One wouldn’t normally associate classical music with the history of the Zulu monarchy, but the Zulu royal families (like any kingdom anywhere in the world), are full of dramatic tales that make for the perfect inspiration for a classical composer. Or at least that’s what Durban-based, Warren Bessey, seems to think! Bessey has taken the … Read more
Most people wouldn’t associate a Zulu king from the 19th century with contemporary global technology companies, yet somehow German-born academic, Dr Nik Eberl, saw the connection. Eberl, who is the founder of the Future Leadership Forum and co-creator of the King Shaka Academy, has spent years analysing King Shaka’s infamous military tactics, and has come up … Read more
Given the mythical status of King Shaka it’s surprising that before now no one has thought to tell the tale of this (in)famous ruler in the form of a comic book! Shaka Rising: A Legend of the Warrior Prince is the first book in the African Graphic Novel Series by Durban-born artist, Luke Molver. It tells the story … Read more
With John Trengove’s debut feature film Inxeba (The Wound) being shortlisted for the 2017 Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, the focus is currently on South African filmmaking. But while South Africa may not yet have reached the heights of Nigeria or India when it comes to the big screen, that doesn’t mean that we don’t … Read more
If you look up the word ‘Zulu’ in the dictionary, it can refer to a variety of things: it can be a reference to the Zulu people (amaZulu); to the language spoken by the Zulus (isiZulu); or, completely arbitrarily, it can refer to the letter ‘Z’, as used in the international phonetic alphabet (i.e. Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee, Zulu)! More … Read more
In Nelson Mandela’s autobiography, The Long Walk to Freedom, the former South African president talks about the AmaMfengu, people that was formed from groupings that were broken up and dispersed by King Shaka and his armies during the Mfecane wars. The name ‘Mfengu‘ translates to ‘wanderers’ and is a reference to how the AmaMfengu came to be; although today the group have largely … Read more