Zulu Women (South Africa)
Young Zulu women crafting art piecesUnmarried Zulu woman embrace their bodies and wear beaded jewelryZulu woman |
As is common in many South African tribes, Zulu girls and women hold a special place in their tribal society and often hold spiritual positions such as diviners and herbalists. The Zulu tribe traditional religion believed in ancestral spirits and modern Christian Zulus have incorporated traditional customs into a unique form of Christianity. The Zulu economy is based on both pastoralism and agriculture and Zulu girls play a major role in both. The Zulu custom of different people eating from the same plate is a sign of friendship and conforms to the Zulu custom of sharing and reciprocity. Zulus wear a variety of attire, both traditional for ceremonial or culturally celebratory occasions, and modern westernised clothing for everyday use. Women dress differently depending on whether they are single, engaged, or married. An unmarried woman who is still eligible is proud of her body and is not ashamed of showing it. She only wears a short skirt made of grass or beaded cotton strings and spruces herself up with lots of beadwork. When girls are young they learn how to cook and take care of the children. They also learn how to plant and at age eleven she is given her own gardening tool "hoe" Zulu brides traditionally move in with there husbands and the husband's family. The husband gives an offering known as a lobola, that is cattle in return to the brides family, the richer the man the more cattle he would give the family. Once the lobola is accepted the marriage is finalized. The lobola is considered a payment for the brides reproductive rights so that it will increase that families lineage. |
Sources:
http://www.mythicjourneys.org/bigmyth/myths/english/eng_zulu_culture.htm
http://www.mythicjourneys.org/bigmyth/myths/english/eng_zulu_culture.htm