves, tendons,
ligaments, veins, and arteries, are all classed together. 1 Of the funftion
of these organs the Bantu have no real idea at all. They know nothing
of the circulation of the blood, of the funftion of respiration, of the
processes of digestion. Psychic faculties are for them the most import-
ant functions of the bodily organs. Thus, thought and memory are
funftions of the heart, as are also afts of will. Hatred is in the spleen
and patience resides in the liver ! That food passes through the body
and that certain foods make them feel ill, they know : so, too, they
know the relief that comes when, by the use of an emetic or purgative,
they clean out their bodies. Worms they have seen in their stools,
and often they think that pains in their bodies may be caused by such
worms wandering about among the different organs, or even by the
organs themselves getting displaced within the body. So, too, pain
and disease may be caused by a " blood " 2 which moves from spot
to spot, finally taking up its abode in the stomach or elsewhere.
Clotted blood, of course, they often see and it is easy to understand
how it is thought to aft.

Many diseases are called simply by the name of the organ which
is the seat of the pain : e.g. " I have a foot," " I have a neck," meaning
I have a pain in these parts. As Junod tells us, " there .are as many
diseases as there are organs." 3 Certain common ailments are recognized
which are regarded as evils that flesh is heir to coughs and colds,
fevers, rheumatism ; these come and go, are treated and no more is
thought of them. But apart from these the Bantu do not recognize
disease as " natural ". Some diseases come from " defilement "
(Shangana-Tonga, mahhumo ; Mpondo, umla^a) ; from doing things
which one is not in a fit state to do, e.g. before purification after
childbirth ; or from the " blackness " (Zulu, umnyama) which over-
whelms a mourner. Others are sent by the spirits for negleft of custom,
especially of ritual killings at transition ceremonies. But most diseases,
especially if the onset is sudden or if they are long continued, are
believed to be caused by sorcerers or witches. The process of the
disease and the method of treatment differ in each case ; it is therefore
essential that the ultimate cause of the disease should first be discovered.
To attend to secondary symptoms is waste of time so long as the basic

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 333-

1 Shangana-Tonga, ngati; Sotho, math.

Junod, 1927, ii, 43-

A. WINIFRED HOERNLfe

cause of the disease is still at work in the body. " The most important
thing is that the inyanga have the power to tell a man everything about
his illness and especially that he tell him about the beginning of the
illness." l Diagnosis of these outside causes is, therefore, an essential
in the Native treatment of disease. Hence we find many different
types of divination employed to discover first of all the source of the
disease, whether the cause be defilement, anger of the ancestral spirits,
or the work of a witch or sorcerer. If a witch or sorcerer be responsible
it is necessary further to " smell out " the particular individual,
in order to make him lift his heavy hand from off the patient or to
destroy him so that his influence may cease ; or at least to discover the
material he relies on to make the sufferer ill. Then only can curative
remedies be applied with success to the suffering body. Among the
specialists dealing with disease, therefore, we must distinguish between
the pure herbalists 2 and the diviners 3 who specialize in diagnosis,
though they may also undertake cures and other treatments. Among
the diviners the " smeller out " of witches the witch-doctor has a
specially honoured position.

The tamurij " men of the trees," are herbalists pure and simple,
specialists who claim to have a wide knowledge of the properties of
plants (and animals) and to be able to compound ingredients from these
sources for the cure of disease and the proteftion of man, beast, and
home, and also for securing success in manifold a&ivities and under-
takings. Some of these men know one simple technique, learnt
perhaps from a relative, or acquired for a fee from another specialist.
Thus, we may have the inyanga ye%ilonJa y the man who doctors
sores ; the inyanga yomiirnlamuBi, who deals in abscesses, etc. ; while
most have a wide range of specialities which they are willing to
prepare for their clients. It is among these men that we find prepara-
tions with true pharmacological properties and techniques which at
times may reveal true skill. But in all cases these true remedies are
mixed with preparations and manipulations which cannot possibly
have any therapeutic efFeft. Moreover, even the drugs which do have
a specific aftion (emetics, purgatives, fever-reducers, etc.), are never
limited in their aftion to such uses, but, mixed with other ingredients,
are used for manifold purposes.

Among the Zulu, in the herbalist's bag " there are baked insefts

1 Kohler, 1931, 588.

* Shangana-Tonga, bamuri ; Zulu, inyanga yemtthi ; Xhosa, amaxwele.
' Shangana-Tonga, mungoma ; Zu\u,isangoma; Xhosa, fgf/ra, xufafona. Diviner possessed
by a spirit : Shangana-Tonga, gobela ; Nguni, isanusi or inyanga yemiloii.

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 229

and dried reptiles ; the dung of lions in powders and the fat of the
water-sprite in bottles ; the shrivelled flesh of the whiteman and the
hardened menses of the baboon ; an incongruous assortment of oddities
Spanish-fly powder, asbestos, glass prisms, washing-soda, flint, spa,
crystal, coral, rare geological specimens of every description ; skins
and bones of every conceivable animal, and hundreds of barks, roots,
berries, and leaves in a word, choice sele&ions innumerable and
wonderful, medicinal and magical, useful, harmful, and inert, from the
whole range of mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms, terrestrial
and marine "- 1 A study of the aftive principles of the plants used shows
that there are in them innumerable acids, alkaloids, oils, gums, resins,
fats, etc., but only about 5 per cent of the ingredients used have some
specific reaftion which our pharmacologists would recognize, 2 whereas
the mere enumeration of the other types of ingredients is sufficient
to show that they cannot be " medically " effective.

It is difficult to discover, in many cases, just why particular herbs
have been used. Oftentimes, the inyanga does not know himself.
His master has told him to mix his medicines so, or the remedy has
been revealed to him by his ancestors. There is no doubt, however,
that much remains to be done in getting at the working of the minds
of the Bantu in connexion with their " medicines ", such as the
elaborate Shangana-Tonga shitsimbo concoftions (parcels of herbs for
making infusions), the Sotho thsithlS (compound of many ingredients,
ground and perhaps baked, and mixed with animal fat of some kind),
and similar preparations in the other tribes.

The Zulu distinguish between the imithi emnyama, "black
medicines," which are very powerful and work mostly as purgatives
and emetics, or have strongly astringent properties which are thought
to take away the " blackness ", the evil ; and imithi emhlopke, " white
medicines," which are soothing and purifying in their effefts and are
always used to settle the body after the use of the black medicines. 8

Native methods of preparing medicines are much like our own.
"There are cold infusions (Zulu, islchonco\ hot infusions (Zulu,
infuJumejelo) ; deceptions (Zulu, impeho) in which the herb, bark,
or root is as a rule slightly simmered, though also sometimes thoroughly
boiled ; and powders, in which the remedy is air-dried or roasted on a
pan and subsequently pulverized or even burnt to ashes." 4 These
powders or ashes are frequently mixed with fat. Preserved in horns,

1 Bryant, 1909, u. Cf. Watt and Brcycr-Brandwijk, 1932.

1 Bryant, 1909, n. 4 Bryant, 1909, 13.

230 A. WINIFRED HOERNLt

they are mixed in different ways and often divided into male compounds
and female compounds which are used separately or in combination
for the most various purposes, from warding off lightning, to protecting
the homestead, and soothing all kinds of ailments.

In treatment, blood-letting is much favoured ; poultices are made ;
also lotions and ointments. A common method of curing local pains
is by rubbing powdered medicine into incisions made on the spot.
There are vapour baths and sweating baths. Above all there are purga-
tives and emetics. Bryant gives it as his opinion that " they resort to
this means of treatment more than to any other, even than to aftual
dosing "- 1

Whilst the inyanga may do harm chiefly by over-drastic treatment,
he is also the main refuge of his suffering fellows. Many are intelligent
and spare themselves no trouble to get the remedies they think they
require, and even to-day the vast majority of Bantu have to rely on
their ministrations.

The diviner, as we have seen, is the specialist who diagnoses the
" real " cause of the disease. In the Sotho tribes, the diagnosis is made
by divination with bones, scrutinized according to set rules which are
learnt from other diviners, and there is often no claim to any special
endowment from the ancestral spirits. Among the Shangana-Tonga
and Nguni, on the other hand, belief in supernatural influence un-
doubtedly still plays a large part, and the majority of praftitioners
claim to be direftly guided and controlled in all their doings by the
spirits of their ancestors. Among the Shangana-Tonga, there is the
further belief in definite possession by alien spirits, spirits of foreign
tribes. A person thus possessed is their real gobela.

There is no specific symptom for one who is about to become
a diviner. Among the Mpondo, for example, any woman who is
ill, and whose illness is prolonged, may learn through the divination
of an igqira, or herself feel, that she is sick, ukutwasa \ 2 The woman
novice is called an umkhwetha (as is a boy at the time of puberty).
She has an inkatha^o (" trouble ") used technically for sickness before
ukutwasa, sent by her amathongo (ancestors) who wish her to become
an igqira. In general, we may say that a man (or, far more frequently
in the Nguni tribes, a woman) begins by having dreams of a peculiar
kind in which the spirits speak to him and give him no peace. He
becomes a " house of dreams ", as the Zulu say. He begins to wander

1 Bryant, 1909, 14, and in general for whole description.

1 Hunter, 1936, 320. Ukutwasa, lit. to come out, as the moon ; hence, to develop the new
powers of a diviner.

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 231

about the hill-sides and lives for weeks by himself close to some river
or other water. He comes back and is often seized by fits which may
recur at intervals for months. He is constantly groaning and appears
to endure a great deal of mental as well as bodily suffering. He hears
voices calling to him in the night and goes out on to the hill-side
in the darkness and cold. He may even see the faces of relatives long
since dead. These are at first blurred, but tend to become clearer until
there is no mistaking their identity. 1 Among the Mpondo and. else-
where, the umshologu or ithongo (ancestral spirit) takes the form of an
ityala (a wild animal lion, leopard, or elephant usually) which appears
to him in visions all his life and guides him to the places the spirits
wish him to visit. 2 Among the Zulu and the Shangana-Tonga, the
spirits appear normally in human form, usually just their faces being
seen and their voices being heard.

When the elders of the umu^i realize that the patient is really being
called by the spirits, they make arrangements for some skilled diviner
of their distrift to undertake the training, and incidentally the cure of
the worst symptoms, of the novice. Most tribes do not believe that
the ancestors " possess " a man. 3 They say : amathongo a hamba
nomuntu* " the spirits accompany a man," i.e. control him and some-
times speak through him, but the spirits are not thought to possess
a man, as does the alien spirit among the Shangana-Tonga.

The initiation of the diviner is a long process which varies from
tribe to tribe. For months the initiate is delicate ; sensitive to all things
that ritually defile a person. He avoids many foods and must be very
careful in all his behaviour. He is given many medicines which purge
him and purify his body, others with which to wash and strengthen
his body. Among the Zulu especially, a compound of roots is made,
mixed with water in a vessel and twirled with a stick until a white foam
froths up. This froth must be eaten each morning early by the initiate
until he vomits, in order that the body may be purified. With this foam
the whole body is also washed. The whole effort is concentrated upon
clearing the inner vision, " making the initiate see," so that he comes
to have a far-away look and is intent upon listening to his inner voice
and to the visions that arise before his mind's eye. White is the special
colour for the diviner ; white beads are given to him as presents to
put into his hair or on to his clothes ; and white goat skins are used in

1 CalLroay, 1868-1870, 259 ff. * Hunter, 1936, 311 f.

* The Vencla come much nearer to belief in real possession by ancestors; cf. Stayt, 1931,
302 ff.

* Callaway, 1868-1870, 348.

232 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

many of the tribes to adorn the top part of his body. Often, also,
in dancing he holds a white cow tail, though in former days a gnu
tail was more chara&eristic.

Dancing is an essential part in the initiation of diviners. Only
they may dance the peculiar rhythmical dance the urge for which
seems to seize those so afflifted. Each diviner has his special song,
with its own special lilt and rhythm, and at all times of day or night,
in season and out of season, he may begin to sing this song and plead
with those around to clap the rhythm for him or beat it out on oxhide
or drum. If he is not humoured in this matter, his worst symptoms
may easily return.

Among the Shangana-Tonga, it is essential that the possessing spirit,
if a foreign spirit, should reveal its tribe and name. 1 Among the
Mpondo, the initiate must ukulawula (confess) everything he sees in
his sleeping or waking dreams, else he can never become well. These
revelations take place during the dancing and appear to be made with
tremendous effort by the patient who is often completely exhausted
after he has spoken. 2

Always, also, there are sacrifices for a novice. Among the Shangana-
Tonga and sometimes among the Zulu, he must drink the spurting
blood from the dying beast, while among the Mpondo and the Xhosa
he eats a barely-cooked portion of the intsomnyama (meat from the
right fore-leg) and wears the bladder of the goat, if it is such, on his
wrist. Meantime his training by his teacher and by his controlling
spirit, or spirits, is proceeding. He learns the uses of drugs and the
treatment of disease. He learns how to spy out where things are
concealed. It is a usual test for a diviner that he should find such hidden
things, and at the end of the probation period there is generally a
gathering, not only of many trained diviners, but also of relatives and
friends who come to test his performance. How the spying-out is
done, where it is genuinely done, has not been properly studied. One
woman says, " I have a feeling or an urge in me which drives me to the
right place without my knowing where it comes from. Often, also,
I see die place." 3 In many tests, made by Europeans, the diviner has
failed to discover hidden things. On the other hand, many reports also
exist of stolen things being recovered with their help. No scientific
tests are on record. But that many diviners are shrewd and highly

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 441.

1 Hunter, 1936, 32$ ff. This description applies to women, who are the chief diviners of
the tribe.

* Miiller, 1907, 50.

PLATE

Hi Diyitiitii*" rausc of" pmit-nt's Uim\vs (Vrnila?

Rainmaker preparing liis tnccliciiies ^Kxatla)

M/\C;IC:AL PKACTKULS

\facep. 232

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 233

sensitive to indications of various kinds coming from the people around
them there is no doubt whatever. They are trained to watch for these
indications, facial expressions, gestures, comments, which others
miss, and among the people they know so well there is no doubt they
often have a flash of insight guiding them to the truth.

Among the Shangana-Tonga, the final ritual in connexion with the
possessed diviners is the hondlola (purification rite) which takes place
after any severe illness. The body is " cleansed " from top to toe" with
the stomach contents of the sacrificed animal, with which have been
mixed drugs of all kinds, and the particles which drop off on to a mat are
carefully collected and hidden in some place. This finally buries the
sickness, as it were. All that then remains is to make protective amulets
that the new diviner may always wear, and prepare a stock of certain
drugs for which the instructor is famous. Finally, a feast of rejoicing
and thanksgiving and payment of the instructor starts the new diviner
on his way !

Ukutwasa is also definitely a disease and few consciously wish to go
through the long process. Some resist it for months, but undoubtedly
it is a way in which a woman, especially, may draw concentrated
attention to herself and bind those around her to her will. It is generally
conceded that diviners are often highly-strung, sensitive people, but
the medical analysis of cases over a long period of time has never yet
been undertaken. Nor, so far as we are aware, has any psychological
study of these diviners yet been made, but since the condition occurs
frequently in certain parts of the country, and seems to be becoming
more frequent, it would be well worth while to make an intensive
study of a number of cases.

Divination is the igqira or umngomas speciality, but they may
undertake cures of all kinds, protection of homes from wizards, from
thieves, from lightning ; they may make amulets which guard against
the dangers of travel, infeCtion, or sorcery ; one or many or all of
the manifold processes required by the Bantu for his peace of mind,
his prote6lion, and his cure. Believing in amulets and charms, they
practise what they preach and are themselves very often loaded with
little horns filled with protective and curative medicines, and carry with
them skin bags filled with the ingredients of their drugs. But only
the most powerful of them all, the isanusi, can cure possession.

Before passing to a detailed study of divination, a few examples
will be given of the magician's practices, to help the student understand
better how the Bantu mind works in its use of magic.

234 A. WINIFRED HOERNLfe

Protecling a Village.

Among the Shangana-Tonga, Junod tells us, every village is
surrounded by a fence made up of charms, which competent doftors
put all round to prevent witches and sorcerers from entering. One
such medicine used " is a kind of ointment in which are contained
different powders made up of various sea-animals, the jellyfish,
... the sea-urchin, the sponge, and others. To these sea-animals
are added some roots which have been exposed to the light by the rain
which has washed out the soil in the kloof. All these drugs, which are
also employed to obtain rain, are mixed with fat and burnt on char-
coal at dawn on the road to the village to protect the main entrance.
Stones are daubed with it and put in all directions to close other
openings. Then a second fire is made before the threshold of the hut
and the smoke which comes out from the magical fat will keep the
baloyi away c for fear of being revealed ' "- 1 See how it works : as
the rain has washed away the soil and exposed the hidden roots of
the trees, so, too, this rain-making medicine, put in juxtaposition
with the roots wrenched from their hiding, will expose the loyi who
seeks to hide as the roots were hidden !

Heaven Doctors.

The " shepherds of heaven " (Zulu, aBelusi be^ulu) are charged with
the work of guarding the homes of their people from lightning, hail, and
storm, and the greatest of them with providing rain under the direction
of the chief. Most Natives are terrified of lightning and hail; and little
wonder, seeing the deaths that take place from these two causes year
by year in certain parts of the country. The rain doftor is a man who
faces up to the storm when all others hide within their huts ; he talks
to the hail and the lightning and bids them strike far from the homes of
men. While other men shun everything struck by lightning, he dares
to use just these things and prepares from them his protective mixtures.
Trees and animals struck by lightning play their part, but most potent
of all is the bird of heaven itself. This bird, believed in by all the
tribes, is thought to flash .down in the lightning and to lay its eggs
or its urine where the lightning strikes. The heaven doftors watch
these spots and dig up a substance, variously described as chalk-
like or gelatinous, which, together with the bird's feathers, beak and
bones, makes the most potent protective mixture, put on to pegs or

1 Junod, 1905-4, 137.

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 235

stones and buried in parts of the village and also nibbed into incisions
on the bodies of people to proteft them. In other mixtures, parts of
this same bird provide a valuable medicine for attra&ing the rain.
The heaven bird, or rain bird, varies in different parts of the country,
the flamingo and stork being often favoured. One of the most interest-
ing, perhaps, is the sea hawk, Haliatus vocifer, which in certain years
flies up the Limpopo and the Great Letaba Rivers. Rain makers must
spend endless efforts in obtaining this bird, and one can appreciate the
imagination which connects this bird of the sea, coming from the great
source of all water, with the rain. This bird, together with water animals
of all kinds and luscious water plants, provides the rain medicine
itself. Green branches of trees which create great smoky clouds as they
burn provide the medium by which the influences rise up into the sky,
while powder from branches of great spreading trees induces the clouds
to spread over a wide area, and powder from the clinging twisted
stems of climbing plants guarantees that the clouds will not drift,
but stay up over the area where rain is so badly needed.

Agricultural Ceremonies.

In the past, some of the most elaborate tribal ceremonies took place
in connection with the agricultural year when the chief provided for
the fertility of the fields and of the seed. These ceremonies have
chiefly a religious character, as shown in the next chapter ; but many
magical mixtures are used at the same time. What is likely to cause
fertility? Plants which grow exuberantly; plants which resist
drought ; plants which are evergreen ; but above all semen and the
sexual parts of strong virile people or of pure uncontaminated children ;
sometimes, too, the flesh of one who has been outstandingly successful
in his harvests. From time to time, cases crop up in various parts of
the country of children or adults who have disappeared. Their bodies
are found with certain parts removed ; and thus we know that here
is one more case where a magician has needed potent human
" medicine ". Often, too, both male and female elements are needed. 1

Methods of Divination.

i. Among the Shangana-Tonga and the Nguni, the evil doer
of any kind thief, sorcerer, witch and the material concoftion
through which the evil is working, may be " smelt out " direftly
by the isanusi. He works himself up into a frenzy by means of his

1 C. Brownlee, 1896, 260.

236 A. WINIFRED HOERNLE

diviner's dance, while members of the village sing his song and clap
his rhythm for him. He darts here, he pounces there, until finally he
draws from some hidden pot the bundle supposed to be the sorcerer's
deadly uButhi (destroying concoftion), or he points decisively his tail
of office at the guilty person in the circle around him.

2. These tribes also practise the ukuvumisa method of divination.
" The inquirers sit down in a hut or in the inkundla, the igqira squatting
direftly opposite them. . . . The igqira first has to find out the
inquirers' reason for coming, who is ill, and what the symptoms are.
Then he tells who has caused the trouble and how. The igqira s
method is to make statements ; after each statement the inquirers clap
and shout siyavuma^ ' we agree.' The igqira judges from the hearti-
ness of the assent whether or not he is on the right track. If he has
established his point satisfa&orily, the inquirers say phosa ngemva,
' put it behind you.' If he is wrong, they say asiva, ' we do not
hear.' An igqira is not discredited if he makes some wrong statements,
but if he is slow, the inquirers take up their money and go off to try
elsewhere." 1 A few diviners (awemilo^i) claim that their ancestral
spirits give answers to their inquiries. The spirits speak in squeaky
voices from various parts of the hut in which the consultation takes
place.

3. The hakati are used in divination by the Shangana-Tonga.
A set of hakati consists of six half-shells of a hard fruit, three large ones
being male, three smaller ones female. These shells can fall on either
of two sides and in so doing can point in various direftions in relation
to one another. They are thrown on to a mat by the diviner and the
prognostications are read, chiefly bearing on hunting, but also on
domestic affairs. When the convex side of the shell is uppermost,
the signs are favourable ; when the shell is on its back, the signs are
unfavourable. These shells have holes bored through them and are
carried about on a string by their owner. This method of divination
is considered a more or less childish custom. 2

4. Similar fruit shells (maruthu) are used by the Venda in a most
interesting method of divination. The diviner has a bowl (ndilo),
carved out of wood, with a wide flat rim on which are cut out, in relief,
figures representing the various mutupo (totems) found among
the Venda, and also other figures of representative persons and objefts
in domestic and tribal life. On the floor of the bowl, in the very middle,
is a hollowed out cavity in which magical substances are inserted,

1 Hunter, 1936, 336. * Junod, 1927, ii, 442.

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 237

such as portions of a man's heart, a vulture's heart, and so on, the
medicine being then covered over by a cowrie shell. This represents
the musanda^ the capital of the country. Round it are cut out in relief
figures of good or bad import in the life of the people. This bowl
(ndilo ya maruthu) is filled with water, the fruit kernels are allowed
to float about in it and, according to the position where they come to
rest when they touch the edge of the bowl, the diviner gives his
interpretation. Interrogations are chiefly made about cases of sorcery.
By this means of divination the magician can tell, so he thinks, the
clan of the culprit, the instruments he has used, and his accomplices
or intermediaries. A bowl similar to the Venda bowl was found in a
cave not far from Zimbabwe in the nineties of last century, which
may possibly have been used in a similar way, but the Venda alone
among the South African tribes have been known to use it in recent
times. 1

5. Four pieces of carved ivory (Shangana-Tonga, thangu) or,
to-day, bone or wood are the pieces in a system of divination which
is spread far beyond the tribes with which this handbook deals. Among
the Venda, these four dice alone are still used for tribal matters, while
for ordinary matters, as also among the Sotho generally, they are used
with knuckle bones and other objefts. Two notched dice represent
women, two unnotched ones men ; one old, one young, of each.
One side of the flat dice is usually smooth, the other is carved in various
designs, so that the two sides are clearly discriminated. The dice must
be carved by a specialist to the accompaniment of a definite ritual.
Among the Venda, for example, when the bare slabs are cut, they are
buried in a frequented path while the magician hides close by in a bush.
When an old man comes by, the magician digs out of his hole one slab
which henceforth will represent all old men, and so, as an old woman,
a young one, and a young man come by, the others are extracted from
their hiding place and finished. 2

In the simple system in which only the four dice are used, there are
sixteen possible combinations in which the dice can fall, since each
die can fall on two different sides. In addition, the direction in which
the dice point in relation to one another may also be taken into account.
Each combination has its own special praise-name which gives the
general principle, as it were, of the prognostication ; good, bad, or
indifferent, as the case may be. Each position has, in addition, its

1 Cf. . D. Giesekke, 1930-1, 299 ff.; Stayt, 1931, 291 ff.
1 Giesekke, 1930-1, 267.

238 A. WINIFRED HOERNLfc

own special set of archaic verses from which the diviner will get
some hint of what he must tell his inquirers lies before them. 1

6. The more complicated divination sets 2 of the Sotho comprise
four principal bones and a varying number of accessory bones, together
with shells and other objefts, according to the desire of the ngaka
to whom the set belongs. Of the four principal pieces, the two male
ones are carved from the hoof of an ox. The old male, the more o
moxolo (" the great tree or medicine ") or the kholo (" the big one "),
is the great chief of the ditaola ; it is cut from an important ox (e.g.
one slaughtered at a wedding feast). The young male may be cut
from the hoof of a less distinguished animal ! One side only of these
bones is ornamented, as a rule, but each can fall in four different ways.
The two female pieces are made of bone, horn, or ivory, and can
fall in two ways only, hence the four principal pieces alone can fall
in sixty-four different combinations, quite apart from considerations
of direftion. The other bones are talis or astragali of various animals,
representing totems found in the various Sotho tribes. There should
be a male and female representative of each, and they must genuinely
be got from animals killed by man. It is useless to pick up such a bone
from a carcass in the veld. Hence a complete set takes a very long time
to colled. Each talus can also fall in four different ways, and its position
in relation to the other bones is of great significance in interpretation.
In addition, sea shells may be used to represent white people, a
flamingo-bone for rain, and many other objefts can be added according
to the inspiration of the diviner. 3

The four principal bones give the whole setting for the inter-
pretation. Before using the whole set, the diviner blows on the
bones, or spits on them, or sprays a lotion over them, to wake them
up, and then he throws them on a mat or skin blanket. Next, he recites
a general praise-song (serlto\ addressed to the set as a whole. Then
he proceeds to reta (praise) the principal bones, each of which has its
own sereto, in fine, archaic language ; and also some of the totemic
bones. At length, he looks to see what combination his four principal
bones reveal. Each of the possible sixty-four combinations has its
own name, giving the dominant note of the interpretation, and also
its own special set of verses, 4 which differ among the Northern and
Southern Sotho and probably vary considerably from tribe to tribe. 5

1 Giesekke, 1930-1, 169 ff. * Sotho, Jitaola; from xo laola y to command.

* Eiselen, 19326, 8.

4 Though no diviner has been found who knows all sixty-four combinations.

1 Cf. Eiselen, 1932$, for the whole description; also Laydevant, 1933; Junod, 1925.

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 239

A careful inspeftion of the throw is then made, those bones receiving
especial attention which lie near to the one representing the person who
has come to seek advice. " The four principal pieces determine whether
the omens in general are good or bad, but the bones surrounding
the questioner's representative explain from what sources good or
bad fortune has come or is to be expefted." l The ultimate pronounce-
ment will depend not only on the lie of the dice, but also on " the
diviner's inside knowledge of tribal and family affairs, his ingenuity,
the fertility of his imagination, and last but not least his ability to
read that which is in the minds of his audience." 2

7. The most complicated system of divination is practised chiefly
by the Shangana-Tonga and some of the Northern Nguni though it is
spreading also to other tribes. 3 In the original set the four principal
bones of the Venda and Sotho sets are absent, though to-day they are
often included. In principle, the bones represent all the different figures
in domestic and tribal life, together with objefts standing for influences
impinging upon them. Goat talus represent the ordinary commoners
of the land. Five from he-goats of different ages symbolize the five
ages of males ; six from female goats the various grades of females.
Five talus from sheep represent the chief's family. So provision is
made to represent all the players on the stage of tribal life. In addition,
the talus bones of various wild animals are used. In sets examined
by Junod, 4 the male and female impala stand for the chief and his wife ;
the reed buck which wanders at night, for the wizards ; the wild boar
which grubs for roots, digs holes, and looks about on all sides, for the
nganga who searches for roots from which to prepare his drugs.
Baboons stay faithfully in one spot for long periods, hence their talus
bones fittingly represent the village. That greedy carnivore, the
panther, represents the rich and white people ; the hyena, sycophants
and parasites ! Long pointed sea shells represent various things
belonging to men ; oval or rounded ones, things of women ; and
many other objefts may represent special things or places of which
the diviner has need in his praftice.

These diviners undergo a long training, and in the end each has
his bones vitalized, as it were, by contaft with the bones of his
instru6lor, while he himself is subjefted to the regular purification of
all specialists. This purification consists, first, of purging and emetics

1 Eiselen, 1932$, 28. * Eiselen, 19324, 29.

s Shangana-Tonga, Bula (the word); Zulu, amatambo.
Junod, 1927, ii, 496 ff.

240 A. WINIFRED HOERNL&

which are thought to draw from the man all his ordinary dross clouding
his mind, so that he is left free to be then filled with clarifying forces
by washings with infusions of strengthening drugs and sometimes
also by injeftions of powerful powders.

" The art (of bone-throwing) is so perfeft that bone-throwers can
find any amount of satisfaftion in praftising it. Consider that, in
faft, all the elements of Native life are represented by the objefts
contained in the basket of the divinatory bones. It is a resum of all
their social order, of all their institutions, and the bones, when they
fall, provide them with instantaneous photographs of all that can
happen to them. This system is so elaborate that I do not hesitate to
say that, together with their folklore, their lobola customs, and their
burial rites, it is the most intelligent produft of their psychic life." *
But " if this system of divination is a token of great intelligence, its
results, in the psychic life of the tribe, are most deplorable. ... I am
convinced that, whatever may be the astuteness engendered by the
divinatory bones, they have been extremely detrimental to the
intelle&ual and moral welfare of the Natives ", 2

Ordeals.

Instead of using one or other of these systems of divination, tests
of guilt were sometimes made on persons themselves, though they are
probably never used to-day. A person suspected of theft might be
called upon to pick a stone out of a pot of hot water ; or to lick a knife
heated in the fire. If the arm or the tongue was burnt, the guilt was
revealed. Obviously the magician could vary the heat greatly, pro-
vided no one was allowed near to test the temperature ! The poison
ordeal (so widely used farther north in Africa) was employed regularly,
chiefly by the Shangana-Tonga (who term it ku nwa mondjo, to drink
the mondjo), for the detection of baloyi. The mondjo is a plant of the
Solanea family which possesses intoxicating properties. " With it
a special magician prepares a beverage which must aft as a means of
revelation. ... It seems that the mondjo dries up the saliva of all
who drink it, but in the case of the truly guilty this effeft is greatly
accentuated ; the jaws become locked." 3 They lose control of their
movements, cannot walk straight, cannot pull a feather out which is
stuck into their hair, and so stand revealed as baloyi. Junod suggests

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 521.
Ibid., 523.
Ibid., 486.

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 241

that the man who administers the drug is clever enough to give a
larger dose to those who are more or less supposed to be ialoyi. 1

The Witch and the Sorcerer.

The witch and the sorcerer 2 are individuals who use their powers
and the forces of Nature to harm other people. The Venda and the
Shangana-Tonga peoples discriminate very clearly between the witch
and the sorcerer, though calling them both by the same name. 3 The
witch is the muloi, usually a woman, though possibly a man, who has
inherited a peculiar disposition from her mother. She has a double
personality. By day she is a normal, healthy individual, quite unaware
of the dreadful powers she possesses. But at night she becomes an
evil creature. When she is asleep, her spirit leaves her body and in
shadowy human form, always stark naked and with eyes bright and
shining, she goes out into the world to carry on her nefarious deeds.
In her hut a wild animal is left in her place. The Shangana-Tonga
say the form looks like the sleeping woman but is in reality a beast.
The Venda say the other inmates of the hut are put into a deep sleep
and do not see the loathsome thing. Only the magician has medicine
enabling him to see the real thing. These unconscious baloi know each
other. They form a kind of guild in the tribe and assemble to eat human
flesh or to discuss what they will do to injure property or destroy life.
The more powerful may compel the less powerful to bring them human
flesh, and the muloi must then kill someone, often her own loved ones,
to satisfy their greed. " A muloi may also aft like a vampire going
at night and sucking the blood of her enemies, causing them to become
emaciated and anaemic. In faft there is very little that is horrible,
revolting, or anti-social that the evil genius may not and does not at
some time accomplish." 4

The sorcerer, unlike the witch, consciously and deliberately, by
himself or with the aid of a nganga, endeavours to bring about the
death of an enemy by magical means. By placing concoftions 5
secretly in the courtyard or in the hut or in the pathway, or putting
ill-working ingredients into a person's food, or even wishing him ill
or threatening him in a quarrel, 8 he does his evil work. All cases of
bad luck, 7 such as still-births, abortions, twins, broken bones, cramps,

* loc. cit.

* Sotho, moloi; Zulu-Xhosa, umthakathi -, Xhosa, igqwira; Shangana-Tonga, noyi

Cf. Stayt, i9ji, 273 ff. ; Junod, 1927, ii, 461 ff. Stayt, 1931, 275.

* Venda, phamba (" black magic ") ; Nguni, uButhi.

1 Venda, u Jo & vona, " you'll see something." Giesekke, 1930-1, 263.
7 Venda, madambL

242 A. WINIFRED HOERNLfe

and many more, are attributed by the Venda to such deliberate
sorcerers.

All the other South African Bantu seem to have merged into one
the conceptions of witchcraft and sorcery, kept distinft by the Venda
and the Shangana-Tonga. They all believe in witches who go about
at night in groups trying to kill and harm other people. But like the
Sotho they say, " the witch goes about entire, soul and body, nothing
remains on the mat when he has departed for his nofturnal ride !
He throws charms on the other inhabitants of the hut and they sleep
so heavily that they do not notice anything." l Like the unconscious
witches, they have animal familiars associated with their activities.
The Mpondo, indeed, sometimes discriminate between ukuthakatha
ngesilwana (" to bewitch with small animals ") and ukuthakatha ngoButhi
(" to bewitch with evil drugs "), 2 but in both cases the aftion is
deliberate. Moreover, the evil powers are not inherited, but have to be
learnt from other baloi, and any man or woman can become one of
them. There are still other baloi who do not belong to the fraternity
or practise the black art habitually. They are content to use magic
sporadically, solely in order to secure vengeance against a particular
enemy. Though there is here no idea of an unfortunate inherited
disposition, but rather the belief in deliberate aftion due to envy and
hate or revenge, yet it is best to discriminate this type of behaviour
as witchcraft, for it involves belief in manifestly impossible happen-
ings, which are none the less believed to occur and which are always
regarded as nefarious and criminal, whereas many of the pra&ices
included under sorcery definitely are possible, though it is difficult
to decide how often they really are deliberately performed.

" A Kxatla moloi who wishes to harm an enemy may accomplish
his purpose by any one of the following methods : He may simply
put some poisonous substance into beer, or porridge, or other food,
which he persuades his enemy to take. It is far more usual for the
moloi who chooses food as his medium to put into it some substance
(hair, skin, etc.) which he has previously ' doftored '. When the
unfortunate viftim swallows the food, this substance (sejeso, ' that
which is fed ') changes into a miniature crocodile, or lion, or some
similar animal, which gnaws away persistently at his bowels until he
dies. . . . Again, the moloi may enter the hut of his viftim late at
night, and, after throwing him into a deep sleep, will cut him on
various parts of the body, into which he introduces small stones,

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 46*. * Hunter, 1936, 275.

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 243

fragments of meat, and other particles which have been doftored. These
foreign elements (dtLokwd) cause the viftim to fall ill, and unless the
magician is able to extraft them in time he will die. . . . On the other
hand, he may sprinkle doftored blood over the courtyard of his
enemy's lapa, the blood, as a rule, being that of the latter's seano or
of some member of his family. Should the viftim step upon the blood,
his feet become affefted, and he will either die or lose the use of his
limbs. Sometimes the molol conceals a bundle of rags, containing
doftored roots or other substances, in the eaves of his vi&im's hut ;
or buries them in the ground at the entrance to the latter's lapa. The
mere presence of these substances (sebeela) in the lapa will bring
illness or death to one of its inhabitants. Again the moloi may take
some dust from his viftim's footprint and work upon it with his
medicines ; or he may blow prepared powder in the latter's direftion,
at the same time calling upon his name ; or he may send some animal,
such as a snake, leopard, or ox, to inflift direft bodily injury upon him.
This last form of sorcery, known as xo ne&lla, is said -to be very
commonly used. Again, the moloi may use lightning. By working with
his medicines he can either direft it so that it strikes his viftim, or else
he may go up into the air himself and descend upon his viftim disguised
as the lightning. This method, known as tladimothwana, is much
favoured by magicians in settling their grievances against a colleague.
All such different forms of sorcery are classed together as boloi ba
dithlare, bewitching with medicines." x

The material substances, rightly compounded, cause these dire
results. Some spell may be uttered during the making of the mixture,
but this is variable and may be quite absent. Diviners must reveal
the workings of these evil mixtures and magicians must extraft
them, if they are said to be aftually in the body of the viftim. This is
done either by sucking on the aching spot, or by applying poultices
of cow-dung, during the manipulation of which the magician can easily
reveal some inseft or some substance which he claims to have extra&ed
and to which he attributes all the vi&im's suffering. Similar beliefs
occur in all the other tribes, but attention must be drawn especially
to the very peculiar types of animal " familiar " 2 of witches which are
believed in among the Nguni, especially of the Cape, though the
beliefs are spreading also among the Southern Sotho. Some of these
familiars are used specially by women, some by men. They are
employed principally to cause illness and death, but also to steal in

1 Schapera, 1934?, 294 f. * Umthakathi ngesitwana.

244 A. WINIFRED HOERNLfe

certain cases. Ideas about the acquisition of familiars are vague. They
may be inherited, or they may be passed on from one person to another,
when the person is said to be crowned (Xhosa, utkwesile) by the
other. 1 Among the Mpondo, accusations of sorcery are a&ually fewer
than accusations of witchcraft of this kind. 2

Thikoloshe or uHili? the familiar most widely believed in and most
commonly adduced as the means of witchcraft, is a small hairy being,
having the form of a man but so small that he only reaches to a man's
knee. He has hair all over his face and coming out of his ears, and
his face is squashed up like a baboon. The penis of a male is so long
that he carries it over his shoulder, and he has only one buttock. All
Thikoloshe speak with a lisp. Both male and female Thikoloshe wear
skins, and live in dongas and on the banks of rivers. Thikoloshe has an
ikhubalo (" charm ") with which he can make himself invisible, and
he is only seen by adults who own him and by some children. In
himself Thikoloshe is only mischievous, bent on thieving, and is often
playful, but as a familiar he is dreaded. A woman witch (igqwira)
who has a Thikoloshe always has a male one, and she has sexual rela-
tions with him. Some say men have a female Thikoloshe^ but others
say only women have them. At night, Thikoloshe are sent by their
owners to make people ill, or to kill them.

iZulu or imPundulu is the lightning bird which, as a familiar, is
always possessed by a woman, and it appears to her in the form of a
very beautiful young man who becomes her lover. The owner of the
iZulu employs it to cause sickness and death, but the method by which
an iZulu kills is a mystery. 4

The inyoka yo5afa[i (the snake of women) and the impaka (Zulu,
" wild cat " ; Mpondo, " small rodent ") are familiars of women,
who send them to bite children so that they develop bowel trouble
or sore throat, or sores, according to the place where they are bitten ! 5

" Ichanti is a snake which lives in rivers and which lias powers of
metamorphosis, appearing in any form." 6 Anyone who sees it falls
ill and will die unless treated by a magician. " Some people say that
the ichanti sometimes ' works ' on its own ; others, that it is always
controlled by a witch." 7

UmamlamBo is a dangerous charm which can turn into a snake.
It is used by men and the price of its possession is sudden death
in the near family of the owner.

1 Hunter, 1936, 282. Ibid., 310.

3 This account is taken from Hunter, 1936, 275 ff. * Ibid., 282 ff.

Ibid., 287 f. Ibid., 286. Ibid., 286 f.

MAGIC AND MEDICINE 245

The most usual familiar of a man, however, is the baboon, imfene.
Riding on the back of the baboon at night, the wizard goes about his
nefarious deeds, chiefly harming his neighbours' cattle, but also
bringing injury and death to human beings. 1 " Familiars take different
forms and certain forms are possessed by women, others by men,
but it is held that a person who has one is likely to have another.
' An iZulu is one thing with ichanti, and Thikoloshe '." 2

Even evil omens never come of themselves, but are always sent
by a witch. 3 But perhaps worst of all their malefaftions is interference
with bodies of the dead. Flesh of corpses is one of the most dangerous
ingredients of ufiuthi, and this use is bad enough. But witches can
raise the dead and use them as their slaves. 4 " The witch beats the
grave with a switch, and the grave opens and the body comes out.
He drives a wooden splinter into the dead man's head so that he
becomes foolish, and pierces his tongue with a long bone needle,
so that he cannot speak. The raised person (isit/iun^ela or umkhovu)
takes the form he had when he was alive." 5 The Zulu say it is small
like a tiny child. The umkhovu lives in the forest and is used by a
witch to do her work. It is not used to bewitch people, but if an
ordinary mortal happens to see one, he is liable to go insane. 6

Such are the evil powers and beings, many and forbidding, against
which the Bantu seek protection from their magicians.

Belief in sorcery and in witchcraft has not lessened greatly among
the Bantu who live in towns and in close contaft with Whites. Thikolo-
she and others rampage through the towns as well as through the
countryside, and we have still a long way to travel before we can
build up, in the minds of the Bantu, the dispassionate objective attitude
of science, which in time will free them from many of these beliefs,
the terrors they inspire, and the magical practices in which the believers
seek proteftion.

1 Soga, 1932, 196. * Hunter, 1936, 288.

* Hunter, 1936, 288.

4 Graves were often dug open by hyenas and the body partially or wholly eaten. Natives
were afraid to examine the grave closely and attributed the nefarious deed to sorcerers or witches.
Cf. Brownlee, 1896, 258.

8 Hunter, 1936, 289. * Hunter, 1936, 289.

CHAPTER XI

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 1
By W. M. EISELEN and I. SCHAPERA

MAGIC, as shown in the last chapter, plays an extremely important
part in the ritual life of the Bantu. But there is also a well-defined
belief in certain supernatural beings able to influence for good or for
evil the destinies of the living. Foremost among these are the spirits
of dead ancestors, round whom there has developed an elaborate system
of worship. The people believe also in a supreme being, closely
associated with the sky, and in lesser deities of various kinds ; but
these do not enter nearly as intimately into their daily life. It should
here be noted that magic and religion are closely inter-related in Bantu
belief and praftice. Even when sacrifices are made to the ancestor
gods, the meat eaten by the worshippers is often " doftored " with
medicines as proteftion against witchcraft ; while a magician charming
the foundation of a hut will strengthen his medicines not by means
of a spell, as in magical rites among many other primitive peoples, but
by means of a prayer addressed to his own ancestors and those of the
owners of the hut. This will help to explain why many of the rites
described below have a magical as well as a religious character;
but in so far as they are obviously connefted with the worship of
supernatural beings we may conveniently regard them as forming part
of Bantu religion in general.

THE SPIRITS OF THE DEAD

Ancestor worship is based upon the belief that man, or rather part
of him, survives after death. This conviftion is held by all the Bantu,
who firmly believe that already during his lifetime a person consists
of two separable entities, his mortal body and his immortal soul (Zulu,

1 In this chapter the references to Transvaal Sotho and Tswana beliefs and practices respec-
tively are based largely upon the writers' own observations, still mainly unpublished. The
secondary sources principally used are Willoughby, 1928, for ancestor worship in general ;
and Junod, 1927 (Shangana-Tonga) ; Krige, 1936 (Zulu); Soga, 1932, and Hunter, 1936
(Cape Nguni); and Stayt, 1931 (Venda), who are the authorities for all statements relating to
these groups. Specific references and a&ual quotations are acknowledged more fully below.

248 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

isitunii; Sotho and Shangana-Tonga, mcya). But concerning the
nature of this soul and its after-life there is but little theorizing, for
the Bantu are far more interested in the prosaic affairs of everyday
life, in women, cattle, and war, than in such metaphysical problems
as the nature and destiny of man. The soul is thought of vaguely
as the " mysterious, self-evident something " making up what we
ourselves term the " personality " of a human being ; it is also closely
connefted with the breath, and frequently identified with the shadow. 1
Hence the conventional belief that a corpse, abandoned by its soul,
cannot cast a shade. The soul can even leave the living body, as happens
when a person swoons or is asleep. People are accordingly often
warned not to awaken a sleeping person too suddenly, for fear that
his soul may not be able to return immediately to its abode.

At death the soul becomes finally separated from the body. Moya
wa sukile, say the Shangana-Tonga when anyone dies : " the spirit
(soul) has gone." 2 The body itself is generally disposed of by burial. 3
Funeral rites vary considerably from one group to another, but the
general procedure is fundamentally the same. As soon as death has
set in, the women begin to wail, while relatives and friends assemble.
Burial takes place as soon afterwards as possible. The corpse, before
it is cold, is arranged in the embryonic position, with the head on
the knees ; and is wrapped in an old skin cloak, or, in the case of an
important person, in the wet skin of a newly-slaughtered ox. Family
headmen and other important people are generally buried in the
cattle-kraal or close to its fence ; less important men, women, and
children behind or sometimes in the hut in which they dwelt, or in some
other convenient place nearby. There are x no communal or public
cemeteries ; but the Shangana-Tonga and Venda bury their Chiefs
in sacred groves, while the Swazi place the bodies of their departed
kings in sacred caves. The grave is normally a shallow pit, with a recess
to one side, in which the corpse is placed in a sitting position.
Deceased's personal belongings and weapons are often buried with
him or destroyed. The hut he occupied, and in the case of a kraal-
head the whole homestead, is also destroyed or abandoned. When an
important person has died, his dependants must also slaughter one

1 On this whole topic cf. Willoughby, 1928, chap. i.

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 362.

' It is commonly reported of the Nguni tribes that in former times only Chiefs and prominent
men were buried, the corpses of commoners being exposed in the bush to be devoured by
hyenas and vultures. Whether this was the original practice, or an outcome of the disastrous
inter-tribal wars of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, cannot be definitely
asserted. More recently all dead people have as a rule been buried.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 249

or more oxen in his honour the more important the man, the greater
the number of oxen. Both the Sotho and the Zulu used further to
kill some of the councillors or bodyservants of a dead Chief, to be
buried as " servitors " with their master ; and in the case of the
Zulu one or more of his wives might suffer the same fate. 1

All those present at the funeral must be ceremonially cleansed.
Very often an ox or goat is killed as part of the ceremony, the meat
being " do&ored " with strengthening medicines before .they can
eat it. The close relatives and other dependants of deceased shave their
hair, change their clothing, refrain from sexual relations, cease all
agricultural work and abstain from many other customary a&ivities,
and observe various food and other taboos for a few days or weeks.
When a Chief has died, all his subje&s mourn in the same way. A
special purification ceremony is then performed releasing them from
these restriftions. Widows or widowers, however, continue to
mourn for a period of from six months to a year, during which they
may not go about freely among the people, and must* take various
ritual precautions to prevent their contaminating any hut, field, cattle-
kraal, or other place which they enter for the first time since their
bereavement. An animal is then slaughtered for the final purification,
their hair is dressed, they receive new garments, and may resume all
their former a&ivities. They may now also remarry.

The surviving soul, after its separation from the body, becomes a
spirit (Nguni, ithongo or idlo^i ; Shangana-Tonga, shikwembu ; Venda,
muJ^lmu; Sothp, -dimd). The spirit is generally said to be "a
miniature facsimile " of deceased ; in dreams, at least, it appears as
his exaft counterpart. 2 Some people believe that it continues indefi-
nitely to linger around its grave or former home. But the more general
opinion seems to be that it ultimately finds its way into a spirit-
world, vaguely located somewhere underground, where the spirits
lead a life very similar to that on earth. 3 Special sacrifice must however
be offered to the spirit before it can enter this underworld. The
Southern Sotho do this as part of the burial ceremony, so that a person
joins the ancestor gods immediately after his death. 4 Generally,
however, some time is allowed to lapse for the repose of the departed
soul. Among the Tswana the sacrifice does not take place until a
month after death 5 ; while among the Zulu, where it is known as

1 Cf. Willoughby, 1928, 44 & ; Krige, 193*. ?i &
1 Cf. the general discussion in Willoughby, 1928, 16 ff.

Willoughby, 1928, 57 ff. Casalis, 1861, 250.

Willoughby, 1928, 35-6.

250 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

ukuBuyisa^ " bringing home the spirit of the deceased," it may be a
year or two, or even more. 1

The worship of ancestors is based upon the belief that when a
man dies he continues to influence the lives of his relatives remaining
on earth. But the spirits of the dead, " although they have found
enlargement of power through release from the restraints of the body,
are not omnipotent ; nor can they read the secrets of the human
heart, though they know all that their children do, say, or suffer.
They are as interested as ever in their descendants who remain
' outside on the earth ', but indifferent to members of other com-
munities, unless they owe them some grudge or have to hinder them
from hurting their proteges. Their charafters have not been changed
by death ; they are as prone to jealousy as they ever were, and as
rancorous towards descendants who wound their vanity, flout their
wishes, squander their bequests, or infringe the ancient laws and
customs of their clans ; but they are also as willing as ever to help
those of their lineage who treat them with becoming respeft and
obedience." * The affairs of human beings as such do not concern
them ; they are exclusively interested in the affairs of their own family
and tribe, and without their help and guidance their living descendants
cannot hope to flourish. As long as the moral code is striftly followed,
they confer blessings and abundance ; but if offended by any breach
of custom, they can also send drought, cattle plague, tribal or personal
disaster, sickness or death.

The belief in survival after death is common to all primitive peoples ;
but it is not necessarily accompanied by ancestor worship. The
development of this cult among the Bantu can perhaps be understood
if we remember how greatly respeft for seniority dominates all social
relations in Bantu life, and how effe6Kvely the members of a family
are subordinated to its headman. This pattern is carried over even
beyond death : the unquestioning respeft for the living paterfamilias
changes into veneration for and worship of his spirit. Ancestor
worship, as Bryant puts it, " may have arisen from a sense of helpless-
ness experienced by the relifts of the dead, which in turn drove them
on to hope that he who had cared for them and theirs since life began
would continue to care for them still, even though now out of sight ;
that, as they had prayed to him in the past and been ever heard, he
could not rejeft them now." 8 The Bantu thus believe not only in

1 Cf. Krige, 1936, 169-170.
Willoughby, 1928, 88-?.
Bryant, 1919-1920, 46,

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 251

survival after death, but also in the continuity of a person's power to
help or hinder all those dependent upon him during his lifetime. Hence
the close link between the spirits and their own descendants, and their
indifference to other human beings.

Support is given to this contention by the faft that not all dead
people become spirits of equal importance. Those who have been
insignificant in this world are apt to be insignificant also in the next.
The Bantu fear and honour only those spirits who during their lifetime
held positions of authority; and normally women and children
do not fall into this category. The father, the grandfather, and perhaps
the great-grandfather, " those who are something more than a name
to the living members of the family group," l who during their life-
time were responsible for its welfare, whose personal charafteristics
are known and remembered, and whose aftive interest in the people
they have so recently abandoned can be relied upon it is to them
above all that worship is direfted. And what has been said of the family
headman and the projeftion of his authority into the afterworld
applies even more forcibly to the Chief, the head of the tribe's senior
family. The tribe as a whole acknowledges the Chief's ancestors as a
source of communal well-being and prosperity ; just as the Chief and
his family guide its fortunes on earth, so his ancestors are held to
afford supernatural aid and proteftion to the people they once ruled.

MANIFESTATIONS OF THE SPIRITS 2

Living as they do in a world of their own, the ancestors do not
often reveal themselves to their living descendants. But they can on
occasion appear to warn them of danger, or to disclose new medicines
to a magician of their line. More usually their visits are to demand a
sacrifice, or to reproach the living for some breach of custom. After
every such revelation, the person experiencing it must consult a
diviner to ascertain its significance, for the communications of the
spirits are not intelligible to the layman.

A common form of revelation is by calamity. In Bantu belief most
evils that befall people are due either to witchcraft or sorcery, prafltised
by the living, or to tKe hostility of the ancestors. The latter punish
their offspring for various reasons, most important of which are
negleft of prescribed sacrifices and breach of tribal law, Consequently,
whenever anything goes wrong if anyone dies, falls ill or meets

1 Willoughby, 1928, 6.

1 Cf. Willoughby, 1928, chap, ii, upon which this account is largely based.

252 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

with some other misfortune, if women miscarry or remain barren,
if cattle die in numbers or fail to breed satisfactorily, if rain does not
come and the crops are scorched in the sun, if a lawsuit is lost or the
army defeated in war the diviner is consulted. In the absence
of sorcery, the misfortune is almost invariably attributed to the inter-
vention of some offended or neglefted ancestor, whose spirit must be
propitiated before relief can be expected.

Often enough the ancestor spirits appear to the living in dreams.
As we have seen, the Bantu believe that in sleep the " little death ",
as they sometimes term it the soul temporarily departs from the
body and wanders about on its own. While doing so, it may encounter
and talk with the spirits of the dead, as when a man dreams about some
dead relative or friend. Such dreams always have some special signifi-
cance, the nature of which must be interpreted by a diviner.

Among the Nguni an ancestor spirit frequently reveals himself
in the form of a snake or other small animal, basking in the sun near
his grave or revisiting his old haunts. The spirit does not enter the
body of any already existing snake : he materializes into one. These
spirit-snakes belong to certain well-known species, mostly harmless ;
and there are different kinds of snakes for different kinds of spirits.
A chief or kraal-head assumes the form of a black or green mamba ;
a commoner turns into " an umSenene, an uBulude, a light-brown,
non-poisonous and rather sluggish snake, or an umZingandlu, a
small harmless snake very fond of sleeping in huts " ; while elderly
women may appear as tiny lizards," which climb up the roof inside
the hut and fall on people underneath." x Such snakes are treated with
respeft, and never molested ; and whenever seen about the village are
believed to have come there to disclose the wishes of the ancestors.

The Venda and Sotho apparently do not share this belief, although
many stories in Sotho folklore tell of people able to change themselves
into snakes or other animals. The Venda, however, have various
beliefs concerning spirit-animals, sometimes identified with the
totems. Thus, the VhaLaudzi, or people of the baboon clan (yha-ila-
pfene\ believe that their forbears have been transformed into baboons.
" It is believed," says Junod, " that the baboons are the badiimu
(ancestors) themselves. Each MuLaudzi, when he dies, becomes a
baboon, and goes to the sacred hill of Lomondo to dwell there. . . .
There is a specially big baboon among them. . . . It is the chief of the
flock, and the principal ancestor god. . . . Should a member of the

1 Krigc, 1936, 185.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 253

clan die away from Lomondo, it is the old baboon which will go,
accompanied by others, to fetch the new muJ{imu y who has been trans-
formed into a baboon, and it will bring the new god to the sacred hill." l
Somewhat similar beliefs are ascribed to the " Ba-Nngwe, the clan
of the leopard ", and the " Ba-Shidziwe ", who have the lion as their
totem. 2

Among the Venda there would thus seem to be some connexion
between totemism and ancestor worship. Most likely this is due to
the influence of northern tribes like the Shona, for the Nguni tribes
have praftically no totemism, while among the Sotho totemism is
something quite distinft from ancestor worship. There seems formerly
to have been a fairly extensive ritual connefled with the totem ; but
little of this now survives, even in the memories of the people. The
totemic name serves mainly as an emblem of clan or tribal affiliation ;
people also refrain from killing, eating, or using the skin of their totem
animal ; and there are certain other taboos connected with particular
totems. But no religious rites at all are conduced in honour of the
totem, similar to those reported of the Venda ; nor are the ancestor
spirits ever believed to take the form of the totem animal.

Apart from these more common forms of revelation, likely to be
experienced by anybody, the spirits sometimes appear to certain
selefted persons. Persons of an hysterical disposition, e.g., may
have visions or fall into trances during which they experience hallucina-
tions, taken as revelations from the spirit-world. Or, particularly
among the Nguni and Shangana-Tonga, the ancestor spirits may
aftually enter into or " possess " women, and far less frequently men,
and use them as mediums. This, as shown in the last chapter, is one of
the most common methods of becoming a diviner.

On rare occasions the ancestors communicate their will through
the agency of " prophets ". These are generally people predisposed to
ecstasy and visions, who become aware of their vocation only after
undergoing some supreme physical crisis. Frequently they claim to
have died and been sent back from the spirit world with a message
demanding a return to old loyalties as a remedy for the present evils
of the tribe. They predift disaster for the heedless, and prosperity
for those who obey ; and their appearance always causes excitement,
occasionally resulting in calamity. Prophets of this kind played a
prominent part in Bantu resistance to the advance of the Europeans.

1 Junod, 1920, 218, 219; quoted also by Stayt, 1927, i9off.
1 Junod, 1920, 219.

254 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

Perhaps the best-known case is that of Mhlakaza, whose predi&ions,
founded upon the visions of the girl Nongqawuse, led to the disastrous
"cattle-killing episode" of 1856-7 when many of the Xhosa
tribes destroyed all their cattle and grain in anticipation of the miracu-
lous-new dawn which failed to come even when they were dying in
thousands of starvation and disappointment. 1

THE WORSHIP OF THE ANCESTORS 2

The ancestor spirits, as we have seen, have power to proteft and
help their descendants, as well as to punish them. Continued good
fortune is attributed to their benevolence, while calamity may result
from neglefting them. The good relations between them and their
descendants must therefore be maintained with meticulous care. It is
more essential to retain their favour than to propitiate them occasion-
ally; and so a certain well-defined conduit towards them is tradi-
tionally prescribed.

This takes the form of making them a special offering whenever
a beast has been slaughtered or beer has been brewed. The offering
is made unobtrusively, and as a matter of routine ; but the welfare
of the group depends upon its regular performance. We have here a
replica of conduft in ordinary family life, where every man slaughtering
an ox or making beer is expefted to share it with his senior relatives.
A few people go even further, and " make some simple acknowledg-
ment to their ancestor spirits for every new day that dawns upon them,
every meal they take, every pot of beer they brew, and every batch
of snuff they grind, never taking a drink of water without spewing
some of it upon the ground as a libation to dwellers in the under-
world, and accompanying every sneeze with a pious exclamation ", 3
Such extreme recognition of the ancestors is on the whole exceptional,
but it illustrates very clearly the manner in which harmony and
friendship are maintained between the ancestors and their living
descendants.

There are, however, certain occasions when the ancestors of the
family or of the tribe must be specially approached and propitiated.
In family life these include such momentous events as birth, initiation,
marriage, death, the return of members long absent, or the reconcilia-
tion of close relatives who have been estranged ; occasions when the

1 The full story is told by Willoughby, 1928, uyff., who also gives examples of other
" prophets ".
Cf. Willoughby, 1928, chap. iv. * Willoughby, 1928, 181.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 255

ancestors have revealed their displeasure in dreams, family misfortune,
or one of the other ways described above; and occasions when
some new enterprise is about to be undertaken such as a long journey,
or the building of a hut for which the blessing and proteftion
of the ancestors is required. Offerings to the ancestors of the Chief,
on behalf of the tribe as a whole, are made on such regular occasions
as planting the fields, firstfruits, and harvest, the inauguration of large
hunting expeditions, and tribal initiations, as well as before and after
war, when rain is urgently needed, when the land is attacked by an
epidemic, or any other serious emergency arises.

Communication between the worshippers and their ancestors is
generally established through prayer, accompanied by an offering
or sacrifice. The offering may be no more than a little saliva spat out
of the mouth, or " a little water poured upon the ground or spewed
forth in a thin stream from the mouth ". 1 This rite (which Junod
describes as " the sacramental tsu " or ku phahla of the Shangana-
Tonga 2 ; cf. Tswana xo phasha, Venda u phasd) is frequently also
an important element in full sacrifice. Sometimes beer, milk, grain,
porridge, snuff, tobacco, or even articles of clothing are poured out
instead or set aside, often with a minimum of ceremonial, for the
ancestors. Sacrifices of living animals are generally reserved for
important occasions, such as " transition rites ", or when ordered by
the diviners. Cattle are most often preferred, but goats and, among the
Shangana-Tonga, fowls are often substituted by poor people. What-
ever animal is sele&ed must be in perfeft condition ; and for some
sacrifices, e.g. in connexion with rainmaking, it must necessarily
be black. Sheep are seldom, if ever, sacrificed by the Nguni and
Tswana, who maintain that the viftim should groan or bellow loudly
to prove acceptable to the spirits, whereas sheep make no noise when
being killed ; but they are preferred to goats by the Southern Sotho,
and among the Shangana-Tonga may be sacrificed only by Chiefs. 3

There is generally some recognized place or altar where offerings
or sacrifices are made. The graves of powerful ancestors, especially
of Chiefs, become places of worship where meat and beer are offered
to their spirits. The Sotho consider the grave to be the proper place
for most sacrificial rites ; but many of the other tribes have additional
altars and do not visit the graves frequently. Thus the Zulu consecrate

1 Willoughby, 1928, 201.

* Junod, 1927, ii, 415 f. ; i, 142.

1 On this whole topic, cf. Willoughby, 1928, 336 ff.

256 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

part of the great wife's hut to the ancestors, and place their offerings
there. It must be remembered in this connexion that Zulu ancestors
are believed to frequent their former homes in the form of snakes, and
to enter the hut freely. The Shangana-Tonga place their offerings on a
forked stick planted near the extrance to the homestead. The Venda
make a small three-stoned altar in the yard of the homestead, or grow
a certain bulbous plant there for the same purpose. But they also
employ black bulls and black goats as the representatives of their male
and female ancestors respeftively. These animals are made to taste
the sacrifice whenever occasion arises. They are never allowed to die a
natural death, but are killed before thev become old, being replaced
by young virile animals. 1

The sacrificial process embodies several different elements. These
have been so admirably summarized by Junod for the Shangana-
Tonga that we cannot do better than reproduce his description. 2
" The (divining) bones are first consulted, and reveal to what god,
when, how, and by whom the sacrifice must be made. The officiant,
who is as a rule the eldest male member of the family, comes and
presides over the sacrifice. The viftims are brought by those who have
either been designated, or who have volunteered to provide them.
They are killed by the uterine nephews, the goats or sheep by piercing
the heart, the hens by cutting the throat. Sometimes the face of the
goat is direded to a certain point of the horizon. The viUm bleats
or, if it is a hen, jumps about on the ground in its agony. At each
thrust of the assagay, or of the knife, the uterine nephews utter their
cries of joy. This is their way of consenting or answering, for they
accept the offering on behalf of the gods. The whole crowd joins
in the manifestations of joy. The viftim is cut open, and one limb,
or small pieces of each limb, are put aside for the gods ; the half-digested
grass, psanvi, found in the intestines, especially in the stomach, is
carefully put aside. The priest takes a little of the psanyi mixed with
the blood of the vi&im, puts it to his lips, emits a little saliva, and
spits out the whole, pronouncing the tsu, this being the means of con-
secrating the offering or, as we may say, dispatching it to the gods.
He pronounces the prayer occasionally interrupted by some member
of the family, who has a complaint to make. In certain cases of special
misfortune, whilst praying he squeezes the green liquid contained in
the psanyi over his hearers, who rub their bodies with it. One of his

* Stayt, 1931, 242 ff.

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 409-410-

PLATK XX

trrifuv of b<vr on tin* black hull call' syml>oliy,ini> ill*' ;uuv>ir;l spirils of the
rhtri"* dun

[JV.J. van Wmmrlo

Sacrificing bror to the spirits of the dead (each spear represents a dead ancestor)

\Vnda thevhula lirst-fruits sacrifices

RKLIGIOUS CEREMONIES

[far p. 256

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 257

nephews ' cuts his prayer ' (i.e. brings it to an end) by taking in his
mouth a little of the consecrated beer or wine, or part of the hen's
gizzard. The uterine nephews steal the offering and run away, followed
by the throng, who throw pellets ofpsanyi at them. They eat the
portion of the gods. Should the offering have been made on behalf
of a particular individual, the astragalus of the goat, or some portions of
the hen are tied to him and worn for some time on the left or right
side of the body : the left if the offering was made to the maternal
ancestors, the right if it was made to the paternal gods."

The prominent part played here by the uterine nephews is not
found in any other group ; but in other respe&s this description gives
a fairly good idea of a typical Bantu sacrifice. A few additional com-
ments may be made. The religious ceremonies of the Bantu are often
remarkable for the spirit of irreverence among those present, except
perhaps for those naturally moved by the death or illness of a close
relative or friend. The prayers offered up are of a stereotyped nature,
conforming to a traditional pattern. First the ancestor to whom the
sacrifice is being offered may be reprimanded in strong terms for
causing such trouble ; he is then asked to accept the sacrifice and to
proteft and bless his descendants. Fervent appeals are unusual,
because ancestor worship is dominated by the idea of reciprocal
obligations between the ancestors and their descendants. Hence the
tone of expostulation when the worshippers feel they have been
unjustly treated. Repentance and self-abasement leading to change of
heart and solemn pledges are altogether alien to Bantu religious life.

The sacrificial animal is generally killed by means of a spear-
thrust to the heart, except among the Lemba, who always cut the throat.
The latter usage is also observed by the Tswana when sacrificing
goats, but not cattle, and by the Shangana-Tonga with fowls. Part
of the flesh is dealt with as the special portion of the ancestors. The
Zulu, e.g., set aside the blood and a portion of the caul, which are
burned in " a secret place " with " incense " to make a sweet savour.
The rest of the meat is eaten by the assembled people, each receiving
a special portion according to his age, sex, and relationship to the
person on whose behalf the sacrifice is offered. Sometimes the whole
carcase is set aside for the night, in the hut of the great wife, so that
the ancestors may consume the " spiritual essence " before the people
eat the flesh. 1 Certain parts of the viftim are of special value after the
sacrifice. The stomach contents are thought of as a purifying agency,

1 Krige, 1926, 294 f.

258 V. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

clearing away all pollution from the person on whom they are rubbed ;
the skin is often cut into strips, from which bracelets are made, worn
as amulets by all those participating in the sacrifice ; and similarly
the astragalus bones and tail hairs may be worn round the loins or
neck as a powerful protection against evil.

" The Bantu," as Willoughby says, 1 " appear to have no idea of
transferring the sin of the worshipper to the viftim, or of substituting
the death of the viftim for the merited death of the sinner. Their
idea of sacrifice is rather that of communion with the spirit. There
has been a breach in the normal relation of worshippers and spirits
due, of course, to the wilful or unconscious ' sin ' of the worshippers ;
and a special meal is prepared in which the best beast is killed that the
spirit and his worshipper may partake together. Nor does the com-
mercial element seem to enter prominently into the transa&ion.
Spirits depend apparently upon the spiritual part of the sacrifice,
and often reveal to neglectful worshippers generally in unpleasant
ways their need of beef or beer. But the idea that is most prominent
in the Bantu mind is the restoration of normal relations of friendship
with the spirit, not the buying off of its wrath."

The person considered most competent to offer up a sacrifice is
the senior living representative of the ancestors 2 : it is he who dedi-
cates the viftim to them, and calls upon them to come to the " feast ".
So, if sacrifice must be made to the paternal ancestors, the family
headman will do so ; whereas if the maternal ancestors must be
propitiated, the rightful priest is the head of the mother's family, viz.
her father or senior brother. Ancestor worship thus clearly serves to
maintain the social solidarity of the family and the authority of its
head. The headman believes that misfortune can be avoided by
intercession with his ancestors ; the dependent member of a family
feels that misfortune can be avoided only through the intercession
of his headman, to whom he must therefore defer. Hence we find
in many tribes that a man after quarrelling seriously with the head
of his family must be ceremonially reconciled to him before being
able to enjoy once more the proteftion and favour of the ancestors
he has neither the right nor the power to sacrifice independently.
The Chief in the same way is the priest of his people. Only he can
approach his ancestors direftly on behalf of the tribe : he is the natural
link between them and the powerful spirits of dead Chiefs governing
their welfare, their representative and mouthpiece on all important

1 Willoughby, 1923, 74-5. ' Cf. Willoughby, 1928, 333 ff.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 259

tribal occasions. But he is also the living representative of the
ancestors, a faft to which considerable importance is sometimes
attached, as among the Venda, who look upon him therefore as a
" god " even during his lifetime.

To conduft all ceremonies in the correft formal way and to deal
with all crises of life according to traditional pattern is the foremost
commandment of Bantu religion. The spiritual condition of the
worshippers is of little importance : but it is essential that their
bodies should be ceremonially clean. Among the things defiling the
body human blood and the sexual aft are perhaps most important.
Almost all major ceremonies are accompanied by a sexual taboo,
incumbent especially upon the leading performers. A Zulu father,
e.g., who has had sexual intercourse during the night before his son's
puberty becomes officially known is defiled, and may not officiate at
the initiation ceremony which has to follow immediately. 1

The views of the Bantu concerning ritual impurity must obviously
debar most women from religious aftivity. In their case it is not only
sexual intercourse but also the menstrual blood which pollutes them,
and the latter, unlike the former, is beyond their control. The
menstruating woman is, in fad, regarded as a source of danger, and
during her monthly period must observe many taboos. On no account,
e.g., may she enter the cattle-kraal, lest she pollute the animals;
while any man sleeping with her at this time will become afflifted
with a painful or even fatal disease. But the taboos preventing women
from taking an a&ive part in ceremonial are removed once they have
passed the menopause. They are now permanently " clean ", and may
participate even more freely than men in all religious rites. That such
women are highly eligible for priestly office is illustrated by the faft
that among the Venda and Northern Sotho the paternal aunt of the
Chief often afts for him when tribal offerings are made to his ancestors.
The Nguni assign this honourable role to the Chief's mother, as
among the Swazi, where she shares with her son the Chief's preroga-
tive of making rain and is the keeper of the " great medicine ". So,
too, among the Shangana-Tonga the care of the royal medicines is
entrusted to one of the Chief's older wives.

FAMILY AND TRIBAL RITES

The main varieties of ancestor worship may be illustrated by des-
cribing briefly some typical rites. The procedure followed by the

> Krigc, 1936, 89-

260 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

Southern Sotho in cases of illness provides a sufficiently characteristic
example of the domestic cult. A diviner is consulted to discover the
cause of the illness. He may reveal that it is due to the anger of some
particular ancestor, on either the father's side or the mother's. The
head of the family indicated will then offer the sacrifice, which " alone
can render efficacious the medicines prescribed by the ngaka
(doftor). . . . The colour, sex, and age of the animal are determined
by the indications drawn from the (divining) bones, a dream, or any
other significative incident. As soon as the viftim is dead, they hasten
to take the intestinal covering, which is considered as the most sacred
part, and put it round the patient's neck, after having twisted it to
give it the form of a necklace. The gall is then poured upon the head
of the patient, accompanied by the following prayer : ' O gods,
retire ; leave our brother in peace, that he may sleep his sleep/ A
mixture of gall, liquid out of the stomach, and pounded herbs, is then
placed upon the hut, and all defiled persons are carefully removed
from it." l

Another illustration is afforded by the Mpondo rite when a woman
is experiencing difficulty in giving birth. 2 Her attendants inform the
headman of the household, who drives all his cattle up to where the
woman in labour is lying. He then calls upon his ancestral spirits :
" How is it that this my child is like this ? This village has never had
this thing ! " Then he calls the names of his ancestors in ascending
order. If one of the cattle passes water, or goes up and licks the woman,
the child will be born, unless the woman is being bewitched. The beast
thus giving the sign is never killed, but is afterwards used as inkomo
yoGulunga, the beast given to a woman at marriage by her father,
and from whose tail hairs are plucked and plaited into necklaces worn
as charms against illness by the woman and her children.

We may take as a final example the thanksgiving sacrifice made
by the Shangana-Tonga on the return of some long-absent member
of a family, say a son who has been working at the mines. The son
is not allowed to enter the homestead until this sacrifice has been
offered. He waits just outside, " while his father, seated at the main
entrance, cuts open the neck of a hen, which he has previously selefted,
and throws it on the boy's luggage. The viftim leaps about in its
agony. The officiant then plucks out some of the blood-stained
feathers, pronounces the tsu, and says : ' Here is your son. He has

1 Casalis, 1861, 249-250.

1 Quoted almost verbatim from Hunter, 1936, 151.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 261

returned home safely, because you have accompanied him ! Perhaps
he has brought back pounds sterling with him to lobola. Perhaps he
will now take a wife ! I do not know. The great thing is that he
is healthy, and you have brought him back safely." *

The tribal rites are, as we have seen, performed most regularly
in connexion with the principal phases of agricultural aftivity. The
Venda sowing rite is a good example of those observed in conneftion
with planting. At the beginning of the agricultural season, the Chief
summons all his relatives and neighbours to till the special field he
reserves for the cultivation of mufhoho (eleusine inJicd), the indigenous
Venda grain. The women prepare eleusine beer, while young girls
cook a pot of eleusine, Kafir corn, beans, and other seeds. " When
these girls go over the country to gather wood and fetch water for
their cooking, they handle small sticks, and are ordered to thrash
everybody they meet on the road. And the people, when they see
the girls approaching, must kneel down at once and cover their faces
with their hands. This is meant to be an aft of adoration and of self-
humiliation towards the powerful gods of the royal family. By this
prostration subjefts declare that they are ' dead ', they have no power
at all. The power belongs to the gods, the gods of the chief ; they
alone can make the corn grow ! " 2 After the field has been tilled,
" the pot of grain is symbolically cooked over three cooking stones on
a small grass fire. A sacred axe and the luJo? to represent the women's
spirits, are then brought and placed near the pot, and a little of the
mixture from the pot is taken up in a roughly-made spoon and dropped
on to these sacred objefts. The makhadii (Chief's paternal aunt)
then takes up a wooden platter of water and filling her mouth from it
performs the phasa madi aft, 4 saying : Here is food for you, all
our spirits ; we give you of every kind of grain, which you may eat.
Bring to us also crops in plenty and prosperity in the coming season.'
Some of what is left is served on a platter for the men while the women
finish what remains in the pot. The ceremony is concluded in the
usual way by a general feast and beer-drink." 5 A similar ceremony is
carried out in the special field of every lineage headman, whose paternal
aunt officiates ; but that at the Chief's place is regarded as benefiting
the tribe as a whole.

Perhaps the most striking ceremony of all is the formal eating

1 Junod, 1917, ii, 397-8. Junod, 1920, 217.

* " A small replica of a hoe fastened into the side of a long stick " (Stayt, 1931, 248). It is
handed down from mother to daughter, and is sacred to the ancestors.

4 Cf. above, p. 255. * Stayt, 1931, 252-3.

262 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

of the firstfruits. In midsummer when the first gourds become ripe,
they must be tasted ceremonially by the Chief. Before he has done so,
it is taboo for his people to eat of the new crops. The Shangana-Tonga
observe this rite in connection with both the nkanye fruit (Sclerocarya
caffra) and Kafir corn, but other tribes have one annual ceremony
only. The Chief tastes the firstfruits in his capacity as representative
of the ancestors ; and among the Venda and Northern Sotho first
offers a dish of the new foods to them with the invocation : " I offer
you the first grains of the new year that you may eat and be happy ;
eat all of you ; I deprive none amongst you. What remains in the
ground belongs to me and your little ones." * The sub-Chiefs and
headmen in order of seniority then taste the new food, and after each
the members of his group do so likewise, family by family and person
by person, in strift order of precedence.

Among the Zulu, Swazi, and kindred tribes, there is a great tribal
gathering on this occasion at the headquarters of the Chief. Sacrifices
of cattle are made to his ancestor spirits ; the army is reviewed and
" doftored " ; new laws are discussed and proclaimed and the
enjoyment of the new season's fruits is formally initiated by the Chief.
A prominent part of the ceremony is the preparation of certain
medicines with which the Chief is " strengthened " on behalf of
the people. Among the ingredients are the gall and certain other parts
from the body of a black bull, which must be killed by hand, without
the use of any weapons, by a regiment specially chosen for the purpose.
The Chief, after having been dodlored, eats of the new fruits ; and
then, by throwing a gourd to the assembled warriors, indicates that
the taboo on the new crops has been lifted. The ceremony as a whole
is extremely elaborate, purification rites of various kinds and military
parades, dances, and songs playing a conspicuous part. It is condufted
with great pomp, and is the outstanding national festival of the
people. 2

HIGH GODS AND OTHER DEITIES
The Sky God.

The ancestor spirits are the most intimate gods of the Bantu :
they are part of the family or tribe, and are considered and consulted
on all important occasions. But all the Bantu further have some
conception, generally rather vague, of a supreme power or being in

1 Stayt, 1931, 255. t cf. Krige, 1936, 249 ff.; Cook, 1930, 205-210.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 263

the universe not specially connefted with the spirits of the ancestors.
The Shangana-Tonga speak of TUo (" Heaven "), a universal power
afting and manifesting itself in various ways. It is sometimes spoken
of as Host, " Lord " ; but is more generally regarded as something
entirely impersonal, regulating and presiding over all unaccountable
or inevitable phenomena of human existence and the world of nature.
TUo afflicts children with fatal convulsions ; it controls life and death ;
it sends storms and kills people by lightning, especially thieves;
and to its influence is attributed the birth of twins, who are held to
defile the land and regarding whom various special purification rites
must be performed, lest the rain, another of Tilo's manifestations,
cease to fall. In time of drought or other extreme distress the people
will attempt to propitiate 77/0, e.g. by watering the graves of twins
or by appealing to it through the ancestors of the Chief; but it is not
the object of any direft or regular cult. 1

The Zulu have a sky god somewhat similar to that of the Shangana-
Tonga, but definitely personified. They speak of inkosi pe^ulu, " the
Chief in the sky " or " the lord of heaven ", who brings storms,
causes rain and thunder, and kills by lightning those who have offended
him. Certain magicians, the " shepherds of heaven ", are beloved
of him ; and through him can influence weather phenomena, provided
they lead lives of strift ritual purity. 2 They speak also of Unkulunkulu y
about whose true nature there has been much controversy among
European writers. His name means " the great, great one " or " the
old, old one " ; and according to the recorded myths he is the creator
of all things the sun and the moon, animals and birds, water and
mountains ; he is the original ancestor of all the people ; and he
instituted the present order of society. But he is not worshipped,
" for he is said to have died so long ago that no one knows his praises,
and as he has left no progeny, no one can worship him." 3

The Cape Nguni nowadays generally speak of a supreme being
uThixo or Qamata, names almost certainly borrowed from the
Hottentots. His true Xhosa name is, however, uDali ; and according
to Soga he " is the creator of all things, controls and governs all,
and as such is the rewarder of good and the punisher of evil. Worship
is never dire&ly offered to Him, but through the medium of the
ancestral spirits, who in the unseen world are nearer to Him, and know

1 Junod, 1927, ii, 418 ff. * On these magicians, cf. above, p. 134 f.

Krige, 1936, 281, and, for the whole topic, 280-2 ; cf. also Callaway, 1868-1870, for
original texts and comments*

264 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

more than men on earth "- 1 This fits in fairly well with the beliefs of
other groups. But Miss Hunter, writing of the Mpondo, says
emphatically : " There is no proof that the Pondo before contaft
with Europeans believed in the existence of any Supreme Being,
or beings, other than the amathongo (ancestor spirits). They had two
words, umdali (creator) and umenyi (maker), which might suggest
a belief in a creator, but there is no system of rites or complex of
beliefs conne&ed with these words." And she adds : " There are no
beliefs not obviously introductions regarding uThixo which might not
refer to an ithongo" 2

The Tswana and Southern Sotho speak of Modimo, but their
conceptions of this being have been so affefted by missionary teaching
that it is now almost impossible to obtain any clear idea of his tradi-
tional attributes. Earlier information depifts him as somewhat similar
to the high gods of other groups. He was regarded as if the only
Creator, Originator, and Cause of all things ", " the giver of all
things " ; and when people introduced new customs, or turned aside
from the old, he would indicate his displeasure by sending wind,
hail, or heat. But " there is no service rendered to Him as a Supreme
Being. ... He is generally ignored and well-nigh forgotten ".
And here, as in most other groups, it is said also that he was better
known to people of old than he is to-day. 3

The Venda deity Raluvhimba is once again both creator and sky
god. He " is connefted with the beginning of the world and is supposed
to live somewhere in the heavens and to be connefted with all astro-
nomical and physical phenomena ". " All the natural phenomena
which affeft the people as a whole are revelations of the great god " ;
and if offended he punishes people by sending drought, floods, or
locusts. He is identified with Mwari, the Shona god whose reputation
as oracle and rainmaker is widespread in the northern parts pf South
Africa ; and there is evidence that in former times he was worshipped
in caves for rain and other blessings. But he is no longer the objeft
of any regular cult. 4

The evidence suggests on the whole that the Bantu believe in a
supreme being generally associated with the sky, and showing himself
most impressively in the phenomena of the weather. Some groups look
upon him also as the creator of all things and the moulder of destiny.
But he has withdrawn from direft dealings with men. He remains

1 Soga, 1932, 150. * Hunter, 1936, 269 f.

J. T. Brown, 1926, 114-18. * Stayt, 1931, 230-6.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 265

entirely in the background of their normal religious life, although he
is to some extent sensitive about human conduft, so that irregularities
in the world of man are bound to reaft immediately on the world of
nature and call forth such signs as drought, storm, and pestilence.
He is known to the ancestors, but to the living he is a stranger. No
shrines are ere&ed to him, and no sacrifices are made direftly to
him. They believe that he exists, but they do not think that they can
worship him in any way, except through the ancestors. As Willoughby
puts it : " The people never thought of praying to the Great Spirit
direft. They have often explained to me that etiquette demands that
a man shall approach a Great Chief, whom he does not know, through
some friend of his who lives in the Great Chiefs town. And so they
pray to the spirits of their ancestors who have gone forward into the
town of the Great Chief of the spirit- world. . . . The ancestral
spirits of Bantu worship are regarded, not as independent deities,
but as mediators at the court of an Unapproachable Chief. Bantu
worship is Bantu social intercourse carried over into the spirit-world.
The solidarity of family or clan is not broken by death. An elder in
the spirit-world ought to receive the homage that was his due when
he wore the garments of flesh ; and the ancestral spirits are, therefore,
entitled to be worshipped on their own account. And yet they are not
thought of as independent deities, but as mediators whom it would
never do to negleft or offend. They are, to use a phrase with which
we are more familiar, the patron saints of the Bantu." l

Rain/noting Rites.

The conneftion between the sky god and the ancestor spirits is most
clearly seen in the rainmaking rites, in which at the same time magic
is also extensively employed. In a country so scantily watered and so
subjeft to periodic droughts as is South Africa, rain is of the utmost
importance to people dependent for their livelihood solely upon the
yield of their fields and the condition of their livestock. It is therefore
perhaps the most important duty of the ruling Chief to obtain adequate
rain for his people. Nobody assumes that he is himself able to attract
the clouds and make the rain fall. This is shown clearly in a Pcdi
rain-song where the people chant : " Ye gods above, give rain to
the god below." The gods above are the ancestors of the Chief;
and it is through their help that he must obtain the life-giving rain.
But the people do not believe that even the ancestors have power to

1 Willoughby, 19*3, 78, 79-

266 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

cause rain. Rain comes from the sky god ; and it is to him that the
ultimate appeal must be made. In theory the Chief's task is to approach
his ancestors on behalf of his people ; and their spirits then intercede
with the sky god, laying before him the prayer of their descendants.
In actual practice, the ultimate giver of rain remains in the back-
ground, while the Chief and his ancestors are in the limelight ; but
the belief that " God " is the giver of rain explains why so many
heathen Bantu join readily in the rain services conducted by
missionaries.

All Bantu Chiefs possess special rainmaking " medicines ". Among
the Venda and Northern Sotho the most important ingredients of this
medicine are taken from the bodies of deceased Chiefs. These tribes
do not bury their Chiefs immediately after death, but allow their bodies
to decay; certain portions of the corpse are carefully preserved,
and added to the rain medicine. The Lobedu, e.g., use the body
dirt and skin of the deceased Chief (who, as elsewhere mentioned,
is always a woman). " On the death of the queen, which is kept secret
for a whole year, the body is washed every day and the dirt is made to
fall into an earthenware basin. This is done until all the skin comes off,
and only then is the chief buried. This skin is put into the rain pots." l
The rain medicine thus affords a direct means of establishing contact
between the ruler of a tribe and past generations of Chiefs. Since the
Swazi also treat the bodies of their dead kings in such a manner as to
hasten decomposition, it is probable that here too portions of the corpse
are added to the rain medicines. Shangana-Tonga Chiefs, again,
have sacred bundles of medicine made up largely of the nails, hair,
and portions of the skin of dead Chiefs 2 ; while the inkatha or sacred
coil of Zulu Chiefs includes among other ingredients dirt from the
bodies of past and present Chiefs. 3 Both groups use these sacred
objects in connection with all important tribal ceremonies ; we are not
told specifically if rainmaking is included, but this is almost certainly
the case.

Rainmaking rites are exceedingly numerous and varied in character.
Among the Transvaal Sotho and Tswana, the Chief has a special
rain hut or enclosure behind the hut of his great wife. Here are kept
the sacred rain pots, containing some of the rain medicine, and filled
every year with water by the immature girls, who bring it ceremonially
in miniature pots from the river or fountain. At the beginning of the

i Krige, 1931, 208. Junod, 1927, ,

Krige, 1936, 243-4.

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 267

rainy season these girls, at the Chief's command, fill their pots with
this medicated water, which they sprinkle over all the fields. 1 This
ceremony may best be described as a dramatic prayer. An example
is set, as it were, to the ancestors and the sky god, who is thereby
entreated to sprinkle the fields plentifully with his rain. Other groups
do not appear to have this regular ceremony ; but all practise special
rites whenever their country is threatened with drought. One of the
most common is to kindle a special fire, in which are burned water
animals, driftwood, and other objefts conne&ed with water ; the fire
is fed with green twigs, giving rise to a cloud of smoke representing
rain clouds. The Tswana and Northern Sotho, again, conduft large
" rain hunts ", when certain animals, such as the guineafowl and
certain species of buck supposed to be connefted with the rainfall,
are caught alive and brought to the rainmaker, who kills them, adding
parts of their flesh to the mixture in his rainpots. The Venda rainmaker
kindles a fire of driftwood and while it burns covers himself with
blankets in his hut until he perspires freely. The drops of perspiration
symbolize the drops of coming rain. 2 The Zulu, like other tribes,
kill the " heaven bird " and throw it into a pool of water, whereupon
" the heaven becomes soft . . . and ceases to be hard ; it wails
for it by raining, wailing a funeral wail ". 3

If these rites do not help, the married women pour water and beer
on the graves of dead Chiefs, beseeching them to send rain to the
people of their descendants. Or, as among the Tswana, tribesmen of
their own accord bring oxen to the Chief, imploring him to reconcile
his ancestors so that they may send the much-needed rain. The
ox is sprinkled with water from the rain pots, and allowed to wander
about freely, in the belief that this will " cause the rain to wander about
the country ". It is afterwards killed and eaten at the Chiefs public
courtyard, parts of the flesh being, however, mixed by the rainmaker
with the other medicines burned in the sacred enclosure. 4

If even this proves fruitless, the Chief will himself sacrifice at the
grave of some ancestor. Willoughby gives an excellent account of
such a sacrifice performed by Sekxoma, Chief of the Ngwato, at the
grave of his great-grandfather Mathiba. 6 " From the tribal herds
choice had been made of a black bull, without blemish or trace of colour,
which, after being given water to drink, was slaughtered at the grave.

1 Eiselen, 1928, 387-392; Schapera, 1930, 211-16. * 5

* Krige, 1936, 320. On the "heaven bird ", cf. above, p. 23$.
4 Willoughby, 1928, 204 ; Schapera, field notes. >

1 Stayt, 1931, 312.
Willoughby, 1928, 208-9.

268 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

Many small fires were lit around the sacred spot, and the flesh of the
viftim was roasted. Of this sacrificial meat the Chief was the first to
partake, and after him, in strift order of precedence, each man, woman,
and child in the throng had a morsel. It was necessary that every scrap
of the sacramental food should be consumed upon the spot. The hide,
blood, and chyme of the viUm were buried in the grave ; and its
bones, horns, hoofs, and other inedible parts were carefully laid upon
the grave and consumed with fire, lest some unfriendly magician should
use them to nullify the sacrifice with his charms. Then the people
stood and worshipped, under the presidency of their chief, intoning
the * praise-songs ' of their dead chiefs, and saying, ' We have come
to beg rain by means of this ox, O Chief, our Father ! ' The rain-
songs also were chanted ; and the people dispersed with a great shout,
' Rain ! Rain ! Rain ! Chief, we are dead we who are your people !
Let the rain fall ! ' As they wended their way homeward, they con-
tinued to make the welkin ring with their rain-songs; and . . .
on the evening of that same day there was a drenching rain."

Occasionally a Chief whose country is drought-stricken will resort
to a measure by no means in keeping with the accepted ancestor
worship. He will send cattle and presents to another Chief, whose
country enjoys a higher rainfall, and beseech him for a share of the
rain. Such deputations frequently come to the court of Mojaji, the
female Chief of the small Lobedu tribe living in the well-watered region
of the Northern Transvaal. Such an a&ion seems to betray lack of
faith in one's own tribal ancestors, but in reality it proves the contention
that the real giver of the rain is the universal sky god, while the
ancestors are merely intermediaries.

It may well be that all efforts on the part of a Chief and his advisers
are of no avail, and the country remains drought-stricken. The
diviners may attribute this calamity to a medicated objeft hidden
somewhere by a sorcerer. A thorough search is then made all over the
country for things out of place, e.g. a piece of apparel or a pot hidden
in the branches of a tree. All suspicious objefts of this kind are gathered
together and thrown into a deep pool. The people then assemble in
the Chief's great place, where the rainmaker sprinkles them with
some of the medicated water from his pots, while all cry out : " Rain ! "
as the drops fall upon them. Sometimes, as among the Tswana, ritually-
impure people, such as newly-bereaved widows and widowers, or
women who have recently miscarried or aborted, are gathered together
and smeared with the juice of certain irritant bulbs used as

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES 269

rain medicine. These people are said to have " hot " bodies and to be
burning up the land ; they must therefore be " cooled " to bring back
the rain they have driven away. A very general prophylactic measure,
especially among the Shangana-Tonga, Venda, Tswana, and Transvaal
Sotho, is to kill twins or other abnormal children, who must be buried
in the moist soil of river banks or in the shade of a hut. If buried else-
where their corpses " burn up the land " ; and in time of drought
must be sought out and reburied in some " cool " spot to remove the
pollution. In these and various other ways die country and the
people are purified from contamination, and the rain rites now have
the desired effeft.

Lesser Deities.

The Bantu finally believe in local spirits of various kinds, whose
sinister presence is generally greatly feared. There are sacred woods
or mountains inhabited by the spirits of dead Chiefs of ancient
dynasties, or by " dissociated spirits, often vague and shadowy in
character, but none the less terrifying and dangerous to the traveller " 1 ;
there are spirits of streams and pools, round whom colleft many
weird beliefs and fearsome tales ; there are, as among the Venda,
numerous animal spirits, dangerous reincarnations of famous old
Chiefs and warriors 2 ; there are, as among the Tswana, caves inhabited
by large pythons, sight of whom is fatal to the commoner, but who
assist the Chief in his rainmaking ; and there are spirits of trees and
of many other places and objects of a similar nature.

Every tribe has its spirits of this kind. Reference has been made in
the previous chapter to Thikoloshe or uHili, and iChanti, who figure
so prominently in Nguni belief and practice. The Zulu speak also of a
female goddess Intosa^ana or NomkhuBulwana, who presides over the
growth of the corn, and in whose honour the young girls perform
various ceremonies in the fields in the springtime. 3 The Tswana,
again, tell many myths of Dingwe y a cannibalistic ogre against whom
children are specially protected with many charms, and of Loowe,
Tintibane, Matsieng, and Thobexa^ demi-gods associated with caves
and archaic footprints in the rocks all over their country. They appear
to be deified Chiefs of peoples occupying the country long before its
present inhabitants arrived there. Offerings are occasionally made to
them of meat, corn, and beer, accompanied by prayers for rain,

1 Stayt, 1931, 239. Stayt, 1931, 239-240.

1 Krigc, 1936, 197-200, 282-3.

270 W. M. EISELEN AND I. SCHAPERA

fertility of the crops, and success in war. 1 More legendary than real
even in the beliefs of the people, such spirits serve to invest with a
halo of sanftity and taboo particular localities, where offerings are,
as we have just seen, made to them.

RELIGION AND MORALITY

It has often been said that their religion has no moral influence
upon the Bantu. Viewed in the light of Christian moral ideas, this is
quite true. Bantu religious beliefs do not impel the people to lead a
good life in the hope of attaining salvation : there is no dogma holding
out a promise of reward for the good, and punishment for the wicked,
in the life hereafter. The ancestors whom they worship were also
erring men, and can demand no moral goodness from their descend-
ants. What they do demand is filial piety and an unquestioning respeft
for tribal law and custom. The good and moral man in Bantu society
is the one who honours the ancestors by living as they have lived.

Nevertheless, most of what we consider to be evil is forbidden also
in Bantu society, and what we hold to be good is also recommended
by them. The Bantu would, in faft, have no difficulty in accepting
most of the Biblical commandments, because among them too " the
danger of taking the name of a god in vain is generally acknowledged ;
reverence for parents and those in authority is commonly inculcated,
and disobedience punished ; self-control is cultivated ; men of
probity are respe&ed; brotherliness, courtesy, and hospitality are
common virtues ; a high respect for property prevails ; mercy is
highly esteemed and justice praised; murder, witchcraft, stealing,
adultery, bearing false -witness against one's neighbour, hatred, and
arrogance are all condemned ; and there is such a sense of family
responsibility that orphans and destitute people are provided for ". 2
But there is this .fundamental difference between their approach and
ours to the problem of moral goodness : the Bantu demand moral
behaviour within the family and tribe rather than moral behaviour
in general. And this is in complete harmony with their ancestor
worship, for the common ancestor must of necessity resent any aftion
by one of his descendants likely to harm another descendant and inci-
dentally to upset the social order within the group.

> Willoughby, 1932, 36-40, 74-7 ; Brown, 1926, 101 ff.

* Willoughby, 1928, 382-3, and the whole of Chap. V. for a discussion of Bantu ethics
in general

CHAPTER XII

THE MUSICAL PRACTICES OF THE NATIVE RACES OF
SOUTH AFRICA

By PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

IN dealing with this vast subjeft I have found it necessary to restrift
myself to essentials. Moreover, limitations of space have compelled
me to reduce illustrations, whether pictorial or musical, to the barest
minimum. A critical bibliography will, however, enable readers to
remedy these omissions to some extent should they care to do so.
Further, in order to avoid repetition, I have deliberately made use of
several musical terms, the meaning of which will be found in the
glossary at the end of this study, and although the study is primarily
concerned with the music of the South African Bantu, I find it necessary
to refer also to the musical praftices of Bushman and Hottentot,
since their art, especially that of the latter, has in certain dire&ions
profoundly influenced that of the Bantu.

The seftion dealing with instrumental music gives, in outline,
what it is necessary for the ethnologist to know about the instruments,
their nature, history, distribution, and use. Full details on all these
points, as well as copious photographs and musical illustrations,
will be found in my book The Musical Instruments of the Native
Races of South Africa. In this seftion I have omitted, for lack of space,
precise details of references made to the works of travellers. These
will be found, if desired, in my book, where the quotations and
translations may be readily checked and, if desired, my conclusions
challenged.

The seftion dealing with vocal music represents the outline of a
volume upon the subjeft which I have in hand. All the musical sugges-
tions therein are my own, and are based on personal contaft, extending
over many years, with the races concerned.

Instrumental Music.

In the early days the Bushmen do not appear to have made much,
if any, use of musical instruments ; or, if they did, the old writers
either did not see them, or, seeing them, ignored them completely.
With the dawn of the nineteenth century, however, we begin to meet

271

272 PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

with descriptions of Bushman musical performances, generally
accompanying dances, which involved the use of musical instruments.
In nearly every instance the instruments would appear to have been
borrowed by the Bushmen from Hottentot tribes in whose neighbour-
hood they lived. Such instruments were the drum, made from a pot
covered with skin, the gora, a stringed-wind instrument chara&eristic
of the Korana, and the ramki^ a three or more stringed guitar, made
in recent times by Hottentots and Bantu, and apparently originally
introduced to the Cape by slaves from the Malabar Coast of India.
Bushmen of to-day in the Western Kalahari have been seen using
miniature imitations of the reed-flutes which are characteristic of the
Nama. The bull-roarer, or whizzing-stick, which the Bushmen use
has lost any symbolical significance which it may have had, and is used
mainly for attrafting bees, on account of the similarity of its sound
to that of the buzzing of these insefls. There remain the ankle-rattles
of springbok ears or cocoons, used in dancing, the little signal whistles
of ostrich quill, buck-bone, or horn, and the hunting bow or //Aa,
which, when tapped with a thin stick, yielded a musical tone. All of
these may have been used by the Bushmen for centuries, but there is no
written evidence of the faft. A final and probably recent development
(in spite of a rock-painting copied by Stow) was the fixing of a number
of hunting-bows in the ground, and the tapping of the various strings
by one performer. Such an idea represents the origin of an instru-
mental type found among the Ambo, but both prototype and its
successor are unknown to the Bantu of South Africa.

The Hottentots were infinitely more advanced musically than the
Bushmen. The drum (Jkhais of the Korana), formed from a iambus
or wooden milk vessel, covered with skin, and played by beating with
the hands, receives early mention in the works of travellers, being
described by Dapper (1668), who, however, noted that a pot was used
in its manufacture. There is evidence, however, to show that Bantu
pots were an article of barter between Bantu and Hottentot at a very
early date. The term " rommelpot " commonly given to the instru-
ment is a misnomer, and should be dropped. It originated through
a misreading of the work of Kolb.

Of wind instruments the Hottentots had two types : a single
" stopped pipe " of bone, blown as one blows across a key, and a
quite elaborate ensemble of reed-flutes of varying length which could
be tuned by means of movable plugs of fibre and which were played
by men in harmony, each man's flute contributing but one sound to

MUSIC 273

the whole. The history of this, the oldest known South African
native instrument, can be traced from the landing of Vasco da Gama
in 1497 to the present day among the Hottentots and its adoption from
them, about the beginning of the nineteenth century, by certain
Bantu, and later still by some Bushmen, can be proved. These reed-
flutes were tuned to the following four-note scale.

Nama, Korana, and Tswana Reed-flute Scale.

A most important discovery of the Hottentots was that of sounding
a string by air-vibration. The shooting-bow, which the Hottentots
appear to have acquired from the Bushmen in the early part of the
seventeenth century, was developed by them into three types of
musical instrument, of which the gora was one, the remaining two being
stringed instruments pure and simple. Interposed between one end of
the string and the stave of the bow of the gora was a spatulate piece of
quill, the other end of the string being made fast to the opposite end of
the bow-stave. By holding the instrument so that the quill came between
the parted lips, and drawing in the breath and expelling it with force,
the string was made to vibrate and to give forth its harmonics, which
could be controlled by varying the force used. The resulting music
was exactly similar in effeft to bugle calls, the same series of sounds
being present in both instruments. This instrument is only found in
South Africa, but it has spread from the Hottentots who were using
it in the seventeenth century (Dapper 1668) to Bushmen (Burchell
1811) and, in the nineteenth century to all the Bantu of the Union.
The importance of this instrument lies in the faft that it brought the
" harmonic series " vividly before the Hottentots, thus adding to the
number of fixed tones which they could recognize and use in their vocal
music. The gora was played by men only.

Scale of the gora.

The two stringed instruments normally used by the Hottentots
(the khas and the jgabus of the Korana) show that the recognition of
the phenomenon of harmonics was not confined to the gora. In the
first of these types, a simple shooting-bow, of stout construction,
with the string stretched rather more tightly than usual, was held by

274 PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

the seated performer against the left shoulder, the right foot steadying
the lower end. The string was then tapped with a light reed, when it
gave forth its fundamental tone. But by touching the string at the
appropriate " nodes ", the lower harmonics could be elicited. This
instrument was played by women only. The second type was also
made from a plain shooting-bow, but of lighter build. One end was
held in the right-hand corner of the mouth, while the other was
supported by the left hand. The string was then plucked by the right
forefinger and the fundamental tone elicited, but at the same time
the player, by altering the shape of his mouth, could select and amplify
various high harmonics. These constituted the melody, the funda-
mental tone serving as a tonic or drone.

Their remaining stringed instrument, the recently acquired ramki y
I have already dealt with in discussing the Bushman instruments.

The Hottentots also used the bull-roarer, but only as a toy.

In considering the Bantu, the subject becomes rather more involved.
All the Bantu peoples of South Africa use dancing-rattles, either worn
on the ankles or shaken in the hand. The Sotho make their ankle-
rattles from cocoons, scores of which are filled with small stones or
hard seeds, threaded on riem and wound round the ankles of the dancers.
In Basutoland, however, tiny bags of goatskin are used as substitutes for
the cocoons which cannot readily be obtained there. The Nguni likewise
use the cocoons, but in clusters and not in long strings, and, in addition,
some tribes make similar instruments from woven palm-leaf. Among
the Shangana-Tonga the rattles of woven palm-leaf are also used, but
the Venda ankle-rattles are made from small hollow fruits filled
with stones, and fitted on reeds in rows, giving an appearance somewhat
like cricket pads. Hand-rattles, made from calabashes filled with
stones and mounted on sticks, are used by Venda, Shangana-Tonga,
and to some extent by Swazi and Zulu. The latter peoples seem to have
derived them from the former.

Among the Sotho, we find conical wooden drums, with single heads
of skin pegged in position, in regular use ; they are beaten by the
women, who use the hand as a beater, and are called moropa. They
are still made and played by Transvaal Sotho and Tswana, though in
Basutoland they are now made from clay, owing to the lack of suitable
wood. Such drums are used chiefly for ceremonial purposes, though
they are sometimes used at ordinary dances. The Nguni peoples appar-
ently did not originally have drums in the strict sense. The hide
shield served the Zulu as a drum, being hit with knobkerrie or assegai,
or itself being struck flat on the ground. The use of a stiff ox-hide

MUSIC 275

(ingqongqo) as a temporary drum was, however, common among
Zulu and Xhosa at witch-doftor ceremonies, and among the latter
it was also used by women at the initiation of their sons, where it
seems to have been symbolical of the manly shield, the beating-
sticks representing assegais, and being called by the same name. A
similar idea seems to have been present in the use by Zulu women of a
bundle of sticks (ubuxaka) which were shaken in the hand during a
dance, in imitation of the assegais similarly rattled by the men. The
Zulu, however, had a temporary drum, made by securing a goatskin
over a clay beer-pot. This drum, the ingungu, was not struck, but was
sounded by the friftion produced by the wetted hands of the player
being slid down a reed held vertically upon the centre of the skin. The
instrument was only used at the ceremonies held on the occasion of
the first menstruation of a Zulu girl.

The modern isigutu of Zulu and Xhosa is a mere reprodu&ion of
the bass drum of the European regimental bands. Like that instru-
ment, it has a wooden resonator (made from a tree trunk), two skin
heads laced in position by thongs, and two padded beaters. The method
of performance is identical with that of the European. It was unknown
in early times.

The Swazi have a temporary drum made from a clay beer-pot,
with a goatskin held over it by one man, while another beats the instru-
ment with a stick. It is used in the exorcism of spirits, as is the
Shangana-Tonga drum. The latter (the mantshomane) is made in
the form of a tambourine with a single head of skin pegged in position
and struck with a stick. It is played by both men and women, and is
regularly used in the gongondjela, or exorcism of spirits, although also
used in ordinary dances. Witch-doftors throughout the northern
areas of the country use the mantshomane and it has been taken over to
a slight extent by the Swazi. None of the other tribes have it;

The drums of the Venda are of two types, a conical wooden drum
with a single head of skin pegged in position (murumbu), and beaten
with the palms of the hands by women who straddle the instrument,
and the ngoma, a large hemispherical drum with a single head also
pegged in place, which is beaten by men or women with a suck. The
former type is analogous to the moropa of the Sotho ; the latter
is peculiar to the Venda and is used for all sorts of ritual purposes.
Both types are played with the Venda reed-flute ensembles.

Resonated xylophones (mbila), consisting of a number of tuned
slabs of hardwood fitted on insulated frames over similarly tuned

*7 6 PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

resonators of calabash, and struck with rubber-headed beaters are
found alone among the Venda. They are played by men, in pairs,
the music being polyphonic. Similar instruments are found among the
Tshopi, who, unlike the Venda, form bands of them. Similar bands,
utilizing instruments made from such materials as are available, are
organized by the Tshopi working on the Johannesburg mines.

The so-called sansa (also called mtUa, though more commonly Je^e
by the Venda), which consists of tuned tongues of tempered iron fixed
to a wooden base and placed inside a large calabash resonator, is
characteristic of the Lemba of Vendaland, formerly noted for their
skill in working metals. Both these instruments came from the north,
the former having been originally acquired from Malaya where it is
still in use. The xylophone was seen among the Karanga on the
Zambesi in 1586.

All the Bantu use animal horns as signal trumpets, antelope horns
(especially those of the sable antelope) being the oldest variety and
giving their names to the instruments. The phalaphala of the Venda
is typical. The interior of the horn is removed and an opening made
in the side, immediately below the solid tip. By blowing as a trumpet
is blown, two sounds can be readily elicited, the fundamental tone and
the first harmonic, which may or may not be in tune. Among the
Nguni an ox-horn (upondo) is now used as a substitute, although the
instrument may still retain the name of the buck, mpalampala.

The Venda also use miniature horns made in the same way from the
horns of the smaller antelopes. They are used by boys for signalling.

Whistles, made as simple stopped pipes of reed, bone, or horn are
used by all the Bantu of South Africa. They are blown key-wise
usually by boys although the doftors have their own varieties. A
more developed form is also in use. Originally a buck horn having an
opening drilled through the extreme tip, it was later made from wood,
the conically shaped piece of wood being split, and, after having been
hollowed, put together again, covered with skin and bound with fibre
or wire to render it airtight once more. Several sounds could be pro-
duced, both when the lower hole was left open and when it was
stopped by the finger. It was used by men for signalling in hunting
or in war, and also by do&ors.

The Tswana about the beginning of the nineteenth century
acquired the reed-flute ensemble, previously described, from the
Korana Hottentots, and with it also the Hottentot method of tuning
the flutes. The only other Bantu people in South Africa who have a

MUSIC 277

similar ensemble are the Venda, from whom some of the neighbouring
Sotho have imitated it. The Venda, however, accompany their flutes
with ankle-rattles and drums. The flutes, too, are of fixed intonation,
being stopped by a natural knot in the bamboo from which they are
made, and tuned by cutting sections off the open end. Further, they
are tuned to a seven-note scale, but the Sotho who have adopted them
retain their own scale of five notes. These reed-flute ensembles are
tribal, and are used for ceremonial purposes. Men alone are the
flute-players, who dance while they play, though women may beat
the drums.

Heptatonic Scale of the Venda Reed-flutes.

Flutes used as solo instruments by individual performers vary
in type among the Bantu. A transverse flute, played in similar fashion
to the European flute, is made from reed and is played by Venda,
Shangana-Tonga, and, to a less extent, by Swazi who borrowed it
from their neighbours. It is usually closed at both ends by natural
knots and has three finger holes. Elaborate melodies. may be played
upon it, although its scale is largely accidental. The Swazi, Zulu,
and Xhosa use an end-blown flute of reed, about three feet in length,
with the mouth end cut obliquely, the lower opening being used as a
finger-hole. This instrument yields the harmonic series, upon which
melodies played upon it must be based. The Zulu alone make a
peculiar flute from two pieces of reed, one pushed into the end of the
other, and the top of the thicker being cut obliquely, the lower opening,
as in the previously described instrument, being used as a finger-hole.
This type is used in pairs by two male performers, the music played
being antiphonal. Both types were made and used by the Zulu imme-
diately after the feast of the first fruits.

A rudimentary " ocarina " made from the Kafir orange, with mouth-
hole and two finger-holes, is made and played by the Shangana-Tonga.
It is a curious faft that, with the exception' of a secret instrument
played by the nonyana of the Venda, an official who participates in the
circumcision ceremonies of girls, no wind instrument with a vibrating
reed as the medium of sound produ&ion is found in South Africa.

The Hottentot gora has been adopted by pra&ically all the Bantu
peoples of South Africa. Its gradual spread from the South- West to
the North and East can be readily traced. The last to adopt it were the

278 PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

Venda, who appear to have acquired it from the Zulu of Mzilikazi as
he passed through their territory towards the North. The Venda
retained the instrument for only about eighty years, and they called
it by its Zulu name, ugwala. In Bantu hands it received slight improve-
ments, but the music performed upon it was, in the nature of the case,
similar to that played on it by the Hottentots. Among the Bantu
it is always played by men, never by women as is erroneously stated
of the Zulu by Mayr.

Eight types of stringed instrument are in use among the Bantu
of the Union. All have been evolved from the shooting-bow, and it
would therefore appear that those peoples who did not use the bow
as a weapon derived the instruments from peoples who did. The music
played upon all these instruments involves either the unconscious or
deliberate use of harmonics, but in either case the player is conscious
of the presence and musical value of those harmonics, which he has
incorporated into his musical system. These harmonics are either (i)
sounded together as a chord, (2) isolated for melodic purposes, or (3)
used in conjunction with their fundamentals in order to produce
elementary polyphony. In all cases a resonator is employed in order
to amplify the sound produced by the string, and such resonator is
sometimes the mouth of the performer and sometimes a calabash or
other hollow objeft, which may or may not be permanently attached
to the instrument. I shall therefore describe them according to the
groups suggested above, in order to reveal their true musical nature.

The first group includes two varieties, commonly, though errone-
ously, regarded as one and the same. The first of these, undoubtedly
the older type, consists of a well curved bow-stave of wood, fitted
with a string of thin brass wire, but formerly of sinew or twisted hair
from a cow's tail. Attached near the lower end of the stave is a calabash,
with an opening on the side away from the stave. The calabash is
insulated from the stave by a pad of bark, grass, or coarse cloth. The
instrument, after the string has been tuned to a pitch suitable for accom-
panying the performer's voice, is held upright, the opening of the
calabash being held clos'e to the left breast, the second, third, and fourth
fingers of 'the left hand grasping the lower end of the stave so as to
leave the first finger and thumb free to pinch the string, and so raise
its pitch. The string is struck, staccato, by a thin grass or reed held in
the right hand. When so struck the string gives forth its fundamental
note, together with several of its harmonics, the result being, to the
performer, a clear chord. Two such chords, a tone apart, are generally

MUSIC 279

used. This instrument is found among Swazi, Zulu, and Sotho. It is
mainly, though not exclusively, a man's instrument, except among the
Xhosa where women are the chief performers.

The second type is similarly construfted, except that the calabash
resonator is secured near the middle of the bow-stave, and the string
is tied back towards the stave at that point by means of a loop of sinew.
The technique is similar to that of the first type, but each portion of the
string produces its own fundamental and harmonics. By pinching
the string a third chord is obtained. This type is used by Venda,
Shangana-Tonga, Transvaal Sotho, Swazi, and Zulu, but not by
Tswana, Basutoland Sotho, and Xhosa. The second type appears to
be of northern, and comparatively recent, origin. It was not used
by the Zulu in the time of Shaka, so far as I can discover. The larger
sizes are played by men, the smaller by women. Among the Venda
it is only played by males.

The second group contains two types. The first of these is identical
with the Korana khos, already described. It is only used by the Tswana,
who unquestionably acquired it from the Korana. It is played chiefly
by men, although women may also use it. The second type is of
relatively recent origin, and may possibly owe its origin to European
or other outside influence. It consists of a hollow tube of wood or
bamboo, fitted with a wire string and tuning peg. The string is set
in vibration by means of a miniature friftion bow of wood strung with
hair from a cow's tail, resin being applied to the hair. The mouth was
originally used as a resonator, and is still so used by the Venda;
more recently a one-gallon paraffin tin has been applied to the instru-
ment, which is then held on the left shoulder, and in this form it is
used by Sotho, Zulu, and Xhosa. By bowing the string with a kind
of circular motion its harmonics may be elicited, and simple tunes
played. By pinching the string near its lower end the harmonics of one
or two other fundamentals may also be sounded. The fundamentals,
however, are not normally used.

The third group contains four varieties. The first is a bow of hollow
river reed, fitted with a string of sinew or fibre, which is plucked by the
fore-finger of the right hand. The pitch may be altered by pressure
upon the string by the fingers of the left hand. The mouth adls as a
resonator of variable size, which serves to isolate certain harmonics
of the string. These, together with the fundamentals, produce a simple
two-part polyphony, the intervals of which are governed by natural
laws. This type of instrument is found among all the Bantu of South

280 PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

Africa without exception. It is generally played by women and girls,
although I have observed it occasionally played by young boys.

The second type in this group is a bow of special construction,
being either of solid wood thinned towards the tips or with a thick
central portion into the ends of which thin tips of wood are fitted. The
string is of wire, looped back with sinew or thread near the centre,
and plucked with the finger or with a pleftrum of thorn or other sub-
stance. The mouth serves to resonate the harmonics, and the pitch
of the string can be altered by pressure and pinching. On this instru-
ment, as on the first type in this group, simple two-part polyphony
is performed. It is found among Transvaal and Southern Sotho,
Swazi, Zulu, Shangana-Tonga, and Venda, and is played only by
males.

The third type is a short bow of solid wood, thinned towards the
ends, which are bent up sharply. The central portion of the bow is
notched along one side. From tip to tip of the bow a flat " string "
of palm-leaf or broad grass is tightly stretched. The instrument is
sounded by rubbing the stick which forms the handle of a rattle, made
from a dry seed-box containing small stones, across the notches, thus
causing the string to vibrate. The mouth is used as a resonator, and
selects and amplifies certain harmonics from the fundamentals of
the open string and from two fingered notes. The resulting music
is in two parts as in the case of the two previous instruments. The
instrument is used only by the Shangana-Tonga and the Venda
(though in a simpler form it occurs among the /Kurj Bushmen), the
Ambo, and, farther north, the natives of Angola. It is a man's
instrument.

The fourth and last instrument in this group is made from a length
of hollow river-reed, or hollow piece of wood from the umsenge,
or cabbage-tree, into one end of which a thin, pliable rod is inserted.
A string of vegetable fibre or twisted rush is fixed to the lower end
of the reed, and to the tip of the thin rod, which is thereby made to
curve. The string, after being rubbed with the juice of a leaf, is
" bowed " by a piece of thin mealie stalk held beneath it. The mouth
afts as a resonator to the harmonics of the string, the pitch of which can
be altered by stopping with the first finger of the left hand. The
musical result is simple two-part polyphony as before. This instru-
ment is found only among the Swazi, Zulu, and Xhosa, and, in a simpli-
fied form, among the Mpondo. It is usually played by males.

All the stringed instruments described here are normally used solo ;

PLATE XXI

Scenes from the Venda domba (initiation) dance
MUSIC AND DANCINC;

ran \\mmelo

[face p. 280

282 PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

songs with the original texts sung by a Southern Bushman by Dr. Lucy
Lloyd (1879), together with a phonograph record of a Bushman singing
which I have succeeded in reconstructing, enables us to obtain a
glimpse at the nature of Bushman song, as also do the texts of other
Bushman songs obtained by Dr. Bleek and Miss Lloyd. All are solo
songs, and are descriptive of topics of interest to the singers. Such are
songs of animals, in which the animal itself is personified and supposed
to be singing ; songs of the stars ; and songs about familiar obje&s
such as a lament on the loss of a tobacco pouch. The only suggestion
of war is in the song of a young man who saw the Korana making
preparations for a foray. Moreover, the majority of the songs occur in
stories, where they are manifestly introduced to heighten the efleft,
as is quite common in folk-tales. Vocal melodies, without specific
texts, were, however, lilted as an accompaniment to dancing.

Owing to the general absence of musical instruments of more or
less fixed pitch, the Bushmen do not seem to have completely acquired
the use of relatively exaft pitch in their songs, although it is obvious
that they had a definite musical system. An examination of existing
material indicates that their melodies were based upon a scale of a
pentatonic type, and that they recognized definite focal points in their
music. But the influence of speech-tone tended to regulate the rise and
fall of the melodies of their songs, although there are signs that at
times this tendency had been overcome. The form of their melodies
was very simple, seldom exceeding a single musical sentence, which in
several instances was achieved by the necessary repetitions of a single
musical seftion or phrase. The powerful influence of rhythm, doubtless
engendered by the dance, tended to the development of what amounts
to verse-forms, with their corresponding musical rhymes.

Pentatonic Scale.

I 1

f * ' J

The Hottentots, having developed an elaborate instrumental
ensemble at an early date, were better able to evolve vocal music
of a clear-cut type. The historical references to their musical perform-
ances are many, although afhial examples in musical notation are
infrequent. Kolb's illustration of Hottentot song (1719), though
its aftual notes must be regarded with some suspicion, at any rate
suggests that the singers had a clear idea of the harmonic chord,
and the remarks of later writers endorse this faft. A short sOng of the

MUSIC 283

Hottentot Caffres (i.e. half-breeds from Xhosa and Gonaqua parents),
noted down by Sparrman (1775), emphasizes the point, as also does the
masterly analysis of Hottentot music by Lichtenstein (1804). The
people he heard were Korana, and he heard them performing upon
the gora, noting particularly that the sounds elicited from it were
partials of the harmonic series, and writing down his impression of the
tune played in musical notation. He also perceived that the sounds
produced by the gora were used in Korana vocal music. Apparently,
however, he did not hear a performance of a Korana reed-flute ensemble.
My own experiences of Hottentot music have embraced both
Korana and Nama, and I have secured phonograph records from both
races. I would point out that European influence is to be observed in
certain of the songs performed by these peoples ; but there still remain
examples undoubtedly free from it. Some Korana songs associated
with their reed-flute dances are constru&ed entirely upon the curious
four-note scale characteristic of those dances. Another, a gora tune,
sung by a gora player, contains only those notes which the instrument
can produce, exactly as suggested by Lichtenstein. A few are obvious
borrowings from missionary hymns, sung by some of the younger
Korana with new and secular words in their own language, the result
being a miserable travesty of the originals. The voices of the Korana
men whom I have heard were very musical in quality, and compara-
tively highly pitched, in marked contrast to the voices of Bantu males.
This fa& was recorded by Moodie a century ago. And just as the Korana
employed harmony in their reed-flute ensembles, so they used it in
song, aftually having their own expression for it in their language.

Since their social system was in advance of that of the Bushmen,
they used organized musical performances at certain of their ceremonies,
notably the doro or boys' initiation into manhood. Their solo songs
dealt with a variety of domestic topics, cattle being a natural and
favourite subjeft. Dance tunes of strong rhythm which were sung to
words, or rather syllables, of no particular meaning were common.
They were occasionally accompanied by the Ikhais or pot-drum,
previously described. All these songs were definitely strophic in
charafter, but vocal monologues, accompanied on the khas, were also
sung by the women. In these a definite strophic instrumental back-
ground was supplied by the khas, while the singer, who was also the
player, intoned words, in prose, the melody of which followed
the natural intonation of the voice in speech. For the speech of the
Korana was, and is, very musical ; that is to say, in their language

284 PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

speech-tone played a vital part in determining meaning, so much so
that in the case of a number of the older speakers it was possible to
write down the melody of their speech in musical notation without
much difficulty. But although this was so, the Korana had, in song,
succeeded in breaking away to some extent from the powerful influence
of speech-tone. To what degree this was due to European or other
influence it is difficult to determine.

The vocal music of the Bantu peoples of South Africa presents a
number of problems difficult of solution. That of the Nguni was the
first to be described by travellers, and the earliest of these agree in
emphasizing the savage nature of Nguni song as compared with that
of the Hottentot peoples. Some of the descriptions may, of course,
be exaggerations, or may have been written by observers whose
musical knowledge was limited, or whose sympathy with native music
was small. Both Beutler (1752) and Alberti (1800-4) state tnat tne
Xhosa did not make use of musical instruments, at any rate of their own
invention, the former saying that their singing, or rather growling
(he used the word brommen\ was like the noise of a pack of English
dogs. The deep, gruff voices of the singers, noted later by Moodie, is
implied here. Lichtenstein, however, who was a skilful and sym-
pathetic observer, arrived at conclusions similar to those of Beutler
and Alberti, saying that " the Kosas are much behind hand with some
of their neighbours with regard to music. Instruments proper to
themselves they do not appear to have, for only those of the Hottentots
are to be seen among them, and not so well constructed. Their melodies
are insufferable to a musical ear and their song is little better than a
deadened howl ". And in another place he writes " Then they sing,
or rather howl, a strange melody which cannot be pleasing throughout
to an European ear, and which could not be performed upon any
of our instruments, because their intervals stand in a very different
relation one to another from ours. Yet they imitate these intervals
and the melody of their songs upon their imperfect instruments very
true ". I would suggest that in the latter passage Lichtenstein put
the cart before the horse, since my observation has shown me that the
sounds producible from the instruments have largely dire&ed the
course of their vocal melodies.

A similar paucity of musical instruments is remarked among
the early descriptions of the Zulu, who nevertheless in the time of
Gardiner (1836), that is to say in Dingane's day, made and used the
ugulu (the first stringed instrument described in Group I) and the

MUSIC 285

umtshingo (the end-blown flute played after the feast of the first
fruits). Both these instruments put the Zulu in possession of a number
of partials of the harmonic series, thus influencing their vocal melody
by giving them not only focal points to concentrate upon, but also
a basis for rudimentary polyphony which in their present-day chants
they utilize to the full. I have further been able to prove that the
umtshingo was in use even in the time of Shaka.

The songs of the Nguni cover a wide range of subjefts, embracing
every phase of the life of the people. The mother sings lullabies to her
children, who later have their own little songs and singing games. The
stories told to them frequently have songs interpolated in them.
The young herds have their own songs, and likewise the girls their
occupation songs. The Zulu girl had special songs performed on the
occasion of her arrival at womanhood. Her suitors sang their courting
songs about her, and at her wedding many songs composed for the
occasion, as well as dance songs, were performed. She and her husband
had their work songs, whether for ploughing, hoeing, threshing,
wood-cutting, or, in more modern times, mining. There were also
songs for beer-drinks, and, finally, funeral wails. In addition to all
these, there were songs associated with the clan or tribe, among which
were definite clan songs, songs of praise to the chief, hunting songs and
songs of war. These last included songs sung before battle and those
sung after it, for during the combat only war cries were heard. Lastly,
and perhaps most sinister of all, there were songs of witchcraft.

Some of these songs were sung by a soloist, usually, though not
invariably, without instrumental accompaniment. Such were, in the
nature of the case, lullabies, herding songs, courting songs, and so on,-
which were the affair of an individual. Others, such as those associated
with the life of the kraal, were sung by small groups of performers.
The tribal songs, which commemorated history, the songs in praise
of the chief, and the war songs, were performed by large choral forces.
The songs of the choral groups were polyphonic in character, men
being the principal performers, the main vocal part being described
by the Zulu word vuma (the " agreeing " part), this part being sung
by the deep voices of the bulk of the men. Instruments, with rare
exceptions, were not used in the choral songs.

The " composition " of Nguni songs might be the work of any
individual, or, in special instances, of a professional song-maker.
The song thus made up (for there was no written notation as there was
no written language) was the expression of the individual, and was

286 PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

sung by him principally, although, if it dealt with some event of com-
mon interest, it might be picked up by others and eventually become
tribal. Polyphonic songs were originated in similar fashion, the
musician-poet singing over to his friends the song he had evolved,
and they in turn extemporizing one, or occasionally more, voice parts
according to the system of polyphony current among them. The
words and the melody of the song formed an indissoluble whole ;
there was normally no such thing as fitting fresh words to an existing
melody ; the close connexion between speech-tone and song usually
precluded the possibility of this. The polyphonic system employed
consisted principally in the singing of additional vocal parts in parallel
with the original part, the musical intervals used being determined by
the scale, which appears to have been originally of a pentatonic nature,
although other notes have been added to it in more recent times.
This device was varied by the use of antiphony, where a soloist would
be answered by a chorus, or one seftion of a chorus would respond to
another. The form of the songs rarely exceeded a single musical
sentence, although, in the case of dance songs, rhythmic variety could
be achieved by the gestures and steps employed.

The isitongi, or official praisers of the chief, utilized in their
epic poetry a manner of enunciation that was frequently akin to
song, by reason of the all-powerful influence of pitch upon their
speech.

Shangana-Tonga song was of a charafter similar to that of the
Nguni. The life-history of the individual could likewise be told in the
songs associated with his aftions from birth to death. Every type of
song that I have mentioned as being characteristic of the Nguni was
found among the Shangana-Tonga, who, however, employed instru-
mental accompaniments in several kinds of song. Professional com-
posers are found among the Shangana-Tonga as among the Nguni.
Drums were invariably used along with the voices in the exorcism
of spirits, and among the Tshopi choruses might be accompanied by
bands of xylophone players. These xylophones bring us face to face
with a new feature ; they are tuned to a heptatonic scale, in spite of the
faft that the basis of Shangana-Tonga song, like that of the Nguni, is
seen to be pentatonic. It would appear, therefore, that in this instance
superposition of one culture upon another has taken place.

Sotho song also presents features like those of the peoples already
described. Circumcision songs, however, may be added to the list
and, in the case of the Tswana who inhabit the dry country bordering

MUSIC 287

on the Kalahari Desert, rain songs. The making of songs is achieved
in similar fashion, and the professional song-maker flourishes side by
side with the amateur. Linguistic differences between Sotho and
Nguni speech bring about analagous differences between the musical
idioms of the two groups ; nevertheless the same general principles
govern the polyphony of both. Among certain of the Tswana tribes
Korana musical influence may be discerned. The main basis of Sotho
vocal music is, however, pentatonic.

Among the Venda, in so far as their mode of life parallels that of
other Bantu, we find song used under precisely similar circumstances.
Here again, language causes the musical idiom of the people to be
individual. But the use of the great mbila, or resonated xylophone,
which is tuned, like that of the Tshopi, to a heptatonic scale, establishes
an instrumental idiom sharply separated from the vocal idiom of the
people. The de^e^ or iron-tongued " piano " of the Lemba is tuned in
similar fashion, and so is the Venda ensemble of reed-flutes. The tune
of the tshikona, or national dance of the Venda (one might almost call
it the national anthem) consists in the sounding on the flutes of the notes
of this seven-note scale in descending order, in a progression of
parallel fifths, accompanied by vigorous drum rhythms, the whole
sounding like the pealing of bells. Most of the flutes (or rather the
sounds of the flutes) have individual names, which are also used for
the corresponding sounds elicited from the xylophone. Several of
these names have a non-Bantu sound, again suggesting, as does the
seven-note scale itself, foreign influence. The xylophone and several
other musical instruments, including the </<?{, the ngoma (large drum),
and the khumbgwe^ a curious flute made from reed and a " kafir
orange ", have undoubtedly come from the north, the last named being
essentially a Karanga type.

One curious musical praftice of the Venda remains. The Vhahwira^
or clowns who dance on the occasion of the sungwi, or circumcision
rites of girls, are only permitted to converse with others by means of
whistling. This they do by imitating the speech-tones of the words or
short phrases which they use by whistling them. I have tested their
powers in this direftion, and have found that they are genuine if
limited. The phenomenon, however, demonstrates once more the
close connexion between Southern Bantu speech and song.

In a short sketch such as this it is impossible to deal with the influence
of the European upon the musical art of the modern Bantu. A brief
outline of this aspeft of the subjeft will, however, be found in one of

288

PERCIVAL R. KIRBY

my papers listed in the critical bibliography which I have prepared. 1
It is likewise impossible to deal with the subjeft of dancing, save only
incidentally.

A perusal of this study should show the student the way in which a
thorough knowledge of the musical praftices of the native peoples
throws light upon many important aspefts of their history and culture.
For there is no doubt whatever that in an art like music, which so
completely fills the life of the native peoples, there are many features
which enable the ethnologist to acquire an insight into native life from
a fresh angle, and from his observation of identical, similar, or borrowed
musical practices, to learn much regarding the migrations of and con-
tafts between those peoples who are the objefts of his study.

GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL MUSICAL TERMS USED IN THIS STUDY

Antiphony Music sung by an individual or chorus in response to that

of another.

Antiphonal Performed in Antiphony.

Ensemble Music in which several vocal or instrumental parts are

performed simultaneously.

Fifth A musical interval (q.v.) which contains seven semitones.

Fundamental Most sounding bodies are capable of vibrating in a variety

of ways, which give rise to notes of different pitches. Of
these the lowest is called the fundamental, and the rest
harmonics (v. Harmonic series).

Harmonics See Fundamental.

Harmonic series A series of sounds produced by the vibration of a stretched
string or of an open pipe. They are in the ratios i, J, i,
J, etc., to infinity. They decrease in audibility the higher
they are in the series (see musical illustration).

Harmony Music in which sounds are combined to form chords.

Harmony implies the simultaneous sounding of notes of
different pitches by different voices or instruments.

Heptatonic (scale) A scale in which there are seven sounds between o&ave and
ottave, e.g. C', B, A, G, F, E, D, C.

Interval The relation between two notes sounded simultaneously.

Musical sentence A musical form or design consisting of two phrases (q.v.).
One sentence = two phrases == four sections = eight motives.
A motive contains one strong accent, and one or more
weak accents, according as it is in duple or triple time.

Nodes When a stretched string is set in vibration, it vibrates simul-

taneously in many different ways, each of which yields
one partial of the harmonic series. When the string vibrates
as a whole, producing its fundamental sound, its maximum
movement occurs at its middle point, its two ends being
motionless. These motionless points are known as nodes.
But when the string vibrates in two equal parts, producing

1 See below, Bibliography, pp. 441-2.

MUSIC 289

its first harmonic, which is an oftave higher than the funda-
mental, it is motionless also at its middle point. This
point is also called a node. If such a string be lightly
touched at this node, and set in vibration, the first harmonic
alone will be elicited. Two nodes, over and above the
points of attachment of the string, are present when the
second harmonic is heard, and so on to infinity.
A musical instrument of Italian origin, made from clay in the
form of a pear-shaped whistle with mouthpiece and several
finger-holes. The Chinese construct a similar type of
instrument.
Name given to the sounds which compose an harmonic

series.
A scale in which there are five sounds between octave and

octave, e.g. C', A, G, E, D, C.

A musical form or design consisting of two sections (q.v.).
It may be in duple or triple time. (See Musical sentence.)
This refers to the " height " or " depth " of a musical sound.
These two terms are merely descriptive. Actually pitch
is measured by the frequency or rapidity of vibrations
which are responsible for generating musical sounds. Few
vibrations per second yield " low-pitched " sounds ;
many yield " high-pitched " sounds.

Polyphonic Music in which polyphony (q.v.) is the aim.

Polyphony Music in which two or more independent vocal or instru-

mental parts proceed simultaneously.

Section A musical form or design consisting of two motives in duple

or triple time. (See Musical sentence.)

Stopped pipe A tube closed at one end. When blown at the other in a

suitable manner, the odd-numbered partials of the harmonic
series can be elicited. An open pipe, on the other hand,
is open at both ends, and from it all the partials of the
harmonic series can be produced.

Tonic The " key-note " of a piece of music ; a note of thd scale to

which all the oth'er notes are related.

The Harmonic Series.

Ocarina

Partials

Pentatonic (scale)
Phrase
Pitch

CHAPTER XIII
TRADITIONAL LITERATURE

By G. P. LESTRADE
INTRODUCTION

SOUTH African Bantu literature may conveniently be divided, as far
as general nature and content are concerned, into three main categories.
There are firstly those works which, though written in Bantu languages,
do not express original Bantu thought. Translations or adaptations of
religious and secular works originally written in European languages,
as well as the majority of books of an educational nature written to
acquaint Bantu-speaking people with some aspect or product of
Western civilization, fall under this class. Then there are produ&ions
which, though conceived by Bantu or by Europeans well versed in
Bantu cultural tradition, and though containing much that is Bantu
in thought and expression, are nevertheless conditioned mainly by the
impact of Western civilization upon Bantu life. They represent the
initial stages of a new phase of Bantu literary activity. Such works
are, for instance, a small but increasing number of tales of the short
story or novel type, a few biographies, a somewhat larger number of
tribal histories, accounts of Native law and custom, and descriptions
of other aspects of tribal life, a few volumes of verse, and odd collections
of essays. Finally we have products of the Bantu literary genius
functioning either in the complete absence of non-Bantu influence or in
fundamental independence of such influence. It is with this last
division alone of Bantu literature that we are here concerned.

The bulk of this traditional literature was in existence before the
advent of the European in South Africa, although as far as is known
none of it was recorded. 1 But a certain proportion was conceived and
produced after the arrival of the white man, and is continuing to be
created at the present time. Its written record is largely the work of
European missionaries and other scholars, although the Bantu them-
selves have taken and are taking an appreciable and increasing part

1 The Bantu had no system of writing ; and the Arabs, though they did reach and settle
on the south-east coast of Africa before the Europeans, and penetrated some distance inland,
do not appear to have left any records of the indigenous literature of the Bantu.

291

292 C. P. LESTRADE

in this work. The more recent evolution of fresh literary material on
the lines of the traditional literature, though perhaps stimulated by
European precept and under European influence, is naturally funda-
mentally the work of Bantu minds only. And so, though not all the
literature of this division is " traditional " in the narrow sense of that
term, though its written form is dire&ly or indire&ly due to European
influence, and though the stimulus for the production of new literature
of this kind is to some extent given by Europeans, the spirit and content
of all the old literature is entirely Bantu, and of most of the new litera-
ture in this class overwhelmingly so.

KINDS OF LITERATURE

The freedom of primitive Bantu literary tradition and the elasticity
of its forms make it impossible to give a rigid classification into which
each of the various compositions will fit. Such differentiated forms as
we may find are relatively few in number and simple in nature. We
may, however, make a preliminary distinction between the two broad
divisions of Prose and Verse, although, as we shall see later, no hard
and fast dividing line between them can be laid down. Prose embraces
two main categories : Narrative Prose, including Myths and Legends,
Fables and Tales, and Didactic Prose, including Proverbs and Riddles
in prose. Verse embraces three main categories : Didactic Verse,
including Proverbs and Riddles in verse, and the miscellaneous Verse-
Lore of tribal initiation ; Lyric and Dramatic Verse, including all the
various kinds of Songs ; and finally that genre intermediate between
the epic and the ode which we have in the Bantu Praise-poems.

Myths, Legends, Fables, and Tales.

The difference between these four is mainly one of content. Myth,
as used here, covers such types of prose narrative as deal with the
creation of the world, the gods and spirits of Bantu belief, and the
origins of things and natural phenomena. By Legend we mean such
traditions as tell of long-forgotten tribal history, of famous deeds of
ancient heroes, and of the origins of tribal institutions. Fables comprise
chiefly the numerous animal-stories of Bantu folk-lore, but also such
narratives about human beings and institutions as, like the animal
stories, usually point a moral as well as constituting a tale. Finally,
all the various narratives which cannot be definitely grouped into one
or other of these three classes are called by the generalized term Tales.

TRADITIONAL LITERATURE 293

The myths and legends, like all primitive myths and legends,
resemble much in our own Classical and Teutonic mythology. But, even
more than in the latter, we see in the Bantu myth and legend that the
gods and spirits, the phenomena of nature, and the heroes and institu-
tions of old, have a distin&ly ordinary and human side in addition to
their superhuman and mysterious qualities. The fables and tales, too,
have their counterpart in European folk-lore, in the stories of Grimm
and Andersen, in the nursery tales of our young years. But in such
stories and perhaps Bantu children and grown-ups like them the
better for it the moral element, which though occasionally quite
absent is usually there, does not play the all-pervading part that it
seems to do in our own folk tales. Some of the stories are quite point-
less, mere art for art's sake. Others serve as little but a framework in
which a catchy lilt and intriguing words may be repeated again and
again. Others are more pointedly didaQic and moralizing. Virtue is
rewarded and vice punished, right conquers might, cleverness gains
the victory over stupidity, the sympathy of the story usually is with
the under-dog, who often comes out top in the struggle between force
and wits. On the whole, however, the tales are told for delight rather
than instru&ion and this delight is heightened considerably by the
dramatic manner in which they are usually told by the reciters, the
effeft of which, once experienced, is unforgettable.

Proverbs and Riddles.

These have much in common with the proverbs of other peoples,
giving in pithy symbolic form some bit of folk-wisdom, or presenting
in intriguing shape some little mental problem. Their range of contents
is extensive, for they touch upon a wide variety of topics, from the
most concrete to the most abstraft. Their philosophical range is
equally great, since some of them are the most platitudinous truisms
and others the most abstruse distillations of thought. Unlike the tales,
however, they are almost exclusively dida&ic and moral in tone and
purpose, summing up the accumulated ethical and philosophical
experience of generations for the benefit of posterity, in a way not
found in the more amorally artistic myths and other narratives. Their
pungent wit and striking aptness render them not the least valuable
of Bantu literary treasures, and they are esteemed accordingly by the
Bantu proverbs by the older generation and riddles by die little
people. Indeed, there exists in some tribes a regular game consisting
in the exchange of interpretations of proverbs or of solutions of

294 G. P. LESTRADE

riddles, players " buying " a new proverb and its meaning, or a new
riddle and its answer, in exchange for a proverb they know or a riddle
with which they are acquainted. Generally, too, Bantu audiences seem
to be much impressed by a person who knows many proverbs and can
use them aptly on appropriate occasions, and they react to the lesson
of a proverb much more readily than more sophisticated people.

Songs.

Passing over didaftic verse, since the nature and content of riddles
has already been touched upon, and since tribal verse-loreis of greater
ethnographical than literary interest, let us now consider the songs,
which constitute the lyric and dramatic poetry of the Bantu. A dividing
line between lyric and dramatic compositions is extremely hard to
find. It must be realized that words of songs are linked in Bantu
society, not only with music, as they are in our own case and even
more inevitably, since the existence of songs not linked to music is
praftically unknown but also, almost invariably, with aftion as well,
whether that aftion be a dance or a ceremony, a game or a ritual per-
formance, a movement or an immobile pose, either colleftive or in-
dividual. It is perhaps due largely to this half-dramatic nature of the
song that nearly all such compositions contain choruses, consisting
usually of purely interjeftional syllables only, which often form the
majority of the content of the song ; or, if the songs have no recurring
refrains, they are arranged strophically in parts to be sung alternately
by different performers.

Bantu poetry is rich in songs of various kinds. We find Elegiac
songs, expressive of mourning for the death of a loved one ; or bringing
into words of artless and simple beauty the passionate cry of the primi-
tive heart wrung by some great sorrow ; or even uttering the half-
pathetic, half-comic complaint of a mind chafing under some minor
hurt. Then there are Love-songs, in which the amorous urges of
adolescence find an outlet in the sighing phrases of the lover, the
frettings of the lovesick girl or the angry tirades of the jealous young
wife. Next come War-songs, with splendidly barbaric choruses, sung
slowly and in strongly-marked rhythm accompanied by earth-shaking
stamping of hundreds of feet and the deafening crash of as many spears
struck on .shields in roaring unison ; and Hunting-songs, with their
note of triumph in the kill. With the Satiric songs we enter definitely
upon the class of lyric conne&ed with concerted dramatic aftion. Such
songs are usually performed strophically, and are often illustrated by

TRADITIONAL LITERATURE 295

mimic aft ion parodying the thing satirized. And it is with this type
of song, also, that we enter the type of Bantu poetry which, in modern
times, very frequently takes the European and his ways as the objefts
of satire. But there is an even more definitely dramatic type of lyric in
the many songs which can be roughly grouped together as Action-songs,
including Dance-songs, Mimic-songs, Game-songs, Songs in tales, Work-
songs, and the Ritual-songs sung during the performance of the many
religious or magical ceremonies of Bantu life. In most of the dance-
songs, the chief funftion of the words seems to be to provide a back-
ground of rhythmically-flowing speech for the figures of the dance,
though the words of some dances are more than vox et praeterea nihil,
being praises of the skill of some able performer, or a narration of some
real or imaginary past event in the history of the tribe or of some
individual, and being a&ed out as well as sung. In the mimic-songs,
we have even more direft dramatization, some events being described
at full length in the words, and symbolically imitated in vigorous
aftion, as in the imaginary killing of a foe by a warrior-aftor, or the
imaginary grinding of corn by some housewife-performer. But it is
in the game-songs, work-songs, and ritual-songs, and even, although
perhaps less intensely, in the songs in tales, that we encounter the
greatest degree of combination between the lyric and the dramatic. In
these, we are not listening to a mimic narration of real or imaginary
events : we are hearing, from the lips of the performers themselves, a
symbolized description of a real and living a&ion taking place in the
very present before our eyes. The union between lyric and drama
could hardly be closer.

Praise-poems.

These compositions are regarded by the Bantu themselves as the
highest produfts of their literary art. They are a type of composition
intermediate between the pure, mainly narrative, epic, and the pure,
mainly apostrophic, ode, being a combination of exclamatory narration
and laudatory apostrophizing. In form they consist of a succession
of what may be called loose stanzas of an irregular number of lines,
each line containing a varying number of words, with, however, a more
regular number of strong stresses, the whole being in such balanced
metrical form as will be described below in dealing with literary
technique. In content they consist of phrases and sentences in praise
of some tribe, clan, person, animal, or lifeless objeft which, as a
group or individually, is the subject of the poem. They narrate, in

296 G. P. LESTRADE

high-pitched adulatory style, deeds for which the subjeft has acquired
fame, enumerating, in hyperbolic apostrophe, those qualities for which
he is renowned ; and they include a recital of those laudatory epithets
applied to him either as a member of a group or as an individual,
and known as his " praise-names ". The origins of all the older
praise-poems, which include most of the tribal, clan, animal, and
objeft praise-poems, and many of the praise-poems of persons no
longer alive, are lost in the mists of time ; but those of many praise-
poems relating to people still living are preserved, and indeed many
such poems are originating to-day. Persons of but modest rank in
Bantu society usually compose their own praise-poem, and the praise-
poems of their cattle, while those of higher status have theirs composed
by professional bards, the praise-poets and reciters, the only type of
professional literary artist known to tribal Bantu life. 1 These bards,
like those of the earlier stages of Bantu society, not only compose but
also recite their compositions, in addition to declaiming the traditional
poems which have come down from earlier times. Such poets, under
modern conditions of Bantu life, have naturally often taken as the
subjefts of their poems not only the personalities of tribal community
and the material objefts of Bantu culture, but also the personalities
and objefts with which contaft with Western civilization has made them
familiar ; and the more emancipated of them have given their poems
not only new contents but new forms as well, largely under the
influence of European poetic form.

Two only of the subsidiary features of these poems can receive
mention here. The first is the extraordinary difficulty of their language,
which, in the case of the older poems, is often so archaic as to be only
partly intelligible, and which, even in the case of quite new poems,
contains many archaisms and obscurities of other kinds. The second
is the highly figurative and allusive nature of words and expressions
used, which require a considerable amount of extensive and intensive
historical as well as ethnographical knowledge for their understanding,
and which are, even with such knowledge, often lost to us and still
more often only partly explicable. This obscurity of language and
allusion, it may be added, presents itself even to the very reciters
of such poems, who, though they declaim the verses at the greatest
speed at which their vocal organs can articulate, are often quite at a loss
to give an intelligible explanation of their meaning.

1 The praise-poet and reciter was and still is a much-respe&ed and well-rewarded member
of the official tntouragt of Bantu chiefs and important sub-chiefs.

TRADITIONAL LITERATURE 297

ORIGIN AND PROPAGATION

The literature described above existed only orally before the com-
paratively recent recording to which we have referred. Much of it
even of the new kind is found only in oral form at even the present
day, and some of it how much it is difficult to estimate has dis-
appeared before being written down. What is true of the traditional
literature in this regard is true also of its history. Most Bantu literature
of the old type has been handed down through purely oral channels
over periods of time varying in length, but all stretching far enough
back for such history to have become, in most cases, legendary. The
problem of the origins of indigenous Bantu literature is therefore on
a par with that of the origins of primitive tradition generally. In the
vast majority of cases, it is utterly impossible to say whether an in-
dividual piece of folklore owes its origin to a single person or to a
group of persons, and what the relation may be between its form as
originally conceived and the form in which it has been handed down to
us. In almost all cases, the names of the original authors of the pieces
have been entirely lost ; and in the extremely few instances in which
such names have been preserved it would be unwise to place absolute
reliance upon the tradition. As to the forms of the pieces, comparative
Bantu folklore, by comparing and contrasting different versions of
the same item taken down at different times and from different tribes,
may throw some light on the Protean vicissitudes of a single literary
product. Little conclusive evidence can, however, be found even
about the original forms of the various traditions, and praftically
none at all about their origins. But though we cannot say how Bantu
folklore did originate, we can, perhaps, draw certain reasonable
conclusions as to how it may have originated, if we observe popular
Bantu literature in process of birth and propagation to-day.

Although the produ&ion and to some extent the dissemination
of a body of traditional folk-literature falls somewhat naturally into
the hands of individuals with special aptitude, yet this is by no means
the specialized thing among these primitive folk which it has come to
be among ourselves. A comparatively large proportion of Bantu, men
or women, old or young, are potential creators of literature, a still
larger proportion are adapters or declaimers of it, and the literature
produced and propagated soon becomes the common possession of the
people as a whole. Individualism and specialization, though by no
means absent from Bantu society, are not found to the extent they are

298 G. P. LESTRADE

in our own, nor have they penetrated into as many departments of
life as they have in the more complex civilized communities. We must
remember also that the Bantu possess a strong strain of conservatism in
their mental composition, and tend to be averse to innovations, in
literature as in other things. And, what is more important in the
present connexion, they tend to resist an innovation until it has itself
become so well-worn that the name of the originator is forgotten,
and even the names of those who first took it up are but dimly re-
membered. Under such circumstances, it need not surprise us ihat
indigenous Bantu literature grows but slowly and against considerable
odds not the least of these latter being the absence or very limited
praftice of writing under even modern tribal conditions and that
much if not most of such literature tends to originate anonymously
or to become anonymous in a very short space of time.

But there is, even apart from the work of consciously individual
modern Bantu authors, a certain amount of personal creative aftivity
even under such conditions, and a still greater amount of literary
propagation by individuals. Numbers of purely tribal Bantu will, for
instance, conceive a tale, perhaps quite new, perhaps adapted, perhaps
based on some experience of their own ; or they may compose both
the music and the words of little snatches of song, or invent a fresh
riddle or turn a new proverb ; and may compose their own praise-
poems, or the praise-poem of some person whom they wish to honour,
or of some animal dear to them, or of their people or country. Such
individual compositions may live for the moment only, or may last
and eventually become incorporated into the communal folk-lore. In
either case the names of their authors tend, with few exceptions, to
remain obscure, and eventually to vanish from men's memory. The
names of those who learn such compositions from their authors,
incorporating them into their declamatory rdpertoire, and giving
them a wider forum and longer life, are apt to suffer a better fate.
But the names of even the more famous tellers of tales or reciters of
poems rarely outlast the memory of a single generation. And so,
though many individuals help to make Bantu folk-lore, and more help
to disseminate it and keep' it alive, their personal share in it tends to
be forgotten as it is absorbed into the general wealth of communal
tradition.

Coupled with this there is a tendency to vary the original content
and form of such pieces, to adapt them to various circumstances,
to change them about with the passage of time, to lay them aside and

TRADITIONAL LITERATURE 299

to revive them only in much-altered guise, so that after a while there
is no saying how far a piece may be altered out of its original version.
A grandmother telling a folk-tale round the evening fire may forget
some of it and may either omit what she forgets or make up fresh
seftions of her own to fill the gap in her memory. A praiser reciting
the praise-poem of his chief's ancestors may, in the excitement of the
moment, omit, or add, or alter the order or construftion of stanzas
as his memory serves him and circumstances vary. The words of a
song may, by the time they have travelled from distrift to distrift
and from tribe to tribe, become utterly different from what they were
on the lips of their original author. Even proverbs, those change-
resisting elements in Bantu literature, may acquire fresh interpretations,
and, with new interpretations, new forms. Tribal Bantu literature
therefore may be said to be traditional rather than innovatory, com-
munal rather than individual, and elastic rather than fixed, in both
content and form ; its creators tend to be or become unknown ;
and those who propagate it tend to be equally obscure.

Certain exceptions to these broad generalizations must, however,
be noted. The generalization in regard to the mainly traditional nature
of Bantu tribal literature must not be taken too exclusively or too
literally. It has already been shown that much of this literature has
originated in recent times, is originating even to-day under purely
tribal conditions, and is therefore not an inheritance from the past
as far as content is concerned, though in form it may be largely or
entirely constructed on traditional models. In content, a good deal of
this modern Bantu folk-lore is quite new, treating of themes and con-
ceived in a spirit utterly foreign to the ancestral Bantu. Radical changes
in form are rarer even in the newer literature, but they are by no
means absent.

Again, while what has been said above about the communal nature
of the literature and the obscurity of authors and propagators is true
in general, we must notice one or two modifying faftors. In every
Bantu community, certain people will stand out above their fellows in
regard to their ability, in respeft of memory or elocutionary power, or
both, to recite the traditional literature. And, as the stock of such
literature is too large for a single person to know it all by heart, people
tend to specialize as to the type of literature they recite, or as to their
repertoire within the same type, or in a combination of these. They
may sometimes know only one or two stories, or declaim only one
or two praise-poems, or come out over and over again with the

300 G. P. LESTRADE

same small number of proverbs, riddles, songs, and so forth. Some
persons acquire a considerable reputation for the extent of their
repertoire; others acquire a smaller but no less definite reputation
for its quality.

In this connexion, also, it is interesting to note that we may some-
times observe the existence of something faintly approaching our
European notion of copyright not so much in regard to authorship,
however, as in regard to performing rights. A certain tale will tend
to be told, a certain praise-poem to be recited, by only one person in
a community, who has made the piece peculiarly his or her own,
and who has in this way acquired a sort of vested performing right
in it. Others, who may know the piece as well as the person concerned,
will refrain from declaiming it, or at least from declaiming it on any
public or semi-public occasion, not wishing to infringe upon his
susceptibilities. A very special case in this regard is the tribal praise-
poem reciter attached to the chief of a tribe. He not only specializes
in knowing and declaiming the traditional praises of the tribes and clans
and of the chief and his ancestors, but also makes a new praise from
time to time as occasion demands ; and recites them whenever and
wherever they have to be delivered. So, too, we find special repositories
of the songs, formulae, and other items of tribal lore communicated
to the neophytes in the tribal initiation schools ; and persons who,
as chief performers in the many rites and ceremonies of Bantu life,
recite the prayers, incarnations, exhortations, and formulae generally
which occur on such occasions, and who are generally the only people
in the tribe who can or may do so. In regarding Bantu literature as
mainly communal in origin and performance, therefore, we must
once again not be too narrow or literal in our interpretation.

The presence of the European has brought about several important
changes in regard to the produ&ion and propagation of literature
even of the traditional type. European appreciation of and interest in
Bantu literature of the traditional type, coupled with the introduction
of writing and printing, has not only stimulated educated Bantu to
colled and set down a body of this literature, but has also encouraged
some to write original pieces of their own in imitation of the ancient
models, with such changes in content, or form, or both, as have been
or will be noted. Writing and printing and the influence of the
European 'tendency towards standardization have further, it need
hardly be stressed, tended to make Bantu tribal literature much more
stable and rigid in content and form than was the case before. This

TRADITIONAL LITERATURE 301

modern type of literature, then, tends to be innovatory rather than
traditional ; individual rather than communal, in so far as the Bantu
have absorbed European ideas about individuality in authorship,
about literary reputation, and about conscious, sustained, and
specialized literary effort, not to mention questions of literary property ;
and fixed rather than elastic.

Here again various exceptions must be noted. There is still much
close, even slavish, imitation of the old models, we still find numerous
examples of an absence of the notion of individual literary property,
and an appreciable proportion of the popular literature of the modern
Bantu is still in a state of flux in regard to content and form. The dis-
semination of this newer literature of the old type also, in general, takes
place on new lines. Private reading is beginning to take the place
of public listening, and literature which would under other circum-
stances inevitably become communal property is beginning to be
communicated only to those who can read it in its printed form. But
here also there are exceptions. Public reading is often done now
where public recitation was done before, and in this way these
productions, instead of finding smaller, often find larger ultimate
audiences than would be the case in the old days. We must also not
overlook the faft that some modern productions of the traditional
type have been and are being translated, not only from the original
Bantu languages into European languages, but also from one Bantu
language into another, and that their sphere of appeal is thus being
enlarged in a way which could hardly have happened under more
restricted tribal conditions. Not only in regard to content and form,
then, but also in regard to the manner of its production and propaga-
tion, Bantu literature even of the traditional type is to-day something
considerably different from that of pre-European Bantu life.

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS

In proceeding to consider briefly a few of the more salient general
characteristics of Bantu traditional literature, we must remember at
the outset that we have to do here with the folk-tradition of a primitive
people, not with the individualized literary monuments of a highly-
civilized community. We must accordingly be prepared to find in
this primitive literature a lack of individual differentiation in its different
branches, in its technique in the various types, in the different pro-
duflions in its various subdivisions, and in the personalities of the

302 G. P. LESTRADE

various authors who have expressed themselves through its medium ;
as well as a lack of sophistication, an absence of conscious literary
tradition, and the virtual non-existence of a critically interpretative
spirit.

On the other hand, the very lack of these qualities gives us a body
of literature which, through its very homogeneity, possesses an un-
usual unity and individuality when regarded as a whole, a unity which
tends to preserve, perpetuate, and strengthen it against the powerful
fa&ors operating towards its negleft and decay, and an individuality
which goes far to counterbalance the lack of individuality in its
constituent parts. The lack of conscious sophistication and purposeful
criticism in its general spirit also brings with it positive compensating
qualities : primitive Bantu literature is spontaneous, natural, and
fresh, its themes are unaffe&ed, its technique unhackneyed, its expres-
sion free. If its outlook is simple to the point of apparent artlessness,
let us remember that simplicity is one of the corner-stones of great art;
and while not losing sight of the fal that apparent artlessness may
conceal a true and deep art, let us also not forget that to an artless
spirit may be vouchsafed delights not given to sophistication. Further,
if in this simple literature we encounter a certain poverty of inter-
pretation and criticism of life, let us be mindful of the faft that one of
the great aims of such art may be to attempt an escape from drab
and oppressive reality into an ideal world beyond our power of inter-
pretation and above our ability to. criticize. And so, if we attempt to
assess the value of this literature, we may perhaps be not altogether
unjustified in asserting that this simple product of the primitive Bantu
genius may justly claim our attention and respeft both for its marked
individuality of spirit and execution, and for the true and fundamental
artistic principles upon which it has based itself.

LANGUAGE, STYLE, AND TECHNIQUE
Language.

No treatment of Bantu literature would be complete without some
reference to the part played by certain characteristic qualities of the
Bantu languages in imparting to it certain of its typical features. The
dominantly vocalic quality of the Bantu sound-system, the absence of
neutral and indeterminate vowels, and the general avoidance of con-
sonant-combinations, give to spoken Bantu speech and literature a
sonority and beauty of utterance of a high order. And, on the other

TRADITIONAL LITERATURE 303

hand, the presence in Bantu sound-systems of consonants and con-
sonant-combinations, particularly in the languages of the South,
rich in qualities of onomatopoeia and picturesqueness, lends to these
languages a power of effe&iveness in description and narration which
adds materially to their expressive qualities. Strongly-marked dynamic
stresses, occurring in more or less regular positions in all words of
the same language, and the fairly regular incidence of long syllables also
usually in the same positions, give to Bantu utterance a rhythmic
quality and a measured and balanced flow not met with in languages
with irregular stresses and more staccato delivery. Moreover, the
existence, in the Southern Bantu languages especially, of a system of
intonation also gives to these languages a musical quality not possessed
by less markedly and more evenly intoned languages.

But it is not only in respeft of their sound-system that the Bantu
languages possess qualities which render them apt literary media.
Their grammatical system also is of such a nature that it lends itself
readily to the work of precise and eloquent literary expression. Bantu
grammar, with its wealth of forms, its transparency of structure,
its marked regularity, its closely-knit system of concordial agreement,
its simple and direft syntaftical construftion, possesses high qualities
of precision and clarity for the expresion of thought. Its remarkable
power in the creation of a wealth of derivative forms, of which the
wonderful fecundity of the verb-system is perhaps the best but by no
means the only example, lends to this precision and clarity the further
quality of being able to make extremely fine distinftions of thought
and to express extraordinarily delicate shades of meaning.

Bantu words also possess certain more purely semantic qualities
which help to give Bantu speech a high degree of literary value.
The total extent of the vocabulary of a Bant;u language would appear
to be normally appreciably less than that of a European literary
language, even if we allow liberally for the faft that our knowledge
and written record of such extent probably represent only a fraction
of the aftual range, and even if we take as our measure not merely
absolute size, but rather effeftive calibre. But what Bantu languages
may lack in the total extent of their vocabulary, they make up in the
relative range of their words in the fields of experience which the
languages have translated into spoken symbols. Indeed, it would be
fair to say that these languages are really poor only in respeft of such
words which designate things outside Bantu tribal experience, and that,
with regard to the fields of experience with which Bantu thought is

304 C. P. LESTRADE

familiar, the extent of Bantu vocabulary tends to be rather larger than
that of the average European language.

Many words, moreover, are also charafterized by a high degree
of aptness and picturesqueness in the facets of experience which they
express, and in the imagery with which they express them. Even
the commonest aftions, objefts, qualities, and descriptive notions
may be indicated by words showing this quality of picturesque
imagery. As if this were not enough, Bantu languages possess a type of
word, the ideophone, as it has come to be called recently, which
is particularly fit for the vivid and picturesque expression of qualities
of objefts or descriptions of aftions. A few examples may be given
here from Northern Sotho. Mojalefa, literally " the eater of the inherit-
ance ", is the regular term applied to the principal son in a house-
hold, who is the principal heir, and who may possibly squander the
inheritance of the other children, which is entrusted to him ; bohlaba-
tfatti and losobila-tfotti, literally " where the sun pierces " and " where
the sun goes down" respe&ively, are the only terms known for
" East " and " West " ; and molalatladi, literally " the sleeping-place
of the lightning ", is the name of the rainbow, as tsela ya badimo,
literally " the path of the ancestral spirits ", is the name of the Milky
Way.

Such terms, the last two more particularly, illustrate another marked
feature of Bantu speech : its highly figurative quality. This comes into
play particularly owing to the comparative poverty of the Bantu
languages in abstraft terms, although this does not of course mean that
they are unable to convey abstraft ideas. One sees this quality of
using concrete expressions for conveying abstract ideas, and conveying
them effectively and picturesquely into the bargain, in such idiomatic
sayings as the Zulu phrases ukudla ngengxwembe endala (to eat with
an old (-fashioned) spoon) in the sense of " to hold fast to old-fashioned
customs or ideas " ; uyisifuBa sami (he is my chest) in the sense of " he
is my intimate friend " ; and wakhuluma ngomlomo-mbili (he spoke with
two mouths) in the sense of " he was dissimilating " : or in the Southern
Sotho idioms a ntsena hanong (he entered into my mouth) in the sense
of " he interrupted me ", ba mo lomUe tsebe (they have bitten his ear)
in the sense of " they have whispered to him, they have informed him
surreptitiously ", seatla-kobong (the hand in the cloak) in the sense
of " a bribe ", and ka itSoara bojaba (I held my elbow) in the sense of
" I listened attentively ". Bantu literature, like Bantu speech, is full
of such delightful things.

TRADITIONAL LITERATURE 305

Styk.

In spite of the phonetic and semantic picturesqueness of the Bantu
word and the figurative and imaginative nature of Bantu idiom or
perhaps because of such qualities the general effeft of Bantu style
is one of simplicity and unaffe&edness. It has been mentioned above
that the syntax of the Bantu languages is of a direft and simple kind.
Sentences are short, longer sentences are broken up into co-ordinate
rather than subordinate parts, complex and involved constru&ions
are praftically absent. Figurative speech is used to a considerable
extent. But the number of different rhetorical figures employed is
small, and the figures themselves are not of an elaborate kind. With
few exceptions, therefore, we get no impression of any straining
after literary effeft, except in the praise-poems, the one type of com-
position where tribal Bantu literature appears to have become fully
conscious of itself and of its rhetorical possibilities, and where we get
deliberate and purposeful searching after effeftive expression.

It will hardly need stressing, however, that the style of the various
compositions to be found in Bantu literature varies at least as much as
the contents of these compositions, from the older to the younger pieces
and from the simpler to the more elaborate types. In the older pro-
du&ions, the language itself too will naturally be different from that of
the younger. Words are found in earlier phonetic forms, with meanings
and in funftions now rare or obsolete; grammatical forms and
syntactical constructions dating from a long-past period in the history
of the language are preserved in these older pieces ; words occur the
meanings of which have been entirely lost or are only dimly remembered ;
expressions and idioms whose exaft force cannot now be determined
with any accuracy ; and metaphors and other figures of speech are met
with whose rhetorical effeft and very significance are lost to us or
only imperfeftly recoverable.

Even in the younger produftions, however, where the language is
at once more easily comprehensible and more homogeneous, we en-
counter great differences of style, from the artless discursiveness and
unaffefted imagery of the folk-tales to the stark economy of phrasing
and the elaborate figures of speech in the ritual chants, from the
transparent simplicity and highly-charged emotion of the dramatic
songs to the crabbed allusiveness and sophisticated calm of the proverb,
and from the quiet humour and modest dida&icism of the riddle to
the high seriousness and ambitious rhetorical flight of the praise-poem.

306 G. P. LESTRADE

Although the marked differentiation and individualism of styles in
European literature is not found here, yet there is considerable variety
in the styles of the different types of composition.

Technique

The comparative absence of conscious tradition and convention
in tribal Bantu literature results inter alia in the free, unspecialized, and
simple nature of the technique which we meet in its various composi-
tions. Different types of literature do, of course, tend to be modelled
in different and characteristic forms. So, for instance, the riddle is
often given in a set type of formula with fixed constituent parts, the
folk-tale in nearly all cases contains snatches of song repeated at
various intervals, and frequently tends to be delivered in a sort of
half-spoken, half-sung chant, while the praise-poem everywhere has
even more set conventions of construction, form, and delivery.
But, while such different types of piece tend to be expressed in different
forms, the technique of these forms is in itself neither rigid nor
elaborate, nor highly individual. The only aspeCt of Bantu literary
technique that is at all markedly characterized by the three last-
mentioned qualities is its prosody ; and a very brief reference to some
of the typical features of Bantu poetry in this regard will be made here,
to give the reader some idea of such technique of construction as the
Bantu possess.

But first, since the term "prosody" is apt to convey to one
acquainted mainly with European conventions in this field the notion
of a distinCt formal difference between prose and verse, and of the
charafterization of the latter by fixed systems of metre, rhyme, allitera-
tion, or other scansional mechanisms, let us remember that, in this
primitive literature, the distinction between prose and verse is a small
one, and that the border-line between them is extremely difficult to
ascertain and define, while the verse-technique, in so far as verse can
be separated from prose, is extremely free and unmechanical. Broadly
speaking, it may be said that the difference between prose and verse
in Bantu literature is one of spirit rather than of form, and that such
formal distinction as there is is one of degree of use rather than of
quality of formal elements. Prose tends to be less emotionally charged,
less moving in content and full-throated in expression than verse ;
and also but only in the second place less formal in structure, less
rhythmical in movement, less metrically balanced. To these very broad
generalizations there are, of course, exceptions, notably that proverbs

TRADITIONAL LITERATURE 307

and even riddles, which do not as a rule have a high emotional content,
are often found in verse ; but on the whole they may be considered
valid.

The chief struftural features of Bantu verse, like those of Hebrew
poetry, are balance of ideas and balance of metrical form. This notional
and metrical balance takes various shapes : it is found as parallelism
in such a case as that of the Zulu proverb

Kuhlwile/pfiambili/f kuslle / tmuva
(It is dark/in front//it is light/behind) x

where not only idea is contrasted with idea in position for position
and through identical types of part of speech, verb contrasted with verb
and adverb with adverb, but where also the number of syllables in
each contrasted pair of words is the same and the dynamic stress on
each in the same position. It is found as cross-parallelism or chiasmus
in such a case as that of another Zulu proverb

India / kayihdmbi // kuhdmb* / Indldla

(Prosperity/does not travel//what does travel (is)/po\erty) 2

where contrasted nouns and verbs respeftively denoting contrasting
ideas occur in opposite positions in the constituent phrases of the
sentence, and where such correspondence as is found between number
of syllables and position of dynamic stresses in the contrasted words
must be looked for crosswise and not direftly. It is found also as a
form for which we have elsewhere provisionally coined the term
linking in such an example as the Southern Sotho lines

E sa lemile U boea, k homo halt,
Khomohali ea Ao-Setebane,
Ea bo-Setebane t ea bo-Rapolile.

(It has ploughed with hair on its body, the big beast,
The big beast of the Setebanes,
Of die Setebanes, of the Rapoliles),

a device whereby some prominent word in the latter half of a line,
usually the last word, is repeated in the first half of the succeeding
line, usually as the first word a process observed twice in the three
short lines cited above. The purely metrical balance of such lines is
more difficult to show : the reader may be assured, however, that they
are perfeftly balanced according to Bantu metrical feeling. We

1 Cf. "It is easy to be wise after the event ".

* i.e. prosperity does not spread easily, poverty does.

308 G. P. LESTRADE

may note, further, that this purely formal balance, apart from the
balance of ideas, may extend from contrasted words and phrases of
similar grammatical funftion, number of syllables and position of
stressed and long syllables, to correspondence of intonation as well,
in such a sentence as the Northern Sotho proverb

Pala-xabeeK /e phalaf pala-xangwf
(Count-twice/ excels /Count-once) l

where the very intonation of that contrasting words pala-xabedi and
pala-xangwi is identical. Balance of form can hardly go further.

1 i.e. it is better to think twice about any project.

CHAPTER XIV
LANGUAGE

By C. M. DOKE

THE Bantu languages are one of four main language families represented
among the Natives of Africa. The Sudanic or Negro family of
languages, with many sub-groups, stretches across Africa at its widest
part from Cape Verde to the confines of Abyssinia, and comprises
over four hundred languages of an isolating type, in which syllable
tone plays as important a part as in Chinese. These languages are
almost devoid of inflexions and are believed to be among the oldest
in Africa. Then a remotely intrusive language family in Africa is the
Hamitic, with its representatives scattered over North and North-
East Africa, including such members as Hausa, Berber, Galla, and (in
South Africa) Hottentot. These Hamitic languages, rich in inflexion
and employing grammatical sex-gender, are related to Ancient
Egyptian. A third language family, more recently intrusive in Africa,
is the Semitic, also found in the North and East, to-day most noticeably
represented by Arabic and several languages of Abyssinia.

The Bantu family of languages is located in a continuous area
stretching southwards from a line drawn from the Gulf of Cameroons
on the west, above the northernmost bend of the Congo, to the south
of Lake Albert, above Lake Victoria, and across to the East Coast at
the mouth of the Tana River. A few non-Bantu enclaves are found
within this area, principally that of the Hamitic Masai and their neigh-
bours south-east of Lake Victoria, and those of the Bushmen and
Hottentots in South and South-West Africa. Beyond the northern,
and more particularly the north-western, border is naturally to be found
a number of languages with Bantu characteristics but large non-Bantu
elements : those in the Nile valley bearing Hamitic or Nilotic features
are termed Bantoid, and those with a strong impregnation of the Sudanic
in West Africa are usually termed Semi-Bantu.

MAIN CHARACTERISTICS

The characteristics of the Bantu languages are in some respe&s
unique, though there is a certain parallel of form in many languages of

309

310 C. M. DOKE

the South Seas. The main characteristics may be summed up as
follows :

1. Grammatical Class-gender in Place of Sex-gender. By this the
nouns are divided into a number of classes depending on the form of
their prefix. Certain of the noun classes have definite significances,
such as " personal ", " abstract", " diminutive", " augmentative",
" of length " ; but sex-gender, masculine, feminine, etc., is not a
grammatical consideration in Bantu. Some 23 classes have been
identified in Bantu ; of these Zulu uses 13, Southern Sotho 12, Shona
1 8, Lamba 19, Ganda 19, and Swahili 12, to instance a few typical
languages. Generally speaking a change of class prefix is made to
differentiate singular from plural ; for instance in Sotho : motho,
a person, batho, people ; selepe, axe, lilepe, axes. Class prefix change
also at times alters significance, e.g. in Lamba : umuntu, person
(awantu, people) ; icintu, thing (ifintu, things) ; uwuntu, humanity ;
akantUj little thing (utuntu, little things).

2. The Employment of the Alliterative Concord, by which all words
grammatically connefted with the noun assume an element, usually
prefixal, in harmony with the prefix of the noun ; for instance in
Zulu :

{ikaBaBa %onke ^aluka kuleyo-ntaSa ende.

Cattle they-of-my-father they-all they-graze on-that-hill it-high.
My father's cattle are all grazing on that high hill.

ABantwana BakaBaBa Bonke Badlala kulowo-muthi omde.

Children they-of-my-father they-all they-play on-that-tree it-high.
My father's children are all playing on that high tree.

3. An Underlying Unity of Roots. A large number of word roots is
found with phonetic variations throughout the Bantu languages.

4. A Bask Quinary System of Numeration. Although many Bantu
languages have to-day a decimal system with names for the numbers
up to ten, it is found that those representing six to nine are of later
development, borrowings, as in Swahili from Arabic, or composite
terms as in Nguni and Sotho, while the words for one to five and ten
are the typical Bantu. In Central Bantu languages counting is in
fives, ninety-nine, for instance, being " tens five and four, and five
and four ".

5. A High Development of the Verb Tenses. With a differentiated
positive and negative conjugation, several moods and implications,
and five time-distinftions, present, remote and immediate past,
remote and immediate future, a very high and intricate development

LANGUAGE 3 I3C

of the verb is found in most Bantu languages, capable of subtle
and minute distinctions.

6. A Wealth of Verbal Derivative Forms. The verbal derivatives, a
feature of Semitic and Hamitic languages, are very numerous in Bantu,
where, by changing the verbal suffix, passive, neuter, causative, applied,
reciprocal, intensive, reversive, extensive, associative, perfedlive, and
other derivative forms are regularly made. The following example
from Xhosa will illustrate : thanda, love ; thandela, love for ; thandisa,
cause to love ; thandana, love one another ; thandeka, be lovable ;
thandwa> be loved.

7. The Ideophone as a Distind Part of Speech. This feature, also
found in Sudanic languages, is widespread in Bantu, though one or
two Bantu languages, e.g. Swahili, seem to lack it. Syntaftically it is
somewhat akin to the adverb, afting as a descriptive of the predicate.
Often onomatopoeic, the ideophone represents manner, colour,
sound, aftion, state, or intensity. It will be dealt with later.

8. The Use of Intonation both Characteristic and Significant. By this,
not only does the system of tone-sequence label the languages but, as
in Sudanic, change of tone or musical pitch sequence constitutes
grammatical inflexion and distinguishes words phonetically alike but
different in meaning. In Shona, for instance, note : ishe, nest of rats,
ishe, chief; shokbj monkey, shoko, word; where the mark above
the vowel indicates a high tone ; or in Zulu : wahamba, he goes,
wahamba, thou goest, with low tone on the first syllable ; mina y I ;
mina, hey !

9. The Employment of Open Syllables Only. The various examples
already given illustrate this. Note that even in such Tswana words as
taung or mafikeng^ of three and four syllables respeftively, the final
ng is a syllablic nasal and therefore comprises an open syllable.

10. The Word-building Work of Stress. It is most important to
realize that stress in Bantu languages is not used for emphasis as in
English, nor to distinguish words otherwise alike, as in content and
content. Stress is the natural word-builder of Bantu, each word having
one, and only one, fully stressed syllable which draws around it certain
unstressed or only partly-stressed syllables. Stress in Bantu is com-
monly on the penultimate syllable.

11. A Balanced Pure Vowel-system with Three Basic Vowels. Typical
Bantu vowels are built up from the basis of i, a, and u ; and each
language has the same number and correspondence of front and back
vowels, with one basic a. Thus Nguni and Lamba have each seven

3 i2 C. M. DOKE

vowels, Sotho nine, Shona five, and so on. Diphthongs and nasalized
vowels are absent or rare, as also are lax and abnormal vowels.

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION

The correft classification of the Bantu languages is by no means
certain yet. A great deal more field investigation, recording, and collat-
ing will be necessary before we can give a satisfactory classification,
but the following may be suggested tentatively.

First of all the languages might be divided into zones or geographical
divisions, as follows :

North-Western (Duala, Fang, etc.)
Northern (Ganda, Rundi, etc.)
Congo (Kongo, Bangi, etc.).
Central (Luba, Bemba, etc.).
Eastern (Bondei, Yao, etc.).
South-Eastern (Nguni, Sotho, etc.).
Western (Mbundu, Herero, etc.).

A readjustment and alteration of these will probably be found necessary,
as well as provision made for intermediate zones for the place of such
languages as Lwena (West-Central), Swahili (North-Eastern), Nyanja
(East-Central), Shona (South-Central), and so on. The language
zones are distinguished one from the other by certain definite
phenomena in phonetics, grammar, vocabulary, or syntax. It must be
realized that individual members of a particular zone may to-day be
living among members of a different zone owing to tribal migrations,
but the zone label is taken from the habitat of the majority.

Within the language zones are found the groups, aggregations of
languages possessing common salient phonetic and grammatical
features, and having a high degree of mutual understanding, so that
members can without real difficulty converse with one another. In
the South-Eastern zone, for instance, there are four groups of Bantu
languages :

Nguni, with the Zulu, Xhosa, and Swazi clusters.
Sotho, with the Northern Sotho, Southern Sotho, and Tswana
clusters.
Venda.
Tonga, with the Tonga, Ronga, and Tswa clusters.

LANGUAGE

Between the clusters within the group there is always some possibility
of literary unification. The name given to a group has often to be of
an artificial type, as in the case of Nguni, Shona, etc., since each dialed
usually has its distinft name, and no common group name may
exist.

Each language given above as belonging to the groups really
indicates an aggregation of dialefts which contribute to or use
a common literary form. For instance in the Sotho group,
the Tswana cluster comprises such dialefts as Kxatla, Thlaping,
Ngwato, Tawana, Kwena, Kxalaxadi, Ngwaketse, Huruthse, and
Rolong. Similarly Zulu, Xhosa, and the other literary forms are made
up of clusters of dialefts. It is the work of investigation to-day to
determine how the dialefts are associated in order to advise on literary
development. Sometimes more than one dialed of a single cluster has
been chosen by different Missionary Societies for translation and
educational work, and a great wastage of energy and dissipation of
effort have been the result.

Within the Union of South Africa and in Southern Rhodesia the
inter-relationship of the dialefts has been fairly well determined,
but there are many parts of Africa where workers are still ignorant
of the real position, and where a programme of language development
is necessarily seriously retarded.

SOUTH AFRICAN BANTU LANGUAGES

In South Africa are to be found representatives of no less than
three distinft language families. The various languages of the Bushmen
belong to the isolating type of speech, akin in strufture (though not
proved so radically) to the Sudanic family of which mention has
been made. It is sufficient here to state that Bushman is built up on a
monosyllabic basis (while that of Bantu is dissyllabic), that grammatical
inflexion is praftically non-existent, that intonation plays a significant
part in differentiating words, and that there is a total absence of
grammatical sex-gender, case, mood, and to a great extent even of
number and tense.

On the other hand the Hottentot languages, of which Nama and
Korana are the only two extant to-day, belong to the Hamitic family,
with its high inflexion, having three cases, three numbers, and three
sex-genders, as well as a well-developed verb conjugation. Hottentot
had very early contaft with Bushman resulting in the acquisition

314 C. M. DOKE

of the clicks and a certain amount of intonation, as well as additions
to the vocabulary. Hottentot too must have contributed vocabulary
to Bushman.

The Bantu languages represent a third African language family.
In the Union of South Africa the two most important groups of
Bantu languages are the Nguni and the Sotho. It is not easy to obtain
reliable statistics, but probably the Nguni speakers number 3,000,000
and the Sotho speakers 1,750,000.

Special Features.

The South-Eastern zone of Bantu languages is marked by certain
definite charafteristics. For instance, the formation of the locative
of nouns is mainly by suffix, whereas Central and Northern Bantu
employ prefixes for this purpose. Further, whereas in Central Bantu
locatives have two funftions, that of adverbs and that of nouns with
locative concordial agreements, the funftion of the locative in South-
Eastern Bantu is solely adverbial. A consideration of one word, that
for " village ", " kraal ", will illustrate both the formation and the
funftion. In Lamba (Central Bantu) the word is umusi y l and the loca-
tive may be patnusi (at the village), kumusi (to, from the village) or
mumusi (in the village), by using the prefixes /?a-, fa-, and mu-.
In Nguni the word is umu^i (Zulu), or um^l (Xhosa), with only one
locative empni y formed by suffix and prefixal change ; and in Sotho
the word is mbtse with one locative mbtseng, formed by suffix. Further,
the Lamba locatives may be used as nouns, subjeft or objeft of the
sentence, with adjeftives, pronouns and verbs brought into concordial
agreement. Note this sentence :

Umu mumusi mwesu umukulu mult awalweU awenji.
In- this in-village in-ours in-big in-are sick-people they-many.

Or with a change to pamusi :

Apa pamusi pesu apakulu poll awalwele awenji.
At this big village of ours are many sick people.

To express this idea in Nguni or Sotho a totally different rendering
would have to be made :

Zulu : Kukhona aBagulayo aSaningi em^ini wakithi lapha.

There-are sick-ones- thcy-many in-village it-of-ours here.

S. Sotho : Mona motseng o monoid oa heso ho na U bakuli ba bangata.

Here in-village it-big it-of-ours there-is-with sick-ones them-many.

The lack of locative concord in South-Eastern Bantu is at once apparent.

1 In Lamba s followed by i or y has the phonetic value of sn.

LANGUAGE 315

Another differentiating feature of the South-Eastern languages is
that they do not indicate the diminutive and augmentative forms of
nouns by a change of class, using the diminutive and augmentative
prefix, but again make these distinftions by means of suffix. To take
again one word for comparison, that for " dog " ; in Lamba (Central
Bantu) the word is imbwa, and the diminutive is formed by prefix,
akabwa (pi. utubwa). The formation in South-Eastern Bantu, however,
is by suffixing -ana^ e.g. in Xhosa and Zulu inja becomes injana (little
dog), and in Sotho and Tswana ntja becomes ntjana. The Shona group,
in Southern Rhodesia, in many respefts provides a bridging between
the Central and the South-Eastern zones, and here in the case of the
diminutive we find alternative formations, by prefix or by suffix
according to dialeft. In the Zezuru dialeft we have imbga giving
kambga (pi. tumbga), in Duma mbga giving mgbana, and in Mari
mbga giving kambga (pi. vumbga\ the last two being sub-dialefts of
Karanga.

These suffixal formations for locative, diminutive, and augmentative
(where Nguni used -kayi and Sotho -halt) go far to explain why typical
South-Eastern Bantu languages have so few noun classes in comparison
to Northern and Central zone languages such as Ganda and Lamba.

Other features of the South-Eastern zone are found in the phonetics.
It is in this zone almost entirely that the peculiar lateral fricative
sounds, represented by A/, <//, tl, etc., are to be found. It is here also
that the phenomenon of palatalization of consonants (especially
labial consonants) takes place. This process is not complete in the
Tonga and Venda groups, where one finds such forms as by, but in
Sotho, and especially Nguni, the process is carried out more systema-
tically and fully. In Zulu, for instance, in the formation of noun
diminutives, verb passives, and locative adverbs, in certain circum-
stances the bi-labial consonants give place altogether to palatals,
ph becoming sh, 6 becoming tsh y b becoming j, and m becoming ny, as
for instance in the passives of hlupha, lofia, baba, and luma, which are
hlushwa, lotshwa, bajwa, and lunywa respeftively. No other Bantu
language zone exhibits this phenomenon.

The existence of clicks, particularly in Nguni, though also found
in Southern Sotho, is due to outside influence. They are a non-Bantu
phonetic phenomenon, and are due to two sources of influence, that
of the Hottentots, especially in the case of Xhosa, and one possibly

1 Except in the case of Venda which has a diminutive class, but Venda leans towards Shona.

316 C. M. DOKE

direft from the Bushmen, whose languages provide the fountain head
of this speech phenomenon.

Differences.

Bantu languages throughout Africa have a tendency, even within
the same zone, to differ from one another in a very important respeft
in regard to the number of syllables in the noun prefix. This differentia-
tion is found in the South-Eastern zone between Nguni, on the one
hand, and Sotho on the other. Nguni languages 1 have typically
dissyllabic noun prefixes, e.g. umu-ntu, afia-ntu^ ama-futha, ili-fwi,
ulu-thoy isi-fu6a, etc., whereas Sotho languages have monosyllabic
prefixes, e.g. mo-tho, ba-tho y ma-fura, le-ntsoe, le-thd, se-fuba, etc. The
difference lies in the fat that in Nguni the noun prefix has an initial
vowel (generally the same as the vowel of the prefix) which the Sotho
languages lack. This has a very far-reaching effefl upon the appearance
of the languages, and one cannot help feeling that herein lies a funda-
mental difference of long standing, which might have some bearing
upon the migration routes of the peoples.

The first effeft of this difference is that in Nguni vowel elision and
vowel coalescence play a large part absent from Sotho. Praftically
all words in Bantu end in vowels. When, in addition, a great number
(all the nouns and adjeftives) commence in vowels, the frequent
juxtaposition of vowels leads to contra&ions. Compare

Zulu : ABant'aBakhulu BaBort'ninkom' c^iningi for ABantu aBakhulu BaBona i[inkomo
tqaungi (The big people saw many cattle).

Southern Sotho : Batho ba baholo la bdna likhomo tse ngata.

In Lamba (Central Bantu) a coalescence of vowels takes place instead
of the elision of Zulu, and the above sentence would therein read
as : Atiantu aftakulu ftatoone-ijombe islnji (for frationa iqombe).
Coalescence may only take place by a fusion of a and i to form e,
of a and u to form 0, and a and a to form a secondary a. In Zulu this
occurs in word-formation, not between words. In Shona (of Southern
Rhodesia) there is no visible initial vowel to the nouns, but in most
diale&s a latent vowel exerts an influence to cause coalescence, and the
above sentence would appear as : vanhu vakuru vavone-rjombe ihinji,
instead ofvavona ijombe^ where rjombe has a latent initial *'.

But the effeft of the presence or absence of an initial vowel in the
noun prefix goes further. Those languages which have no initial vowel

1 It must be observed that Swazi savours of both forms, some of the class prefixes being
dissyllabic, others being monosyllabic.

LANGUAGE 317

in the noun prefix may use " possessives " in a substantival way
as possessive pronouns without any change of form, e.g. in Southern
Sotho :

Mdsali oa hag 5 teng, Impa oa ka o tsamaitt : His wife is present, but mine has gone
away (where oa ka is used substantivally instead of mosati oa ka, my wife).

In Shona (with no visible initial vowel) there is no visible initial
vowel with the possessive pronoun :

Mukadji wake aripo, asi warjgu wafamoa (where warjgu stands for mukady waggu, my
wife).

In Zulu, however, there would be a marked difference, for Zulu is a
language with initial vowels to the noun prefixes :

Umfa^i wakhe ukhona, kodwa owami uhambiU (where owami, an infleQed form, stands
for wnfa[i wami, my wife.)

Similarly in Lamba, another language with initial vowels :

Umukasi wakwe alipo, sombi uwanji waya (where uwanji, an inflefted'form, stands for
umukasi wanji, my wife).

The retention or otherwise of the initial vowel in languages with
dissyllabic noun prefix is of real importance syntaftically, and hitherto
insufficient attentign has been paid to this.

There are other striking differences between Nguni and Sotho,
such as that in relative constru&ion, where Sotho uses demonstrative
pronouns in the indireft relative clause, whereas Nguni uses a relative
concord. Nguni further has a large number of " relative stems ",
mostly formed from nouns, to supplement the few true adjeftives
available. While Sotho has a few of these, such as thata y hard, they
are not so fully developed as in Nguni.

Again in copulative formation, i.e. in the formation of predicates
from other parts of speech, the Nguni languages show a much more
varied inflexion than do the Sotho. Contrast, for instance Xhosa with
Southern Sotho for this :

Xhosa. S. Sotho.

umntu ngumntu (it is a person) motho kl motto

aBantu ngaBantu (they are people) batko ki batho

ili^vi li^wi (it is a word) lintsoe ki lintsoe

inyoka yinyoka (it is a snake) noha ke noha

isidlo suidlo (it is a meal) sejo ki sijo

iqutto wicUo (they are meals) lijo ki Kjo

While Zulu is not so varied in these formations as Xhosa, it is by
no means so rigid as are the Sotho languages, with their immutable
formative ke.

318 C. M. DOKE

Similarities.

The points of similarity between the two groups, however, are far
greater than they appear on the surface. There are two main reasons
for this : (i) the different types of orthography and word-division
employed, and (ii) the remarkable sound-shiftings which have taken
place.

Regarding the first point, where Nguni uses wa- and ya-. Southern
Sotho and Tswana * still use oa and ea, a most confusing orthography :
in faft o and e each represent three different vowel sounds and a semi-
vowel sound. 2 Then the Sotho languages are written disjunftively,
i.e. the words are divided up according to the divisions of what are
conceived to be their European equivalents. The Southern Sotho verb
is parallel to the French verb, and we find kea bona (je vois) ; Tswana
followed Southern Sotho ; but Northern Sotho now divides the verbs
into more strict ultimate parts, parallelled to the English verb, e.g.
ke a bona (I am seeing). The Nguni languages are following more
or less closely the conjunftive method according to the Native pro-
nunciation in speech, e.g. Zulu ngiyaGona? Comparisons of parallel
sentences already given will illustrate this grave difference in word-
division, which seriously militates against easy reading in Sotho.

Regarding sound-shifting, a comparison of Nguni and Sotho pro-
vides a marvellous instance of this phenomenon of Bantu languages.
In Bantu there are intricate laws of sound-shifting far transcending that
of Grimm for Indo-European languages. Unfortunately we have got no
record of a " Sanscrit " of Bantu only a hypothetical Ur-Bantu
painstakingly evolved by Professor Carl Meinhof. Nevertheless we
can learn much from a comparison of Nguni and Sotho. For this I
take Zulu and Southern Sotho as examples :

Southern Sotho.

Zulu.

lapa

lamba

(be hungry)

poll

imbu%i

(goat)

rata

thanda

(love)

taba

indaBa

(affair)

ke ka reka

ngingathenga

(I can buy)

bor6k6

uButhongo

(sleep)

phahld

impahla

(goods)

mot/io

umuntu

(person)

khomo

inkomo

(head of cattle)

mafura

amafutha

(fat)

roma

thuma

(send)

1 Northern Sotho has adopted wa and ya in the new orthography.

1 In the Southern Sotho examples in this paper I have used Jacottet's orthography in which
diacritics are used.

While the new Zulu orthography is correftly conjunctive, Xhosa has still retained a few
exceptions, which result, for instance, in ngiya Bona. Why this has been done in an otherwise
sound system it is difficult to understand.

LANGUAGE 319

Southern Sotho. Zulu.

h ho bbnahala k ukuBonakala (to appear)

hantle kahle (nicely)

h (</(') tSehali ;< inslka^i (female)

lijo ijidlo (meals)

e setho i isintu (tiling)

5 motho u umuntu (person)

The above examples do not enter into some of the finer differences
due to variant etymology. When the different rules of sound-shifting
are understood, words, phrases, and constructions, which on their
surface look totally unlike, are often found to be essentially identical.
This, despite the divergence in the syllabic form of the noun prefixes,
bespeaks for Nguni and Sotho such close approximation that they are
rightly classed as belonging to the same zone of languages. The re-
markable sound-shiftings, however, have the effect of making speakers
of the two types mutually unintelligible ; hence separate groups are
indicated.

GRAMMATICAL FORMS

A brief examination of the grammatical forms of the South-Eastern
Bantu may now be made. There is only space to consider the two main
groups, and again I take Zulu and Southern Sotho as the representa-
tives. There are the usual six fundamental parts of speech, which may
be subdivided according to their special signification into twelve sub-
divisions, which we may consider the real parts of speech, as follows :

Substantive :

(u) Noun (i)

(b) Pronoun (2)

II.

Qualificatisc :

(a) Ad)ecn\e (3)

(*) Relative (4)

(t/) Possessive (6)

III.

Predicative :

(a) Verb (7)

(4) Copulative (8)

IV.

Descriptive :

(a) Adverb (9)

() Idea pi lone (10)

Conjunction :

(ii)

VI.

Interjection :

(")

The Substantive.

It will be noticed that the substantive is divided into two parts of
speech, the noun and the pronoun. The noun may be defined as a
word which signifies the name of anything concrete or abstract, and
the pronoun in contrast as a word which signifies anything concrete
or abstract without being its name.

The Noun.

The noun (except in class la in Sotho) is composed of two parts,
prefix and stem. The stem is to a great extent the constant part, while

320 C. M. DOKE

the prefix changes to form the plural or to give some other significance.
As we have already observed, the noun prefix is of extreme importance,
for it determines the form of the pronouns representing the noun,
and of the concord used in forming the adjeHves, relatives, numerals,
possessives, and verbs brought into relationship therewith.

In South-Eastern Bantu thirteen noun classes are represented,
of which Southern Sotho has but twelve, though all thirteen are found
in some Tswana dialefls. The following list is according to the
numbering of Meinhof for comparative work :

Zulu. Southern Sotho.

Class i. fumu- umuntu (person) mo- mot fid

2. \aa- aBantu (people) ba- batho

3. (umu- umuri (village) mo- motsS

4. \imi- imi{t (villages) mS- metse

5. /*7*-, /- i{inyo (tooth) le- kino

6. \ama- ama^inyo (teeth) ma- mend

7. (in- isifuBa (chest) sS- sefuba

8. V{- ififuBa (chests) It- lifuba

9. /mi-, in- into (thing) /i-, ntho
10. ( \tiim-i ijin- i^into (things) ///i-, //- Untho
n.\ ulu- 9 u- uthango (fence)*

14. uBu- uBuhlungu (pain) bo- bohloko

15. uku- ukudla (food) ho- hoja

The classes are bracketed singular and plural together. Classes i and
2 are confined to persons. There is in addition a sub-class to i and 2,
in which proper names and terms of relationship commonly occur.
In Zulu the prefixes are u- and o-. In Southern Sotho there is no prefix
in the singular, and the prefix in the plural is bo-. Examples : Zulu :
u6a6a, my father (pi. 06060) ; Sotho : ntote (pi. bontate). These
words are treated for concord purposes exa&ly as nouns of classes i
and 2 respectively.

Classes 3 and 4 are non-personal, except for one word, " friend," in
Zulu umhloBo and in Sotho motsoalle^ taking as plurals imihloBo and
metsoalle respeftively.

In classes 9 and 10 we are introduced to that important phonetic
subjeft in Bantu, nasalization. In Zulu the form of the nasal in the prefix
changes to assimilate to the initial consonant of the stem, and the form
of the initial consonant itself undergoes change according to very
definite laws. In Sotho, except in the case of a monosyllabic stem, no
nasal consonant appears in the prefix, but the initial consonant of the
stem undergoes devocalization or hardening, under the influence of
the unexpressed nasal, e.g. thatb^ love < rota ; p6n6, vision < bdna ;
tsild, grindstone < sUa.

Class ii does not to-day exist in Southern Sotho, but some dialefts
of Tswana, in the Sotho group, still use this class with prefix lo-.

LANGUAGE 321

To-day all the corresponding words in Southern Sotho are found in
class 5, with the prefix le- ; but it is noticeable that (i) they take a plural
in class 10 (the normal plural of class n) with prefix fi-, in addition to
the plural in /rza- (class 6) ; and (ii) they almost all indicate long objefts,
the main significance of class n. An examination of some of these
words, comparing them with Zulu, is very interesting, as indicating
the closeness of the two languages ; for instance lerakd, wall, Tswana
lorako, is by sound-shifting uluthangOy fence, in Zulu ; lerole, dust,
Tswana lorole, is in Zulu uluthuli. An amalgamation of classes is known
elsewhere in Bantu, as for instance in the u- class in Swahili, where bu-
and lu- have amalagamated.

It might be noted that class 6 prefix ma- in Sotho is sometimes used
to indicate a quantitative plural, e.g. nku y sheep ; linhi, sheep (plur.),
but mankU) many sheep.

The Pronoun.

There are four main types of pronoun in the South-Eastern Bantu
languages, the absolute, the demonstrative, the enumerative, and the
qualificative. Pronouns must not be confused with verbal concords,
whether subjeftival or obje&ival. The pronoun may be subjeft or
object of the predicate, or in apposition to another substantive.

The absolute pronouns merely indicate the substantives, in no way
limiting them or qualifying them, but they may also be used for
purposes of contrast. When the sound-shiftings are remembered, the
forms in Zulu and Southern Sotho are seen to be remarkably alike :

Zulu. S. Sotho.

ist pers. . . mina, tfuna 'jia, rona

2nd pers. . . wcna, w/ia uina^lona

3rd pers. Class i yena elna

3rd pers. Class a Bono. b&na

and so on. Each set has the " ultimate -na ", needed to make the word
dissyllabic in accord with the stress needs of Bantu.

The demonstrative pronouns indicate three positions, " this," " that,"
and " yonder ", in both Zulu and Southern Sotho, though Sotho forms
indicate the four real positions of Bantu, still fully used in Tswana.
There are forms corresponding to each class of nouns. The representa-
tive for class 2 will suffice :

Zulu. S. Sotho.

ist these laBa bana

and those laBo bad, band

3rd yonder laSaya bani,bal*

322 C. M. DOKE

In Tswana one finds la (these) contrasted with baub (those), and tano
or bana (these here) contrasted with bale or bala (those yonder).
Central Bantu provides the two contrast pairs in more regular form,
and Shona, too, exemplifies them, e.g. ava (these) and avo (those),
vano (these here) and vaya (those yonder). The variant forms and
present confusion in Southern Sotho are indicative of a mixed origin.
Nguni has entirely lost the one demonstrative position.

The demonstrative pronoun may stand alone or in apposition to a
substantive, when it may succeed or precede the substantive. When
the demonstrative precedes a noun, one word-group results, in the case
of Zulu the initial vowel of the noun being elided, e.g. lowo-muntu
(that person), leio-iinkomo (those cattle). In Sotho bad-batho (written
tad batho) is rare, the more usual order being batho bad.

The enumerative pronouns comprise the terms for " all ", " only ",
11 both ", " all three ", etc. These are pronouns used in apposition to
or instead of the noun. They show typical pronominal concords,
as in " all " :

Nguni. S. Sotho. Tswana.

ist pcrs. plur. . sonkc rotlhe

2nd pers. plur . nonk* lotlhe

3rd pers. Class 2 Bonkt bohle botlhe

3rd pers. Class 8 ^onke tsohle tsotlhe

In this, Tswana reflefts the older form of Sotho. Southern Sotho has
lost the forms for the ist and 2nd persons, but Tswana has forms
even for the singulars of the ist and and persons.

The qualificative pronouns are qualificatives, i.e. adjeftives, posses-
sives, etc., used substantially as subjeft or objeft of the sentence. In
Sotho there is no change of form with this change of function, and in
Zulu the change of form takes place only with the possessives. This
point has already been discussed.

The Qualificative.

In South-Eastern Bantu there are four different qualifying parts of
speech covered by the term qualificative. The important distinction
between these four parts of speech is that each one has its own particular
set of concords. The four qualificatives are (i) adjeftive, (ii) relative,
(iii) numeral and (iv) possessive.

The adjectival concord is used with-a very limited number of stems,
such as :

Zulu. S. Sotho.

-khulu (big) -hold

-hi* (fine) -tU

-6i (bad) -4*

LANGUAGE 323

In all, Zulu has about twenty true adje&ival stems, while Sotho has
rather more, including the colour terms, which in Zulu all belong to
the category of the relative. It will be noticed from the table of con-
cords below that Zulu and Southern Sotho are very similar in adje&ival
concord formation.

Especially in Nguni, the relative concord is not confined to its use
in direft relative clause construction, but is used as the concordial
link with certain stems, often derived from nouns, used qualificatively.
Note the following from Zulu : umuntu ohambayo (a person who
travels), umunto oje (naked person), umuntu onsundu (brown person),
umuntu oqotho (honest person), where o- is the relative concord.
To a lesser degree this is also found in Sotho, for instance, motho ea
tsamaeang (a person who travels), motho ea thata (hard man), motho ea
sold (unhappy man), and so on, where ea is the relative concord.

In Central Bantu the numerals i to j have a special set of concords.
In South-Eastern Bantu, with its advanced type of numeration, the
numbers 2 to 5 have become adjeftives, but " one " has retained the
distinctive numeral concord. Note in Zulu : umuntu munye (one person),
with the numeral concord mu-, and in Southern Sotho rnong, with the
concord mo-. In Zulu the stems -phi (which ?), -ni (what ?), and -mbe
(other), are associated with -nye in taking numeral concords.

The possessive concords are used with pronominal possessive stems
in Nguni and for the most part in Old Sotho, though to-day in Southern
Sotho special possessive stems are almost entirely confined to the
singulars of the first and second persons and to class i. Note the
following comparisons :

Zulu. S. Sotho.

ist pers. sing.

-mi -ka

plur.

our

-ithu rona

2nd pers. sing.

thy

-Mo -had

plur. .
3rd pers. Class i

your
his

-inu lona
-kh< -hai

, a

their

-So Ibna

its

-wo o6na

their

-yo ona

In certain compound and locative possessive forms in Southern Sotho,
however, the stems -wo, -i&J, and -W are still found instead of the
pronouns rona, lona, and bdna, as for instance in heso y heno, and hab6.

The possessive concords may also be used before nouns, in Zulu
the a- of the concord coalescing with the initial vowel of the noun
prefix, e.g. iynkomo [enkosi (cattle of the chief), iynkomo ^omuntu
(the person's cattle) ; in Sotho, likhomo tsa marina, likhomo tsa
motno, without change of vowel.

324 C M - DOKE

The following are specimen lists of the qualificative concords :

Adjective. Relative. Numeral. Possessive.

Class, Zulu. S. Sotho. Zulu. S. Sotho. Zulu. S. Sotho. Zulu. S. Sotho.

I om- t mo- o- , ta mu- mo- wa- oa

a aSa- ba la- oBa- ba fa- la- Ba- ba

5 tli- It to- tli- U U- /*- /a- /a

6 ama- a ma- a- a ma- ma- a- a

7 at- st si- tsi- s* si- si- sa- sa
9 in- e n- c- i- n- ya- ta

10 ttfn- tse n- *{*- tse {/- li- %a- tsa

The following examples illustrate the use of the four types of
concord with classes i and 2 :

(1) Adjective : umuntu omkkulu, motho e moholo', aBantu aSakhulu, batho ba baholo.

(2) Relative : umuntu oqatha, motho ea thata ; aBantu oBaqatha, batho ba thata.

(3) Numeral : umuntu munye, mdthS (e) mdngg aBantu Banye^ bathd {ba fa) bang.

(4) Possessive : umuntu wami, motho oa ka ; aBantu Bami, batho ba ka.

The Predicative.

This, the essential part of every Bantu sentence, may be of two kinds,
the verb or the copulative. The verb in Bantu may be defined as " a
word which signifies an aftion connefted with a substantive or the
state in which a substantive is, and is brought into concordial agree-
ment therewith by the subje&ival concord ".* This definition excludes
imperatives and infinitives ; the former are interjections, the latter
nouns. Every verb in South-Eastern Bantu, then, is composed of at
least two pans, the subje&ival concord and the verb stem. In the
disjunftive writing of the Sotho languages the subje&ival (or obje&ival)
concords are separated from the verb stem, as are the various auxiliary
elements. This greatly hinders a proper understanding of the verb
in those languages.

The verb stem may undergo certain inflexions, as in the formation
of the perfeft, certain negatives, etc., as well as in forming the various
derivatives, of which more presently. The subje&ival concord, which
must not be regarded as a pronoun, is also susceptible of change,
particularly in indicating mood. Various auxiliaries are brought in to
assist in forming the tenses and moods, and these are placed some
before and some after the subje&ival concord.

There are two conjugations, a positive and a negative, though some
writers consider a third, the relative, as properly belonging to Sotho ;
it is possible, however, to treat this as one of the moods. Apart from
the infinitive and imperative, there are usually recognized five moods :
indicative, subjunftive, participial, potential, and contingent.

1 Dolce, Bantu Linguistic Terminology, p. 217.

LANGUAGE 325

The infinitive is a noun with a prefix of class 15, Zulu uku-, Sotho Ao-,
e.g. ukuthanda, ho rata (ndratci), to love, loving. The negative is
formed by infix : ukungathandi, ho se rate. Obviously the latter should
be written as one word, for it is a noun.

The imperative is in Bantu syntaftically an inter jeftion. The singular
comprises the plain stem of the verb, e.g. Zulu : hamba, Sotho :
tsamaea, go ! The plural is formed by adding a suffix, in Zulu -,
in Sotho -ng, e.g. hambani^ tsamaeang, go ye !

In the indicative mood there are three implications fully developed.
Note the following examples :

(i) Simple:
Neg.
(a) Progressive :

(3) Exclusive:

Neg.

Zulu.
ngithanJa
angithandt
ngixathanJa
angisathandi
sengithanda
angikathandi

I love
I do not love
I still love
I no longer love
Now I love
I do not yet love

S. Sotho.
kl rata
ha hi rati
kt sa rata
ha to sa raa
k9 se to rata
ha to e-s'o rate

In addition to the distinction of implication, there is a triple dis-
tin&ion of manner, in all the South-Eastern languages, as follows :

(1) Indefinite: ngalamba I got hungry ka lapa

(2) Continuous : ngangilamba I was getting hungry to ne to lapa

(3) Perfect : ngangllambiU I was hungry to ne to lapile

The last manner is confined to stative verbs.

The tense divisions, i.e. the determinations of time significance,
are typically Bantu. They are remote past, immediate past, present,
immediate future, and remote future. The dividing line for the remote
and immediate past tenses is between yesterday and the day before
yesterday. That between the two futures is rather more vague, but
generally remote future is applied to aftions to take place after to-day.
The following examples of the tenses are of the simple implication,
indefinite manner, first person singular :

Zulu. S. Sotho.

Remote past : ngahamla ka tsameaa I travelled (before yesterday)

Immediate past : ngihambile to tsamaile I travelled (to-day or yesterday)

Present: ngihamba to tsamaea I am travelling

Immediate future : ngi^ohamba to ea tsamaea I shall travel (to-day)

Remote future: ngiyohamia to tla tsamaea I shall travel (after to-day)

The above are naturally but representatives of the tenses in the indica-
tive mood. Each complete tense has forms for the ist and 2nd persons
and for each class of the third person. As an example of a full tense,
I give the present negative tense of ukufuna, to want, in Xhosa :

ist pers. sing. . andlfum plur. asifuni

and pers. sing. . akufuni plur. amfuni

3rd pers. Class i akafuni Class 2 aSafuiu

3 awufum 4 ayifuni

326 C. M. DOKE

3rd pers. Class 5 alifuni Class 6 akafuni

7 asifuni 8 a^fum

9 ayifunt 10 arfum

n fl/tt/K/ii ,,14 affufuni

When the objeft of a verb is definite (such as would be indicated
by " the " in English), an objeftival concord is used, and this is
invariably placed immediately before the verb stem within the verb.
Subjeftival and objefHval concords are the same in most cases, but in
Zulu the 2nd person singular is u- (subjeftival) and ku- (obje&ival),
and class i u- and m- respeftively, with slight modifications in other
classes where the subjeftival concords are mere vowels, e.g. - > wu-
i- > yi" and a- > wa-. In Sotho there is entire correspondence
except in the ist person singular where ke is subjeftival concord and
n- obje&ival, and in class i where o becomes mo. Examples : Zulu,
ngiyamthanda, Sotho, kea mo rata, I like him. It is noteworthy that in
both Zulu and Sotho there are two present tenses, and the rules govern-
ing their use are the same in the two languages, e.g. ngithanda umuntu,
ke rata mdtho, I like a person ; but ngiyamthanda umuntu, kea mo rata
mothd) I like the person ; the latter examples being with objeftival
concord.

In the subjunctive mood, though there are several tenses, the simple
present is the one generally recognized, e.g. Zulu, ngihambe ; Sotho,
ke tsamaee, that I go.

The participial mood, sometimes called in Sotho the " dependent
indicative " is represented by many tenses. Among its uses is that after
certain conjun&ions and in forming relative clauses. Note : Zulu,
uma eBi^a ; Sotho, ha a bitsa, if he calls. It is also used " participially "
as in Zulu, uyogijima eBaBi^a ; Sotho, o tla titima a ba titsa, he will
run calling them.

The potential mood in Zulu and Sotho is also pra&ically the same,
as in the present tenses : Zulu, Bangafii^a ; Sotho, ba ka bitsa, they
can call.

The contingent mood is more intricate and difficult to compare.

An examination of the stem of the Bantu verb reveals the following
classification :

(i) Regular dissyllabic verbs ending in the vowel -a in their simplest
form, e.g. 'Zulu: Bona, see; thanda, like ; A/a/a, sit; Sotho: kona,
rata, lula, respectively.

(ii) Monosyllabic verb stems, limited in number, but indicating
such common a&ions as Zulu : -dla y eat ; -pha, give ; -fa, die ;

LANGUAGE 327

in Sotho, ja, fa, shoa, respectively ; and including such a defective
verb as -thi (say), in Sotho re.

(iii) V( owel verbs, i.e. verbs commencing in vowels ; e.g. in Zulu :
akha, build ; en%a, do ; okha, transfer fire ; in Sotho, aha, etsa, and
okha respe&ively. Though these are limited in Zulu to words com-
mencing in the vowels a, e, and 0, Sotho has vowel verbs also com-
mencing in e, /', 0, and u, e.g. ema, stand ; ila, avoid ; otla, feed ;
utioa, hear.

(iv) Derived verbs, i.e. verbs not primitive in form. These are of
three types :

(a) Verbal derivations, i.e. verbs derived from a simple verb by
suffix formation ; of these more in a moment.

(i) Ideophonic derivatives, i.e. verbs derived from ideophones by
suffixing, in Zulu generally -ka (intransitive), -la (transitive), and -\a
(causative) ; e.g. from 6Uili (of sliding apart) are formed Bihlika (fall
apart), Bihhla (knock apart), Bihlika (scatter about). These are not
common in Sotho, but extremely numerous in the Nguni language.

Zulu : -pha, -phala, e.g. ihloni (shame), hlonipha (pay respeft) ;
uBukhali (sharpness), khalipha (be sharp) ; -khulu (big),
khuluphala (become sleek).

Sotho : -fa, -fala y e.g. bdhlale (wisdom), hlalefa (be wise) ; bohale
(anger), halcfa (be angry); nolo (softness), nolofala
(become soft).

Verbal Derivatives. *

These we can but outline here. "Though the South-Eastern Bantu
languages are not so rich as the Central in verbal derivative forms,
they still employ the most typical and have occasional examples of a
number of others. In Southern Sotho there are more derivatives
than in Zulu, though they are less regular in formation. Commonly
Zulu and Southern Sotho use the following verbal derivative suffixes :

Zulu. S. Sotho.

(1) Passive: -n>a, iVa -oa, ~uoa t -ioa

(2) Neuter: -e&a, -aXra/a -Ma, -chala

(3) Applied : -ela -ila

(4) Causative : -ixa -ta, -wa, etc.

(5) Intensive : -isisa -isisa

(6) Perfective : (-/e/a) -Ma

(7) Reciprocal : -ana -ana

(8) Associative : ... -ahana

(9) Reversive : ... -o//a, -6lta t etc.

(10) Extensive: . . . -a*a

(11) Diminutive: (stem reduplicated) . . .

328 C. M. DOKE

There are also traces of other forms such as the Stative (-ama) and the
Contaftive (-atha). Note the following example of derivative forma-
tion from Zulu : verb, Bona (see) ; passive, Bonwa (be seen) ; neuter,
Boneka, Bonakala (be visible) ; applied, Bonela (see for) ; causative,
Bonisa (show) ; intensive, Bonisisa (see clearly) ; perfective, Bonelela
(look carefully after) ; reciprocal, Banana (see one another) ; diminu-
tive, BonaBona (see somewhat).

Suffixes may be added to one another, thus enabling the formation
of many new derivative verbs. Apart from passives, the following
from bona (see) have been recorded in Southern Sotho : causative,
bontte (show) ; applied, tinila (see for) ; neuter, bdniha (be visible),
bdnahala (be apparent) ; reciprocal, b&nana (see each other) ; applied
of causative, bontSetsa (show for) ; reciprocal of applied of causative,
bonthtsana (show to each other) ; reciprocal of causative, bontlana
(show each other) ; intensive, bontSisa (see clearly) ; double intensive,
bontfisisa (see very clearly) ; reciprocal of intensive, bontSisana (see
each other clearly) ; reciprocal of double intensive, bontXisisana (see
one another very clearly) ; reciprocal of applied, bbnllana (see for
each other) ; causative of neuter, bonesa (lighten) ; applied of causative
of neuter, bonesetsa (enlighten) ; reciprocal of applied of causative
of neuter, bonesetsana (enlighten each other) ; bdnahatsa (reveal) ;
b&nahatsana (reveal to one another) ; bdnahaletsa (reveal oneself for) ;
bontSahala (become evident) ; bontSahatsa (make evident) ; bontfaha-
tsana (make evident to one another) ; bdnaletsa, bonaUetsa, bdnahaletsa
(be transparent). These are by no means exhaustive from this one
verb stem.

Compound Tenses.

The verb in South-Eastern Bantu is made further expressive by
the employment of a large number of deficient verbs followed by
complementary verbs in a subordinate mood, thus forming compound
tenses, or tenses comprised of more words than one. This cannot be
dealt with in any detail here, but it might be observed that, in Zulu,
deficient verbs, i.e. verbs incomplete without their complement,
are divided into three types : those followed by the subjun6tive mood,
those followed by the participial mood, and those followed by the
infinitive. Note the following examples :

(i) taking subjunctive : -Buyt, -phinde, -;*, -&, etc., e.g. ngike
ngitione, I sometimes see.

LANGUAGE 329

(ii) taking participial : -lokhu, -de, etc., e.g. Balokhu Behleka,

they always laugh.
(iii) taking infinitive : -sanda, -vama y etc., e.g. lisand* ukuphu{a,

they have just drunk.

Similar deficient verbs are found in Sotho, e.g. batla, tloha, tsoatsoa,
Ma, etc.

The Copulative.

The verb is not the only type of predicative in Bantu. Predicatives
are also formed by inflecting other parts of speech, such as nouns,
pronouns, and qualificatives. Such predicatives we call copulatives.
In the conjugation of copulatives, auxiliary verbs, such as -6a (become)
in Zulu, have to be employed, but such verbs are not used in the plain
predication. It has already been pointed out that in this formation
the Sotho languages differ considerably from the Nguni, the former
using the formative ke practically everywhere, the latter having varied
inflexions. It is but necessary here to note the main rules of this
formation for one of the Nguni languages Zulu.

Formation from nouns : Nouns commencing in the vowel i,
lower the tone on that vowel and may preplacey-, e.g. imbu[i (goat) >
yimhwp (it is a goat) ; nouns commencing in a, M, or o lower the tone
and may preplace ng-> e.g. aBantu > ngaffantUj umu^i > ngumu^i y
oyihlo > ngoyihlo ; nouns with contracted prefixes of classes 5 and 1 1
take /, e.g. itshe > litshe, ukhunl > lukhuni.

Formation from pronouns : (a) Absolute pronouns prefix yi-,
except those with vowel e which prefix ngu-, e.g. mina > yimina,
or yimiy Bona > yiBona or yifio, wena > nguwena or nguwe. (b)
Demonstrative pronouns prefix y/-, e.g. le^o > yue^o. (c) Enumera-
tive pronouns are not themselves inflected, but assume the inflected
form from the absolute pronoun before them, e.g. ^onke > yvp

Formation from adjectives : The initial vowel of adjectives is
elided, except in class 9, when e gives place to *', e.g. umuntu omkhulu^
a big person > umuntu mkhulu, the person is big : inkosi enkulu >
inkosi inkulu.

There are other rules governing the formation from relatives (by
substitution of verb subjettival concord), and adverbs of various types.
The copulative form is also used to express the agent after a passive
verb, e.g. in Zulu : uBonweyimi ; Sotho : 5 bbnoe ke 'na, he has been
seen by me.

33 C. M. DOKE

The Adverb.

It has already been observed that in South-Eastern Bantu the
locatives formed from nouns and pronouns are adverbs. This is not
the place to consider in detail the complicated rules of locative forma-
tion which obtain in the Nguni languages, where palatalization com-
plicates the forms. It is sufficient to note that while Nguni has such
varied formations, Sotho formation is relatively simple with a suffixed
-ng. With nouns of class la and with pronouns the more typical
Bantu formation by prefix is employed, Nguni ku- and Sotho ho,
e.g. kuBaBa, ho ntate.

Adverbs of manner are formed by means of a prefix to qualificatives,
in Zulu ka- 9 e.g. kakhulu^ greatly ; kahle, nicely ; in Southern Sotho
ha-, e.g. hahdlo, kantfe, etc.

Other adverbs are achieved by means of various formatives, such
as the instrumental nga- in Nguni, /ta- in Sotho. It must also be remem-
bered that in Bantu there is a close connexion between the noun and
the adverb, the former often being used adverbially.

The Ideophone.

Of parallel use to the adverb is the other descriptive, the ideophone.
This constitutes a part of speech unknown as such to European
languages. It may be defined as " a word, often onomatopoeic, which
describes a predicate, qualificative or adverb in respeft to manner,
colour, sound, aftion, state, or intensity ".

" In some Bantu languages the ideophone is used with a particular
defeftive verb, e.g. in Ronga with kuti, kuku, and kuli, e.g. aku ntse
(he said nothing), kuti mphu (it is gloomy), yindlu yUi baa (the hut is
bright). In Zulu it is generally used with ukuthi, in Sotho with ho
re. In Lamba, usually, no special verb precedes the ideophone, e.g.
kumfwa umwando putu (then the string went snap\perjka Iwe nikumusi
(then the glade opened .out at the village). The ideophone afts as an
intensifier with verbs, etc., e.g. in Lamba, ukufita bwi (to be pitch
black), ukuforjkola fo (to dig deep).

" The most satisfactory classification of ideophones is (i) according
to syllables, e.g. monosyllabic, dissyllabic, trisyllabic, etc., and (ii)
a further subdivision according to tones. It must be pointed out
that generally the special rules of length, tone, and stress, applicable in
ordinary grammatical forms, differ considerably in the case of ideo-
phones. For instance, in Zulu, stress is characteristically penultimate,

LANGUAGE 331

but with ideophones it is initial; also length is characteristically
penultimate, but with Zulu ideophones all syllables are short, except
a few rare cases of the final syllable being long, as well as that of
monosyllabic ideophones. Again in Lamba the ordinary tone system
covers three level tones, but in the case of ideophones rising and falling
tones are also found, as well as a variety of unusual phone elements,
such as nasalized vowels and vowels with epiglottal friftion." l

Zulu is unusually rich in ideophones, as a glance at Bryant's Zulu
Dictionary will show. Similar richness is seen in Xhosa. The Sotho
dialeCts, while not as rich as Nguni, also have ideophones such as
h 5 re tu, to be silent.

Note the following examples from Zulu :

Umlito wathi be, the fire blazed.

Kumhlophe qwa, it is snow white.

Wamthi Bfao ngewisa, he hit him crack (on the head) with a kerrie.

Usethi g6Ju, then he went home.

Usim\t i[into a^ithi hi dp ha hf&pJia-nje, he simply leaves his tilings lying everywhere.

Wawa ngesisu wathi bdbalala, he fell flat on his stomach.

In a brief grammatical outline of this type one cannot enter into
any of the interesting features of syntax and sentence structure. The
treatment has been an attempt to deal with Banru grammar according
to its genius. It will have been noticed that no mention has been
made of the " article " it docs not exist in Bantu, despite many
attempts to find it, particularly in the initial vowel of the noun prefix.
There is also no place for prepositions in Bantu grammar, though
disjunctive writers use the term in regard to various formatives, locative
and possessive, which they wrongly write as separate words. There is
no formal distinction of a substantive as subjeCt or objeCt of a sentence.
There is no genitive case, the possessive, a separate type of qualificative,
being used. The vocative is an interjeCtion, and the adverbs supply
the need for oblique cases felt in other languages. Sex-gender is never
a grammatical feature in Bantu languages, while class-gender of nouns
is the hall-mark of Bantu.

The brief survey here given should serve to prove the high inflexion
of Bantu languages and disprove entirely the contention, often put
forward, that Bantu is agglutinating rather than inflexional.

1 Doke, Bantu Linguistic Terminology^ pp. 118, 119.

CHAPTER XV

THE IMPOSITION AND NATURE OF EUROPEAN
CONTROL

By J. S. MARAIS
Cape Colony.

CONTINUOUS contaft between Europeans and Bantu started in South
Africa during the 1770*5. The first encounters took place in the south-
eastern Cape in the region drained by the Fish River. The Europeans
who made contact with the Xhosa, the vanguard of the Bantu in this
part of South Africa, were Boer farmers who, in their rapid dispersion
towards the east, had lost touch with the Central Government of
the Dutch East India Company at Cape Town and with its nearest
local official, the Landdrost at Swellendam. Regardless of warning
proclamations they had trekked continually eastward, taking the
frontier of the Colony with them. Both the Boers and the Xhosa were
pastoralists practising agriculture " as a side line ",* and the contact
between them soon issued in conflift for the control of valuable grazing
land. Shortly before hostilities aftually commenced the Governor,
van Plettenberg, visited the frontier and attempted to establish the
Fish River as the line between White and Black. Unfortunately
for him, the Xhosa had already settled to the West of the Fish River,
both Upper and Lower : in fat, the so-called Zuurveld, the land
between the Lower Fish and Bushman Rivers, was definitely Xhosa
country, though a number of Boers had driven their flocks and herds
into it. In 1779 the Boers commenced levying private war 2 on the
Xhosa, which the Government sanftioned in 1780 by appointing a
Boer commandant to conduct operations. This was the first of a long
series of " Kafir Wars " on the Cape Colony's eastern frontier, which
resulted in the European occupation of most of the land between the
Fish and the Kei Rivers.

The first phases of the struggle between Xhosa and European
went on the whole in the former's favour. The Boers, who lived far
apart from one another on huge ranches, found it difficult to offer

1 E. A. Walker, A History of South Africa (London, 1928), 118.

* We owe this phrase to Professor H. A. Reyburn, of the University of Cape Town.

333

334 J. S. MARA1S

effe6tive resistance to Xhosa penetration. By the year 1809, groups
of Xhosa had moved far beyond the Fish River, and the British
authorities, who had taken over the Cape three years before, realized
that unless a big effort was made a considerable part of the Colony
would be lost to the Europeans. They accordingly ordered the Boers
to dismiss their Xhosa servants, and in 1811 reinforced the Boer
commandoes with European and Hottentot soldiers, who at length
cleared the eastern Colony of Xhosa and drove them beyond the Fish
River. In order to prevent their return a number of military posts
were established at intervals along the river.

The next European advance was accomplished in 1819. It was made
ostensibly with the aim of ensuring complete " segregation " or separa-
tion between White and Black. That had always been the aim of the
Governments established at Cape Town, but their subjefts had frus-
trated their intentions. In 1819 the moment seemed to have come.
The Governor, Lord Charles Somerset, had in 1817 recognized
the young Chief Gaika (Ngqika) as paramount over the western
Xhosa, notwithstanding the faft that his authority was disputed by
his uncle, Ndlambe. By sending assistance to Ngqika against Ndlambe,
Somerset brought the latter's people into the Colony. They were
driven out, and not only they but also the followers of Ngqika,
Somerset's ally, were deprived of the land they inhabited between
the Fish River on the west and the Keiskama and the heights west of
the Tyhume on the east a large and well-watered traft of country.
Somerset apparently intended this territory to be a " neutral belt "
to be kept empty of both Europeans and Xhosa l here at last was that
complete segregation which had so often before and has so often since
been longed for in vain. The only contafts permitted were in the way
of commerce and religion. While, however, missionaries were allowed
to enter Kafirland, traders were not. All trade between Europeans and
Xhosa had to take place under the eyes of Government representatives
at fairs established at one or two points along the Eastern frontier.

The policy of the neutral belt was not long maintained. It may,
indeed, be doubted whether the Government meant what it said in this
matter. Somerset himself wrote as early as October, 1819, that the belt
offered a good field for " systematic colonization ". Both Boers and
some of the 1820 British Settlers, who had been located in the Zuurveld
in order to help strengthen the frontier, were allowed to acquire farms

1 This is what Somerset gave the Xhosa chiefs to understand, according to the accounts
of eye-witnesses. The words " neutral belt " appear nowhere in Somerset's own account
of his proceedings to the Secretary of State.

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 335

in the northern, that is the broadest and most desirable, seftion of the
neutral belt. In 1829 the Colonial frontier was advanced, in this
northern seftion, to the heights west of the Tyhume River.

At the same time the other items in the segregation policy were also
dropped. In 1828 the order which had prohibited the colonists from
employing Bantu labour was cancelled, and " Kafirs " were allowed to
enter the Colony in search of work under certain restrictions. 1 Labour,
both Hottentot and slave, was scarce in the Eastern frontier distrifts,
and so the Xhosa was made welcome, provided always that he came as a
labourer. As with labour, so with trade. The restriftions on trading
in Kafirland were gradually removed, largely in the interests of the
1820 Settlers. In 1830 the system of fairs was finally abolished,
" the restrictions which prohibited crossing the boundary were entirely
done away with and full liberty was permitted to persons of assured
good charafter to pass anywhere into and to trade in the Native
territories." 2 Some traders even built houses and shops in Kafirland.

In 1834 broke out the most serious war yet waged against the Xhosa.
Among the reasons which prompted them to invade the Colony, a
prominent one was the seizure of their land by Somerset. The Xhosa
murdered farmers, burnt their houses and drove off their cattle, but
spared their women and children. In Kafirland itself they spared
missionaries, but murdered traders. At the end of the war, as the result
of " negrophile " agitation in Britain, the Xhosa recovered the
southern part of the neutral belt with the exception of the land around
Fort Peddie, where tribesmen known to the Europeans as Fingo were
settled by the Colonial authorities. These Fingo, the remnants of
certain Natal tribes scattered by the warlike Zulu under Shaka to the
north of Natal, had been allowed by the eastern Xhosa or Gcaleka,
who lived beyond the Kei River, to settle in their country. But the
two peoples were not on good terms and the Cape Governor, when
he brought out the Fingo, hoped that they would strengthen his fron-
tier against the Xhosa. The Fingo did, indeed, prove staunch allies
of the Europeans. And not only the Fingo : from this time onward,
in the many wars that Europeans fought against Bantu tribesmen in
South Africa, they could usually rely upon Bantu help. Neither
were they ever called upon to face anything like a general Bantu
movement against them. Inter-tribal jealousies were potent and the

1 By Ordinance of 1828. The Ordinance was suspended in 1829, but Bantu continued
coming into the Colony, apparently under its provisions. Cf. W. M. Macmillan, Bantu,
Boer, and Briton (London, 1929), 66-7.

* G. E. Cory, The Rut of South Africa, vol. it (London, 1926), 342-3.

336 J. S. MARAIS

Europeans, who were themselves divided, gave the Bantu no cause
for a general hostile combination.

The Fingo were the first body of Bantu tribesmen whom the
Europeans had to administer in South Africa. In 1847, as the result
of another Xhosa war, the portion of the old neutral belt which had
been given back to the Xhosa in 1836 was annexed to the Cape Colony
as the distrift of Victoria East. The Xhosa were cleared out of it and
the land, with the exception of such portions as were reserved for
additional Fingo locations, thrown open for European occupation.
More Fingo had been brought out of Gcalekaland, and it was mainly
to accommodate these that the new locations were required. Judged
by Bantu standards the Fingo made very good colonists, and in the
years following 1847 they showed a remarkable aptitude for acquiring
new territory in " Kafirland ". They were better agriculturists than
the Xhosa and more acquisitive. Since they were broken up into small
groups and had no powerful chief, they readily accepted a European
leadership -which showed itself well-disposed towards them. It is,
therefore, not surprising that civilization has made greater progress
among the Fingo than among any other Bantu people in South
Africa.

When the Cape Government took the Fingo under its protection
in 1847 it embarked upon the task of framing a Native policy which,
in spite of many mistakes (due mainly to an impatience with tribal
institutions and customs that it took a long time to outgrow), has
proved the most progressive, " realistic " and successful, as well as
the fairest, of any pursued in South Africa. That policy was ereCted
on a twofold foundation : -it was based firstly on the belief that in any
thoroughgoing contaft between an advanced and a primitive civiliza-
tion the former must prevail ; and secondly on the principle of equal
rights for all civilized people. The formula according to which the
Natives are to be encouraged " to develop along their own lines "
never received the support of the essentially pra&ical Cape officials ;
their plan was to give the civilizing process every encouragement in
their power and to make no distinction between one civilized human
being and another, whatever the colour of his skin. The Cape had not
attained to this generous conception of human potentialities and human
rights without a hard struggle. It had been fought out over the position
of detribalized Hottentots and slaves within the Colony during the
years 1820-34 when the Bantu were still essentially a frontier problem.
In 1828 the pass and apprenticeship laws, which had the efleft of making

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 337

he Hottentots tied labourers with precarious rights, were repealed,
md the Hottentots became, at any rate potentially, citizens of the
Cape Colony with rights equal to those of Europeans. Ten years
.ater complete emancipation came to the slaves, and they entered at
Dnce upon the full enjoyment of the rights conquered for the
Hottentots. 1 The rights thus guaranteed to Hottentots and slaves,
from whom our Coloured People of to-day are mainly descended,
Became also the rights of the Bantu whose lands were incorporated
.n the Cape Colony. When the Cape received its parliament in 1853
:he same qualifications conferred the franchise on all its citizens
whether white, coloured, or black a state of affairs which has remained
anique in South Africa to this day.

Such being the underlying principles of its Native policy, there
remained for the Cape the difficult task of devising praftical methods
Df governing its tribal Natives, and encouraging the spread of civiliza-
:ion among them. It began with the Fingo in 1847. European super-
ntendents were put in charge of the various Fingo chiefs pr headmen.
The superintendents and headmen might, if they chose, arbitrate
according to Fingo law in civil cases between Fingo, but they had no
power to enforce their decisions. The European magistrates, whose
decisions were enforced and before whom any Fingo might bring
his case, could only judge according to European law. All criminal
zases went direft to the European magistrate, who ignored Fingo law
and custom. It took a long time for the Cape officials and parliament
to realize that, however desirable and inevitable the assimilation of the
Bantu to Western civilization might be in the long run, it could not be
accomplished by ignoring the customs of tribal Natives ; and that
a real injustice was being done to the tribesmen by the refusal to
recognize their law.

In order to hasten the civilizing process among the Fingo the Cape
officials attempted to convert their " communal " ownership of land
into individual tenure ; that is, to convert the Fingo tribesman into a
small peasant proprietor. The agricultural land of the locations was
divided up into small allotments which were distributed among the
male adults. The owner of an allotment had the right of grazing his
cattle on the commonage attached to each location. An annual quitrent
of i was levied on each allotment. A great deal was expe&ed from
the increased security afforded by individual tenure and from the
emancipation of progressive individuals from the restraints imposed

1 These reforms were due to the pressure of British philanthropists.

338 J. S. MARAIS

by tribal conservatism. After the annexation of the Xhosa territory
between the Keiskama and the Kei the scheme was extended to a number
of" locations " in British Kaffraria, as the annexed territory was called.
All these early attempts at introducing individual tenure among tribal
Natives failed. 1 Many of the Natives in the surveyed locations refused
to take up their titles, which on account of the high survey fees were
expensive. To those who did take them up, the new tenure made
little difference. The Native could not be converted into an
" individualist " by simply giving him individual title. As Shepstone,
the famous Natal Native administrator, wrote in 1861 : " Any measure
of land appropriation to Natives must be adapted to the social position
of the Natives; if not, it will ultimately become so ; that is, individual
titles not understood would become tribal titles later on." Since no
attempt was made to teach the Natives better agricultural and pastoral
methods they continued farming in the traditional manner, even though
men might now scratch the surface of the soil with the plough instead
of women scratching it with the hoe. Since allotments could only be
transferred in the European way on the payment of European fees
transfers were not properly effe&ed, and after thirty or forty years
hardly any holder had a legal title to his allotment. In addition, when
a man could not obtain an allotment, he simply squatted on one of the
commonages which thus became more and more restrifted. In the
'eighties it had become clear that some new scheme of giving " titles "
had to be devised or the whole idea dropped.

Between 1829 and 1846 there had been a lull in the European
occupation of Native lands on the Cape's eastern frontier. The next
eleven years were years of almost unceasing strife with the Xhosa
and seftions of the Thembu people who lived to their north and east.
The outcome of the strife was the annexation ot the land of all the
Western Xhosa and some Thembu and, what was much more serious,
the occupation of much of the annexed land by European settlers.
In 1847 the territory between the Keiskama and the Kei was annexed
as British Kaffraria and ruled by Imperial officials (under the direftion
of the Cape Governor) as a province separate from the Cape. In
1853 d 16 " Gaika" clans of Xhosa were deprived of their lands in
and around the Amatola Mountains, 2 and moved to a less desirable
part of British Kaffraria. In the fertile valleys of the Thyume and the
Upper Keiskama, once the home of Ngqika and his people, there now

1 See Report of the Cape Government Commission on Native Laws and Customs (G. 4, 1883) ;
and Report on Native Locations Surveys (U.G. 42, 1921).

* These lands were occupied partly by Europeans and partly by Fingo.

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 339

lived Fingo. To the north of the Xhosa, the " Emigrant " Thembu
were pushed beyond the White Kei River and their lands, occupied
by European settlers, became the distrift of Queenstown. In 1857
occurred the famous " cattle-killing " among the Xhosa and some
Thembu, as a result of which many of them perished and many others
had perforce to cross the frontier into the Colony in search of work
on the farms. The cattle-killing, although it proved disastrous only
to the Natives, had obviously been designed by its instigators as an
anti-European move, and Governor Grey seized the opportunity of
reducing the locations of the hostile chiefs in British Kaffraria and
settling several thousands of Europeans on the land thus made avail-
able. British Kaffraria thus became, as the distrift of Victoria East
already was, a chess-board of interspersed Black and White areas. Kreli,
chief of the Eastern Xhosa, who lived between the Kei and Bashee
Rivers and had taken part in the cattle-killing, was driven with his
people beyond the Bashee. His territory was ear-marked for European
occupation.

For British Kaffraria, Grey, who governed the Cape from 1854 to
1 86 1, adopted a policy which resembled that already pursued towards
the Fingo. The idea of individual tenure was applied in a new way,
when progressive Natives were encouraged to purchase at moderate
prices as much Crown land as they could pay for. The plan was a
more hopeful one than the survey into small allotments of whole
locations of Natives, and it is a pity that it received only a limited
application. Instead of superintendents as in the Fingo locations,
Grey in British Kaffraria appointed special magistrates whose powers
were considerably greater than those of the superintendents. In
course of time the magistrates were entirely to supersede the chiefs,
and they were expefted to work unceasingly towards that end. In
order to help along the process of supersession, Grey persuaded the
chiefs to agree that, in return for fixed stipends, court fines should
be in future payable to the European administration instead of to
themselves. They therefore tended to lose interest in cases of a
" criminal " type and their loss was the magistrates' gain. These
officials, who had full authority to enforce their judgments, were
allowed a pretty free hand as to the particular blend of their own ideas
of equity, Cape and Native law they might choose to apply. In
order to assist them in their work Colonel Maclean, the Chief Com-
missioner of British Kaffraria, compiled in 1858 his famous Compendium
of Kaffir Laws and Customs, consisting of contributions on the subjeft

340 J. S. MARAIS

by various missionary and other authorities the first compilation of
its kind produced in South Africa.

Cases of a "civil" nature between tribesmen continued to be
settled by the chiefs for many years to come, though they had no legal
right to enforce their decisions. As time passed, however, even these
tended more and more to be brought to the magistrates for decision.

Grey adopted a number of new expedients to help the Bantu of
British Kaffraria and the Cape Colony to become civilized. He
subsidized the missionary societies who were educating them at
Lovedale and elsewhere in order that they might add an industrial
education to the ordinary school curriculum and train some Natives
to become bricklayers, shoemakers, carpenters, and so on. In order
to teach the Natives " the dignity of labour " Grey employed them
on road-building in British Kaffraria. Thus began the policy by which
the Natives became, besides the farm labourers they already were,
also the builders of our roads, railways, and harbours, and the excava-
tors of our mines. Finally, in order to cure the Natives of their ail-
ments and their faith in the " witch-do&or ", Grey established a
hospital at Kingwilliamstown.

If his road-building policy be excepted, Grey's expedients did not
have the far-reaching results they were meant to have. Nor is the
reason far to seek. When he pleaded with the Colonial Office for
money to finance his schemes, he had promised that within ten years
the revenues of British Kaffraria would be sufficient to meet all demands
made upon them. During the time of Grey's successor, therefore, the
British Treasury stopped paying its annual grants-in-aid and the Cape
Parliament failed to step into the breach. The idea, generally accepted
in South Africa to-day, was taking shape that Native areas must be
" self-supporting ", that is, that they must pay for whatever the Govern-
ment does for them. The result for Grey's schemes was unfortunate.
Most of the industrial departments in the Mission schools had to close
down. The hospital at Kingwilliamstown continued maintaining
Native wards, but there were no funds available for expansion. Since
Grey's time, in faft, South African Governments have done singularly
little for the cure of disease among Natives in Native areas. All they
have done has been to contribute towards the support of a number of
distrift surgeons and Mission hospitals that can only touch the fringes
of the problem. 1 In Natal the Government aftually licenses Native
" witch-doftors " and herbalists.

1 A scheme has recently been adopted for the training of Native medical aids.

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 341

Grey's settlement of Europeans alongside of the tribal locations in
British Kaffraria was an integral part of his Native policy. He hoped
that contact with Europeans would help to civilize the tribesmen and
that sooner or later an " amalgamation " of the races would take place.
The " chess-board " policy had unfortunate results. Every Native
location in British Kaffraria now had its European frontier, and on
most of the frontiers there was trouble. Instead of an amalgamation
of the races continual friftion led to increasing estrangement. The
Natives complained of European encroachment on their commonages, 1
and the Europeans of Native stock thieving. By the 1 870*5 a large
police force was kept constantly at work in British Kaffraria. An
irresponsible Frontier Press helped to increase the prevailing dis-
content. In 1878, the Ngqika section of the Xhosa of British Kaffraria
rose in rebellion and lost their land, which became the European
districts of Cathcart and Stutterheim. Another result of the settlement
of Europeans in British Kaffraria was the debauching of the Natives
with brandy or " Cape smoke ", 2 especially after the province became
a part of the Cape Colony in 1865. While the Cape forbade the sale
of European liquor in its Transkeian Native territories from the very
outset, it did nothing for the Ciskei until the 'nineties : indeed the
Cape " Proper " 3 was not brought into line with the rest of South
Africa in the matter of liquor prohibition to Natives until several years
after union.

When British Kaffraria was annexed to the Cape Colony, its Native
administration had, in theory, to come into line with that of the Cape,
which abhorred any legal distin&ion between European and Native.
In aftual faft, however, the Kaffrarian special magistrates continued
administering Native law where they thought it desirable, notwith-
standing the technical illegality of the pra&ice. 4 It was not until 1927
that the Union parliament legalized the general use of Native law in
the courts of the Ciskei, though the parliament of the Cape Colony
had as early as the i86o's sanctioned die application of one branch of
the Native law in the Colonial courts, namely the law of inheritance.

Sir George Grey had intended to extend the chess-board policy
of British Kaffraria beyond the Kei River. He advocated the annexation
of the country up to the border of Natal and the settlement of

1 To-day the Ciskei (the old British Kaffraria) is one of the most congested Native areas
in the Union.

* So called because of its fiery nature. * i.e. west of the Kei.

4 They came to an agreement with the attorneys that the latter should not appeal against
their decisions to the Cape Supreme Court.

34 2 J. S. MARAIS

European colonists amongst the tribes. As a first step the land between
the Kei and Bashee Rivers, where only two settlements of Bantu
had been allowed after Kreli's expulsion, was to be colonized by
Europeans. Grey's plan, mercifully, was never carried out. Governor
Wodehouse, on his arrival, took over his predecessor's scheme. But
he soon began to exhibit qualms as to its wisdom, and there are a
number of indications that he was not sorry when the Colonial Office
ordered him to abandon it. He settled the land between the Kei and
the Bashee with Colonial Thembu in the north, Colonial Fingo in the
middle, and Kreli's Gcaleka in the south. Wodehouse thus called
a halt to the Colonial occupation of Native lands which had been
going on since 1812, and from his time onward Colonial Governments
ceased to regard the colonization of Native land by Europeans as sound
policy save in exceptional cases.

Natal.

Between the years 1835 and 1840 several thousands of Boer
Voortrekkers left the Cape Colony and began to colonize large trafts
of country north of the Orange River and east of the Drakensberg.
In the latter region the Boers overthrew the Zulu chief Dingane and
established a republic to the south of Zululand on land which the
armies of Dingane's predecessor, Shaka, had reduced to comparative
emptiness and desolation. In 1843 the British annexed this republic,
which now became the Crown colony of Natal. It was bounded by the
Drakensberg on the east, the Tugela and Buffalo Rivers on the north,
and the Umzimkulu on the south. Most of the Boers recrossed the
Drakensberg after the annexation, and British immigrants took their
place.

The Native policy of Natal developed on very different lines
from that of its southern neighbour, the Cape Colony. That may
have been due to the faft that in Natal the Europeans were outnumbered
by Natives to a much greater extent than in the Cape, while to the
north there lay the independent and potentially dangerous Zulu.
Fearing lest they be overwhelmed, the small European minority in
Natal developed a strong racial consciousness, which expressed itself
in the desire to direft Native development " along its own lines " in
contrast to the " assimilationist " Cape policy. On the whole, there-
fore, the typically Natal view of Native policy has closer affinities
with that of the ex-republican or northern provinces beyond the

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 343

Orange l than with the Cape or " southern " view. Like the Orange
Free State and the South African Republic (Transvaal), Natal found
it desirable to make its Natives carry passes, though its pass-laws
were less stringent than theirs. While the Boer republics never con-
templated giving the rights of civilized human beings to any of their
Bantu inhabitants, Natal, like the Cape, 2 made provision, in its exemp-
tion laws, for the emancipation of civilized natives from tribal law.
But Natal's exemption laws differ radically from those of the Cape.
In the Cape exemption from tribal law and from all laws differentially
affefting Natives, as well as the attainment of full citizenship rights,
follow automatically from the possession of the qualifications entitling
a Native to the parliamentary franchise. The Government has no
discretion at all in the matter. In Natal the exemption of Natives from
tribal law depends on the will of the Government and its policy was,
on the whole, to discourage it. Furthermore, exemption in Natal means
exemption from tribal law only, and not from laws of the Natal legisla-
ture differentially affefting Natives. As for the franchise, that again
depends, in the last resort, on the will of the Government. No more
than three Natives have ever been on the parliamentary voters' roll
in Natal at any particular time. The number to-day is one.

If we come now to the administration of tribal Natives in Natal,
the first problem that the Government had to solve was to set aside
locations for the large numbers of Natives who trekked into the colony
in the years after 1838. Since Natal was destined for European coloniza-
tion it was not desirable that natives should be allowed to hold land
wherever they chose. Such Natives as were required as labourers might
be allowed to settle on European farms, but the rest, so it was hoped,
would be segregated on the locations. Forty-two tribal locations in
all had been marked out by 1905, comprising between them about 2*2
million acres. The worst parts of the colony were, as a general rule,
picked out for the locations, and only small portions of them proved
to be suited for cultivation. No wonder that they proved utterly
insufficient for the needs of the Natives who continued coming into
Natal. These overflowed on to Crown or privately-owned land,
affording the Government and private persons a considerable source
of profit. By the year 1905 there were many more Natives living on
private lands than on the locations.

The man who was mainly responsible for " herding " the Natives

1 The Orange Free State and the Transvaal.

1 When after 1872 it fully recognized tribal law in its Transkeian Territories.

344 J - S. MARAIS

into their several locations and for devising a policy for them was
Theophilus Shepstone, who from 1845 to 1875 was the chief
administrator of Natives in Natal. The Natal location policy as framed
by Shepstone was the antithesis of the Cape's. While the Cape aimed
at breaking down the tribal system, Shepstone re-established it where
it had broken down and sought to foster and preserve it. He re-
assembled the fragments into which Shaka had broken up the tribes
with which his armies came into conflift and gave them chiefs selefted
as far as possible from the old ruling families. He carried on his
administration through the chiefs and headmen, making them respon-
sible for managing the locations and keeping order within them.
Shepstone's system of " indireft administration " had as its main
objeft the preservation of peace. Therein it succeeded admirably.
But if compared with present-day systems of indireft administration,
say in British West Africa, it was essentially unprogressive. There
is no doubt that Shepstone would have preferred to administer his
locations " direftly " by means of European superintendents, with a
Native police officered by Europeans to keep order. Being told that
there was no money to pay for superintendents and police he fell
back upon indireft administration as a pis oiler. But since the whole
Native tax continued to be paid into the Natal treasury, out of which
but little was forthcoming for Native development, the Native
administration of Natal remained unprogressive, and while Shepstone
and his successors on the whole kept the peace, they made no attempt
to civilize.

As time passed and European magistrates were appointed for Native
areas, they tended to usurp more and more the powers formerly en-
joyed by the chiefs. 1 By 1875 all serious crimes committed by
Natives in Natal were tried by the Supreme Court and minor crimes
by the magistrates. The chiefs still tried civil cases between Natives,
but there was a right of appeal to the Magistrates. In order to assist
the latter in their work a code of Native law was drawn up which was
made compulsory by the legislature in 1891 the only instance of the
wholesale codification of Native law in South Africa. Nevertheless,
in spite of the growth of the magistrates' power, the Natal Chiefs

1 This development was natural enough. South Africa, with its large European population
and the multifarious contacts existing between Natives and Europeans, is not a good field
for experiments in "indirect administration". In Natal, e.g., it would have been difficult
to carry on a thoroughgoing system of " indirect administration " in the locations side by
side with the "direft " administration which was inevitable in the case of Natives living on
privately owned land.

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 345

still enjoy greater authority to-day than do Bantu Chiefs anywhere
else in the Union. 1

In 1897 Zululand became a part of Natal. Eighteen years previously
Sir Bartle Frere, the British High Commissioner in South Africa,
who thought it desirable, for various reasons, that the reconstructed
Zulu army should be destroyed, had provoked a war against the
Zulu. After crushing them, the British withdrew. Zululand was given
over to confusion for eight years, during the course of which Boer
pastoralists from the South African Republic occupied a considerable
part of it. In 1887, the territory thus occupied was annexed to the
Republic as the distrift of Vryheid, and the rest of Zululand became
a Native reserve under British rule. 2 It was this reserve for whose
administration Natal became responsible in 1897.

The Boer Republics.

The first Boer republic, Natal, was not allowed by the British
to have a long life. But the Orange Free State and South African
(Transvaal) republics, established on the highveld north of the Orange
and west of the Drakensberg, survived until 1900. During the years
between the Great Trek and the end of the nineteenth century these
highveld regions and lower-lying regions adjacent to them, which
would otherwise have remained Native territory, fell to a large extent
into the hands of Europeans.

When the Voortrekkers crossed the Orange River in and after
1835 they found the present Orange Free State (with the exception
of the Caledon River area in the east) and the South-Central Transvaal
virtually unoccupied by Bantu. The remainder of this vast region
was occupied by the tribes, most of them in a broken-up state as a
result of the ravages of Shaka and his general Mzilikazi, who fled from
his master in 1826 and ultimately established a new home for himself
and his Ndebele (Matebele) at Mosega in the west of modern Transvaal.
He was the first dangerous enemy the Boers encountered west of the
Drakensberg, and in retaliation for attacks on them by his armies
they drove him and his people across the Limpopo in 1837.

To the south of the Vaal River, in the present Orange Free State,
the Boers found their principal antagonist in the Southern Sotho Chief
Moshesh the ablest Bantu Chief with whom Europeans have had to
deal in South Africa. When Boers began trickling into the Caledon

1 With the possible exception of British Bechuanaland, incorporated in the Cape Colony
in 1895.
* Portions of it have since been alienated to Europeans.

346 J. S. MARAIS

region, Moshesh had already embarked on his policy of building up a
strong Basutoland out of the scattered remnants of tribes along the
Caledon River. For this purpose it was essential to control as much
as possible of the Caledon basin, which contained excellent agricultural
land, particularly since the land further east was extremely mountainous
and difficult to cultivate. But the Boers also coveted these same lands,
the best between the Vaal and the Orange. When the British established
a temporary sovereignty (1848-1854) between the Orange and the Vaal
they found land disputes all along the Bantu-European frontier awaiting
solution. Boers had trekked in, obtained permission to settle from
minor chiefs or from Moshesh himself, and thought themselves entitled
to convert into permanent possession what in the usual Bantu manner
had probably been intended as a temporary and conditional leave to
occupy. The British authorities found it quite impossible to introduce
order into the inextricable confusion of claims and races along the
frontier, and though they drew lines they failed to enforce them.
When they abandoned the sovereignty in 1854 they left its eastern
frontier problem as a heritage to the independent republic of the
Orange Free State. The result was two wars between the Free State
and the Sotho, after the second of which the latter had to confess them-
selves beaten. As the reward of viftory the Free Staters claimed not
only the disputed territory but almost the whole of the agricultural
part of Basutoland proper, leaving the mountains to the Sotho.
Fortunately for the future of South Africa, Governor Wodehouse of
the Cape Colony intervened at this critical moment and annexed
Basutoland on behalf of Britain (1868). Though the Free State was
allowed to annex all and more than all the lands in dispute and dis-
tribute them as farms to Europeans, the Sotho retained some agricul-
tural land along the eastern bank of the Caledon River. After a period
of administration by the Cape Colony, Basutoland became an Imperial
proteftorate in 1883.

By annexing Basutoland the British took over the Free State's
most difficult Native problem. A number of Native reserves had been
marked out within the republic during the sovereignty period, but
all of them except the largest, that of ThabaNchu, were acquired by
the Free State by cession, purchase, or conquest, within a few years
after it had become independent. The ThabaNchu reserve continued
to exist until 1884, when it was annexed and a considerable portion
alienated to Europeans. For what was left of the reserve it was not
considered necessary to evolve a " Native policy ". The rest of the

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 347

Free State was a " white man's country" where Natives were welcomed
as servants and tolerated, so long as it suited the convenience of their
superiors, as rent-paying " squatters ".

After the defeat of Mzilikazi in 1837, Boers began gradually establish-
ing themselves in the Transvaal. Wherever they attempted to settle,
whether in the south-west in the Potchefstroom area, in the north-east
at Ohrigstad and Lydenburg, or in the north in the Zoutpansberg,
they were from the beginning in contaft with tribesmen and sometimes
entirely surrounded by them. In the south-west they based their title
to the land on the conquest of the Ndebele, ignoring the rights of the
remnants of tribes scattered by Mzilikazi. In the north and north-east
they generally obtained rights of occupation from some Bantu Chief
or other. They do not appear to have inquired very closely whether
the chief in question had the right to cede what he purported to cede,
nor exaftly what rights the cession was meant to confer. In the last
resort, their title was based on the awe their horses and guns inspired
among tribes already chastened by Zulu and Ndebele.

Until the end of the 'seventies the position of the Europeans in
many parts of the Transvaal remained precarious more so than
anywhere else in South Africa. Though their local republics coalesced
about the year 1860 into the South African Republic, this united
republic revealed few of the attributes of an organized state until the
'eighties. Certainly in the matter of dealings with Natives and the
occupation of land more depended on the desires of individual Boers
and their local leaders, commandants, and field cornets than on those
of the central authorities.

For these reasons it is to-day impossible to give a detailed and
conne&ed account of the manner in which the land was parcelled out
among the Boers as farms or the numbers of Natives found living on
them. From such records as survive, however, a pifture can be obtained
whose main lines are clear enough. Scattered groups of Natives
were incorporated together with their land in the farms which Boers
marked out for themselves, and were reduced to the position of
tenants-at-will, paying in labour or in kind or in both for the right
of continuing to occupy. In other cases tribesmen returning to their
ancestral homes after the Boer defeat of Mzilikazi or simply wandering
about in search of desirable spots on which to live, and finding a Boer
already in occupation, settled down as his labour tenants. The position
may be summarized in a few sentences : After the expulsion of
Mzilikazi the land tended rapidly to fill up with Natives more rapidly

348 J. S. MARAIS

than Boers could stake out claims to farms. How came it that by
the time of the final extinction of the South African Republic in 1900
the vast majority of these Natives were living either on land privately
owned l by Europeans, or as rent-paying " squatters " on state land, or
on land they had been allowed to purchase for themselves ? 2 The*
answer can only be that much expropriation of Native land took place
in the Transvaal during the second half of the nineteenth century.

Strong tribal groups, however, or groups living at a distance from
the main areas of Boer settlement, managed for many years to maintain
themselves in virtual independence of the Boers. Some of these groups
have managed to retain possession of their lands to this day, the lands
having been officially demarcated as Native locations. It is significant
that the demarcation of locations, which meant converting what had
been a precarious title to tribal lands into a certain one, was first under-
taken as a direft result of the British occupation of 1877-1881. A
Location Commission set up by the Pretoria Convention of 1881
proceeded to mark out locations. But the Commission did not err
on the side of diligence, and a number of tribes to whom locations had
been promised had not yet had them beaconed off by the year 1904.

During the 'eighties, most of the available land within the republic
having been appropriated, land-hungry Transvaalers pushed out on to
tribal lands beyond the eastern and western frontiers. We have
already mentioned the incorporation of a portion of Zululand in the
South African Republic in 1887. Towards the west a similar Boer
penetration took place. Boers took part in tribal quarrels and received
or seized land as a reward for their intervention. On this land they
established the republics of Stellaland and Goshen bordering on the
South African Republic. The British, however, intervened, and while
the Republic was allowed to incorporate part of Stellaland and Goshen,
most of their territory became part of the colony of British Bechuana-
land (1885). But the Boers retained much of the land which they had
occupied. In 1895 the territory became a part of the Cape Colony. The
lands north of the colony of British Bechuanaland became a British
protectorate 3 in 1885, with the approval of the Native Chiefs, who
wished thus to safeguard their tribal land against Boer encroachment.

The turn of Swaziland came next. Even before the 'eighties

1 About half the total number.

1 The Pretoria Convention of 1 88 1, by which the British restored the Transvaal to the
Boers, for the first time gave Natives the right to purchase land in that country. In the Orange
Free State

no such right has ever been recognized.
* Bechuanaland Protectorate.

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 349

individual Boers had acquired grazing rights in that territory. 1 But
during that decade the Governments both of the South African
Republic and of Natal began playing the game, very popular at the
time in Africa, of concession-hunting. In this way most of Swaziland
passed into the hands of Europeans. In 1895 the South African Republic
was allowed to annex Swaziland, but after the Anglo-Boer war of
18991902 it became a British proteftorate the third of the present-
day South African protectorates.

The Transvaal stands in South African history as the most thorough-
going exponent of the " northern " attitude to Natives. It is to-day
admitted that the chief cause of the great disruption which led to the
establishment of a number of separate states in South Africa was the
so-called Native Question. The Great Trek was the result of the
attempt by the British Government to enforce in South Africa, so
far as such a thing could be done by the passing of laws, that attitude
to people of colour which has since become known as the Cape
tradition. Rather than accept the new dispensation, the Voortrekkers
left the Cape Colony and trekked into the interior, where they would
be free to put into praftice their own ideas as to the proper relations
between " master and servant ", or, in other words, White and Black.
Those ideas, which took shape during slave-holding days in the old
Colony, had as their point of departure the permanent inferiority
of the black man.

In the Transvaal the Boers were farthest away from civilizing
influences, they were continually engaged in skirmishes with Natives,
and the old attitudes towards the black man took deeper root. In the
'forties, 'fifties, and 'sixties they were able to translate those attitudes
into praftical aftion without let or hindrance. We have already seen
that Native land rights were little respe&ed. As far as labour was
concerned, the Natives were expefted to supply as much of it as the
Boers needed for such wages as the latter thought fitting, sometimes
for no wages at all. Such Chiefs as had agreed or had been forced to
accept Boer supremacy (with the exception of those who occupied
the privileged position of " allies ") were subjefted to the labour
tax, that is, they had to send tribesmen to work for the farmers at
the bidding of the Boer commandants. Native children reputed to
be " unprotected " were apprenticed on a considerable scale to Boer
masters until their 25th year. 2 There is evidence that commandos

1 In the 'seventies the South African Republic claimed that the Swazi were its subjects.
* They received no remuneration beyond their food and clothing.

35 J. S. MAKAIS

sometimes went out in search of apprentices, and that the praftice
of " receiving " children sometimes as " presents ", at other times in
return for a remuneration, was widespread. In 1865 no less a person
than the State President himself gave two blankets to the Chief Mswazi
for sending him three Native orphan children. 1

Beyond insisting that Natives perform their obligations and keep
the peace, the state for many years ignored them. Tribes who still
lived on their own land were left to be administered by their chiefs
until the first British occupation. In 1885 the South African Republic
for the first time adopted a system of administration for the Bantu
living in tribal areas. It was frankly based on the Natal location system.
Theophilus Shepstone was the man who had annexed the Transvaal
in 1877, an ^ his son H. C. Shepstone became Secretary for Native
Affairs during the British occupation. He evolved a policy which
was taken over by the restored Republic in its law 4 of 1885. That law
established a system of administration for tribal areas which, as in
Natal in the 'seventies, gave a minor jurisdiftion in civil cases to the
Chiefs, subjeft to the superintendence of European officials. 2 To what
extent the law was given effeft by the Republican administration is
another question, which cannot be conclusively answered in the present
state of our knowledge.

The Transkei.

Between 1872 and 1894, the Cape annexed more Bantu territory
than during the whole preceding century. 3 In 1872 her eastern frontier
was the Kei River ; in 1894 her territory extended to the Natal border.
On the whole the expansion took place peacefully. Only Gcalekaland,
the territory of the eastern Xhosa, was annexed as the result of a war.
All the rest of the Transkeian Territories, as the tribal lands between
the Kei and Natal were called, came in peacefully. In some cases
chiefs even begged to have their land taken over in order that they
might be protefted against their enemies. In contrast to the annexa-
tions west of the Kei the Transkeian annexations were not followed by
European occupation on a large scale. In and around the present
distrift of Kokstad, Europeans bought up the farms of the half-caste
Griqua who had established themselves there in 1863 ; and further
west, in the bracing highlands at the foot of the Drakensberg, the

1 J. Agar-Hamilton, The Native Policy of the Voonrekkers (Capetown, 1928), 219.

1 E. H. Brookes, The History of Native Policy in South Africa, 2nd ed. (Pretoria, 1927),

124-

14-5, 130.

8 If we exclude Basutoland, given her by Britain in 1871 and returned in 1883.

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 351

distri&s of Matatiele, Maclear, and Elliot became European 1 during
the 'eighties, their previous Bantu inhabitants having been expropriated
as a punishment for rebellion. These regions had, however, been
comparatively sparsely settled by tribesmen, who preferred the warmer
country nearer the coast. That country they were allowed to retain
almost intaft : and so the Transkeian Territories form to-day far
and away the largest single block of Bantu territory in the Union.
Nor is there in the Union to-day any more hopeful and progressive
area of Native administration.

For her Transkeian Territories the Cape evolved a policy which
embodied elements not found in her Ciskeian system. Some of the
most characteristic features of the old policy were, however, retained.
Such were the civilizing ideals for which the Cape had always stood,
the equal franchise and the important rights and exemptions which it
conferred, and, in the sphere of administration, the supersession of
the Chief by the European magistrate as rapidly as practicable. But
the new features are noteworthy. The first is the administrative
separation of the Territories from the rest of the Cape Colony. The
laws passed by the Cape Parliament did not apply beyond the Kei,
unless the contrary was expressly stated. Legislation for the Territories
was by way of proclamations framed on the initiative of the Minister
of Native Affairs. The Territories were placed in charge of a Chief
Magistrate 2 who controlled the administrative aftivities of the magis-
trates and to whom there lay an appeal against their judicial decisions.
The second noteworthy feature of Transkeian policy is the full recogni-
tion accorded, for the first time as far as the Cape is concerned, to
Native law and custom. That recognition was largely due to the report
of the Native Laws and Customs Commission of 1883-5, which
examined Native law in a sympathetic and more or less scientific
spirit and pointed out the impossibility of governing tribal Natives
except on the basis of tribal law. From this time onward Transkeian
magistrates were expefted to acquaint themselves with the laws of the
tribe they administered. It is true that the Penal Code passed for the
Territories by the Cape Parliament was based, in the main, upon the
Colonial criminal law. But in the much more important sphere of
civil law the old tribal system prevailed. In contrast to the Natal
praftice, no attempt was made to codify Native " civil " laws, and
magistrates were thus given the opportunity of adapting the laws they

1 As far as land-ownership is concerned.

* The number was gradually reduced from three to one.

352 J. S. MARAIS

applied to the changing needs of a Native society in constant touch
with Western civilization.

In 1894 the Cape Parliament passed the Glen Grey Aft, the most
famous law regarding Native policy in South African history. The
law, based on half a century's experience in Native administration,
was intended to herald a great forward move. Though the Aft
derives its name from a Ciskeian distrift, it was almost immediately
extended by proclamation to the Transkeian Territories, and its
significance will be best brought out if we consider the way in which
it worked beyond the Kei. The Aft, with its various amendments,
has two main aspefts. It is, in the first place, a measure designed to
promote the introduftion of individual land tenure among the Natives.
As such it embodied several of the features of earlier measures : the
survey of distrifts into small agricultural allotments, 1 the reservation
of grazing commonages, and quitrents. But with an eye on previous
failures the framers (and amenders) of the Glen Grey Aft sought to pre-
vent the overcrowding of the surveyed areas by decreeing that on his
death a man's allotment should pass intaft to his eldest son. His other
sons, so it was hoped, would thus be forced to go out and work for
the Europeans. Another improvement on previous schemes was the
introduftion of a cheap and easy method of transferring allotments. 2
But in spite of these improvements the " tenure " portion of the Glen
Grey system must be pronounced a failure. Once again the fees of
the surveys, carried out to suit surveyors' rather than the Natives'
needs, were excessive. Once again the education of the Natives in the
meaning of individual tenure and in better methods of agriculture
lagged behind the wholesale surveys. In 1922, after seven of the twenty-
six Transkeian Native distrifts had been divided up, the surveys came
to a full stop. In 1932 the only " economic " results of the introduftion
of individual tenure into the Territories seemed to the Native Economic
Commission to be that Natives had paid out large sums in survey
fees and that high land values had been created.

The application in the Territories of the second important aspeft
of the Glen Grey system has been attended with greater success.
Councils were established in the various distrifts, consisting in each
case of the magistrate as chairman and six Natives, some of whom

1 Whole distrifts were now to be surveyed, instead of individual " locations ", but it was
laid down that before a distrift could be surveyed the consent of a majority of its male adult
inhabitants had to be obtained.

1 The Glen Grey Aft also sanctioned the '* one man, one lot " principle, i.e. no Native was
allowed to hold more than one allotment. This was meant to prevent too rapid a drift from
the reserves.

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 353

were elected by their fellows and others nominated by the Govern-
ment. These Distrift Councils in their turn send Native representatives,
three each, to a General Council consisting of the Chief Magistrate
as chairman, the magistrates of the various distrifts (who can speak
but not vote), and the Native representatives. The funftions of the
General Council are to advise the Government in its dealings with the
Territories, including the expenditure of the " Council " rate, a rate
of ten shillings levied on each adult male Native in Council distrifts
and ear-marked for local improvements. The Distrift Councils send
up motions for discussion by the General Council and are expefted
to supervise the expenditure of money allotted to Council works in
their particular distrifts. The Council system was expefted inter
alia to give the Natives a training in European forms of local govern-
ment to prepare them for effeftive aftion on a wider stage. In aftual
faft it has helped to interest the Natives in their local administration,
trained some of them in responsible public discussion, kept the Govern-
ment informed of the trend of Native opinion, and enabled it to raise
money for schools, roads, dipping tanks, experimental farms, and
agricultural demonstrators which it would otherwise have had to
find in other ways. But it should be noted that the funftions of the
Councils, even of the General Council with respeft to Council funds,
are purely advisory. 1 The Native Councillors talk, criticize, and some-
times influence policy, but the European officials do the work.

The Council system has recently 2 been extended to other distrifts
of the Ciskei beyond the original Glen Grey into a number of tribal
areas in the Transvaal. Adaptations of it are also to be found in
Southern Rhodesia and in Kenya.

The Union.

In 1910 the four British colonies south of the Limpopo came
together and formed the Union of South Africa. That meant that
the northern and southern traditions in Native policy had now to
struggle for mastery within the same state. It was hoped by many
people both in Britain and in South Africa that the Southern (or Cape)
Liberal tradition would gradually leaven the whole lump of Native
policy in the Union. Those who cherished this hope might have asked
themselves whether the Cape tradition really had the support of the

1 The General Council has recently been allowed to cleft an Executive from among its
Native members, the development of whose functions it will be interesting to watch.
8 After it had already spread throughout the Transkeian Territories.

354 J - s - MARAIS

majority of Europeans within the Cape itself, and envisaged the
outcome of an alliance between the Cape dissentients and the men
(and women) from the North. From the point of view of Native
interests, those in the Cape who pleaded for federation in preference
to union have proved themselves to be wise in their generation.
For in the end all the Cape could obtain was the entrenchment of its
Native franchise, 1 the cornerstone of its Liberal tradition.

After 1910, the pre-Union system of Native policy and administra-
tion continued in each of the constituent provinces of the new state
as is still largely the case to-day. Nevertheless, Union did mean the
establishment of a single Native Affairs Department for the whole of
South Africa, and the likelihood that a single Native policy would
sooner or later prevail throughout the country. In the measures
affefting Natives that have been taken since Union, the Cape tradition
has had to admit defeat almost all along the line. Not only has that
tradition been unable seriously to influence Native policy in the rest
of the Union, but northern pressure (with considerable southern
support) has eflefted serious breaches in the Cape system within the
Cape itself.

Union has had less effeft on the policy pursued towards Natives in
tribal areas than it has had on those in contaft and competition with
Europeans. Far and away the most important Union measure aflfefting
the administration of tribal Natives is the Native Administration Aft of
1927. The Aft has greatly extended the powers of the Supreme
Chief, 2 that is the Minister of Native Affairs, in the three northern
provinces : Natives who do not possess certificates of exemption from
tribal law, which the Minister may issue or refuse to issue, or cancel
at his discretion, may now be kept in prison for three months or moved
" from any place to any other place " by mere administrative order
without the courts having any right to intervene. Other seftions
of the Aft give the Minister the right to extend, within limits, the
powers of Native Chiefs, both in civil and in criminal cases, thus
reversing the tendency long at work througout South Africa towards
the gradual supersession of the chief.

Natives in contaft and competition with Europeans have been
severely affefted by a large number. of measures. The Natives Land
Act of I9t3 restrifted the right they had hitherto possessed of acquiring

1 The franchise can only be abolished by a two-thirds majority of the two Houses of Parlia-
ment sitting together.

1 A title first invented by Shepstone for use in Natal and in 1885 adopted also by the South
African Republic.

THE NATURE OF EUROPEAN CONTROL 355

land outside of tribal locations in Natal and the Transvaal 1 : it was
only the existence of its Native franchise that prevented the Act being
extended to the Cape. A number of laws, starting with the Natives
Land Act, have been framed with the objeft of converting the rent-
paying " squatter " on European-owned land, whose tenure has
always been precarious, into a labourer with or without (but preferably
without) sowing and grazing rights. Another group of measures,
with no counterpart in pre-Union legislation but nevertheless in the
authentic northern tradition, is due to the emergence of the difficult
problem of the Poor White and the growing fear that the white man
will not be able to hold his own in equal competition against the
Native. The result has been " colour bar " laws and regulations,
designed to prevent Natives from becoming skilled labourers, and a
considerable displacement even of " unskilled " Natives in numerous
spheres of state, municipal, and private employment where they used to
be welcomed and indeed driven by various forms of direft and indireft
pressure. 2 It is the old northern idea of the Native being kept " in
his place " which must to-day be defined as any place that at any
particular time the European does not think it desirable to fill. But
there is this important difference between the discriminating laws
of the Union and, say, the comparatively primitive South African
Republic, that the Union has at its disposal all the means of law-
enforcement which modern industrialized states possess.

It has been possible to mention only a few of the salient features
of Union legislation concerning Natives. What has been said may give
support to the conclusion that the position of Natives throughout the
country has become worse since 1910. Rights they formerly enjoyed
have been abolished or have become precarious; the principle of
anti-Native discrimination has been extended into a number of new
fields, and new ways of enforcing it have been devised.

1 In the Orange Free State they had enjoyed no such right.

* The pressure still continues largely by way of taxation, which is extremely heavy, having
since Union become heavier for Cape and Natal Natives, with summary imprisonment as
a penalty for failure to produce a tax receipt on demand by a policeman.

CHAPTER XVI
CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE

By I. SCHAPERA

THE spread of Western civilization over South Africa has affefted
Bantu life in many ways. Among the most readily observable is the
differentiation of the people into new social classes. Some of these are
economic, others religious, others political. But for most purposes the
modern Bantu may conveniently and simply be classified into reserve,
farm, and urban dwellers. The reserve Natives inhabit specially-
demarcated areas within which no European may own land ; the farm
Natives live on farms owned by Europeans, and the urban Natives in
European urban areas. Economic life, social organization, and other
aspefts of culture have in each case been affefted by the relation of the
people to the land. The special features presented by the farm and
urban Natives respeftively are dealt with in the two succeeding
chapters. Here we shall consider only the Native in the reserves. 1

MECHANISMS OF CULTURE CONTACT
Types of Contact.

The Natives in the reserves have encountered Europeans along three
main fronts. Although no European may own land in a reserve, a few
administrative officials, missionaries, traders, labour recruiters, and
other representatives of Western civilization live in each reserve with
their families and work among the local Natives. In addition, official
and private European visitors are now so frequently seen there as no
longer to arouse any special comment. Many reserves are further
bounded on various sides by European farms or other settlements,
with whose inhabitants the Natives often have dealings. Finally,

1 In the Union, the Native reserves, inhabited by approximately two-fifths of the Native
population, comprise altogether about 12 per cent of the total area of the country. They are
situated chiefly in the Ciskei and Transkei, Natal (and Zululand), Northern and Western Trans-
vaal, and British Bechuanaland. Of the High Commission Territories, the whole of Basutoland
is a Native area ; in Swaziland the Native reserves form about 40 per cent of the total area
and accommodate five-sixths of the Native population ; and in Bechuanaland Protectorate
they form about 37 per cent of the total area (the great bulk of the remainder is sparsely inhabited
Crown land) and accommodate at least 90 per cent of the Native population.

357

35 8 I. SCHAPERA

large numbers of tribesmen go periodically from the reserves to work
in the rural and urban areas of European settlement.

The Europeans resident in or visiting the reserves reveal to the
Natives new forms of dress and decoration, of speech, and of material
culture in general. Many also employ Native servants, thus creating
new occupations. The missionaries introduce a new form of religion,
with its associated places of worship, ritual, organization, and morality ;
as well as a new system of education, and occasionally new methods of
treating disease. The Government officials represent a new system of
administration, taxation in money, new laws and penalties for their
breach, and new courts and methods of procedure. Others are respon-
sible for such new social services as education, health, and economic
development. The traders, again, bring in the material products of
Western civilization and a new system of trade ; while the labour
recruiters introduce new forms of occupation involving a lengthy
absence from home.

But many aspefts of Western civilization do not thus direftly reach
the Native at home. The local white residents are too few and often
too isolated to convey more than a superficial idea, even to their own
servants, of European domestic and social life. Still less can they
refleft adequately the social and political organization of their own
people. It is equally impossible for the reserve Natives to learn much
about the industrial aspefts of Western civilization, apart from the
slight glimpses they obtain of modern forms of transport and a few
other mechanical contrivances.

The Native going out to work on the farms obtains a more intimate
knowledge there of European agricultural methods, and also comes
under a new system of law. But the traits of Western civilization not
brought into the reserves are most fully presented only to the Native
working in the towns. On the mines and elsewhere he encounters the
white man's technical achievements in their most developed form;
as a " houseboy " he observes fairly intimately the functioning of
European domestic and social life ; while in the streets he observes
other elements of material culture, social intercourse, and the regula-
tion of public life. Here also he meets members of many other Native
tribes, drawn from all parts of South Africa and even from territories
further north. But all this he must leave behind him when he returns.
It does not as yet exist in his home, and can only indire&ly through
him affeft those remaining there.

The various agents of Western civilization, and the elements they

PLATE XXII

Village C Ihurch Srrvirr (Kvalla)

(fe) Solving the Water Problem (Kxatla)
CHANGING LIFE IN THE RESERVES

[face p. 358

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 359

introduced into the reserves, did not appear simultaneously. The
pioneers, as a rule, apart from stray hunters and travellers, were the
missionaries and the traders. They introduced material culture, trade,
and religion, the last generally accompanied by education. The wars
so often preceding the extension of European control over the Native
territories brought further glimpses of material culture, and new
methods of fighting. The immediate concern of the Administration,
this control once established, was to demarcate the occupation of
land as between Europeans and Natives ; to maintain law and order
among the Natives, to which end it placed among them resident officials
and police ; and to meet through taxation the cost of the necessary
machinery of government. Education, economic development,
health, and similar services generally followed much later. Fairly
early, too, the Natives in some areas grew accustomed to working
for European farmers and other employers, the imposition of taxation
aiding in the process. But the first big impetus to labour migration
came with the diamond discoveries of 1869-1870, followed by extensive
railway construction. The discovery of gold in the i88o's greatly
increased the demand for Native labour and intensified the aftivities
of the labour recruiters. 1

European Aims and Policies.

The European agencies differed in their policies towards the Natives.
The Administration not only introduced a new form of political
control, but found it necessary, in the interests of good government,
to abolish the powers of the Chiefs in regard to war, foreign policy,
and certain aspefts of criminal jurisdiftion. It refused also to tolerate
ritual homicide, the punishment of sorcerers, and similar praftices
held to be " repugnant to the principles of natural justice and morality ".
In other respefts the general tendency was to interfere as little as
possible with Native usages 2 ; and indeed, especially within more
recent times, the avowed policy in both the Union and the High
Commission Territories has been to preserve and utilize as far as
possible the tribal authority of the Chiefs and the laws and
customs of the people. The medical and veterinary branches, how-
ever, have all along fought against Native magic, which they find

1 Cf. H. M. Robertson, " 150 Years of Economic Contacl between Black and White/'
S. 4fr- J- &on. ii (1934), 403-4*5 ; i" 0935), 3-*f-

1 Except in the Cape, where the policy was to break down rather than to perpetuate the
tribal system, a tendency reversed after Union.

360 I. SCHAPERA

one of the greatest obstacles to the adoption of their own special
services.

The basic aim of the missionaries was to convert the heathen Natives
to Christianity. In pursuing this policy they sought also to instil
a new system of morals and general behaviour conforming to Christian
ideals, and used education as an instrument through which the Natives
could learn to read the Gospels. Some further undertook the secondary
task of uplifting the people by promoting general social and material
advancement. On the other hand, in their zeal to introduce Christianity
along European lines they wished to do away with everything savour-
ing of heathenism. They accordingly forbade converts to praftise
polygamy, inheritance of widows, lobola, initiation, and other heathen
ceremonies, whether or not opposed to the teaching of the Gospels.
Some went so far as to insist on complete abstention from drinking
beer and smoking. It is only quite recently that this uncompromising
attitude has on the whole been somewhat modified.

The trader aimed simply at exploiting the Natives for his own
material benefit, attempting accordingly to develop as good a market
as he could for his wares ; while the labour recruiter tried to bring
them out to work for European employers. Both were in general
indifferent to tribal custom so long as it did not aftively interfere with
the conduft of their business. The traders, in faft, occasionally
identified themselves so completely with tribal life as to cohabit with
or even marry women according to Native custom, in this way
incidentally adding European blood to the many other contributions
Western civilization has made to the Bantu.

The Administration was generally able to impose its wishes upon
the people through physical force, in the form of punishment for revolt
or disobedience. The missionaries, on the other hand, had to rely upon
persuasion and propaganda, and the sanftions they introduced could
affeft their own followers only. They, like the traders and labour
recruiters, were essentially dependent upon the goodwill of the Native
authorities, especially in the early days of contaft. Few missionaries
hesitated, however, to stand up against Chiefs or magicians who
attempted to hinder their work, whereas the traders in general tried to
conciliate Native opinion and avoid giving offence. Sometimes these
agencies could all rely upon not only the proteftion but also the aftive
co-operation of the Administration, and so aft somewhat more freely ;
but Native goodwill always counted with them to a predominant
extent.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 3 6 *

Native Reactions.

The aspefts of tribal life most immediately affefted by the impaft
of Western civilization were economic, religious, and political.
Economic life was disturbed by the introduction of European goods,
by taxation, and by labour migration, as well as by the alienation of
land and the new definition of tribal boundaries. In religion the
difference between Christianity and ancestor-worship was sufficiently
marked to make them incompatible, while the attack upon other forms
of ritual was meant to produce a definite break from tribal life. Political
life generally was altered by the imposition of alien rule and by the
forcible diminution of the powers and functions of the Native authori-
ties. Social organization and domestic and communal life generally
were not at first direftly affefted, apart from the changes in marriage
and other customs attempted by the missionaries. It was only after
Western civilization had been present for some time that its influence
extended to these other spheres as well, facilitated by the introduction
or intensification of such faftors as education, labour migration, and
schemes of economic development.

Certain innovations the Natives had little option but to accept.
This was particularly so with political control. Sometimes, as in
Basutoland and Bechuanaland Protectorate, its acceptance was dictated
largely by expediency. In order to obtain the security and advantages
of British protection against Boer aggression, the Chiefs and their
people were willing to sacrifice certain powers and liberties and assume
certain obligations. But in most cases acceptance was due to compul-
sion. The superior military strength of the Europeans enabled them
to force their rule upon the people and to make desired changes in
administration. The long series of Native wars and rebellions show
that often the Natives bitterly resented these changes, but they were
powerless to prevent them. Even at the present time many administra-
tive measures are accepted largely through fear of the consequences of
disobedience.

The wares of the trader, on the other hand, were accepted readily,
even eagerly, because of their general superiority to Native produfts.
They were more durable and efficient, and could be obtained without
the effort of manufacture. The goods most sought after in the early
days were almost all better substitutes for corresponding Native goods
guns for spears and clubs, ploughs for hoes, and metal goods
generally for Native iron, clay, and wooden implements and utensils.
Ornaments, too, such as glass beads and copper or wire bracelets,

362 I. SCHAPERA

exercised considerable attraftion and were widely adopted. This
initial tendency was accentuated by the cumulative influence of mission-
ary a&ivity, education, labour migration, and contaft with Europeans
generally. By leading to a higher standard of living, they have made
trade goods indispensable.

The missionaries could neither resort to compulsion nor appeal to
technical superiority. But they came to the Natives at a time when there
were constant frontier wars with the Europeans. Their readiness to
champion the cause of the Natives made them welcome ; the message
they preached undoubtedly attracted many ; while in later years their
virtual monopoly of education, the gateway to a knowledge of English
and so to a better equipment for obtaining remunerative employment,
brought many willing converts. Perhaps the greatest single faftor
in their success, however, was the attitude of the Chief. Where he
opposed Christianity, conversions were dangerous and relatively
few. Where he himself accepted it, his example was generally sufficient
to bring over many of his people. In Bechuanaland, e.g., the Ngwato
Chief Kxama became an enthusiastic Christian, carrying his tribe with
him ; whereas in Swaziland the Paramount Chief is to this day a
pagan, as are the great majority of his people.

The personal influence of the Chief has swayed tribal opinion in
regard to other aspefts also. Some Chiefs opposed the introduction
of European social and economic services, fearing they would lead to
the disintegration and corruption of the people. Others, realizing that
Western civilization had come to stay, and that " in adapting ourselves
to the same civilization lay our future ", l eagerly accepted such elements
as they thought would benefit their people. This tendency has already
been noted above in regard to the welcome accorded to missionaries.
For the same reason many Chiefs have supported education and
promoted or encouraged schemes of economic development. Even
nowadays, as most Europeans working in the reserves have found,
the aftive support of the Chief is a powerful influence in ensuring
the relative success of any new measure, while his opposition or
indifference invariably creates obstacles and difficulties.

Misunderstanding of innovations has all along contributed towards
resistance to change. The compulsory dipping of cattle, e.g., has been
interpreted by Natives in many parts of South Africa as a device to
kill off their animals and so impoverish them still further ; the com-
pulsory branding of cattle in infefted areas to facilitate control of their

1 Stated to the writer by Isang Pilane, formerly afting Chief of the Bechuanaland Kxatla.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 363

movements is resented as " marking them off as Government
property"; proposals for land development are rejefted for fear
that if it improves too much the white man will take it away ; while
suggestions for the formation of farmers' associations are regarded
as just another scheme for robbing the people of their money. Many
other examples of a similar nature are known. The Natives have so
often been imposed upon by Europeans, and in particular have been
deprived of so much of their land, that they tend to regard suspiciously
any proposal, even for their betterment, and to seek for some ulterior
motive behind it.

Reference must finally be made to the influence of European
personalities. Governments or Missions may lay down a policy, but
its application rests largely with their local representative. It is to him
that the Native reafts. The Native's idea of Christianity does not come
so much from the Bible or from the official doftrine of the Church
as from the missionary who preaches to him and who works in his
area, and by the latter's conduct and treatment of his people he judges
the life of a Christian. So, too, the Government is to him primarily
the local official with whom he mostly comes into contaft, and his
ideas of European government and justice are based largely upon his
dealings with this man. It is not possible, in the present state of our
knowledge, to generalize about the manner in which such Europeans
have affefted tribal culture. But no one who has ever lived in Native
areas can doubt their tremendous importance in stimulating or delaying
cultural changes.

ECONOMIC CHANGES

We have seen that economic life was among the first aspefts of
Bantu culture to be direftly affefted by contaft with Europeans. The
resultant changes are most readily found in technology. The Bantu
have taken over new goods of many kinds, whereas their own domestic
industries have gradually decayed. Ironwork, formerly a specialist
craft, has almost wholly died out. Ploughs, hatchets, knives, and other
metal implements are bought from the traders. Leatherwork has
become far less important, now that blankets, clothes, and other dress
materials have been introduced. The Sotho tribes have almost univer-
sally taken to European clothing, and even among the Nguni and
Shangana-Tonga, where the change has not been so marked, the

364 I. SCHAPERA

Christians at least have also discarded the old dress. Pottery, basket-
work, and woodwork are all becoming more restri&ed in praftice
and scope, although in Bechuanaland a new trade in wood and bone
curios flourishes along the railway line. Iron cooking pots and tin
cans are replacing the more fragile pots of clay ; enamel basins and
plates are used by many instead of baskets and wooden eating-bowls ;
and hardware buckets are preferred to wooden milk-pails. Good
specimens of old Native work are increasingly difficult to obtain ;
and the occasional attempts in the schools to revive Native arts and
crafts produce articles regarded only as curios. Matches have replaced
the old fire-sticks ; imported beads, earrings, bracelets, and other
ornaments have almost completely displaced their Native counter-
parts ; salt, tobacco, and even such foodstuffs as tea, sugar and bread,
all find a ready sale. To some extent also reftangular dwellings are
replacing the old circular huts, a process most marked in Southern
and Western Transvaal, but noticeable everywhere. Most of these new
dwellings are built, like the old huts, with earthen walls and thatched
roofs, but wealthier or more important people have brick houses with
corrugated iron roofs. In more progressive households one also
notices beds, tables, chairs, and other European articles of furniture.
The material standards of life have thus been improved, and the
range of individual possessions increased.

The traditional pursuits of agriculture and animal husbandry have
both become more efficient. Agriculture has been improved by the
widespread adoption of the plough and by the better knowledge of
technique acquired through work for European farmers. The
Adminstration has in many parts stationed trained agricultural demon-
strators ; the people are being encouraged to grow in quantity for sale
as well as for subsistence ; new crops have been introduced, such as
wheat, vegetables, fruit, and cotton ; agricultural shows have been
organized ; and agriculture is taught in the schools. In the Cape a
system of individual tenure has been introduced to stimulate improve-
ment of the land ; irrigation schemes have been carried out ; and
co-operative farmers' associations have been organized. Dipping and
inoculation of livestock are compulsory in many areas ; more adequate
water supplies have been provided by bore-holes and dams ; the breed
of cattle has been somewhat improved by crossing with European
strains ; dairy industries have been introduced ; while in Basutoland
particularly the merino sheep and Angora goat have replaced their
Native predecessors, and wool farming has come to play an important

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 365

part in the tribal economy. 1 Almost everywhere cattle have been
put to a new use as draught animals with the plough and the wagon,
and new domestic animals like horses, donkeys, and pigs have been
widely adopted.

The men continue to look after the cattle, assist in hut-building,
and do all the work in wood and skins ; while the women till the
fields, build and keep in repair the huts and dwelling-enclosures,
make pots, look after the children, and prepare the food. To this extent
the traditional division of labour is maintained. But the men no longer
go to war, and hunting has become of minor importance now that the
game in most parts has greatly decreased. The introdu&ion of the
plough and other agricultural implements has, on the other hand,
forced them to take a more considerable part in agriculture than they
formerly did. The carrying of wood, crops, and water, traditionally
women's work, is now occasionally done by the men with animal
transport. Moreover, many new crafts and occupations have been
introduced. The government employs Native clerks, interpreters,
orderlies, agricultural demonstrators, and policemen ; the Missions
have introduced the vocations of clergyman and evangelist; the
hospitals and medical pra&itioners train and employ nurses and dis-
pensers ; education has created a small class of teachers, both male
and female ; the local European residents employ store assistants,
domestic servants, and cattle herds ; the Chiefs have their secretaries
and chauffeurs ; and some people work for themselves as traders,
transport riders, builders, carpenters, licensed butchers and bakers,
tailors and dressmakers, and itinerant hawkers. Most of them still
herd cattle and plough in their spare time, or rely upon their families
or hire people to do so for them. The new activities in which they are
also engaged constitute a subsidiary even if important source of
income. But others have come to rely almost entirely upon their
new occupation for means of subsistence.

Progress, however, has not everywhere been as marked as these
fafts would suggest. Relatively few people have taken full advantage
of the new farming methods. Suspicion of innovations, the recency
in most areas of Government encouragement, and sheer inertia have
caused the great majority to lag behind. What little progress they may
a&ually have made is due more to aftive pressure from without than
to enlightened self-interest. Outside the Cape the communal system

1 Cf. R. Sayce, " An Ethno-Geographical Essay on Basutoland," Gtog. Teacher, xii (1924)*
266 ff.

366 I. SCHAPERA

of land tenure still persists ; ploughing in many reserves is badly
done, neither manuring nor rotation of crops is praftised, very few
new crops have been brought under cultivation, and little attempt
has been made to introduce seed of better quality. Cattle are still
regarded primarily as an index of wealth and a source of p'restige.
Far more value is accordingly attached to their number than to their
quality. This tendency, coupled with the marked shortage of land
due to the expansion of European settlement, has resulted very widely
in overstocking, with consequent underfeeding and still further
deterioration in quality.

In many parts of South Africa, in fat, the Bantu are no longer able
to provide sufficient food for their own needs. In Swaziland, e.g.,
" the foodstuffs grown by Natives are only about one-fifth of their
requirements, the remaining four-fifths being supplied by European
farmers and by traders who import grain from the Union." l Similar
conditions prevail in other areas. To some extent they may be attri-
buted to the periodic droughts to which South Africa is subjeft.
But the primary cause is the backward condition of the reserves. Over-
stocking, coupled with the frequent absence of water conservation,
leads to denudation and erosion of the soil, a feature already most
marked in Basutoland and parts of the Transkei. This again is rapidly
diminishing the extent of good arable land, while too little progress
has been made in farming methods to counterbalance the loss. In
the Union, according to the Native Economic Commission, "we
have now throughout the Reserves a state of affairs in which, with
few exceptions, the carrying capacity of the soil for both human beings
and animals is definitely on the down grade ; a state of affairs which,
unless soon remedied, will within one or at the outside two decades
create ... an appalling problem of Native poverty." 2

Moreover, Native agricultural produce nowadays not merely
supplies food for the household, but must also be sold to satisfy new
wants. The Natives, as we have just seen, now buy far more goods
from the traders than they make themselves. In addition, they have
everywhere been obliged to pay an annual money tax to the Administra-
tion, an experience to which they had not previously been accustomed.
In many parts, too, the Chiefs or other authorities have taken to
raising levies in cash for such tribal purpose as purchasing land or
building schools and churches. Church dues, school fees, and similar

1 Colonial Office, Annual Report on Swaziland, 1933 (No. 1694), 17.
* Report of Native Economic Commission, 1930-2 (U.G. 22, 1932), 69.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 367

small obligations must also be paid in cash. To obtain this the Native
has had to pass from a subsistence into a money economy.

The only local source of income open to the great majority is the
sale of produce to the traders. But cattle, owing to their continued
social value, are seldom sold except on occasions of real need, although
every effort is being made to persuade the people to part with them
more freely and so reduce overstocking. Embargoes due to stock
disease have in many cases greatly restrifted the market, while such
animals as are sold seldom fetch a good price owing to their poor
quality. Hides and skins, as well as such new produfts as wool, are
no longer as profitable as they formerly were. Crops are sold freely
enough, but the quantity reaped is often so inadequate that the people
are later forced to repurchase corn from the traders as food at a
much higher price generally than they themselves received. In some
Tswana tribes (e.g. Ngwato and Kxatla), the Chiefs have in conse-
quence prohibited its sale without special permission, very seldom
granted except in times of abundance. The main alternative source of
income is some new occupation. A few people have been able to find
it by working for local Europeans or by setting up as independent
craftsmen or dealers. But the local opportunities for such gainful
employment are still greatly restrifted. The younger men especially
must consequently seek work outside their reserves.

Labour migration has come to play a prominent part in tribal life.
The need for money, the shortage of land, the activities of the recruiters,
and a growing desire to escape from parental control or to experience
adventure and change have all contributed towards converting many
tribal Natives into temporary wage-earners outside their homes. The
number going out to work fluctuates considerably according as the
harvest is good or bad ; but in Bechuanaland the average percentage
of men working abroad at any one time is forty, in Basutoland and
the Transkei fifty, and in some Ciskeian districts as high as seventy. 1
The normal period of absence from home is a year or so. But there is an
increasing tendency for men to stay away longer, and in many cases,
as the growth of permanent urban populations shows, they never
return at all. Of recent years, too, women also have begun going out
to work, despite the almost universal disapproval of both the
Administration and the tribe as a whole. Many men go to European
farms surrounding their reserves, where they do work to which they

1 J. D. R. Jones, "The Urban Native," in Schapera, 1934, 167; Report on Financial and
Economic Position of Basutoland (Cmd. 49071 1935), 34*

368 I. SCHAPERA

are accustomed at home. But the great majority go to the towns.
Here they generally work on the mines, railways, fa&ories, or other
industrial undertakings, thus engaging in labour of a completely new
type. A fair number, however, enter into domestic service, which
although conflifting with all tribal ideas about the proper division
of labour between the sexes appeals to them as being light work,
comparatively well paid, and providing plenty of food. 1

The sale of their labour enables the tribal Natives to maintain the
standard of living to which they have attained. Without the income
obtained in this way they would be far poorer than they aftually are.
On the other hand, through it the tribe loses the people who remain
away permanently ; agriculture suffers from the lengthening absence
of able-bodied men ; and many other aspefts of tribal life, as we shall
see, have been profoundly afFefted by the new experiences encountered
in the towns.

RELIGION AND MAGIC

" The rapidity and ease with which the South African Native has
received the teachings of Christianity is one of the most remarkable
phases in his acceptance of European civilization." 2 But the extent
to which Christianity has been adopted varies greatly. Whereas in
Bechuanaland Prote&orate only some 10 per cent of the Natives are
professing Christians, in the Union as a whole the percentage is about
thirty, while in Basutoland it approaches fifty. 3 Some tribes, even in
Bechuanaland, have actually adopted Christianity as their official
religion. The majority, however, may still be regarded as pagan,
in so far as the Chief is not a Christian and still carries out his traditional
religious funftions. But praftically every tribe has now its resident
missionary and Native clergymen or evangelists and includes among its
members adherents of Christian Churches.

Cultural changes have, of course, been most marked in the tribes
which have officially embraced Christianity. Among the Kxatla of
Bechuanaland, e.g., little aftive trace now remains of the old tribal
religion. Hardly any of the younger people know what is meant by
the ancestral spirits, and even among their elders there is no positive
cult outside Christianity. Those who are not aftive members of the
Church merely hold vague beliefs largely derived from echoes of

1 Report of Interdepartmental Committee on the Labour Resources of the Union, 1930,
82-6.

1 Report of Native Churches Commission (U.G. 39, 1925), 19.
Cmd. 4907, 1935, 4J.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 369

missionary teaching blended confusedly with memories of ancestor-
worship. The Christian conception of God has so effectively displaced
the old Native conception of a supreme being that no clear account
can be obtained of the latter and his attributes. Marriage, death, and
other domestic rites have been considerably modified by the intrusion
of Christian elements and the decay of traditional practices. The Chief
no longer plays an outstanding part in ritual life, and almost all the
great tribal ceremonies for which he was formerly responsible have
been discarded. Christianity has introduced Churches and a completely
new ritual ; it has made Sunday a compulsory day of rest for all
members of the tribe ; it has created new sanctions for the behaviour
of Church members ; and its hymns have profoundly affe&ed tradi-
tional music. The missionary himself has become not only the tribal
priest, but also the guide and adviser of the people in many spheres of
life remote from religion. 1

Where the Chief himself has not yet accepted Christianity, and
where consequently the great bulk of the people still follow him in
adherence to the old tribal religion, the main effeft of missionary
activities has been to divide the tribe into two camps. Church members
not only have their worship to distinguish them. They must also con-
form to the social and moral ideals preached by the missionary, dress
in a " respectable " manner, and abstain from certain tribal customs
regarded as incompatible with true Christianity. The conflict of
loyalties thus entailed is often painful ; but, despite occasional relapses,
the effecl: generally is to heighten the devotion o,f the converts to their
new faith. Nevertheless, considerable ill-feeling may prevail between
them and the pagans, resulting at times in political dissension. The
missionary himself is often regarded as an enemy whose activities
disturb the unity of the tribe ; but many instances are also known
where the Chief, although rejecting his teaching, welcomes his assist-
ance and advice in dealings with other Europeans. 2

Despite its rapid progress in some tribes, the Christianity of most
Bantu is by no means deeply rooted. It is on the whole too recent
an innovation to compel loyalty through tradition or sentiment. Many
missionaries, moreover, have laid exaggerated emphasis upon do&rinal
instruction, so that the people tended " to adopt the externals of the
new creed without assimilating the fundamental truths of Christian

1 Schapera, " Present-day Life in the Native Reserves/' in Schapera, 1934, 52-3.
* Eiselen, " Christianity and the Religious Life of the Bantu/' in Schapera, 1934, 65-82
passim.

370 I. SCHAPERA

belief and conduft." l Their attendance at Church is largely a matter
of routine ; not many are sincere in their professions of faith, or
strive to lead a true Christian life ; they praftise in secret many of the
old customs forbidden by the Church ; and in various other ways
show that their Christianity is merely conventional. The modern
missionary, too, is no longer himself an evangelist, but supervises
the activities of Native evangelists ; while the control of such outside
bodies as the Administration, the Education Department, and the
central Mission Committee has affefted his attitude towards his work.
This in turn has altered the Natives' conception of him and his duty.
They contrast him unfavourably with his pioneer predecessors, and
accuse him of racial discrimination, intolerance, and lack of sympathy.
Native evangelists and elders, again, often appear overbearing, auto-
cratic, hypocritical, and partial in their administration of the Church
laws. The critical attitude thus developed towards the Church is
greatly strengthened by the experience of the men working abroad.
They observe that most Europeans whom they encounter pay little
heed to religion, and that Christian ideals of brotherhood and charity
do not prevail before differences of colour. They return even more
sceptical of missionary aims and methods.

The situation has been aggravated by denominationalism. Formerly
the spheres of Mission influence were more clearly defined, there was
much less denominational rivalry, and examples of European religious
disunion were not so apparent as they are to-day. In some tribal areas
there is still only one Mission Church at work, and indeed in some
Bechuanaland tribes the Chiefs deliberately exclude other denomina-
tions and even penalize any adherents they may have gained. 2 But
now in most parts of the country several different Mission societies all
operate in the same area. Their teachings differ in some respefts,
as do their attitudes towards such tribal customs as lobola, puberty
rites, and beer-drinking. The pagan Natives in consequence are
sceptical or confused, while the open rivalries between one Church
and another may become a disruptive influence through the growth
of denominational jealousy and hatred among Native Christians.
It is also 'by no means unusual for a wily or unscrupulous Chief to
play off one Church against another for his own material or political
advantage.

One consequence of this new attitude towards Christianity has

1 U.G. 39, 1925, 19 ; and the whole report for what follows ; cf. also Eiselen, op. cit.
1 Schapera, field observations among Kxatla, Ngwato and Kwena.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 371

been the growth of Native separatist Churches. Of these nearly four
hundred exist in South Africa, mostly in the urban areas, but well
represented also in the reserves. 1 Their creation has been stimulated
by such varying motives as desire for independence in Church matters,
the alleged existence of colour prejudice among European missionaries,
personal ambition, the desire to administer Church property and
money, and the desire for a tribal Church conforming more closely
to Native custom. 2 Some of the less reputable sefts indulge in special
ceremonies appearing to combine Biblical customs and old heathen
rites, and their leaders funflion both as Christian priests and Native
magicians. The titles of such sefts and of their Church offices are
often extravagant and grotesque. But for the most part the separatists
have retained the same doftrine and ritual as the Church from which
they have sprung. It is sometimes alleged that this movement towards
Church independence has a political bias, aiming at the expulsion
of Europeans from South Africa. This is not so. " The separatist
churches do not start with any definite anti-European programme, [but]
the bitterness involved in the secession gives the movement an anti-
European colouring which is increased by the faft that their separate-
ness from Europeans attrafts to them the disaffefted among the
Natives." 3

Christianity, then, has not only in many cases provided an accept-
able substitute for the old tribal religion, but has even created separate
Bantu Churches reproducing European doftrines and organization.
On the other hand, it has had little effeft upon traditional magical
beliefs and praftices. These persist strongly, even among many
professing Christians ; the tribal magicians continue to flourish,
despite a new scepticism of their claims ; while new forms of magic
have been developed to cope with situations arising from contaft
with Western civilization, or have been borrowed in the towns from
Natives of other tribes and brought back into the reserves. The
belief in sorcery, although somewhat modified, is still vigorous. The
Administration treats as murder the killing of sorcerers, and has
made it a penal offence even to accuse people of sorcery. Such people
are consequently no longer openly punished. But cases are known
where alleged sorcerers have been secretly destroyed with the conniv-
ance and indeed a&ive participation of the Chiefs. Even where fear

1 A full list, as at 1932, is published by . H. Brookes, The Colour Problems of South Africa
(Loved ale, 1934), 193-201.
1 U.G. 39, 1925, passim.
1 C. T. Loram, " The Separatist Church Movement," Int. Rev. Missions, xv (1926), 481.

372 I- SCHAPERA

of the Administration protefts them from harm, their living presence
is a disturbing faftor in social life and the cause of much ill-feeling
and malicious gossip.

This persistence of magic may be attributed largely to its playing
a part in tribal life which none of the new influences has so far been
able to fill. It enters intimately into all every-day aftivities and occupa-
tions, providing the people with hope and confidence enabling them
to tide successfully over difficulties and disappointments. Christianity
for the average tribesman is too remote from the realities of economic
and domestic life to prove an acceptable substitute; and modern
scientific teaching, although explaining more satisfaftorily the causes
of disease and economic welfare, is too recent an innovation and too
limited in its scope to have been able to make much headway as yet
against the traditional system of ideas underlying the belief in the
efficacy of magic.

GOVERNMENT AND LAW

The establishment of European rule deprived the Bantu tribes of
their political independence. In the Union, as shown in the last chapter,
the gradual limitation of tribal self-rule culminated in the Native
Administration Aft, 1927, whereby the Governor- General became
(except in the Cape) Supreme Chief of all the Natives. He is em-
powered, as such, to legislate for the Natives by proclamation, to
*' divide existing tribes into one or more parts or amalgamate tribes or
parts of tribes into one tribe, or constitute a new tribe, as necessity or
the good government of the Natives may in his opinion require " ; and
even to remove individuals, whole tribes or sections of tribes in the
public interest from place to place within the Union. 1 The Natives
themselves have no control over such legislation. In the High Com-
mission Territories, on the other hand, the Natives proudly boast that
they were never conquered, but voluntarily placed themselves under
British proteftion. They have therefore consistently demanded and
been accorded considerable freedom in the management of their own
affairs. In Basutoland, indeed, " the Nation is ruled by its Chiefs,
and the Government can merely proffer advice " : in 1929, e.g., the
people were able successfully to rejeft two draft Proclamations,
intended to lay down the powers and duties of Chiefs and the

1 Native Administration Aft. No. 38, of 1927, Seftions j and 25.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 373

organization of Native Courts. 1 Everywhere, however, the tribe in all
its external relations is subjeft to the direft control of the Administra-
tion, to which it must also pay taxes ; its boundaries have been rigidly
defined ; and the traditional rights and powers of its political authorities
have been curtailed in other ways.

The extent to which the status and functions of the Chief have been
affefted varies. The general tendency has been to retain him as an
instrument of government, and to uphold as far as possible his authority
within the tribe. 2 But succession to or tenure of the Chieftainship is
subject to the approval of the Administration, which has not generally
hesitated to pass over an unsuitable heir or to depose an incompetent
or rebellious Chief, Under the Union Government and its predecessors
the Chief's judicial powers were severely limited and his administrative
functions confined largely to carrying out the orders of the Govern-
ment. In the High Commission Territories his jurisdiction has also
been somewhat curtailed, and he is expected to carry out the instructions
of the Government. But failure to do so has only jusf(i934) been
made a penal offence in Bechuanaland, and cannot meet with more than
a reprimand in Basutoland or Swaziland. The Chief continues in these
Territories to perform most of his former judicial and administrative
functions, and has. much greater freedom in regulating tribal affairs
than is possible in the Union. In pagan tribes both in the Union and
in the High Commission Territories, the Chief is still tribal priest and
magician, but in Christian tribes, as we have seen, he has been displaced
by the missionary. His functions in other directions have been greatly
extended by the activities of the educational, agricultural, and medical
branches of the Administration, with which he is expefted to co-oper-
ate ; but at the same time his formerly undivided control over every
aspect of tribal life has in this way been diffused through various
Government departments with superior authority.

These changes have reafted upon the relations between the Chief and
his subjects. Despite its diminished powers, the Chieftainship as an
institution is still greatly honoured and respefted ; and so far are the
people from wishing to discard it that the Ciskeian Natives have pressed
within recent years for administrative recognition to be given to their
hereditary Chiefs. The Chief's commands are obeyed even by those
who have been away from home for some time ; despite taxes and

1 Cmd. 4907, 1935, 49, 25-8.

1 In the Cape, however, " Native chiefs were never officially recognized as possessing any
special administrative, or for that matter judicial, powers over their tribesmen" (Rogers,
1933, 20).

374 I- SCHAPERA

other demands upon their resources men coming back from abroad
often pay him tribute in money; while in the reserves the people
still look primarily to him as their ruler and guide. But complaints
about the behaviour of individual Chiefs are becoming increasingly
common. Under existing conditions there is little or no inducement
to enlightened administration by the Chief. Freed by the support of
the Administration from fear of the tribal sanctions formerly restraining
him, he tends to care more about asserting the rights that remain to
him than about his corresponding duties and obligations. 1 He has
become more autocratic and exacting, and less willing to consider the
welfare of the tribe or to use his wealth for its benefit. All this the
people are beginning to resent, a tendency reinforced by educational
advancement and by the possibilities of escape opened up by labour
migration. Civilization may not have destroyed fidelity to the Chief,
but it has made the people more critical of his conduft, while at the
same time European government has deprived them of such remedies
as they formerly possessed against oppression and abuse.

As mentioned above, the Chief is no longer supreme judge of the
tribe. The range of his jurisdiction has also been limited. In the Union
the general tendency was to replace him completely by European
courts, except in British Bechuanaland (Cape), where his jurisdiction
was specially preserved. Under the Native Administration Act,
however, Chiefs may now be empowered to settle civil disputes between
their tribesmen arising out of Native Law and Custom. They may
also be granted minor criminal jurisdiction in respeft of offences
punishable under Native law, but this privilege has been much less
widely accorded. 2 In the great majority of cases, Natives accused
of any penal offence must come before European courts. In the
High Commission Territories, on the other hand, the Chiefs still have
both civil and considerable criminal jurisdiction, certain serious crimes
only having been reserved for European courts. Everywhere, however,
an appeal lies from the Chief's verdifts in any class of case to the courts
of the local European officials, from which there is a further appeal to
special courts of higher status. In addition, any case between a Native
and a non-Native (European or Coloured) must be dealt with by
the European courts.

Native law itself has been gradually transformed. Throughout
the Union, e.g., the greater part of Bantu criminal law has been replaced

1 Schapera, 1934, 59 ; Cmd. 4 97 1935, 4* ff.

Brookes, " Native Administration in South Africa," in Schapera, 1934, 249.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 375

by European criminal law. The remainder of the law is in most areas
administered as a body of unwritten customary law, " the content
of which must be discovered from precedent, reported cases, text-
books, and (where necessary) expert evidence." l But the tendency
has been for it to be adapted to changing conditions. In the Transkei,
e.g., it has been modified from time to time by Government Proclama-
tion. Among other changes thus introduced, both men and women on
attaining the age of twenty-one now become emancipated from the
control of their family head, and the sororate has been abolished. 2 In
Bechuanaland Protectorate, similarly, the Chiefs have themselves
altered the law. Among the Ngwato, e.g., Kxama abolished polygamy
and boxadi (the transfer of cattle to the wife's parents at marriage),
declared that daughters were entitled to inherit cattle from their
father's estate, and made beer-drinking and violation of the Sabbath
penal offences. 3 Codification has taken place in two areas only. In
Natal a Code of Native Law was proclaimed by the Administration
as far back as 1878, " which sought to put into statutory form a syn-
thesis of the customary law of the various tribes." 4 A revised Code,
issued in 1932, " modernized slightly the substantive Native law in
force in the Province, although it is still less influenced by European
ideas than the Native Law of the Transkei." 5 In Basutoland, again,
the National Council has issued a small collection of customary laws
" intended to safeguard the prerogatives of Chiefs while maintaining
rights for the common people ". 6 Such Codes are, of course, new
developments in Native law.

Throughout South Africa the Natives have further been subjected
to new laws of many kinds. Some they share with the Europeans, e.g.,
the provisions of the criminal law, and, in the case of Natives married
under Christian or civil rites, the civil law applying to such marriages.
Others provide specially for the administration of Native affairs.
There are still other laws affefting Natives only or discriminating
between Natives and Europeans. Most of these apply more particularly
to the farm and urban Natives, but others affeft the reserve Natives
also. They provide, inter alia, that no Native may be supplied with
European liquor, nor buy or hire land from Europeans outside certain
areas scheduled for Native occupation ; that every male Native over
the age of eighteen failing to pay the annual poll tax or to produce a

1 Brookes, op. cit., 246. Brookes, in Schapera, 1934, 244.

* Schapera, 1935, MS. * Brookes, op. cit., 243.

6 Brookes, op. cit., 246. * Cmd. 4907, 1935, 24.

376 I. SCHAPERA

tax receipt is guilty of a criminal offence ; and that all Natives outside
their reserves must carry one or more passes. 1 Provision exists in the
legislation for the exemption of specially-qualified or otherwise deser-
ving Natives from the operation of certain restriftions imposed by
these laws, but very few tribal Natives have thus been exempted.

The European Governments have not only altered the traditional
system of tribal rule in the manner described above. They have also
created new Native administrative bodies extending beyond the limits
of single tribes. The best known are the distrift and general councils
of the Transkeian Territories, described in the last chapter. The new
Representation of Natives Aft, 1936, carries this system much farther
by creating a central Natives Representative Council representing
all the Natives of the Union. In Bechuanaland Proteftorate, similarly,
there is a Native Advisory Council made up of the Chiefs and other
representatives of each tribe, 2 while Basutoland has a National Council
representative mainly of the Chiefs and their adherents. The Natives
themselves have at various times organized associations on " National "
i.e., extra-tribal, lines. Many separatist Churches are of this character,
as are such political associations as the African National Congress.
All these bodies, whether organized by Europeans or Natives, are
tending to bring together members of different tribes for common
political or religious ends ; but as yet the sense of tribal unity and
distinftness appears to have suffered little diminution.

EDUCATION AND HEALTH

Scholastic education, almost everywhere initiated by the
missionaries, has now become an established part of tribal culture.
There is hardly a single tribe where schooling facilities are not provided,
and in most of them every village or small local area has its school.
The schools are in most parts still owned by the missionaries, but the
Administration has everywhere taken over the direftion of educational
policy and finance, and built many additional schools. The Bantu
on the whole eagerly desire education, despite the well-founded fear
of many Chiefs and parents that it will break down adherence to
traditional beliefs and customs. But the number of children afhially
attending school is proportionately small. Basutoland, with an
enrolment of 65 per cent of the children of suitable age, is exceptionally

1 The Native attitude towards this legislation is forcibly expounded by D. D. T. Jabavu,
in Schapera, 1934, 285-9.
1 Except the Ngwato, who have consistently refused to be represented on the Council.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 377

advanced. 1 In the Union as a whole and in Bechuanaland Proteftorate
the general average is as low as 20 per cent. 2 The great majority of
the children, moreover, seldom remain at school for more than two or
three years, so that proportionately very few ever get beyond the
lower classes. Tribal fa&ors such as parental conservatism and the
continued employment of children in domestic and farming aftivities
explain to some extent this comparative retardation. But the main
reasons are the great shortage of schools, due to inadequate financing,
and the faft that schooling, in contrast with European primary educa-
tion, is neither free nor compulsory.

Education in the early days was confined mainly to religious pre-
paration and the three R's. Even now, in the reserves, it is devoted
mainly to ordinary literary subje&s of the same kind as taught in
European elementary schools, with some praftice in handicrafts and
gardening. Few reserves have facilities for secondary education. The
more advanced students must go to one of the few central institutions,
where the majority ultimately qualify as teachers or for some other
clerical occupation. Not many avail themselves of the opportunities for
becoming industrial craftsmen. A very small number have attained
to University education, afterwards becoming teachers, medical
praftitioners, journalists or clergymen, or entering Government
service of some kind.

It has often, and rightly, been maintained that such education
as the Natives now receive tends to divorce them from their tribal
environment. 3 The great majority, taught in the elementary schools
of the reserves, are not so considerably affefted. They are, it is true,
becoming differentiated from their less literate brethren in habits of
dress, speech, and behaviour ; they acquire a new sense of values ;
they are more prone to resent absolute parental control ; and they are
rendered less fitted for the traditional callings of their people. But
those who have received more advanced education become far more
noticeably dissatisfied with the old forms of tribal life. Not many
can find employment at home, owing to the lack as yet of sufficient
openings in the special occupations to which they have been trained.
They accordingly migrate to other areas or to the towns, and so
become lost to the tribe. Those a&ually employed in the reserves

1 Cmd. 4907, 1035, 104.

* Report of Native Economic Commission (U.G. 22, 1932), 90 ; Report on Financial and
Economic Position of the Bechuanaland Protectorate (Cmd. 4368, 1933), 82.

* Cf. on this whole topic W. G. Mean, " The Educated Native in Bantu communal life/'
in Schapera, 1934, 85-101 passim.

378 I. SCHAPERA

often enjoy considerable prestige because of their superior educational
and economic status, and they may gain a new influence as " scribes,
interpreters, and mediators with Government officials, traders, and
missionaries "- 1 On the other hand, they have tended more readily
than any other section of the tribe to discard traditional pra&ices
and to embrace the ways of the white man ; they affeft to despise
their less educated or wholly illiterate brethren ; and they often
complain bitterly at the lack of the social amenities to which
they became accustomed in their training institutions, so that many wish
to break away and seek more " civilized " surroundings. 2

Despite these developments, of which the Natives themselves are
fully conscious, any tendency on the part of the Administration to
introduce a system of education more suited to the present conditions
of tribal life is greeted with suspicion and even hostility. " The view
is openly expressed that the European is thereby trying to foist some
inferior substitute on the Natives. Education is looked upon as a
standard article, and the Native will not have anything other than
this supposed ' standard V 3 They feel that any system other than
that given to Europeans aims at keeping down their economic status
and shutting them out of the gainful occupations to which a literary
education is at present the most important opening.

One marked result of education has been the spreading knowledge
of English and (alhough not to the same extent) of Afrikaans as spoken
languages. It is only fairly recently that more emphasis has been laid
in the schools on instru&ion in the vernacular, to the general disgust
of the Natives, who realize the economic value of a European language
to men who will afterwards have to seek work in the towns. In any
case most of these men acquire some knowledge of a European language
during their employment abroad. The local vernaculars, moreover,
are being corrupted by the intrusion of European words, 4 while some
of the educated youth regard it as quite fashionable to speak English
even amongst themselves. Education has also introduced a knowledge
of writing, with the result that letter-writing has come to play a
considerable part in maintaining contaft between the men working
abroad and their relatives and friends at home. It has led further to
the development of literary afti vity among the Bantu. Although most
of the literature written for the Bantu is provided by the missionaries

1 Mears, in Schapera, 1934, 94. * Schapera, 1934, 56 f.

1 U.G. 22, 1932, 610.

4 G. P. Lestrade, " European Influences upon the Development of Bantu Language and
Literature," in Schapera, 1934, 105-127.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 379

and other Europeans, more and more Natives are beginning to
write books in their own language. This development has been
most marked among the Cape Nguni and Southern Sotho, whose
educational history goes back farther than that of other groups ;
but there is no South African Bantu language which does not now
possess at least some publications by educated tribesmen. 1

Certain Missions have for a long time past also attended to the
medical needs of the people among whom they laboured. Others
have more recently followed their example. The Administrations
likewise have come to consider it one of their own principal duties.
European doftors are now found in most tribal areas ; a fair number
of small hospitals have been built in more central or important distrifts ;
and steps are being taken to train Native nurses, dispensers and medical
aids for service in their own reserves. For most cases of illness the
people still prefer their own treatments and praftitioners, often
enlisting European aid only when every other hope has failed. But
the general superiority of modern medical science to the methods of
Native healers is slowly being realized, and the people are tending
more and more to resort to the local European doftor. The greatest
obstacle perhaps to more rapid progress in this dire&ion is the still
quite inadequate supply of qualified doftors and other medical aids.
It is not at all surprising that the Natives should continue to consult
their own praftitioners when the nearest European doftor may be
anywhere from twenty to fifty miles away a faft not always remem-
bered when reference is made to the considerable hold " superstition "
still has over them.

Health conditions in the reserves leave much to be desired. The
Natives have benefited by public health measures against such diseases
as smallpox and plague, taken for the proteftion of the community
as a whole. But sanitary arrangements are still exceedingly crude,
a good deal remains to be learned about personal hygiene and the
prevention of disease, infantile mortality is appallingly high, and as a
result of contaft with the Europeans, and particularly through labour
migration to the towns, tuberculosis and venereal diseases have become
widely diffused. In the last respeft at least the Native has suffered very
considerably from the impaft of Western civilization. 2

1 Lestrade, op. cit.

1 Cf. J. Bruce-Bays, " The injurious eftefts of civilization upon the physical condition of
the Native races of South Africa/' S. Afr. J. '., v (1908), 263-8 ; Tuberculosis in South African
Natives (Publication 30 of the S.A. Institute for Medical Research, Johannesburg, 1932) ; Report
of Committee appointed to inquire into the training of Natives in Medicine and Public Health
(U.G. 35, 1928).

380 I. SCHAPERA

SOCIAL AND DOMESTIC LIFE

The economic, religious, and administrative influences whose more
immediate effefts upon tribal life have just been reviewed have
gradually readied upon social life as well. Tribal solidarity has been
affefted to some extent by the partition of the land, which has often
cut off seftions of a tribe from the immediate jurisdiftion of its Chief.
Some 60,000 Swazi, e.g., live in what is now the Transvaal, beyond the
modern borders of Swaziland. They still profess allegiance to the
Paramount Chief in Swaziland but come under a different system of
administration. 1 Increasing urbanization, too, has deprived many
tribes permanently of numbers of their members. Territorial organiza-
tion has been slightly altered by the tendency for local settlements to
diminish in size, owing to the greater readiness of the people to
distribute themselves more freely over the land now that there is no
longer any reason to fear aggression from other tribes. The larger social
units within the tribe, such as the Nguni clan and the Sotho ward,
appear to have remained fairly intaft, but less importance is attached
to their associated ritual and order of precedence, especially in the tribes
where Christianity has made considerable progress. Kinship, so
important a feature of the old social life, still plays a fairly conspicuous
part in marriage and ceremonial arrangements ; but such faftors
in economic life as labour migration, trade, and the emergence of
special occupations are diminishing its significance as a closely-knit
system of mutual aid in work and the sharing of wealth.

The stru&ure of the family has been considerably modified by the
decay of polygamy. The missionaries from the first resolutely opposed
it, and refused to extend Church membership to men with more than
one wife. The Administration supported them by taxing polygamists
more heavily than other men. Education and the influence of contaft
with Europeans generally further contributed to the resulting decline
of the institution. It has by no means disappeared completely, and is
still recognized under Native law as administered by the European
authorities. But there is little doubt that the proportion of polygamous
marriages is fairly rapidly diminishing. This means in turn that much
of the Native law dealing with marriage, the status of wives, allocation
of property and inheritance, now applies to a much smaller minority
of people than it formerly did.

The early missionaries and many other Europeans also obje&ed

1 B. A. Marwick, Tb Native* of Swaziland, MS. 1934 ; citing Petition of the Swazi Tribes
of the Eastern Transvaal to the Union Parliament, March, 1932.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 381

strenuously to lobola, which they regarded as wife-purchase. But
despite many attacks, and even attempts to suppress it, the custom has
been tenaciously retained. Even Native Christians, forbidden by
their Church to praftice it, are known to do so surreptitiously. The
European administrations explicitly recognize it as an essential element
of Native marriages, and so have contributed greatly towards its
continued observance. Nevertheless, it has changed in some respe&s.
Not only cattle, but goats, sheep, horses, saddles, and even money
are sometimes given as lobola\ and with the decay of ancestor-
worship and the substitution of money for cattle the custom loses much
of its ritual significance and becomes a more purely materialistic
and commercial transaftion. 1 This is again by no means universally
true, but there is certainly a marked tendency in that direftion in the
Cape and certain other regions.

There has also been a marked change in the relations between parents
and children. The periodical migrations of the men to seek work
in the towns free the children from paternal authority for months on
end. The decline of ancestor- worship has deprived the father of his
traditional role of family priest, formerly a powerful sanction for his
authority. The abolition or modification of the old initiation cere-
monies has considerably weakened their value as educational and
disciplinary institutions. The school and the church do not and
cannot provide as comprehensive and thorough a training as the
Native child received under purely tribal conditions ; and by stressing
the European conceptions of individual responsibility and individual
salvation they have reafted against the traditional conception of group
solidarity. There has consequently been a development of youthful
independence and irresponsibility which the old forms of authority
are no longer able to control, and which the new influences seem unable
to check. The young people no longer look to their parents for
guidance in everything, but are tending more and more to do as they
please.

Labour migration has contributed to this change. It provides a ready
avenue of escape if parental discipline and control prove too irksome.
It has also made the older men dependent upon their sons for the money
with which to pay taxes and meet other needs. The latter in consequence
acquire a new importance in family life to which the old conceptions
of discipline must yield. The individual poll tax and the introdu&ion
of European conceptions of majority further enhance their feelings of

1 Cf. Hunter, 1933, 271 ff.

382 I. SCHAPERA

independence. They will no longer let their parents arrange their
marriages, but choose their own brides ; and instead of living for
some time after marriage in the home of their parents, they soon
establish their own households, thus still further modifying the
strufture of the family. 1

Sexual life too has been aflfe&ed. The decay of polygamy has
deprived some women at least of the prospefts of early marriage.
Labour migration has led to a shortage of young men in the reserves,
and consequently to an increase in the number of unmarried women.
The average age of marriage has accordingly risen for both men and
women. These faftors, combined with the greater independence of
the young people, have led to marked relaxations of the old sexual
morality. Premarital sex relations are so widely praftised as to have
become almost customary, and so frequent have premarital births
become that the old attitude towards illegitimacy has been considerably
toned down. Married men, unable for religious or economic reasons
to have more than one wife, take concubines instead ; while married
women during the absence at work of their husbands seldom remain
faithful for long. 2

The ceremonies connefted with the various " transition phases "
of a person's life have lost some of their old charafter and taken on
new features. Christians, e.g., have not only adopted the new rites of
baptism and confirmation, but also celebrate births, marriages, and
deaths according to the ritual of their Church. Much of the old
ritual, however, is still observed even by them, especially in connexion
with the traditionally-associated feasts or purifications. 3 Such usages
as the killing of twins and other abnormal children have had to be
abandoned by all, the European courts regarding them as crimes ;
but sporadic instances of their pra&ice are nevertheless still found.
Praftically all Mission societies, again, have condemned the traditional
initiation ceremonies for boys and girls as most immoral, and forbid
their converts to participate. It is only recently that some have shown
a tendency to adapt these ceremonies to Christianity. In those tribes
where the Chief became a Christian, the ceremonies were either com-
pletely abolished for the tribe as a whole, as among the Ngwato, or
profoundly altered in chara&er, as among the Kxatla. Where he
remained a pagan, the result of the Mission attitude usually has been
trouble. The Chief and his followers insisted that Christians should

1 Cf. Schapcra, 1934, 47-51 ; Hunter, 1932, 68 1 -6.

* Schapera, 1933, 59-89, passim. Cf. Hunter, 1936, Chap. viii.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 383

undergo the rites like other members of the tribe, often compelling
them by force to do so. This has provoked the intervention of the
Administration, which although not proscribing the ceremonies has
made it an offence to secure participation by force. In the Northern
Transvaal there is said to be a general movement back to these rites,
but in other parts of the country, e.g. Basutoland and Bechuanaland,
they are now either not carried out at all or conducted in a way which
retains their most undesirable features but little of their ancient virtue. 1

The regimental organization characteristic of the Natal Nguni,
Swazi, and Sotho still survives. But the disappearance of inter-tribal
warfare has deprived the regiments of perhaps their most important
function in tribal life. With it the main incentives to the maintenance
of internal discipline have also gone. In Bechuanaland the regiments
are nowadays principally employed to work for the Chief at home or
to earn money abroad for financing large public works. The people are
beginning to resent this unpaid compulsory labour, and it has recently
been found necessary to regulate by Government Proclamation the
conditions under which it can be exafted. In Zululand and Natal the
regiments now appear to function mainly at large public displays on
such occasions as the visit of some exalted European -dignitary or
the accession or death of a Chief, when they parade in all their finery
and perform traditional dances. As among the Tswana, the ceremonies
accompanying their enrolment are becoming more and more curtailed.
In Swaziland the whole system is more strongly preserved, owing
to the Paramount Chief's adherence to traditional custom. But even
here it has suffered from the hostility with which it is regarded by the
missionaries and other Europeans ; and in order to bridge the gap
thus created between his pagan and Christian subjects the Paramount
Chief has recently commenced an attempt to adapt it to the needs and
conditions of modern Swazi society.

While old social groupings have thus been modified, new forms of
social differentiation have developed. There is much greater variation
in beliefs and customs than under the old tribal system. Some people
are very conservative, while others have discarded many traditional
usages in favour of European characteristics. Reference has already
been made to the emergence of new occupations and to the differences
in outlook and pra&ice developing between Christians and pagans,
educated people and the illiterate. The extent to which this has gone
is shown by the fact that among the Mpondo, as among many other

1 Schapera, 1934, 49 ; Eiselen, in Schapera, 1934, 72, 76 ; Mears, in Schapera, 1934, 88 f.

384 I. SCHAPERA

tribes, there are now two distinft social classes within the tribe" the
amaqaka, those who smear themselves with red clay, and the
amagqoboka^ those who have been pierced through, that is converted.
The groups roughly correspond to pagan and Christian, but with
the amagqoboka (converts) are included those who after attending school
or working for Europeans have retained European clothes, and to some
extent European ways, irrespeftive of whether they are or are not
Church members or adherents. The leaders of the amagqoboka group
are the Native pastors, teachers, clerks, agricultural demonstrators,
and interpreters. They are influential as disseminators of European
culture." l The magicians have in contrast been a powerful influence
towards conservatism, if only because much of their livelihood depends
upon maintaining in the minds of the people the belief in the efficacy
of magic. The Chiefs, according to the attitudes they adopted, have
either made for conservatism or been a powerful influence in the more
widespread adoption of certain European elements. The older people
have found it more difficult to keep pace with modern tendencies,
and for this reason are now also on the whole a conservative class.
In their day, too, some of them were pioneers, e.g. in the acceptance of
Christianity; but they have since been left behind, especially by
recent progress in education.

New lines of difference are also becoming apparent between the
sexes. The men have on the whole been more exposed to European
influence, owing mainly to labour migration. They have accordingly
tended more readily than the women to discard traditional pra&ices.
But the women have taken much more readily to Christianity, and
almost everywhere form a considerable majority in the congregations.
Almost everywhere, too, girls greatly outnumber boys in the tribal
schools, for their domestic duties do not hinder them from attending
school regularly, while the boys are in many cases needed to herd the
cattle. As a result, women have not only improved their homes and
acquired new standards of dress and cleanliness : they have also become
more confident and independent in their attitude towards the men,
and less willing to submit to their absolute control. 2 Labour migration,
by drawing the men away from home for lengthy periods, has increased
the domestic responsibility of the women as well as their spirit of
freedom. Many women, too, owing to the new avenues of employ-
ment now open to them, are becoming economically independent
of their menfolk. Recognition has been given to this faftin the Union,

1 Hunter, 1934, 337-8. Mears, in Schapera, 1934, 94 f.

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 385

where unmarried women can under certain conditions become legally
emancipated from the control of their family head. But in the High
Commission Territories their lifelong legal dependence still persists.
Women, finally, still have no share in the public administration of
tribal affairs, but " as teachers, nurses, and church-workers (they)
play a large part in education and in leading public opinion ". l

Communal life generally, particularly in Christianized tribes, has
lost much of its old excitements. Little has so far their taken place.
Children, it is true, still have their games, old and new, and their moon-
light dances and songs, while civilization has given them schools and
more recently various forms of youth movement to absorb some of their
energy. But for adults most of the old public ceremonies and entertain-
ments have gone. The men no longer go to war or hunt. Domestic work
is monotonous and unexafting, and with the decay of home industries
many old occupations have been lost, while relatively few people
have taken on new work at home. Labour migration, the principal
new activity, draws away most of the young men and even some of
the young women, thus creating a prominent gap in social life. The
aftivities of the Church provide some diversion from everyday occupa-
tion ; but for most people the principal alternative is lounging and
gossip by day,with the trading stores as convenient centres of gathering,
while at night there is often little to do but sit over the beer pots or
indulge in sexual intrigues. In pagan tribes the change has not been
so marked. Sufficient of the old ceremonial survives to give colour to
life ; but even this soon appears tame to men who have experienced
the bustle and variety of an urban environment. As we have already
remarked, it is not merely economic necessity that draws them abroad,
but also the desire for adventure and change.

THE TREND OF CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT

Reviewing summarily the effefts of European contaft upon the
old culture of the Bantu, one may perhaps venture upon certain broad
generalizations. Some contrast may first be drawn between Christian-
ized and pagan tribes. The culture of the former at the present time is not
the traditional Bantu culture of their ancestors, nor is it the civilization
of the European inhabitants of South Africa. It includes elements of
both. But they have been combined into a new and distinctive pattern.
The Native living under this new form of culture is no longer conscious

* Hunter, 1933, 276.

386 I. SCHAPERA

of a sharp breach between Bantu and European elements, as were his
grandfather and even his father. It is true that the few Europeans
living in his reserve differ from him in skin colour, mode of life, and
cultural allegiance. But the institutions they represent are now fully
part of the tribal culture. Christianity is the tribal religion, the trading
store an essential part of economic life, and the Administration an
integral part of the existing political system. The school is even more
conspicuously part of the routine system of education, in that all the
teachers in the reserves are themselves Natives. All these new elements
have been incorporated into the tribal culture, in some cases enriching
it, in others replacing corresponding elements formerly existent.
The modern culture also displays far more variations in detail than
its purely Bantu predecessor. But these variations, whether in marriage
or in belief, in morals or in economic life, now exist within a single
cultural whole, and no longer reflect two different cultures in opposi-
tion. The tribe is a single unit whose members do not feel themselves
sharply divided.

In pagan tribes, a considerable majority, conflict between the
old and the new is still observable. Many are in a comparatively
" raw " state, in which it is possible to find the traditional Bantu
culture functioning with but little disturbance. In others religious
differences sharply divide the people, a division reflected also in
education, clothing, and other aspects of culture. Even here, however,
labour migration, taxation, and the trader have brought most of the
people within the workings of the European economic system, while
the European Government dominates over them all. In the High
Commission Territories the Native political institutions retain sufficient
authority and jurisdiction to bolster up much of the old culture,
although evidence is not wanting of increasing Administrative interven-
tion. In the Union, on the other hand, political and legal changes have
been so extensive that tribal administration must now be regarded as
part of the general governmental system of the country.

Of the Bantu as a whole it can be said that they have now been
drawn permanently into the orbit of Western civilization. They do
not, and probably will not, carry on that civilization in its purely
European manifestations. It is more likely that in certain directions
at least they will develop their own local variations. But these varia-
tions will be within the framework of a common South African
civilization, shared in by both Black and White, and presenting certain
peculiarities based direftly upon the fact of their juxtaposition. Already

CULTURAL CHANGES IN TRIBAL LIFE 387

such a civilization is developing, a civilization in which the Europeans
at present occupy the position of a race-proud and privileged
aristocracy, while the Natives, although economically indispensable,
are confined to a menial status from which few of them are able to
emerge with success. There has grown up among the Europeans an
ideal of race purity and race dominance, according to which the integrity
of White blood and White civilization must be maintained at all costs.
And so we find special legislation and usages of social intercourse
dire&ed on the one hand against miscegenation and on the other
creeling artificial barriers against the cultural advancement of the
Blacks. But despite all this, the Bantu are being drawn more and more
into the common cultural life of South Africa, as the two succeeding
chapters will show even more clearly.

CHAPTER XVII

THE BANTU ON EUROPEAN-OWNED FARMS
By MONICA HUNTER

OF the social life of the Bantu living on farms (approximately 35 per
cent l of the Native population of the Union) very little is known.
Since other material is not available, this account has been based solely
on material collected by the writer in the Adelaide, Bedford, and Albany
districts of the Eastern Province, 2 and therefore applies only to a small
area. Conditions probably vary considerably in other Provinces
where terms of service are different, and where reserves may be
more distant.

On twenty-eight of the twenty-nine farms visited all the men were
paid servants receiving a wage partly in cash ; on one farm in a
prickly-pear area there were a number of labour-tenants who in
return for building plots and grazing rights cleared a patch of prickly
pear each year for the farmer on whose land they lived. No cash
passed between them and the farmer. Before 1914 there was, in
Adelaide and Bedford districts, a comparatively well-to-do class of
" half-share men ", who, in return for ploughing rights, handed
over the half of their crop to the farmer on whose land they lived,
and who paid so much per head for grazing sheep and cattle ; but with
the Land Act of 1913 and the development of sheep farming the " half-
share men " have been forced to become ordinary farm servants or
to move to towns or reserves.

The great majority of Bantu in the districts visited have grown
up on farms and have no stake in any reserve. Some are the descendants
of starving Xhosa who crossed the border to take service with farmers
in the Colony after the " cattle killing " in 1857 ; the parents of others
settled on farms later on. Only one or two families have come from
Ciskeian reserves for a period to earn money, and contemplate return-
ing to their original homes. Most farm servants are Xhosa, but there

1 Approximate figures deduced from the Report of the Natives Land Commission, 1916,
and Census Report, 1921

1 For a more detailed discussion of this material, cf. the writer's book, Reatiion to Conquest
(Oxford, 1 936), Part III, where an account is also given of the methods by which it was collected,
and full acknowledgment is made to the various institutions and people who sponsored the
investigation and gave other assistance.

389

390 MONICA HUNTER

are some Fingo, Thembu, Sotho, and Mpondo living among them,
intermarrying with them, and to a large extent following Xhosa
custom. On some farms there are also " Hottentot " l servants, and
there are cases of intermarriage between Bantu and Hottentot, but
Xhosa despise amaLawu, and the two groups, speaking different
languages, tend to live very much apart. 2

The extent of contaft with the reserves naturally varies with the
date at which the family left the reserve and with the proximity of the
farm to the reserve. Some, whose families have long lived on farms,
say that they have no friends or relatives in the reserves and have
never been there to visit. Others of the same class have married girls
from the reserves, go to visit there and entertain visitors in return.
Most of those who were brought up in reserves themselves go back
to visit, and in return entertain relatives. Important channels of contaft
between reserves and farms are the diviners and herbalists from the
reserves who tour farms on business. Not infrequently also farm
servants, when ill, get permission to go to the reserves to consult
a " doftor " there. Those who are diagnosed as " sick to be initiated "
as diviners, normally go to the reserves for a period to be treated.
Some seasonal workers, such as sheep shearers and reapers, are
drawn from the reserves, and they form another link between farm
and reserve.

There is also coming and going between farms and towns. In
every distrift there is a dorp or town, with a Native location, to which
farm servants go for shopping and to visit friends. Some from the
nearer farms may go to the location for Church services, or trade
union meetings, on Sundays, and children may be sent to the location
school. On some farms it is usual for boys, either before or after
circumcision, to get leave to go and work at a labour centre for a period
to earn money for their marriage cattle. Daughters from many farms
also go to town to find employment. Besides these temporary workers
there are those who go to live permanently in towns. In almost every
family visited on farms there was one member married, or permanently
employed in town, who returned to visit at intervals. Often those who
remain in towns are the most ambitious, for there is small opportunity
for a clever boy to improve his economic position on a farm.

Nevertheless " farm Natives " regard themselves as a distinft
group and contrast themselves with " those in Xhosa-land " who

1 Mixed blood Afrikaans-speaking families, with distinctly Hottentot features.
1 Xhosa told the writer that west of Cradock, where Bantu are fewer, there is much inter-
marriage with Hottentot; and some apparently Bantu families can speak only Afrikaans.

BANTU ON EUROPEAN-OWNED FARMS 391

are their own masters and free to brew beer and visit friends, but who
suffer during droughts, and who are shocking witches and sorcerers ;
and with those in towns whose children are so very badly behaved.

The farm community is scattered and isolated. In Bedford, Adelaide,
and Albany the rural Native population is approximately 6-5 to the
square mile ; the average number of Bantu servants on a farm is
6-4 adults, and 10-3 children, and farmers discourage visiting. Servants
must always obtain permission from their employer to entertain an
adult male visitor even for a few hours. Only occasionally when the
farms of relatives or close friends adjoin are the servants allowed
to pass freely from one to the other.

The Household.

The social and economic group is the urn^t, the traditional kinship
group consisting of a man, his wife or wives, unmarried children,
and sons with their wives and children. Economic conditions
the difficulty of feeding two wives and their children on a farm ration
and wage, and sometimes the direct intervention of the farmer who
refuses to employ polygynists on the ground that they have too many
children to feed militate against polygyny, and it has all but dis-
appeared. Only one family in fifty-nine imip investigated was
polygynous. Often as boys grow up the farmer is unable to employ
them and they have to go elsewhere to find work and a place to live.
When a son is employed on the same farm as his father, however, he
usually lives for some years at least after marriage in his father's
unify building a hut for his wife near that of his mother. The desire
to be " owner of an um^i " is strong, and forces which made for family
solidarity under old tribal conditions no longer operate, so a son usually
sets up his own um^i at an earlier age than was traditionally customary,
but all regard it as the right thing for a son to live for a time with his
father. The average um[i on a farm contains yz adults (i.e. circumcised
males and women who are married, or have borne children) and five
children.

All adult men in the um^i are wage earners, being paid in food,
sometimes grazing and ploughing rights, and cash. Most boys over
twelve or fourteen years of age are hired to herd stock and lead plough-
ing and waggon teams, and receive in turn a small monthly wage
in food and cash. Some married women are full-time servants in the
farmer's house, getting their meals in the house and a small cash wage ;
others do part-time work in laundry or dairy, and are paid only in

392 MONICA HUNTER

cash. Often unmarried girls are also employed as part or full-time
servants on the same terms as their mothers, but get lower wages.

On a proportion of the farms studied each married man has either
a small field allotted to him to work for himself, or else is granted
a half or third share in a strip of land cultivated by the farmer. Where
a field is allotted, the wife of the man to whom it is given is responsible
for weeding and reaping it ; and sometimes also for hoeing before
planting, if her husband has no oxen, or has not the time to plough it.
She must also weed and reap a " half-share " strip without payment.

According to traditional custom the earnings of members of the
umii should be handed over to the senior male, " the owner of the
iffiifi." Wives usually give their earnings to their husbands, or use
them for food or clothes, with their husbands' consent. Most unmarried
sons and daughters do likewise. Boys expeft that in return their father
will clothe them, supplying the two new sets of blankets necessary
at circumcision, and animals for ritual killings or doftors' fees if
necessary, and will help them with cattle for their marriage. A girl
expefls that clothing, a wedding outfit, and possibly an animal for a
ritual killing at her initiation will be supplied. Sometimes, however, boys
and girls claim their own wages. One girl of 15 known to the writer
demanded her wage of 4*. a month for herself, and, backed by her
employers, she got it. Married men, living in the urny. of their father,
may give a part of their earnings to him, but more often they hand it
over to their own wives to keep for them.

The produce from a field cultivated by a woman, or the ration
brought in by her husband or unmarried son, is the property of her
" house ", but all the members of the wnp pool their cooked food.
Sometimes each woman in the ump cooks and serves dishes for the
owner of the urn^ the young men and boys, the women and older girls,
and the children. More often one woman cooks a dish for the men,
another one for the women, or there may be only one woman of the
um[i at home, and she cooks for everyone.

How far intercourse with relatives outside the um%i is kept up
depends very largely on where they live. As has been explained,
sons and brothers often have to scatter to obtain work, and visiting is
restricted. Even if permission from a farmer is obtained to visit a
relative on his farm, men have little "leisure to travel. Their hours of
work are from sunrise to sunset for six days a week, stock must be
cared for on Sundays, and the only other partial holidays are a day or
two at Christmas and sometimes also at the New Year. Connexion

BANTU ON EUROPEAN-OWNED FARMS 393

with relatives on distant farms may be kept up by occasional visits
of women and children ; a man in unusually great difficulty over food
or a goat for a ritual killing, or a debt with the trader, may send his
wife to ask help (ukuBusa) from his or her relatives ; one who has
more cattle than he is permitted to graze may " lend " (ukunqoma) a
beast to a brother or son, or brother's son, who has less than the
number to which he is entitled ; sometimes a beast is given to a
brother out of a daughter's Utkaji (marriage cattle), or a boy is helped
to marry by his father's brother.

Faith in the power of the ancestors to harm or help their descendants
is strong, and frequently hairs of the sacred " cow of the brush "
(tnkomo yobiduungd) are worn, or ritual killings made, to obtain their
blessing. Few pagans dare negleft the killing of a white goat after
the birth of a child. One mother told how they, owing to their poverty,
had failed to kill, and her child had consequently nearly died. When
it was very ill her husband spent a month's wages (ior.) on a goat,
that the appropriate ritual might be performed. At circumcision,
at marriage, and at the death of an adult, a goat or an ox is always
killed, if the family concerned has any stock ; in cases of serious illness
a special offering of an ox or cow is made (idini), and when the general
health of members of the um^i or of their cattle is bad, the " owner "
sometimes kills " to make the umy, well ".

The ancestor cult san&ions right behaviour between relatives.
Failure to fulfil obligations towards kin, particularly failure to show
proper respeft towards parents, is believed sometimes to result in
illness sent by the ancestors. All the observances of the cult by affirming
the power and importance of the ancestors enhance the importance
of kin, as against friends and neighbours, but since relatives on farms
are often scattered, and visiting is difficult, ritual killings are not, as
they are in the reserves, occasions for the gathering of all near kinsmen,
and of their eating together particular portions of the beast killed.

Partly because of the believed importance of ritual killings to
health, most farm servants value the grazing rights given as part wage
on many farms ; though economically they benefit little from these
rights, and the possession of cattle reduces a farm labourer's bargaining-
power he dare not leave the farm on which he is since his stock may
die on the road before he finds another place. Employers are loath
to take a man with many cattle.

Everyone on farms regards himself (or herself) as a member of a
clan (isiduko). A child always belongs to the clan of its father, unless

394 MONICA HUNTER

no cattle have been given for its mother and she has not been married
by civil law, in which case it belongs to that of its mother. Clan
names are commonly used as polite modes of address and as praise-
names, and marriage and extra-marital sexual relations, whether full or
limited, are forbidden within the clan of either parent. In the um^i
group the position of a wife as a stranger from another clan is
emphasized by the taboos which must be observed by her. She may
not drink the milk of her husband's cows until a ritual killing is made
to enable her to do so. A bride in her father-in-law's um^i must avoid
the inner half (the men's part) of every hut except her own, the cattle
kraal (or the place where it would be if there is none) round which
men sit, and the inkundla, the space between the huts and the kraal.
" She must not cross the inkundla even when it is dark, because the
ancestor spirits are there." None of these taboos are observed by a
daughter of the um^i except when she is menstruating. Accusations
of witchcraft are far more common against a stranger wife, than against
a daughter of the clan.

Beyond regulating marriage the clan plays no part in the social
system of people living on farms. Clans have no territorial headquarters
and no chief, except ;n the reserves from which people living on farms
are to a greater or lesser degree divorced ; and members of clans living
on farms share in no common religious ritual. Everybody knows to
what tribe he belongs, and boys in an initiation school take the name of
a Xhosa, Fingo, or Thembu chief initiated in the same year as them-
selves, in the traditional way ; but chiefs have no authority on farms,
farm servants cannot go to chiefs to get cases tried, and many are
ignorant even of the name of the reigning chief of their tribe.

Community life.

The efieftive social group after the um^i is that formed by people
living on one farm. Largely cut off from relatives living on other
farms, they are bound together by common aftivities. The children
play together ; men and boys work together on the farm ; the women
are constantly in and out of one another's huts, gossiping, borrowing
utensils, helping one another in sickness. Where fields are cultivated
on " half-shares " with the farmer, the women work together weeding
and reaping, and sometimes for weeding fields worked entirely for
themselves pagan women brew a little beer, or Christians provide tea
or coffee or sugar, and invite their friends to come and help them.
Such a work party (ilimd) is but a shadow of the joyful gathering for

BANTU ON EUROPEAN-OWNED FARMS 395

work in the reserves, for men are fully occupied and cannot attend,
so there is no flirtation and dancing ; nevertheless the women much
prefer thus working together to hoeing alone.

Servants may not brew beer without the permission of their
employer. Most farmers give permission for one of the families on
the farm to brew a small quantity of beer (never more than four
gallons) each month, but permission for a " beer drink " (defined by
statute as " three or more persons not inmates of the kraal " i.e.
um^i) may only be given by the distrift Magistrate, or Native Com-
missioner, with the consent of the farmer on whose land it is to be
held, and is rarely if ever granted. In praftice all the adults living on
the farm on which beer is made normally drink together, and the
farmer shuts his eyes to this, but the danger of being apprehended for
trespass and attendance at an illicit beer drink prevents much visiting
to drink on neighbouring farms. At such ritual killings as take place
neighbours living on the same farm are always present ; they are the
guests at a wedding, the mourners at a funeral. Those living on one
farm combine to carry out circumcision rites as far as possible in the
traditional way, and perhaps to start a school, and pay a teacher for their
children. The stability of the group on one farm varies considerably.
On some farms the servants are continually changing; on others
the same families remain for generations.

A number of farmers treat one of their older employees as " boss
boy", making him responsible for certain tasks, and giving some of
the orders to other employees through him. On five out of twenty-
nine farms a graded wage was paid, the older and more capable men
receiving several shillings a month more than the less capable ; but
not all " boss boys " receive a higher wage than their fellows. Some
farmers prefer to work without a "boss boy". Others say that
paying a graded wage " makes trouble ". Certainly the " boss boy",
unless a senior man on the farm, both in age and length of service,
or of a chief's family, is liable to be resented. Accusations of witch-
craft or sorcery against a " boss boy " are common, and sometimes
the post is refused because a man is afraid either that witchcraft or
sorcery be worked against him, or that he be accused of himself using
them to kill other people. One who gains special favour with an
employer is thought to do so by the use of medicines, and though the
use of such medicines is not, in Xhosa or Mpondo law, illegal, there
is an idea that one who has very strong medicines is dangerous to
his fellows. On one farm we found that the authority of a " boss boy "

396 MONICA HUNTER

was willingly accepted because he was of the family of a Xhosa chief
and all the other families on the farm were Xhosa.

Serious cases of dispute between the farm servants are tried before
the European magistrate living in the principal town of the distrift.
It is at the discretion of the courts to try civil suits in which both
parties are Native by Native law, or by the Common and Statutory
laws of the Union. The procedure in a magistrate's court is not well
understood, and litigants have little chance of success if they do not
employ a European attorney who, charging fees to keep up a European
standard of living, is necessarily very costly for a non-European.
Cases between fellow servants may occasionally be taken to a popular
" boss boy " for arbitration, but on this point we lack evidence. Farm
servants have no opportunity of attending a chief's court, and their
knowledge of law is consequently much less than that of men living
in reserves. An elderly man born and brought up on a farm consulted
the writer as to the advisability of defending a case in the magistrates'
court for a claim by his son-in-law for cattle. The son-in-law had gone
to Cape Town to work, after his wife had borne two children. He had
been away six years, during which time he had sent back no money
to his wife. She had been ill, and while her husband had been away
had been living with her own people. On his return the husband
demanded his wife. Her father claimed a beast for maintenance. The
girl refused to go back to her husband, saying that he had deserted
her and she no longer cared for hiip. He then claimed for the six cattle
given to her father as lotola. The father was completely uncertain
as to whether he would have to return any cattle, and if so how many,
if the matter came before a court. He thus showed great ignorance
in comparison with a man of his age in the reserves, who would have
had the law regarding the proportion of cattle normally returned in
such a straightforward case at his finger-tips.

Disputes and jealousies often result in accusations of witchcraft
and sorcery. Accusations on farms are most often against fellow
servants, more rarely against relatives. They are never against one
with whom the injured is not in close contaft. When someone becomes
seriously ill, and no ritual killing for that person has been neglefted,
relatives of the patient usually go off to consult a diviner. A few men
and women living on farms praftise as diviners, but more often one
living in a town location, or in the reserves, is consulted. The tradi-
tional Xhosa method of divination is usually pra&ised, but on one
farm there was a Sotho who divined with " bones ", and he had a big

BANTU ON EUROPEAN-OWNED FARMS 397

pra&ice among both Europeans and Natives. The diviner always
attributes the misfortune either to witchcraft or sorcery, or to the
ancestors. Formerly some at least of those accused of witchcraft
or sorcery were killed, but the British administration has been success-
ful in praftically stopping such a&ion. Nowadays a married woman
who has been accused frequently returns to her own people, who
usually receive her well, refusing to believe the truth of the accusation
against her. If a man is accused, or if he refuses to believe the accusa-
tion against his wife, and keeps her with him, the family is occasionally
burnt out. The writer found one family moving from a farm, on which
they had lived for three generations, because a member had been
accused of witchcraft and their huts had been burnt.

But imputation of witchcraft or sorcery is a criminal offence, and
sometimes one accused invokes the aid of European authorities. A
number of children had died of pneumonia on one farm and a diviner
was called in. He accused the " boss boy " of praflising witchcraft.
The latter was furious, and threatened to report his accusers to the
police. The diviner fled, and the " boss boy " retained his position
on the farm.

Accusations of witchcraft and sorcery are an expression of quarrels,
and further foment them ; those believing themselves to be injured
are bitter against those they believe to be guilty, and against the
interfering Government against whom " no one ever works witch-
craft or sorcery " ; but those accused are not socially ostracized.
Accusations are many, and often those suspefted but once may
continue to live on the same farm and work alongside their accusers.

Relations between servants and employers vary considerably.
On some farms the personal relationship is very friendly, servants
and employers having known each other for long, and getting on
well together. Sometimes the farmer takes an interest in his people's
school, attending concerts, and occasionally contributing to the
teacher's salary. Some farmers' wives make wedding cakes when
a son or daughter of the farm marries ; some are brought gifts of
green maize and other fresh produce grown by their servants' wives.
On other farms there is mutual irritation and fear. One employer
told the writer that he never went near his servants' huts without a
revolver ; another said : " I think sometimes that we are cutting
our own throats by stopping beer drinks. If they (Bantu servants)
had them they would kill off each other. As it is now they are
increasing, and will come and kill us."

39 8 MONICA HUNTER

The social life of farm servants is very closely controlled by their
employers. The strifl: control of visiting, beer brewing, and of carrying
out traditional rituals, has been described. Some employers refuse to
permit a school on their farm on the ground that it " makes trouble
between the parents over the teacher's salary " and " all the children
from the distrift come to live on your farm ", and that learning to
read and write the vernacular unfits Natives for farm work. Others
refuse to allow any children of their employees to attend schools in
town or on other farms because they wish to employ these children
themselves. Each member of a family who is employed is paid
separately, but it is expefted that the wives of men engaged will
work if required. On one farm families in which the men were satis-
faftory to their employers were dismissed because their wives refused
to work in the house ; another farm was always run short-handed
because the mistress could not get on with maids, and when she
quarrelled with one the whole family was dismissed.

On twelve of the twenty-nine farms visited the majority of servants
were members or adherents (non-communicants attending services
at least occasionally) of a Christian denomination. From farms near
to towns servants sometimes go to the town location for Sunday
services : on some more remote farms there are " out-station "
churches occasionally visited by a European or Bantu Missionary,
who holds services attended by Christians living near. We found a
church T/ithin six miles of every farm on which the majority were
Christian. On three farms one of the menservants afted as a lay
preacher ; on one or two the women held a weekly prayer meeting
among themselves. Both Christians and pagans prefer to live with
others of their faith, and, so tend to congregate on different farms. It
is noticeable that on all the farms where slightly higher wages are
given practically all the servants are Christian, and that Christian
families are, upon the whole, cleaner and better housed than pagans.

Membership of certain organizations is forbidden. The Industrial
and Commercial Workers' Union, a Trades Union formed in Cape
Town in 1919 with the objeft of regulating wages and working con-
ditions of Bantu, had strong branches in Adelaide and Grahamstown
locations. Farmers were unanimous in forbidding Union agents to
come on to their farms, and dismissed servants who joined the Union,
though farmers have their own Association, and in some areas agree
not to engage servants dismissed by another employer. Nevertheless
farm servants attend I.C.U. meetings in town locations on Sunday

BANTU ON EUROPEAN. OWNED FARMS 399

afternoons, and at the Independent I.C.U. conference in 1925 a
resolution was proposed by the Adelaide delegate pressing the Govern-
ment to fix a minimum wage for farm hands and domestics at nearly
eight times the existing rate. (4 a month for a man instead of the
present average of 9$. lod. ; 2 a month for a boy or woman instead
of the present average of 44. %d. a month for a boy, and js. loJ. a
month for a full-time woman.) Farmers oppose non-European con-
trolled churches on the ground that they are liable to support the
Industrial and Commercial Workers' Union, and to be anti-European.
On one group of farms servants were threatened with dismissal if
they continued to attend services of the Bantu Presbyterian Church,
and the minister was forbidden to visit the farms. It was said that
when the servants had failed to pay their Church dues and pleaded
poverty, the Bantu Presbyterian minister, a Native, had urged them
to demand higher wages.

Individual development.

The infancy of a child growing up in a farm community is very
similar to that of a child in the reserves. A pregnant woman goes about
her normal duties drawing water and firewood, cleaning, cooking,
and hoeing, until the time of her delivery. From the fourth or fifth
month of pregnancy some pagan mothers drink daily the infusion of a
herb traditionally used by wives of their husband's clan, to insure the
health of mother and child. When the traditional herb is difficult to
obtain some pagans, like most Christians, use instead a European
laxative. After giving birth the pagan woman is secluded in a hut
which no man may enter until ten days or more have passed and she
has ground beer " to wash the hands ", smeared out the hut, and care-
fully washed and greased herself and her baby. As soon as possible
a white goat (umBingelelo) is killed as an offering to the ancestors, and
visitors to the feast bring the child gifts of white beads. " The child
will never have any health if it is not killed for." Christians are for-
bidden to make " sacrifices " to the ancestors, but they make a feast
on the day on which the child is baptized, and most kill a white goat
then. Children of pagans are treated with the traditional medicines.
They are swung in the smoke of a fire on which isifutho leaves have
been placed, and the appropriate song sung. A baby is made to wear
a necklace of the hairs of the family sacred cow (inkomo yobuluunga)
adorned with the white beads presented to it and woven with the sinew
of the goat killed to secure the blessing of the ancestors ; a necklace

400 MONICA HUNTER

of tanjie seeds or cowrie shells, as a teething charm ; sometimes a key
to " lock up the cough ". The nursing mother nibbles charms before
suckling her child, or nibbles and spits on her child when it cries.
" If she does that when she visits the um[i of an igqwira (witch or
sorcerer) the witchcraft or sorcery will not enter the child."

These precautions are an attempt to proteft the child against very
real danger. The infant mortality (children dying under one year)
is 137*64 per thousand. The average number of births per mother
(married women of all ages) is 7*05 : women rarely become pregnant
again until the previous child is two years old. (These figures are of
course very approximate, as information was collefted from only
101 mothers.)

The baby is strapped to its mother's back as she goes about her
work or crawls about the floor, or is cared for by an elder sister or
mother's sister. Girls of about six begin looking after younger children
and helping their mothers with household tasks. Since farms are
fenced there is comparatively little herding to be done and boys do
not begin serious duties until hired by the farmer at twelve or fourteen.
On many farms the servants have neither time nor materials for
building, and often a family must all sleep in one hut, sometimes even
share a hut with another family, so children are more often in their
parents' hut at night than they are in the reserves, where usually
each woman has two huts, and the children sleep in a store hut or
with their grandmother.

Almost everywhere school education is eagerly desired. There are
sixteen Government-aided schools, with an enrolment of 2,070 in
Adelaide, Bedford, and Albany distri&s, an area of 3,255 square miles,
with a Bantu population of 29,343, i.e. one school to every 203 square
miles, and one child of every fourteen inhabitants attending school.
Taking rural areas only there is one school in approximately 400 square
miles, one child in every fifty-two inhabitants attending school, and one
teacher to every forty-six children at school. 1 But on seven of the farms
visited there were private schools started by and paid for by the servants
themselves. The private schools are often run by a girl or a woman
on the farm who has learned to read and write, and who takes pupils
at 6d. per month per child. One such teacher was a deformed girl
who had learned to read and write Xhosa from another girl who had
been to school. In one or two cases parents had engaged a trained

1 Census Report, 1921 ; Educational Statistics, 1930. The population is probably higher
than the figure given.

BANTU ON EUROPEAN-OWNED FARMS 401

teacher and raised the salary among themselves by subscriptions, and
" tea-meetings ". One private school with a trained teacher was
attended by forty-nine children. On three farms one of the men-
servants who could read and write ran a night school. The enterprise
in starting schools and the self-denial shown in the payment of 6J.
a month per child out of a wage of los. a month, is proof of the eager-
ness for education. The private schools usually teach only reading
and writing in the vernacular and simple arithmetic. The Government-
aided schools following the set curriculum give also some form of
" manual or industrial training " usually clay modelling, gardening,
and sewing for girls English as a secondary language from the
lowest form, religious instruftion, singing, and sometimes some drill,
hygiene, nature study, history, and geography. One or two schools
(usually those in urban centres) take pupils up to Standard VI, but the
very great majority of children do not get further than reading and
writing Xhosa.

All schools with a number of pupils give periodical concerts or
" tea-meetings " attended by parents and friends. At " tea-meetings "
an entrance fee is charged or tea and cakes sold, and members of the
audience bid against one another for the right to hear particular
songs, soloists, or choirs. (Always when possible the choir of a neigh-
bouring school is invited to assist.) A pays -}J. that B should sing,
and B buys himself off with 4</. or C offers 5</. that D should sing
first. The party is kept up for the best part of the night, and parents
and children enjoy themselves enormously.

Besides these schools, which touch only a small percentage of
farm children, there are remnants of the traditional educational system.
Boys between eighteen and twenty years, even though sons of Christian
families, all go to a circumcision school. Because of the difficulty
of getting permission to visit, a separate school is usually held on each
farm, which is attended by all the boys of an age to be initiated,
irrespe&ive of their tribe. Sometimes one boy goes through the
circumcision ceremonies alone. Xhosa are in the majority on farms,
and as far as we could discover the traditional Xhosa procedure is
followed.

About March the men and women of the farm build a hut in the
old beehive pattern at some distance from any ump. On a Sunday
afternoon an ox or cow, failing that a goat, is killed ritually at the um^i
of a senior man on the farm, and each candidate is given a piece of
meat from the right foreleg. No woman may eat of the meat of this

402 MONICA HUNTER

animal. The boys go to a river to wash and are anointed with medicines.
Their heads, and the heads of girls who are their contemporaries,
are shaved, " that they may leave behind their dirt." After shaving
these girls will no longer sweetheart (ukumetsfia) with uncircumcised
boys, but only with circumcised men. Each boy puts on a necklace
made of hairs from the sacred cow (jnkomo yotuluunga) of his father,
as an appeal to the ancestors. This, it is said, will give him health
and the wisdom of his ancestors. One man is appointed as " nurse "
in charge of the boys. For three weeks they remain in seclusion in
their hut. No woman may approach it. Until the wounds of all have
healed none may speak to a woman. Later they may speak with girls,
but until they finally come out they striftly avoid all women of their
mother's generation. Boys get special leave for the period of seclusion,
but the " nurse " usually carries on his farm duties.

The dancing contests between rival schools of initiates which play
such a big part in the initiation ceremonial in the reserves are apparently
never held, and the dancing skirts and -masks are not made. The
traditional ukutshila dance is prohibited by law, 1 farmers forbid
large gatherings on their farms, and men have not the leisure to form
the necessary audience. But on the afternoon (usually a Saturday)
when the initiates are to come out the men ask for a half holiday.
They chase the initiates from their hut to the river. The initiates
wash, smear themselves with fat and red clay, and don new clothes.
Their hut is fired, and all their old clothes burned in it. At an um[i
they are received with singing and dancing, and given presents
by the women and girls. Beer is usually provided. The initiates are
exhorted by older men as to their future duties and behaviour. " They
are told to put off childish things, and they are told that when their
father dies they must look after their mother as their father did."
On one farm visited the sons of pagans and Christians were initiated
together, but on coming out they gathered with their friends in separate
huts. In one there was beer and dancing, in the other hymns and
prayers. After coming out the initiates resume their normal life,
but in three months' time they require another outfit of clothes.

The initiation of girls at puberty, with the three months' seclusion
and ritual dancing and offerings to the ancestors, is rarely carried
out on farms. The traditional intonjane dance is prohibited by law. 2
Pagans believe that the health of their daughters both before and after

1 Aft 16, 1891. (Does not apply to the Transkci, and is not enforced in Ciskeian reserves.)
1 Aft 16, 1891.

BANTU ON EUROPEAN-OWNED FARMS 403

marriage is dependent upon their proper performance of the custom.
Church members never initiate their daughters after the pagan fashion,
but substitute a seclusion and " party " before marriage, at which a
goat is sometimes killed.

Girls from ten or twelve, and boys from twelve or fourteen, begin
to go to iintlomBe (young people's dances), which are held in areas in
which pagans predominate, most Saturday nights. Friends from two
or three farms gather, and spend the night dancing, singing, and sleep-
ing together (ukumetsha). Only limited relations are permitted, and
if the hymen of a girl is ruptured damages are demanded from the boy
responsible. In the Christian community ukumetsha is frowned upon,
and there are no iintlomBe where all are " school people ", but the young
people meet at school concerts, weddings, etc., and ukumetsha is
common among them also. Premarital pregnancy is regarded as
disgraceful and is rare except on farms near to towns. In some distri&s
girls are periodically examined by their mothers in the traditional
Xhosa way. For a girl to have a child by a boy not yet circumcised
is particularly shameful.

Ukumetsha is not necessarily a preliminary to marriage boys and
girls have usually experimented with a number of partners before they
get married but when a boy has collefted sufficient cattle for the
first instalment of ukulobola and is looking for a wife, his first step is
usually to make sure that the girl he wants is willing. Then, aided by
his friends, he carries her off to his father's um[i, reports her whereabouts
to her people, and opens negotiations regarding marriage cattle. If
her people agree to the match the groom's father kills a goat ritually,
the bride is given a certain piece of meat to eat, and the marriage is
consummated. The marriage cattle are handed over in instalments.
The bride shortly after her marriage goes home to fetch a few house-
hold utensils and clothes a dress, headkerchief, blanket, and sleeping-
mat for herself. Occasionally a girl is carried off against her will.
This is comparatively rare, but etiquette demands that she should
always cry and make a great fuss. To appear to go to a man willingly
would be most immodest.

Sometimes marriages are arranged beforehand, and the traditional
Xhosa marriage ceremonial is carried out in a modified form. The
bride is brought to the groom's home by a party of friends, a goat
is killed to entertain them, and later a goat or an ox is killed to mark
the marriage. A bride brought in this way brings gifts to her husband's
relatives and an elaborate wedding outfit for herself, and the number

404 MONICA HUNTER

of marriage cattle is greater. Failure to carry out this ceremonial is
thought sometimes to result in the illness of the bride ; the ancestors
are angry at the negleft. Then although a woman has been married for
years, she may be sent back to her own people to colleft an outfit,
and the wedding ceremonial is performed as if she were a bride.

When funds are lacking for a grand wedding " school people "
also sometimes carry off the bride, but they prefer that the marriage
should be arranged beforehand and solemnized in church. Negotia-
tions are made with the girl's father, and at least part of the marriage
cattle handed over. The girl is secluded for ten days or more, and
her contemporaries summoned to a " party " ; then the religious
ceremony is performed in church, and there is a feast at the bride's
home, and one at the groom's home.

The farm community as a whole, then, is extremely conservative,
carrying out traditional custom as far as conditions permit. For the
farmhand chiefs and the tribal group are traditions, rather than realities
of every- day life, and the kinship system is modified by economic
necessity, but the traditional family pattern and the ancestor cult which
buttresses it to a large extent survive. Magic and witchcraft flourish
as in the reserves. In spite of conservatism, there is a strong desire
for education and a willingness to organize to secure improvement
of economic condition ; in spite of extreme poverty and severe
restrictions upon his liberty the African farmhand yet manages to
preserve his self-respeft and to enjoy the company of his neighbours.

CHAPTER XVIII
THE NATIVE IN THE TOWNS

By ELLEN HELLMANN

THE rural Native at first came to the urban centres as a temporary
labourer, content to earn sufficient to pay his tax and satisfy other
urgent needs. With only a few exceptions the women remained in
the country. In the last two decades the townward drift has assumed
sufficiently greater proportions to become a cause of uneasiness and
concern to Municipal authorities. In addition to the large numbers of
casual labourers whose sojourn in a town is temporary, a permanent
urban population is emerging ; and the Legislature has given recogni-
tion to this faft in the Urban Areas Act of 1923, whose two principles
are to eliminate urban Native slum conditions and to extend to urban
areas the principle of residential segregation.

In 1921, when the last non-European census of South Africa
for which information is available was taken, 1 the urban Bantu popula-
tion was 587,000 (of whom 200,000 were mine Natives). This showed
an increase from 1911 of 7-20 per cent in the male and of 50*33 per cent
in the female Bantu population. The population of the towns is to-day
notoriously much larger, but, failing a census, it cannot be accurately
computed. Figures are, however, available for the Bantu population
of specific urban centres. The Report of the Native Economic Com-
mission shows that in nine such centres, where Municipal censuses h