Swazis

PRONUNCIATION: SWAH-zeez
LOCATION: Swaziland
POPULATION: 1,100,000 (2006)
LANGUAGE: SiSwati
RELIGION: Christianity (various sects), traditional religious beliefs, and Islam

INTRODUCTION

Swazi history dates back to the late 16th century when the first Swazi king, Ngwane II, settled southeast of modern-day Swaziland. His grandson, Sobhuza I, established a permanent capital and drew the resident Nguni and Sotho people within a centralized political system. During the mid-19th century, Sobhuza's heir, Mswati II, from whom the Swazis derive their name, expanded the Swazi nation to an area much larger than modern Swaziland. Mswati established contact with the British, who later made Swaziland a protectorate following the Anglo-Boer War of 1899–1902. Swaziland became independent in 1968.

Today, Swaziland's government is headed by a dual monarchy, consisting of Mswati III, the hereditary king and head of state who is titled Ingwenyama (Lion), and the queen mother who is titled Indlovukati (Lady Elephant). This traditional structure operates parallel to a “modern” (post-European contact) structure, consisting of the administrative head of government, i.e., the prime minister, and statutory bodies including a cabinet and a bicameral parliament, which enacts legislation subject to approval by the king. Swaziland did not have a Constitution after 1973; a Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) submitted proposals for a new Constitution to the King, and it was adopted in 2006.

LOCATION AND HOMELAND

The Swazi reside primarily in Swaziland, a small landlocked country of 17,363 sq km (6,704 sq mi) which is perched on the edge of the southern African escarpment. It is bounded on three sides by South Africa and on the fourth side by Mozambique, both countries also housing many ethnic Swazis. Four distinctive topographic steps largely determine the characteristics of its natural environment: the highveld, middleveld, lowveld, and the Lubombo mountain range.

Swazi identity is based on allegiance to the dual monarchy, and ethnic Swazis living in the Republic of South Africa and Mozambique are not under its effective political control. In 2006, the World Bank estimated the total number of Swazis at about 1.1 million people. The population is growing at a rate of 2.9% per year, and nearly half (44.4%) of all Swazis are 14 years of age or younger. Swaziland is one of the few African countries with a homogeneous (sharing common descent) population. Most Swazis live in rural homesteads, but in the middleveld, where nearly one-half of the Swazi population resides, rural homesteads are interspersed with densely populated settlements around employment centers. The two major cities are Mbabane and Manzini.

LANGUAGE

“Swazi” refers to the nation, tribe, or ethnic group. The language spoken is referred to as “ siSwati.” SiSwati speakers are found in Swaziland, South Africa, and Mozambique. SiSwati is a tonal Bantu language of the Nguni group, closely related to Zulu and, more distantly, to Xhosa. It is spoken in Swaziland and in the Eastern Transvaal province of the Republic of South Africa. Little has been published in SiSwati.

FOLKLORE

Swazi oral historical tradition is arguably the richest still existing in southern Africa. The reason largely lies in the fact that the Swazis' political structure was not disrupted following colonial rule to the same degree as were the structures of other southern African kingdoms. Elder Swazis still recount rich histories of their forebears—numerous conquering kings and chiefs—dating back several centuries. The first king, Ngwane II, who led his followers from their home on the east coast and moved inland, is commemorated in one of many royal praise-songs, “Nkosi Dlamini—You scourged the Lebombo in your flight.”

RELIGION

Adherents of traditional Swazi religion believe in an aloof supreme being known as Mkhulumnqande, who created the earth but who is not worshipped and is not associated with the ancestral spirits (emadloti). He demands no sacrifices. Swazis believe that ancestral spirits are ranked, as are humans. Men play important roles in traditional religious life, offering sacrifices for the spirits, but women, acting as diviners, also communicate with spirits. The Queen Mother serves as custodian of rain “medicines.” Among the Swazi, spirits take many forms, sometimes possessing people and influencing their welfare, primarily their health.

The Methodists established the first Christian mission in Swaziland. Currently, many Christian sects are present in the country, ranging from the more eclectic Catholics to the more rigid Afrikaner Calvinists. Although the statistical breakdown of adherents to different religions varies in different accounts, it is probably reasonable to state that the population is approximately 35% Protestant, 25% Roman Catholic, 30% Zionist (indigenous Christianity), and 10% Islamic or other beliefs. The majority of Swazis are registered as Christian, but it should be noted that most Swazis also follow traditional beliefs. Moreover, as the statistics above indicate, a significant number of Christian converts belong to Zionist churches, which practice a flexible dogma and great tolerance of custom.

MAJOR HOLIDAYS

The annual ritual of kingship, the Incwala, is a traditional national holiday that is rich in Swazi symbolism and only understandable in terms of the social organization and major values of Swazi life. The central figure is the king, who alone can authorize its performance. The Incwala reflects the growth of the king, and his subjects play parts determined by their status, primarily rank and gender. Before this ceremony (which is sometimes described as a “first fruits ceremony” or a “ritual of rebellion”) can be performed during a three-week period each year, considerable organizational and preparatory activities must be undertaken. For example, water and sacred plants are collected at distant points to strengthen and purify the king. Thereafter, the oldest warrior regiment opens the Incwala. Sacred songs that are concerned with the important events of kingship (a king's marriage to his main ritual wife, the return of ancestral cattle from the royal grave, and the burial of kings) as well as dances are performed. Themes of fertility and potency predominate. Celebrants are adorned in striking clothing, including feathers of special birds and skins of wild animals. The Incwala symbolizes the unity of the state and attempts to reinforce it: it dramatizes power struggles between the king and the princes, or between the aristocrats and commoners, with the Swazi king ultimately triumphing. Other national royal rituals include the Reed Dance and rainmaking rites, while local rituals include funerals, marriages, and initiations.

A contemporary national holiday is Independence Day, which has been celebrated since the country's independence from Britain on 6 September 1968.

RITES OF PASSAGE

During childhood, young Swazi boys play and run errands around rural homesteads until they are old enough to accompany their age-mates to the fields with the cattle herds. Young Swazi girls play and help their mothers with minor domestic chores and child care. Fathers may play a small role in child rearing—especially if they are employed at distant locations within Swaziland or in South Africa.

At puberty, a boy is tended by a traditional healer and eventually joins his age (warrior) regiment (libutfo), where he learns about manhood and service to the king. A girl, upon having her first menstruation, is isolated in a hut for several days and instructed by her mother about observances and taboos. The Swazi have not circumcised males since King Mswati's reign in the mid-19th century, but both boys and girls traditionally had their ears cut (ukusika tindlebe).

Following puberty, a girl's and boy's families begin marriage negotiations. A man and his family acquire rights to children by transferring to the woman's family bride-wealth (lobola) valuables such as cattle and nowadays some cash. A new bride thereafter goes to live with her husband and in-laws. In contemporary Swaziland, a couple may contract one of several forms of marriage: a customary marriage, which may take the form of a “love” marriage, an arranged marriage (ukwendzisa), or a bride-capture marriage (the third form is uncommon and may not involve the exchange of bride-wealth), or a Christian marriage. In the past, a preferred form of customary marriage was the sororate, in which a woman married her sister's husband, thereby becoming the subsidiary wife (inhlanti). A customary marriage ceremony, particularly for high-ranking couples, tends to involve numerous and protracted ritual exchanges between the families (sometimes lasting decades), and brings into play singing, dancing, wailing, gift-giving, and feasting. In recent years, greater numbers of individuals have opted to elope or remain single.

Following death, the corpse of a deceased person undergoes a mortuary ritual that varies according to the deceased's status and his or her relationship with different categories of mourners. The more important a deceased person was the more elaborate are the funerary rites given his or her corpse—especially true in the case of a deceased king. The closer the blood or marital ties were between a deceased person and a mourner, the more elaborate is the mourner's ritualized display of grief. A widow may be expected to continue her husband's lineage through the levirate (ngena), in which she marries a brother or another male relative of her deceased husband; however, this practice is not practiced as frequently as in the past. Many Swazis believe that the spirit of a deceased person can manifest itself in illness and in various omens, occasionally materializing in the form of a snake.

INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS

The Swazi, who like the Zulu were once feared as fierce warriors, display a multiplicity of traits in their daily interactions. They can be generous to a hungry stranger or receptive to a jovial comrade, but they can also be proud and arrogant to the unfortunate stranger who transgresses the rules of social propriety. In particular, the Swazi demand strict adherence to rules concerned with kingship and the associated sociopolitical hierarchy: forms of greetings; body language; and gestures. According to custom, youth must show deference to their elders, women to men, and low-ranking persons to high-ranking persons. People demonstrate respect by lowering their eyes, kneeling, and moving quietly.

An interesting symbolic representation of interpersonal relations among Swazis was once found—and to some extent is still found—in beads. In the past, a newborn baby was welcomed into the world with white “luck” beads placed around its waist, wrists, and/or ankles. An adult wore beads to designate his or her social status (i.e., commoner or royalty) and love or marital status. Regarding the latter, a young woman gave beadwork to her sweetheart as a token of love. In a sense, beadwork served as her “courting letter,” with different bead patterns representing different stages in the courtship. Within the beadwork pattern were symbols that represented letters and words that communicated ideas. In “reading” a beadwork love message, groups of girls noted the meaning of the bead color, its position in the pattern, the background on which it was fitted, and the sex or social status of the recipient.

LIVING CONDITIONS

Everyday concerns of Swazis relate to housing, transport, and the acquisition of basic household necessities. Many consumer items are available—particularly to people who reside in urban areas and receive an income through wage labor. In urban areas people have better access to public transport, medical services, and jobs, and they are also better situated to receive electricity and piped water. Most people buy manufactured blankets, clothing, and cookware; many people buy “prestige” items such as battery-operated radios; and a few people are able to purchase cars or trucks for transport. Most people satisfy their food requirements through their own or relatives' labors in agriculture and animal husbandry, although nearly all people purchase processed foods such as bread, sugar, and tea. Most Swazis construct their own homes from rocks, logs, clay, and thatch; those persons with sufficient funds hire builders and buy corrugated iron roofs, glass windows, and solid wood doors.

A special concern of Swazis relates to health and general well-being. Swazis direct their health concerns to both Western-influenced, biomedical practitioners and traditional practitioners. Many Swazis believe that traditional practitioners, who serve a much larger segment of the population, identify and correct the imbalances between the human and spirit worlds that lead to misfortunes and illnesses. These practitioners are of three types: herbalists or tinyanga (about 50%), diviner-mediums or tangoma (about 40%), and Christian faith-healers (about 10%). Men are usually tinyanga, and women are usually tangoma. Most Swazis believe that serious diseases do not simply happen; rather, they are created and sent mystically by a person of ill-will. Swazis differentiate between conditions or diseases that are “African” and conditions or diseases that are foreign; they emphasize that a condition, such as madness caused by sorcery, is best treated by traditional medicine and practitioners, while a disease, such as cholera, is best treated by Western medicine and biomedical practitioners. In the current context of the AIDS pandemic, both biomedical and traditional practitioners are treating patients; importantly, the two types of practitioners are often working cooperatively in treating patients.

FAMILY LIFE

In rural areas, the ordinary Swazi resides in a homestead, umuti, which is headed by a male homestead head, umnumzana, who is assisted by his wife (or main wife in a polygamous marriage). The head determines resource allocation such as land distribution, makes major decisions regarding both production (plowing and types of crops grown) and economic expenditures, and mobilizes homestead labor. Homestead residents have access as individuals to arable land, and as community members to communal pasturage.

Within a complex homestead are households; each household (indlu) generally consists of one nuclear family (a man, his wife, and their children) whose members share agricultural tasks and eat from one kitchen. Sometimes a wife has an attached co-wife, inhlanti, who, along with her children, forms part of the same “house.” A married son and his wife (wives) and dependents may form another house within the wider “house” of his mother.

Many Swazi homesteads have few or no chairs or beds, and people therefore sit and sleep on grass mats. If a homestead lacks a stove, women or girls will cook on an open fire in a hut or in the yard. Women's and men's utensils and tools may be limited and homemade. Homestead residents are resourceful in accomplishing tasks: for example, some women clean their earthen floors by smearing moistened cow dung over them—a process which leaves them smooth and sweet-smelling.

CLOTHING

Swazis wear either traditional or modern-day clothing in both towns and rural areas and for both everyday and ceremonial purposes. Men's traditional clothing consists of a colorful cloth “skirt” covered by an emajobo (hide apron), further adorned by various ornamental items on ceremonial occasions: the ligcebesha (neckband), umgaco (ties), sagibo (walking stick), siphandle (limb ornaments), and in the case of royals, the ligwalagwala (red feathers). Women's traditional clothing consists of the ilihhiya (cloth). Married women cover their upper torso and sometimes wear traditional “beehive” hairstyles, whereas single women sometimes wear only beads over their upper torso—particularly at special ceremonies, such as the Reed Dance performed in honor of the Queen Mother.

FOOD

Swazis cultivate maize, sorghum, beans, groundnuts, and sweet potatoes for consumption. They also raise cattle, the traditional basis of wealth and status within their society, as well as smaller livestock. Mealie-meal (ground maize) serves as the primary food and is accompanied by cultivated or wild vegetables and meat—chicken on ordinary occasions and beef on festive occasions. Sometimes traditional Swazi beer is brewed.

Most people eat a breakfast consisting of tea, bread, and/or sour-milk porridge; a lunch consisting of bread or leftovers; and a dinner consisting of porridge, vegetables, and meat. Although most people eat from metal, plastic, or ceramic dishware, some people follow customary practice, thereby drinking beer from a black clay pot and eating meat from a carved, wooden bowl. Many people enjoy sharing food from the same plate or bowl with their friends and age-mates; each person scoops out food with his or her fingers.

EDUCATION

In the past, Swazi children were educated within their families and age-groups. Both boys and girls were taught domestic and agricultural tasks, and boys were instructed in warfare. Today, intertribal warfare no longer exists, but male members of the warrior age-classes (emabutfo) continue to learn how to perform ritual functions.

In contemporary Swaziland, children receive a secular education under the auspices of the Ministry of Education. Many children attend mission schools which convey Christian values. Schoolchildren do their lessons from siSwati textbooks in the lower grades and English textbooks in the higher grades. SiSwati literary tradition is not highly developed as the language was not put into writing until the 20th century.

Only those children whose families can afford to pay their annual school fees receive a formal education. Mothers often assume primary responsibility for earning the money to educate their children; they prepare and sell crops, handicrafts, and other goods to pay the school fees and purchase uniforms. Children who complete school are expected to assist with the education of their younger siblings and to care for their parents in old age.

The ongoing AIDS pandemic has created many orphans—most of whom lack sufficient funds to pay for their education. When the government allocated money in 2003 to pay the school fees of orphans, the impoverished parents of other children complained about favoritism. In any case, the money proved to be vastly inadequate to assist all orphaned children. By 2006, UNICEF estimated that 80,000 children had been orphaned by AIDS in Swaziland.

CULTURAL HERITAGE

Swazis have inherited a rich tradition of music and dance. Their ceremonial music has been unaffected by Western influence and retains a distinctive individual style which sets it apart from that of related ethnic groups. Nonetheless, the siBhaca recreational dance music has been adopted from the Xhosa-speaking people of South Africa.

Swazi women sing together as they work in groups on tasks such as digging or weeding, and men sing together as they pay tribute to their chiefs or past and present kings. Celebrants also perform special songs at weddings, royal rituals, coming-of-age ceremonies, and national Independence Day festivities. Swazi praise-poets have long been known throughout southern Africa. They compose praise-poems for kings, chiefs, and prominent persons.

Swazi specialists craft musical instruments to accompany popular singing and dancing activities: among those instruments used either in the past or present are the luvene (hunting horn), impalampala (kudu bull horn), ligubhu and makhweyane (a calabash attached to a wooden bow), and livenge (a wind instrument made from a plant). Some people play drums and European instruments.

WORK

Swazis divide work tasks according to sex, age, and pedigree. Men construct house frames and cattle kraals (corrals), plow, tend and milk cattle, sew skins, and cut shields; some men are particularly accomplished at warfare, animal husbandry, hunting, and governing. Women hoe, plant and harvest crops, tend small livestock, thatch, plait ropes, weave mats and baskets, grind grain, brew beer, cook foods, and care for children; some women also specialize in pot- and mat-making. Age is important in determining who will perform tasks associated with ritual performances. Rank is important in determining who will summon people for work parties in district and national enterprises and who will supervise the workers. Nowadays, some men migrate within Swaziland and to South Africa in search of work and income.

In contemporary Swaziland, people derive income from various agricultural and commercial activities. The country's main export crop is sugar, based on irrigated cane. Several other cash crops, including maize, rice, vegetables, cotton, tobacco, citrus fruits, and pineapples, are traded both within and outside the country. Swaziland's mineral wealth, which consists of iron ore, coal, diamonds, and asbestos, is mined for export. Meat and meat products are also exported. The industrial estate at Matsapha produces processed agricultural and forestry products, garments, textiles, and many light manufactured goods. According to government statistics from 2000, 63,598 people were employed in the private sector, and 28,554 people were employed in the public sector. As of 2004, the national unemployment rate was 31%.

SPORTS

Soccer (i.e., football) is popular throughout the country and is played by boys and men. In rural areas, both boys and girls play games with various sorts of balls which are often homemade from twine or rubber.

ENTERTAINMENT AND RECREATION

In the past, various ritual ceremonies, including weddings and funerals, provided the main opportunities for people within and across communities to gather and enjoy themselves. Feasts were held and traditional dances were performed. Some elder Swazis currently lament that young men no longer know the traditional warrior dance, the umgubho.

Nowadays, with family members living and working in distant locations, and with the advent of technological innovations, the occasions and forms of entertainment have changed. In urban areas, where electricity is more readily available, some households have televisions. In rural areas, many households have battery-operated radios and people enjoy musical, news, and sports programs. Rural Swazi children, as in many parts of Africa, usually do not have sufficient money to buy manufactured toys; nonetheless, they are adept at creating toys out of discarded items, such as tires, tin cans, wires, and maize cobs. Boys build intricate, moveable toy cars from rubber and metal scraps, and girls fashion dolls from maize cobs.

FOLK ART, CRAFTS, AND HOBBIES

In the past, smithing, a task assigned to men, was a prestigious activity that produced iron hoes, knives, and various kinds of spears as weapons of war. Today, smithing is less important, but pottery-making and woodcarving continue. Pottery-making, using the coil technique, is a task assigned to women. Basket-weaving is also done by women. Woodcarving, a task performed by both men and women, results in functional, un-ornamented implements and utensils, such as meat dishes and spoons. Schools are encouraging the production of masks or sculptured figures for the tourist trade.

SOCIAL PROBLEMS

In present-day Swaziland, various social and economic changes, including altered sex roles, increased job competition, labor migration, and the growth of an educated elite class, have produced new problems. These problems include, for example, an increase in crime and alcoholism—particularly in the outskirts of urban areas. Some Swazis complain that they are no longer able to deal effectively with their problems because traditional “witchfinding” is legally prohibited, thus freeing perceived social miscreants to behave as they please.

Some Swazis argue that a significant social-political problem concerns the hierarchical ranking system, headed by the King and the royal family. In recent years, this system has been challenged by disaffected new elites who have achieved status through the acquisition of an education and wealth but who do not have hereditary position.

Most Swazis, as well as outside observers, argue that the country's most significant social problem concerns a health issue, the HIV prevalence rate, which at 38.8% of the country's adult population (2003 estimate), is the highest in the world. In 2007, life expectancy was less than 33 years. As indicated above, huge numbers of children who were orphaned by AIDS are not well cared for and face an uncertain future.

GENDER ISSUES

Swazi society is patriarchal, with men continuing to hold positions of power in both the private and public sectors. Before Swaziland's new constitution was adopted in 2006, women had the legal status of minors and were unable to own property or open a bank account without the permission of a male relative or husband. Some observers have linked Swazi women's low status to their high HIV infection rates as well as to the high rates of sexual violence against them (a survey in 2007 indicated that one in three Swazi women experienced some form of sexual violence before turning 18). In addition, some observers attribute the high rate of sexual violence against Swazi women and girls to the belief by some HIV-positive men that sleeping with a virgin girl can prevent AIDS. It remains to be seen whether the new constitution, together with new legislation and policy—particularly as concern land and property rights—will eventually improve women's status in practice.

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—by L. Rose