I had a wonderful weekend in my village, full of visits and
celebrations. On Saturday, I visited one
of the high school teachers in a nearby village. She made chicken feet just for
me. Even though I vowed to try everything once, I picked at the feet instead of
giving it my all and gnawing on them. On Sunday, I was sitting outside enjoying
the sun with my family when my host mom asked if I’d want to go visit a family
member quickly. I said sure, changed into a skirt, and we were off. Little did
I know I was walking into a full blown-traditional Zulu celebration.
It’s winter, meaning traditional celebrations (or
“functions”) are in full swing. If you ask why there are so many celebrations
in winter, the answer is, “Because meat stays longer”. Obviously.
How important a party is can be gaged by how many animals
are slaughtered. The scale ranges from goat (small party, might make an
appearance) to 2+ cows (big deal, gotta go). In general, if you ask, “What’s
the celebration for?” the response is, “Not sure, two cows were slaughtered”.
Many of the ceremonies are cleansing ceremonies, celebrating someone who passed
away (even if not recently) and honoring ancestors. Zulus also have traditional
celebrations for weddings, engagements, even 21st birthdays.
Most traditional ceremonies follow the same routine. The men
sit in the kraal outside, according to age and importance. The oldest men get
the “best” part of the cow—the head…tongue, brain, you name it. The women sit
inside a big rondavel (circular house).
Similar to a middle school dance, the men and women rarely, if ever,
cross the lawn to mingle. The
traditional meal that is served consists of cabbage (cole slaw-form or cooked
with a curry), beet root, spinach or swiss card, samp (cooked hominy) and
beans, boiled chicken, squash, and rice or phuthu (made with corn meal and
boiled water). After the meal, presents
are presented to the host. The host sits on a chair in the middle and everyone
sings; one by one people drape clothes and blankets over the host. At the very end of the day, a ton of food is
brought out and put in the center of the room.
Women (who are in the family and of some importance) are selected to
distribute the food. They pass out cakes, muffins, sodas, beers, fruit, jeqa
(traditional steamed bread) and most importantly—boiled cow meat. Tons of cow
meat. Everyone who attends the
celebration pulls out their empty plastic grocery bags and starts loading up. I
guess you could say they are Zulu party favors.
Mix in a lot of dancing, and there you have it: a
traditional Zulu celebration.
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