The Xhosa (pronounced [kǁʰɔsɑ]( listen)) people are speakers of Bantu languages The Bantu languages constitute a sub-branch of the Niger-Congo languages. By one estimate, there are 522 languages in the Bantu family, 668 languages in the Southern Bantoid branch which includes Bantu, and 1,532 in Niger-Congo. Bantu languages are spoken largely east and south of the present day country of Cameroon; i.e., in the regions commonly living in south-east South Africa Coordinates: 29°02′46″S 25°03′47″E / 29.046°S 25.063°E The Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a 2,798 kilometres coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe; to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland; while Lesotho is an independent, and in the last two centuries throughout the southern and central-southern parts of the country.

Xhosa-speaking peoples are divided into several subgroups with related but distinct heritages. The main subgroups are the Bhaca, Bomvana, Mfengu, Mpondo, Mpondomise, Xesibe, and Thembu^[1]. The name "Xhosa" comes from that of a legendary leader called uXhosa. There is also a theory that the word xhosa derives from a word in some Khoi-khoi The Khoikhoi or Khoi, in standardised Khoekhoe/Nama orthography spelled Khoekhoe, are a historical division of the Khoisan ethnic group, the native people of southwestern Africa, closely related to the Bushmen (or San, as the Khoikhoi called them). They had lived in southern Africa since the 5th century AD and, at the time of the arrival of or San The indigenous people of southern Africa, whose territory spans most areas of South Africa, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Mozambique, Swaziland, Botswana, Namibia, and Angola, are variously referred to as Bushmen, San, Sho, Basarwa, Kung, or Khwe. These people were traditionally hunter-gatherers, part of the Khoisan group and are related to the traditionally language meaning "fierce" or "angry", the amaXhosa being the fierce people. The Xhosa refer to themselves as the amaXhosa and to their language as isiXhosa.

Presently approximately 8 million Xhosa people are distributed across the country, and Xhosa is South Africa's second most common home language, after Zulu Zulu is the language of the Zulu people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority (over 95%) of whom live in South Africa. Zulu is the most widely spoken home language in South Africa (24% of the population) as well as being understood by over 50% of the population (Ethnologue 2005). It became one of South Africa's eleven official, to which Xhosa is closely related. The pre-1994 apartheid Bantustan · District Six · Robben Island system of bantustans A bantustan was a territory set aside for black inhabitants of South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia), as part of the policy of apartheid. Ten bantustans were established in South Africa, and ten in neighbouring South-West Africa (then under South African administration), for the purpose of concentrating the members of designated ethnic denied Xhosas South African citizenship and attempted to confine them to the nominally self-governing "homelands" of Transkei The Transkei , officially the Republic of Transkei (Xhosa: iRiphabliki yeTranskei), was a Bantustan—an area set aside for members of a specific ethnicity—and nominal parliamentary democracy in the southeastern region of South Africa. Its capital was Mthatha, usually given as 'Umtata' on maps and in English-language medium materials and Ciskei Ciskei was a Bantustan in the south east of South Africa. It consisted 2,970 square miles (7,700 km³), almost entirely surrounded by what was then the Cape Province and possessing a small coastline along the shore of the Indian Ocean, now both a part of the Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho. It was formed in 1994 out of the "independent" homelands of Transkei and Ciskei, as well as the eastern portion of the Cape Province. Landing place and home of the 1820 settlers. It is partly the traditional home of the Xhosa, and the birthplace of many prominent Province where most Xhosa remain. Many Xhosa live in Cape Town Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the largest in land area, forming part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality. It is the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape, as well as the legislative capital of South Africa, where the National Parliament and many government offices are located. Cape (iKapa in Xhosa), East London East London , sometimes referred to as Buffalo City, is a city on the southeast coast of South Africa, situated at 32.97°S and 27.87°E in the Buffalo City Local Municipality in the Amatole District of the Eastern Cape Province. The city lies on the Indian Ocean coast, largely between the Buffalo River and the Nahoon River, and is the country's (iMonti), and Port Elizabeth Port Elizabeth or known as Nelson Mandela Bay is a large city in South Africa, situated in the Eastern Cape Province, 770 km east of Cape Town. The city, often shortened to PE and nicknamed "The Friendly City" or "The Windy City", stretches for 16 km along Algoa Bay, and is one of the major seaports in South Africa. It is also (iBhayi).

As of 2003^[update] the majority of Xhosa speakers, approximately 5.3 million, lived in the Eastern Cape, followed by the Western Cape The Western Cape is a province in the south west of South Africa. The capital is Cape Town. Prior to 1994, the region that now forms the Western Cape was part of the much larger Cape Province. Prior to the formation of the Union of South Africa in 1910, it was called the Cape Colony (see the History of Cape Colony) (approximately 1 million), Gauteng Gauteng is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. It was formed from part of the old Transvaal Province after South Africa's first all-race elections on 27 April 1994. It was initially named Pretoria-Witwatersrand-Vereeniging (or PWV) and was renamed 'Gauteng' in December 1994 (671,045), the Free State The Free State is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bloemfontein, which is also South Africa's judicial capital. Its historical origins lie in the Orange Free State Boer republic. The current borders of the province date from 1994 when the Bantustans were abolished and included into the provinces of South Africa. It is also the only one (246,192), KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal is a province of South Africa. Prior to 1994 the territory now known as KwaZulu-Natal was made up of the province of Natal and all pieces of territory that made up the homeland of KwaZulu (219,826), North West (214,461), Mpumalanga Mpumalanga, (pronounced /uːmˈpuːməlɑːŋɡə/ – name changed from Eastern Transvaal on 24 August 1995), is a province of South Africa. The name means east or literally "the place where the sun rises" in Swazi, Xhosa, and Zulu. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, north of KwaZulu-Natal and bordering Swaziland and Mozambique (46,553), the Northern Cape The Northern Cape is the largest and most sparsely populated of the provinces of South Africa, created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley. It includes the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park, which is part of a trans-frontier park with Botswana. It also includes the Augrabies Falls and the diamond mining regions in (51,228), and Limpopo Limpopo is the northernmost province of South Africa. The capital is Polokwane, formerly named Pietersburg. The province was formed from the northern region of Transvaal Province in 1994, and initially named Northern Transvaal. The following year, it was renamed Northern Province, which remained the name until 11 June 2003, when the name of the (14,225).^[2]

History

The Xhosa are part of the South African Nguni Nguni peoples are pastoralist groups, ethnically part of the greater Bantu group occupying much of the East and Southern parts of Africa. They migrated southwards over many centuries, with large herds of Nguni cattle, probably entering what is now South Africa around 2000 years ago in sporadic settlement, followed by larger waves of migration migration which slowly moved south from the region around the Great Lakes The Great Lakes of Africa are a series of lakes in and around the geographic Great Rift Valley formed by the action of the tectonic East African Rift. They include Lake Victoria, the second largest fresh water lake in the world in terms of surface area, and Lake Tanganyika, the world's second largest in volume as well as the second deepest. The, displacing the original Khoisan Khoisan is a unifying name for two major ethnic groups of Southern Africa. Historically, they have been referred to as the Capoid race because they can be visually distinguished from most other sub-Saharan Africans by way of their relatively lighter skin color and their epicanthic folds. From the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic period, hunting hunter gatherers of Southern Africa. Xhosa peoples were well established by the time of the Dutch The Netherlands (pronounced /ˈnɛðɚləndz/ ; Dutch: Nederland, pronounced [ˈneːdərlɑnt] ( listen)) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located in North-West Europe. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany arrival in the mid-1600s, and occupied much of eastern South Africa from the Fish River to land inhabited by Zulu-speakers south of the modern city of Durban^[1].

The Xhosa and white settlers first encountered one another around Somerset East in the early 1700s. In the late 1700s Afrikaner Afrikaners are an Afrikaans-speaking ethnic group in Southern Africa. They are mainly of Dutch descent augmented with French and German ancestry, and their native tongue is Afrikaans, a Germanic language which derives from Dutch trekboers migrating outwards from Cape Town came into conflict with Xhosa pastoralists around the Great Fish River The Great Fish River (afrikaans: Groot-Visrivier) is a river running 644 kilometres (400 mi)through the South African province of the Eastern Cape, it originates east of Graaff-Reinet and runs through Cradock, just south of this the Tarka River joins it. Thence it makes a jig-jag turn to Cookhouse, from where it meanders before its final near- region of the Eastern Cape. Following more than 20 years of intermittent conflict, from 1811 to 1812 the Xhosas were forced east by British The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom, that had originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height it was the largest empire in history and, for over a colonial forces in the Third Frontier War.

In the years following, many Xhosa-speaking clans were pushed west by expansion of the Zulus The Zulu are the largest South African ethnic group of an estimated 10–11 million people who live mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Small numbers also live in Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Mozambique. Their language, Zulu, is a Bantu language; more specifically, part of the Nguni subgroup. The Zulu Kingdom played a major role in, as the northern Nguni Nguni peoples are pastoralist groups, ethnically part of the greater Bantu group occupying much of the East and Southern parts of Africa. They migrated southwards over many centuries, with large herds of Nguni cattle, probably entering what is now South Africa around 2000 years ago in sporadic settlement, followed by larger waves of migration put pressure on the southern Nguni as part of the historical process known as the mfecane Mfecane , is an African expression which means something like "the crushing" or "scattering". It describes a period of widespread chaos and warfare among indigenous tribes in southern Africa during the period between 1815 and about 1840, or "scattering". Xhosa unity and ability to resist colonial expansion was further weakened by the famines A famine is a widespread scarcity of food that may apply to any faunal species. This phenomenon is usually accompanied by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality and political divisions that followed the cattle-killing movement of 1856. Historians now view this movement as a millennialist response both directly to a lung disease spreading among Xhosa cattle at the time, and less directly to the stress to Xhosa society caused by the continuing loss of their territory and autonomy.^{[citation needed]}

Some historians argue that this early absorption into the wage economy is the ultimate origin of the long history of trade union membership and political leadership among Xhosa people.^{[citation needed]} That history manifests itself today in high degrees of Xhosa representation in the leadership of the African National Congress The African National Congress has been South Africa's governing left-wing party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the South African Communist Party (SACP), since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a "disciplined force of the left", South Africa's ruling political party.

Language

Xhosa is an agglutinative In linguistics, agglutination is the morphological process of adding affixes to the base of a word. Languages that use agglutination widely are called agglutinative languages. These languages are often contrasted with fusional languages and isolating languages. However, both fusional and isolating languages may use agglutination in the most-often- tonal language Tone is the use of pitch in language to distinguish lexical or grammatical meaning—that is, to distinguish or inflect words. All languages use pitch to express emotional and other paralinguistic information, and to convey emphasis, contrast, and other such features in what is called intonation, but not all languages use tones to distinguish of the Bantu family The Bantu languages constitute a sub-branch of the Niger-Congo languages. By one estimate, there are 522 languages in the Bantu family, 668 languages in the Southern Bantoid branch which includes Bantu, and 1,532 in Niger-Congo. Bantu languages are spoken largely east and south of the present day country of Cameroon; i.e., in the regions commonly. While the Xhosas call their language "isiXhosa," it is usually referred to as "Xhosa" in English. Written Xhosa uses a Latin alphabet The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most widely used alphabetic writing system in the world today. It evolved from the western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was borrowed and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome, whose alphabet was then adapted and further modified by the ancient-based system. Xhosa is spoken by about 18% of the South African population, and has some mutual intelligibility with Zulu. Many Xhosa speakers, particularly those living in urban areas, also speak Zulu and/or Afrikaans Elsewhere in Africa, notably Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Lesotho and Swaziland and/or English.

Among its features, the Xhosa language famously has fifteen click sounds, originally borrowed from now extinct Khoisan Khoisan is a unifying name for two major ethnic groups of Southern Africa. Historically, they have been referred to as the Capoid race because they can be visually distinguished from most other sub-Saharan Africans by way of their relatively lighter skin color and their epicanthic folds. From the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic period, hunting languages of the region. Xhosa has three basic click consonants: a dental click, written with the letter "c"; a palatal click, written with the letter "q"; and a lateral click, written with the letter "x." There is also a simple inventory of five vowels (a, e, i, o, u).

Folklore and religion

Traditional Xhosa culture includes diviners Divination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of a standardized process or ritual. Diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a querent should proceed by reading signs, events, or omens, or through alleged contact with a supernatural agency. Divination can be seen as a systematic method with which to organize known as amagqirha, who serve as herbalists, prophets, and healers for the community. This job is mostly taken by women, who spend five years in apprenticeship.

The Xhosas have a strong oral tradition with many stories of ancestral heroes; according to tradition, the leader from whose name the Xhosa people take their name was the first human on Earth. Other traditions have it that all Xhosas are descended from one ancestor named Tshawe^[1].

The key figure in the Xhosa oral tradition is the imbongi (plural: iimbongi) or praise singer. Iimbongi traditionally live close to the chief's "great place" (the cultural and political focus of his activity); they accompany the chief on important occasions - the imbongi Zolani Mkiva preceded Nelson Mandela Bantustan · District Six · Robben Island at his Presidential inauguration in 1994. Iimbongis' poetry, called imibongo, praises the actions and adventures of chiefs and ancestors ^[1].

The supreme being is called uThixo or uQamata. Ancestors act as intermediaries and play a part in the lives of the living; they are honoured in rituals. Dreams play an important role in divination and contact with ancestors. Traditional religious practice features rituals, initiations, and feasts. Modern rituals typically pertain to matters of illness and psychological well-being.

Christian missionaries established outposts among the Xhosa in the 1820s, and the first Bible The Bible refers to collections of sacred scripture of Judaism and Christianity. There is no single version: both the individual books and their order vary. The Hebrew Bible contains 39 books, while Christian Bibles range from the 66 books of the Protestant canon to 81 books in the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible. The oldest surviving Christian Bibles translation was in the mid-1850s, partially done by Henry Hare Dugmore. Xhosa did not convert in great numbers until the 1900s, but now many are Christian A Christian (pronounced /ˈkrɪstʃən/ ) is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe is the Messiah (the Christ in Greek-derived terminology) prophesied in the Hebrew Bible, and the son of God. Most Christians believe in the doctrine of, particularly within the African Initiated Churches An African Initiated Church is any of a number of Christian churches independently started in Africa, by Africans, and not by missionaries from another continent, sometimes holding to one or more African tribal belief systems sycretised with Christianity such as the Zion Christian Church. Some denominations combine Christianity with traditional beliefs.

Rites of passage

One traditional ritual that is still regularly practiced is the manhood ritual, a secret rite that marks the transition from boyhood to adulthood (Ulwaluko). After ritual circumcision Male circumcision is the removal of some or all of the foreskin from the penis. The word "circumcision" comes from Latin circum (meaning "around") and cædere (meaning "to cut"). Early depictions of circumcision are found in cave paintings and Ancient Egyptian tombs, though some pictures are open to interpretation the initiates (abakwetha) live in isolation for up to several weeks, often in the mountains. During the process of healing they smear white clay on their bodies and observe numerous taboos.

In modern times the practice has caused controversy, with over 300 circumcision- and initiation-related deaths since 1994, and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases including HIV Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus (a member of the retrovirus family) that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections. Infection with HIV occurs by the transfer of blood, semen, vaginal fluid, pre-ejaculate, or via the practice of circumcising initiates with the same blade.^[3] In March 2007 a controversial mini-series dealing with Xhosa circumcision and initiation rites debuted on SABC. Titled Umthunzi Wentaba, the series was taken off the air after complaints by traditional leaders that the rites are secret and not to be revealed to non-initiates and women.^[4]

Girls are also initiated into womanhood (Intonjane). They too are secluded, though for a shorter period. Female initiates are not circumcised^[1].

Other rites include the seclusion of mothers for ten days after giving birth, and the burial of the afterbirth and umbilical cord In placental mammals, the umbilical cord is the connecting cord from the developing embryo or fetus to the placenta. During prenatal development, the umbilical cord comes from the same zygote as the fetus and (in humans) normally contains two arteries (the umbilical arteries) and one vein (the umbilical vein), buried within Wharton's jelly. The near the village. This is reflected in the traditional greeting Inkaba yakho iphi?, literally "Where is Your Navel?" The answer "tells someone where you live, what your clan affiliation is, and what your social status is and contains a wealth of cultural information. Most importantly, it determines where you belong".^[5]

Traditional diet

The Xhosa settled on mountain slopes of the Amatola and the Winterberg Mountains. Many streams drain into great rivers of this Xhosa territory including the Kei and Fish Rivers. Rich soils and plentiful rainfall make the river basins good for farming and grazing making cattle important and the basis of wealth.

Traditional foods include beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle . Beef is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of Australia, Argentina, Europe and America, and is also important in Africa, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. Beef is considered a taboo food in some cultures: especially in Hinduism (although not strictly forbidden),(Inyama yenkomo), mutton Lamb, hogget, and mutton are the meat of domestic sheep. The meat of an animal in its first year is lamb; that of an older sheep is hogget and later mutton(Inyama yegusha), and goat meat, sorghum Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of grasses, some of which are raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture. The plants are cultivated in warmer climates worldwide. Species are native to tropical and subtropical regions of all continents in addition to the South West Pacific and, maize and umphokoqo (dry maize porridge), "umngqusho" (made from dried, stamped corn and dried beans), milk (often fermented, called "amasi"), pumpkins(amathanga), beans(iimbotyi), and vegetables.

Arts and crafts

Traditional crafts include beadwork, weaving, woodwork and pottery.

Traditional music features drums, rattles, whistles, flutes, mouth harps, and stringed-instruments and especially group singing accompanied by hand clapping ^[1]. There are songs for various ritual occasions; one of the best-known Xhosa songs is a wedding song called "Qongqongthwane", performed by Miriam Makeba as "Click Song #1". Besides Makeba, several modern groups record and perform in Xhosa. Missionaries introduced the Xhosa to Western choral singing ^[1]. "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika", part of the National anthem of South Africa is a Xhosa hymn written in 1897 by Enoch Sontonga.

The first newspapers, novels, and plays in Xhosa appeared in the nineteenth century ^[1], and Xhosa poetry is also gaining renown.

Several films have been shot in the Xhosa language. U-Carmen eKhayelitsha is a modern remake of Bizet's 1875 opera Carmen. It is shot entirely in Xhosa, and combines music from the original opera with traditional African music. It takes place in the Cape Town township of Khayelitsha.

Xhosas in modern society

Xhosa people currently make up approximately 18% of the South African population.

Under apartheid, adult literacy rates were as low as 30% ^[1], and in 1996^[update] studies estimated the literacy level of first-language Xhosa speakers at approximately 50%.^[6] There have been advances in since then, however.

Education in primary-schools serving Xhosa-speaking communities is in the Xhosa language, but this is replaced by English after the early primary grades. Xhosa is still considered as a studied subject, however, and it is possible to major in Xhosa at the university level. Most of the students at the University of Fort Hare are Xhosa.

The effects of government polices during the years of apartheid can still be seen in the poverty of the Xhosa who still reside in the Eastern Cape.

During the apartheid era, Xhosa males could only seek employment in the mining industry as so-called migrant labourers. Since the collapse of apartheid, individuals can move freely.

Migration to Gauteng and Cape Town is increasingly common, especially amongst rural Xhosa.

Notable Xhosa

See also

• Languages of South Africa
• Partners Across The Ocean
• South African Translators' Association

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i} Xhosa, Article at everyculture.com
2. ^ SouthAfrica.info
3. ^ TheHerald.co.za
4. ^ IOL.co.za
5. ^ Ualberta.ca
6. ^ Ethnologue.com, Ethnologue entry

• Results of the 2001 South African census

Note that the figure mentioned on this page is based upon the number of people speaking Xhosa as their home language, which may be greater or less than the total number of people claiming Xhosa descent. In addition, several million people in the Johannesburg-Soweto region speak Xhosa or Zulu as a second or third language. For a majority of these, the two languages become difficult to distinguish (unsurprising given the extreme closeness of their linguistic relationship).

• Reader, J., 1997. Africa: A Biography of the Continent, Vintage Books, New York, NY, United States of America.
• Kaschula, Russell The Heritage Library of African People: Xhosa, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc., 1997.

External links

• People of Africa
• Xhosa History and Society
• 2001 Digital Census Atlas
• Xhosa Folklore - a collection of Xhosa folklore collected in 1886.
• Xhosa Google - Google interface in Xhosa

Categories: Xhosa | Ethnic groups in South Africa

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