Zulu people

Zulu people (; ) are a native people of Southern Africa of the Nguni. The Zulu people are the largest ethnic group and nation in South Africa, living mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal.

They originated from Nguni communities who took part in the Bantu migrations over millennia. As the clans integrated, the rulership of Shaka brought success to the Zulu nation due to his improved military tactics and organization.

Zulus take pride in their ceremonies such as the Umhlanga, or Reed Dance, and their various forms of beadwork.

The art and skill of beadwork take part in the identification of Zulu people and act as a form of communication and dedication to the nation and specific traditions. Today, the Zulu people are predominantly Christian, but have created a syncretic religion that is combined with the Zulu's prior belief systems.

History of the Zulu people

Origins

The Zulu were originally a minor clan in what is today Northern KwaZulu-Natal, founded by Zulu kaMalandela. In the Nguni languages, iZulu means heaven or weather. At that time, the area was occupied by many large Nguni communities and clans (also called the isizwe people or nation, or called isibongo, referring to their clan or family name). Nguni communities had migrated down Africa's east coast over millennia, as part of the Bantu migrations. As the nation began to develop, the rulership of Shaka (about 250 years after it was founded) brought the clans together to build a cohesive identity for the Zulu.

Zulu military

thumb|Utimuni, nephew of King [[Shaka, strikes a warrior's pose]]

The Zulu nation's growth and strength were based on its military organization and skills during Shaka's reign and those of his successors. The military was organized around the ukubuthwa ("to be enrolled") system, which did away with initiation ceremonies for the most part. Each age set, or group of young men of the same age, was assigned to the same regiment (ibutho, singular; amabutho, plural), according to the system. Girls were also subject to ukubuthwa, but they were usually assigned to an age group rather than to a regiment. The amabutho were housed in military barracks (singular, ikhanda; plural, amakhanda) located throughout the kingdom and under the command of a close relative to (or someone else appointed by) the king.

The barracks were designed and laid out similarly to an umuzi, but on a much larger scale. Aside from military duties, the izinsizwa ("young men") were also responsible for the repair and maintenance of their barracks.

Kingdom

thumb|King Shaka

The Zulu formed a powerful state in 1816 under the leader Shaka. Shaka, as the Zulu commander of the Mthethwa Empire and successor to Dingiswayo, united what was once a confederation of lordships into an imposing empire under Zulu hegemony. Shaka built a militarized system known as Impi featuring conscription, a standing army, new weaponry, regimentation, and encirclement battle tactics. Zulu expansion was a major factor of the Mfecane ("Crushing") that depopulated large areas of southern Africa. It was during this period when Shaka deployed an army regiment for raiding nations in the North. The regiment which was under Mzilikazi disobeyed Shaka and crafted a plan to continue raiding up-North forming another dialect of Zulu language referred to as Northern Ndebele (now in Zimbabwe). Another group under Zwangendaba who was Shaka's relative from the Gumbi Clan from Pongola and military commander trekked northwards crossing the Zambezi River at Chirundu in 1835 into Zambia setting up the Ngoni nation that extended to Malawi, Mozambique and Southern Tanzania.

Conflict with the British

In mid-December 1878, envoys of the British crown delivered an ultimatum to 11 chiefs representing the then-current king of the Zulu empire, Cetshwayo. Under the British terms delivered to the Zulu, Cetshwayo would have been required to disband his army and accept British sovereignty. Cetshwayo refused, and war between the Zulus and African contingents of the British crown began on January 12, 1879. Despite an early victory for the Zulus at the Battle of Isandlwana on 22 January, the British fought back and won the Battle at Rorke's Drift, and decisively defeated the Zulu army by July at the Battle of Ulundi.

Absorption into Natal

thumb|right|Zulu [[warriors in the late nineteenth century, with Europeans in the background]]

After Cetshwayo's capture a month following his defeat, the British divided the Zulu Empire into 13 "kinglets". The sub-kingdoms fought amongst each other until 1883 when Cetshwayo was reinstated as king over Zululand. This still did not stop the fighting and the Zulu monarch was forced to flee his realm by Zibhebhu, one of the 13 kinglets, supported by Boer mercenaries. Cetshwayo died of a heart attack in February 1884, leaving his son, the 15-year-old Dinuzulu, to inherit the throne. In-fighting between the Zulu continued for years until in 1897 Zululand was absorbed fully into the British colony of Natal.

Apartheid years

KwaZulu homeland

thumb|left|upright|Zulu man performing traditional warrior dance

Under apartheid, the homeland of KwaZulu (Kwa meaning place of) was created for the Zulu people. In 1970, the Bantu Homeland Citizenship Act provided that all Zulus would become citizens of KwaZulu, losing their South African citizenship. KwaZulu consisted of many disconnected pieces of land, in what is now KwaZulu-Natal. Hundreds of thousands of Zulu people living on privately owned "black spots" outside of KwaZulu were dispossessed and forcibly moved to bantustans – worse land previously reserved for whites contiguous to existing areas of KwaZulu. By 1993, approximately 5.2 million Zulu people lived in KwaZulu, and approximately 2 million lived in the rest of South Africa. The Chief Minister of KwaZulu, from its creation in 1970 (as Zululand) was Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi. In 1994, KwaZulu was joined with the province of Natal, to form the modern KwaZulu-Natal.

Inkatha YeSizwe

Inkatha YeSizwe means "the crown of the nation". In 1975, Buthelezi revived the Inkatha YaKwaZulu, the predecessor of the Inkatha Freedom Party. This organisation was nominally a protest movement against Apartheid but held more conservative views than the ANC. For example, Inkatha was opposed to the armed struggle, and sanctions against South Africa. Inkatha was initially on good terms with the ANC, but the two organisations came into increasing conflict beginning in 1976 in the aftermath of the Soweto Uprising.

Language

thumb|left|Map of South Africa showing the primary [[Zulu language speech area in shades of darker green]]

The language of the Zulu people is "isiZulu", a Bantu language; more specifically, part of the Nguni subgroup. Zulu is the most widely spoken language in South Africa, where it is an official language. More than half of the South African population can understand it, with over 13.78 million first-language and over 15 million second-language speakers. Many Zulu people also speak Xitsonga, Sesotho and others from among South Africa's 12 official languages.

Ceremony

thumb|Zulu people gather at Reed Dance ceremony.

Umhlanga

The Zulu people celebrate an annual event that was established in 1984 called the Umhlanga or Reed Dance. This event takes place at the royal capital near Nongoma. This traditional ceremony is performed by young women from all parts of the kingdom to perform in front of the monarch and his guests. Beadwork is a prominent attire that is worn at the Umhlanga. The beadwork is not only worn by the dancers but by the guests as well. The Umhlanga is not purely for a time of dance. The King also uses this time to speak to the young men and women of the nation. The King discusses current political issues. The beads have the potential to convey information about a person's age, gender and marital status. The design of the beads often conveys a particular message. However, one must know the context of their use to read the message correctly. These skirts are not seen as shameless, but are used to cover the women's genitals. The skirts are called isigcebhezana and are essential in Zulu ceremonies. For example, Umemulo is a ceremony for women who turn 21 years of age.

Societal roles

Men

The Zulu people govern under a patriarchal society. Traditionally, the more strongly held Zulu belief was in ancestor spirits (amaThongo or amaDlozi), who had the power to intervene in people's lives, for good or ill. This belief continues to be widespread among the modern Zulu population.

Traditionally, the Zulu recognize several elements to be present in a human being: the physical body (inyama yomzimba or umzimba); the breath or life force (umoya womphefumulo or umoya); and the "shadow" prestige or personality (isithunzi). Once the umoya leaves the body, the isithunzi may live on as an ancestral spirit (idlozi) only if certain conditions were met in life. Behaving with ubuntu, or showing respect and generosity towards others, enhances one's moral standing or prestige in the community, one's isithunzi. By contrast, acting in a negative way towards others can reduce the isithunzi, and the isithunzi can fade away completely.

thumb|Zulu [[sangomas (diviners)]]

To appeal to the spirit world, a diviner (sangoma) must invoke the ancestors through divination processes to determine the problem. Then, a herbalist (inyanga) prepares a mixture (muthi) to be consumed to influence the ancestors. As such, diviners and herbalists play an important part in the daily lives of the Zulu people. However, a distinction is made between white muthi (umuthi omhlope), which has positive effects, such as healing or the prevention or reversal of misfortune, and black muthi (umuthi omnyama), which can bring illness or death to others, or ill-gotten wealth to the user.

Furthermore, the Zulu people also practice a ceremony called Ukweshwama. The killing of the bull is part of Ukweshwama, an annual ceremony that celebrates a new harvest. It is a day of prayer when Zulus thank their creator and their ancestors. By tradition, a new regiment of young warriors is asked to confront a bull to prove its courage, inheriting the beast's strength as it expires. It is believed this power was then transferred to the Zulu king.

Bride wealth

Zulu people have a system called '. This term is particularly used by Zulu people when it comes to bride wealth. Every African ethnic group has different requirements when it comes to bride wealth. In pre-capitalist Zulu society, ilobolo was inextricably linked to the ownership of cattle. During that time, there was not a fixed number of cattle required for the wedding to happen; it could be paid before the marriage or during the marriage. The groom takes the cattle from his father's herd to perpetuate the family heritage. Nonetheless, this ritual changed during colonisation because in 1869, Theophilus Shepstone, then Natal Secretary for Native Affairs, formalized the ilobolo payment to 10 cattle for commoners (plus the ingquthu cow for the mother), 15 for hereditary chief siblings and 20-plus for the daughters of a chief. The payment of ilobolo can be difficult for some families, but as it is often considered a symbol of pride and respect, many are willing to maintain this tradition as long as possible.