Dr Muthoni Masinde, senior lecturer and Head of ICT at the Central University of Technology in the Free State, received top honours at the annual Women in Science Awards that took place in August this year. You may wonder what that has to do with a programme like Ulwazi, but Dr Masinde, who grew up in a … Read more
As is the case with many cultures, Zulu names have meanings attached to them that reflect how the parents feel about their new-born child (e.g. Thandiwe, ‘Beloved’). Names can also relate to what the weather was like when the baby was born (e.g. Nomvula, ‘Mother of rain’), or reflect the religious beliefs of the parents (e.g. BongiNkosi, ‘Be grateful to God’). Their … Read more
In much of Western society, surnames are simply ways of identifying people, a way of differentiating one person from another, but in Zulu culture a name means so much more – a surname might have a different praise name used to show respect, that tells the story of a person’s lineage, and the importance of their family members. So … Read more
Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) as an area of study has gained serious momentum over the past few years, with more and more learning institutions focusing on IKS based research and innovation. The universities of North-West, Limpopo and Venda are three institutions with an impressive IKS track record, and so it made sense for the University of KwaZulu-Natal to … Read more
Nelisiwe is the oldest of our fieldworkers, and has a wealth of knowledge about Zulu customs, many of which her family still practice today. Some of the traditions that Neli talks about are are not known to the rest of the team, and often incite excited exchanges while the younger members argue their points with Neli, but other … Read more
Jerry is our local ancestry expert, recording the history of countless Zulu clans, but now and again his attention gets diverted! Like this month when he wrote about the fascinating tale of the Umdlebe tree, popularly referred to as ‘dead-man’s tree’! Although it has many medicinal benefits, including being used to treat headaches, toothache and … Read more