South Africa:
Ten Years of Culture
Part    I   II

 

Limpopo Province.In addition to performing traditional dances, many South Africans are trying to rediscover - and preserve - their cultural history.  One such project is underway in Limpopo Province, where the proud Venda people are restoring the royal city of Dzata.

Believed to be a blending of the Shona, Ngonde, and Sotho peoples, the Venda had built a sizable empire by the 16th century.  From their stone-walled city of Dzata (near  present day Louis Trichardt), they capitalized on trade in iron and ivory for 200 years.

The 18th and 19th centuries saw a series of civil wars and border disputes with early Boers (Dutch immigrants), which weakened the Venda crown.  Nevertheless, they withstood Boer attacks until 1897, when their last powerful King, Makhado, died.

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Venda women in full regalia.
The Boers, acting as the South African government made a final charge, defeating the Venda and establishing the stronghold of Louis Trichardt to secure the annexation of Venda land.  Only the Anglo-Boer war (1899-1902) prevented full-scale colonization, as troops were withdrawn to engage the British.  After the war, the victorious British chose not to make a concerted move into Venda land.  Instead, they allowed the Venda a relatively autonomous self rule along traditional tribal lines.

It's isolation from the rest of the country and difficult terrain made Venda land difficult for a central government to rule.  Thus, when the South African government reclaimed Venda territories in the early 20th century, it chose to leave the areas alone, even at the outset of the Apartheid era in the 1950s.

Venda land was recognized as an "independent" homeland by the South African government in 1973.  Though meant to imply self-rule, this really meant that the government no longer had to spend resources on maintenance and upgrades in the area.

The resulting stagnation was only lifted with the end of the Apartheid government and the first free elections in 1994.  Now, with assistance from public and private supporters, the Dzata Ruins have reopened as a museum, performance arena, and community center.

Many cultural traditions are being revived in the new South Africa, but we leave you with one that never seems to go away.  These farms are not part of any educational project, receive no support from government institutions, and are not funded by research grants.  These are regular farms, owned by regular people near Blapsfontein (east of Johannesburg), who decorated their homes in traditional Ndebele patterns.  We never got the chance to thank them...

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An Ndebele farm near Blapsfontein

 

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An Ndebele farm near Blapsfontein