BUSHMAN LANGUAGES), but as a result of intermixture with the neighbouring Bantu peoples they have to a great ex tent lost their purity of race. The Hot tentots were formerly divided into four main sections—the Nama, Korana, Gonaqua and old Cape Hottentots—but of these the only relatively compact group to-day are the Nama, who are found chiefly in the southern half of South-west Africa. The others have either died out or completely lost their racial entity. The Bantu peoples, on the other hand, are still vigorous and power ful, and are increasing in numbers. They are divided into numer ous small tribes which on the basis of cultural and linguistic differences, may be classified into the following groups : (a) Eastern, or Zulu-Xosa, which occupies the coastal region East of the Drakenberg mountains and South of the Sabi river. This group includes the so-called "Kafirs" of the Transkei (i.e., the AmaXosa, AmaMpondo, AmaMpondomisi, and AmaTembu), the "Fingoes" of the Cape Province, who are the fugitive remnants of tribes broken up in Natal during the great inter tribal wars at the beginning of last century, the Zulu peoples of Natal and Zululand, with their offshoot the Matabele (AmaNde bele) of Southern Rhodesia, the AmaSwazi of Swaziland, and the BaThonga (AmaTonga) and kindred tribes of Portuguese East Africa.
(b) Central, or Sotho-Chwana. This group occupies the greater portion of the interior plain North of the Orange river, and includes among many others the BaTauana about the Botletle river and Lake Ngami, the BaMangwato of North Bechuanaland, the degraded BaKalahari of the Kalahari desert, the BaKuena, BaNgwaketse, BaRolong and BaTlaping of Central Bechuana land, the BaHurutse, BaPedi, BaKgatlha and kindred tribes of West and Central Transvaal, the BaVenda of the North East Transvaal and the celebrated Basuto of Basutoland.
(c) The so-called "Mashona" peoples of South Rhodesia, in cluding the BaNyai or BaRoswi and the AbeNanswa immediately South of the Zambezi river, the MaKaranga (MaKalanga), WaManyika and BaZezuru of Mashonaland and the VaNdau of Portuguese East Africa.
(d) South-western, comprising the OvaHerero and the OvaMbo peoples of South West Africa. They are each divided into various tribes which between them occupy the northern half of the region between the Western fringe of the Kalahari desert and the At lantic ocean.
Another distinct, though less important, division of the natives of South Africa is constituted by the Bergdama (Haukhoin), who inhabit the coastal region of South West Africa. Their racial history is still far from clear. Physically they are a true negro people, yet they are isolated far from others of their kind; they live an extremely primitive life, and speak the language of the Naman, to whom they have long been in subjection.
Of the Hottentots the only section whose social organization has been studied are the Nama, comprising several tribes, each of which has its own territory, name and chief. The tribe, however, is not a centralized body, but is made up of a rather loose aggre gation of clans with the chieftainship hereditary in one of them. The authority of the chief is slight. The heads of the other clans act as his council, and he cannot do much without their co-oper ation. Each clan consists of a number of families claiming descent from some remote ancestor in the male line after whom they are named, and marriage within the clan is strictly forbidden. Po lygamy was formerly practised, but monogamy is now the rule.
Among the Bantu peoples considerable variation exists in de tails of social organization, but certain general features prevail. Each tribe occupies its own territory under its own chief. His au thority is generally considerable, but his actual power is somewhat modified by a council consisting of some of his relatives and the more influential heads of families. The family or household group is always of great social importance. It is normally polygamous, and generally forms a distinct local unit, except among the central tribes, where there is a tendency for different household groups to collect together in villages. Even here, however, each house hold is distinctly marked off from the rest. Within the household each wife has her own hut ; and with her children constitutes an economic unit with well defined legal rights. Marriage is patrilocal, and is legalized by the payment of a bride-price (lobola), generally in the form of cattle. There exists also an organization of the people into clans, which, except in the eastern group, are asso ciated with totemism. Clan exogamy is customary, but does not obtain among the Sotho-Chwana tribes. Membership of the clan is determined by descent through the father, except among the OvaMbo, who are matrilineal people, while the OvaHerero have a double system of clans, one set with patrilineal descent, the oTher with matrilineal (see later, General Features of Note).
The Hottentots are chiefly a pastoral people, with herds of long-horned cattle and flocks of fat-tailed sheep. Sour milk forms a staple element of their diet ; and in contrast to all the Bantu except the OvaHerero, it is not the Hottentot men, but the women, who do the milking. Hunting also plays an important part in their economic life, their methods of hunting and their weapons being practically identical with those of the Bushmen. To some extent they are also nomadic, as fresh pastures for their herds are necessary from time to time. Their encampments, however, are less impermanent than those of the Bushmen. They live in beehive huts, covered with reed mats, and their settlements are arranged in circular form, leaving in the centre an open space in which the cattle are collected at night. Their material culture is on the whole superior to that of the Bushmen; in particular they smelt iron for the manufacture of their implements and weapons, while the Bushmen barter with the neighbouring Bantu peoples for whatever iron they require.
With the exception of the OvaHerero who are a purely pastoral people, all the Bantu tribes practise both hoe-culture and pas toralism. The eastern tribes are more predominantly pastoral, the others more agricultural, but all have this combined means of sub sistence. Each household group has its own cattle and goats, as well as its own fields. The cattle are the concern of the men (ex cept among the OvaHerero, where the women do the milking), the fields that of the women. The food supply is derived mainly from sour milk and from crops of millet and maize, supplemented in minor forms by pumpkins, peas, beans, etc., while for meat they rely chiefly upon the game hunted by the men. Cattle are never slaughtered for food except on ceremonial occasions. The life of the people is more or less sedentary. The eastern and south western tribes live in beehive huts of thatch, the central and Mashona tribes in circular huts with conical roofs. The settle ment is always arranged on the circular principle already noted among the Hottentots. All the industries are essentially domestic, practically everything required by the household being made with in it. The one exception is in the case of iron implements and weapons, for which there are special workers, who barter their products for cattle and grain.
The religious cult of the Hottentots seems in general to consist mainly in the worship of mythical heroes derived partly from animistic beliefs and partly from the personification of the natural forces producing rain. In their general attributes these beings, chief of whom are Tsui-goab, Heitsi-Eibib and Gaunab, strongly resemble those of the Bushmen. The worship of the moon also seems to have been prevalent among the Hottentots at one time, judging from the records of prayers made to it for food and rain. There is further an extensive ritual relating to the cattle, which, as the chief source of food, are of paramount importance to the well being of the community; while water, another extremely important factor economic life of the Hottentots, also plays a part in numerous ceremonial performances and taboos. One of the chief functions of the medicine-men, as among the Bushmen, is always the making of rain.
Among the Bantu, the religious cult is very largely a strongly developed form of ancestor worship. This is primarily a domestic cult, each family through its eldest male representative worship ping its ancestors in the male line. On important tribal occasions the chief also prays to his ancestors on behalf of the tribe as a whole. The ancestors are regarded as guiding the destiny of their living descendants, and are propitiated by means of sacrifices offered on ceremonial festivals such as birth and marriage and on other special occasions. All the Bantu have also some conception, often rather vague, of a power in the universe which is not con nected with the ancestors. This power is often associated with the sky, but shows itself most impressively in the phenomena of the weather, and hence rain, lightning and thunder are considered its manifestations. It is also sometimes looked upon as the creator of all things and the moulder of destiny. It is met with under various names (such as Tilo among the BaThonga, Unkulunkulu and Inkosi among the Zulu, Modimo in the central tribes and Nzame among the OvaMbo), and the beliefs and customs relating to it differ considerably from tribe to tribe. There is further an ex tensive ritual relating to agricultural life and to the cattle (the OvaHerero have a sacred herd of cattle), while traces of a totemic cult are found in all the tribes except the eastern. Magic and witchcraft play an extremely important part in the lives of the people, and in connection with this shamanism has developed to a high degree, so that there are many different kinds of medicine men with special functions, such as rain-making, divining, "doctor ing" the crops, purifying the army, healing disease, etc.
The culture of the Bushmen is noted for the highly artistic paintings and engravings which they executed on the walls of caves and rock-shelters. The subjects portrayed are chiefly ani mals, human beings, hunting, battle and dancing scenes, and the representations are remarkable for their fidelity to nature. The practice of the art seems to have died out, but it proves a most important link in the chain of evidence connecting the Bushmen of South Africa with the Palaeolithic cultures of the peoples of Europe.
Of the social customs of the Bushmen, especially those con nected with birth and marriage, little is known. Initiation cere monies at puberty are common to all Bushmen. On reaching her first menstrual period a girl is secluded in her hut and has to observe various food taboos. In the northern tribes a special religious dance, known as the "eland bull" dance, is added in her honour. Initiation ceremonies for boys seem to be restricted to the northern tribes. The special tribal marks are cut by the medi cine men between the eyebrows of the boys, who are then kept in a secluded spot for about a month. During this time they are instructed in the lore of the tribe, and religious dances are held in which animal masquerades predominate. The Tati Bushmen practise circumcision as part of the initiation ceremony, but they are the only Bushmen of whom this is known, and have probably adopted the custom from the Bechuana among whom they live. At death the corpse is usually buried lying on one side with the knees drawn up against the breast. The group then removes to another site.
The Hottentots resemble the Bushmen closely in appearance, and it is only in certain characters that there are any noticeable differences. They are taller than the Bushmen, and have dis tinctly longer and narrower heads. Their skull is also higher and the face more prognathous. They have, however, the same promi nent cheek bones, small chin, flat nose and peculiar eyes as the Bushmen, while their ears are often also lobeless. Their hair and their skin colour are the same as in the Bushmen, and steatopygia is often more marked.
An important feature in their culture is the great prominence of the communal meal in their ceremonies. It is a means of cur ing a sick person by aggregating him to the group of those who have had the disease and recovered; of introducing young men and women to the life of full members of the tribe; of bestowing on a young mother the solidarity of the group of mothers with strong and healthy children ; of welcoming a widow, or widower, into the group of the widowed, and so giving them a new place in the society as a whole. The part water has come to have in their ceremonial life because of its extreme value in their economic life is also noteworthy. In addition to there being a great annual rain making ceremony, water plays an essential part in many religious ceremonies, is endowed with a special protective power in some cases, and is considered extremely dangerous in others. Rain, as the source of water, is also held sacred, and the natural forces producing it are even personified and worshipped.
The Bergdama are of considerable interest, as they appear to be the most primitive negro people known, apart from the Congo pygmies. They are of medium height, strong, even coarse, build, with long rather thick skulls, prognathous faces, broad noses, very dark, even black skin, and all the features typical of the true West African negro. What their original language was is not known, for they have been so long enslaved by the Hottentots that they have completely adopted the Hottentot language. Yet in ceremonial their lives appear to have been but little influenced by the Hotten tots, and among them there is found what appears to be a very im portant feature of many Bantu cultures, the sacred fire round which the whole life of the society centres. Each little group has a sacred fire which must never be allowed to go out, but which must be guarded day and night by the chief wife of the patriarch. Day by day, when the members of the group go out to seek for food, the head of the group and the old men sit guarding the fire, and as long as that is aglow and respected by all, the hunters and collectors will find food for the day. All game must be laid by the sacred fire, and certain portions of it must be eaten cere monially by the elders of the group. Each kind of berry and root, as it ripens, must be brought to the sacred fire before it can be eaten. All good, all evil hangs upon the guarding of the fire from all impurities, which come from breaches in the regulations as laid down in the traditions of the tribe.
Racially the Bantu peoples present a great, variety of types. They are fundamentally negro peoples, mixed with Hamitic, ne grillo and other types. The skin is usually less dark, stature lower, head less elongated, forehead flatter, prognathism less marked, nose generally more prominent and narrower than in the true negro. The Hamitic strain often shows itself clearly among the Zulu and allied tribes in a relatively narrow nose. The hair is uniformly of the ordinary negro type, the skin all shades from yellowish-brown to the black of the AmaSwazi, usually a reddish ground tint, dark chocolate colour being the prevalent hue. The Eastern tribes are on the whole taller and more dolichocephalic than the Central, while the South-western tribes are more typically negro than the rest.
The political organization of these peoples is well developed, and they have an elaborate system of laws regulating their social life. Among the OvaMbo blood revenge is still practised, but among the Central and Eastern tribes the tribal authority is supreme. All members of the tribe are regarded as belonging to the chief ; an injury to them is, therefore, an injury to him, and compensation for death or injury must be paid to him. The Ama Zulu and AmaXosa are renowned as fighting tribes, none of the rest being specially war-like ; and among the former a strict dis ciplinary system was established by the great chief Chaka, who abolished the throwing spear, which is the typical weapon of this area, and introduced the short stabbing spear. By this reform he forced upon his warriors the necessity of coming to close quarters, and from that time the Zulu became a dominant people and were able to found and develop a great military kingdom in South East Africa.
The initiation ceremonies at puberty of the Eastern and Central tribes are of some importance. The boys are initiated in groups, which are kept secluded in a special "lodge" for about three months, during which they are taught their tribal history, the moral and religious code of the society and its social etiquette. The ceremony itself consists in circumcision, performed by a special medicine man. These initiation "schools" are held every year in some tribes, in others at intervals of from four to five years. In each case the group of initiates is usually given a special name by which it is known throughout life. These groups play an important part in the tribal organization, and form the nucleus of the military system. The Zulu do not have initiation schools, nor do they practise circumcision, but the system of initiation groups has persisted in the formation at regular intervals of mili tary regiments comprising boys of about the same age. Girls are also initiated in groups at the time of puberty, and are not con sidered marriageable till they have passed through the ceremony.
The Central tribes have remains of a tribal totemism. Each independent: section of the people, which may at one time have represented a clan, has a siboko or laudatory name, taken from some animal or some natural phenomenon. In former times there was a definite ritual connected with the species of animal so used. Nowadays, however, the main division of the people is into patri lineal clans, and the possession of a common siboko is no bar to marriage. In the Eastern tribes all traces of totemism, if it was ever present, have disappeared. They are all divided into clans each with its own isibongo (laudatory name) which is generally the name of the ancestor from whom the clan is thought to have sprung. Marriage between people with the same isibongo is not permitted. Very often, however, a clan will split up, a younger branch taking some more immediate ancestor as its isibongo, while the older branch preserves the more ancient isibongo, and inter marriage between the two branches is then permissible.
The OvaHerero clan system is a combination of the patrilineal and matrilineal systems. The people are divided in the first place into clans with matrilineal descent, called eanda, and then into clans with patrilineal descent, called oruzo. Every person belongs to the eanda of his mother, and the oruzo of his father. Both the eanda and the oruzo are totemic and exogamous. Each of these clan divisions has a different function. The eanda is associated with economic relationships, so that inheritance is in the female line. The religious life, on the other hand, is almost entirely con nected with the oruzo, and is a developed form of ancestor wor ship, so that a man prays always to the ancestors of his father. Here again, the sacred fire is very prominent. At the chief's village the ancestors of the chief are worshipped, and represent the ancestors of the whole tribe. In addition the sacred fire is found in the kraal of each head of a family, lighted, in the first instance, from that of the chief. None of these fires must ever be allowed to go out. To this fire the women bring the milk each night and morning to have it blessed by the kraal head and the ancestors.