Exploring South Africa : The Zulu Tribe and The Sotho Tribe

Tradiontal Housing or hut for the Zulu people

There are so many different tribes in Africa and I am going to give you an insight on a two of them here. The first tribe that I am going to start off with is the Zulu tribe. They are the descendants of Nguni speaking people. The 9 million of the Zulu’s live mainly in KwaZulu Province of South Africa. KwaZulu-Natal borders on Mozambique in the north. The land is very fertile with coastal plains, highlands to the west, with a number of rivers and streams. There dominant language is isiZulu but the languages that are frequently spoken are Zulu and English. They believe in ancestral spirits, or spirits of the dead. Offerings made to the ancestors are usually for protection, good health, and happiness. They also believe in the use of magic. Many of the Zulu’s converted to Christianity under the colonialism period.The typical homestead will be circular and fenced with a thatched roof house. Their term for the word family is umndeni and all of the family stays within the household whether it be by blood, marriage or adoption.

Traditional Housing For the Sotho People

Then there is the Sotho tribe and they are an ethnic group of people living in either Lesotho or South Africa. There are two major branches the southern and the northern Sotho. The southern Sotho people makes up about 99% of the population of Lesotho. The southern and northern parts together are the second largest group in South Africa. Lesotho is a mountainous country within the borders of South Africa. The Sotho language is bantu language. It is rich in proverbs, idioms, and special ways to address the elders and their in-laws. The difference between the southern and northern people are the different dialects. The religion that is practiced there is Modimo. Modimo is approached through the spirits of the ancestors. Today Christianity is accepted in one form or another.

Peace,Love,Respect, and South Afica

N'Dea

References: http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Rwanda-to-Syria/Zulu.html
http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Japan-to-Mali/Sotho.html
http://answersafrica.com/south-african-tribes.html