The Swazi or Swati (
Swati: ''Emaswati'', singular ''Liswati'') are a
Bantu ethnic group native to
Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number o ...
, inhabiting
Eswatini
Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...
, a sovereign kingdom in Southern Africa. EmaSwati are part of the
Nguni-language speaking peoples whose origins can be traced through archaeology to East Africa where similar traditions, beliefs and cultural practices are found.
The Swati people and the Kingdom of Eswatini today are named after
Mswati II, who became king in 1839 after the death of his father King Sobhuza who strategically defeated the British who occupied Eswatini. Eswatini was a region first occupied by the
San people
The San peoples (also Saan), or Bushmen, are members of various Khoe, Tuu, or Kxʼa-speaking indigenous hunter-gatherer cultures that are the first cultures of Southern Africa, and whose territories span Botswana, Namibia, Angola, Zam ...
and the current Swazis migrated from north East Africa through to Mozambique and eventually settled in Eswatini in the 15th century. Their royal lineage can be traced to a chief named Dlamini I; this is still the royal clan name. About three-quarters of the clan groups are Nguni; the remainder are
Sotho,
Tsonga, others North East African and San descendants. These groups have intermarried freely. Swazi identity extends to all those with allegiance to the twin monarchs
Ingwenyama
iNgwenyama (also ''Ingwenyama'') is the title of the male monarch of Eswatini. In English, the title is sometimes translated as King of Eswatini. The iNgwenyama reigns together with the Ndlovukazi, a spiritual leadership position held by the ...
"the Lion" (the king) and
Indlovukati "the She-Elephant" (the queen mother). The dominant Swati language and culture are factors that unify Swazis as a nation.
History
EmaSwati are descended from Nguni-speaking clans, who migrated from north East Africa and later settled in south-east Africa in the fifteenth century. They moved into southern
Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
, and then into the region of present-day Eswatini which at the time was inhabited by San people. The term ''bakaNgwane'' ("Ngwane's people") is still used as an alternative to ''emaSwati'', to refer to the Swati people. EmaSwati are people who are predominantly descended from Nguni-language speakers. However some of the Swati people originate from
Sotho clans who were also inhabitants of Eswatini.
As part of the Nguni expansion southwards, the Swati people crossed the
Limpopo River and settled in southern
Tongaland (today in southern Mozambique near
Maputo
Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,0 ...
) in the late fifteenth century. The Ngwane people are recorded as having entered the present territory of Eswatini around the year 1600. Under the leadership of
Dlamini III who took over from the Maseko and settlement took place in 1750, along the
Pongola River where it cuts through the
Lubombo mountains
The Lebombo Mountains, also called Lubombo Mountains ( pt, Montes Libombos), are an , narrow range of mountains in Southern Africa. They stretch from Hluhluwe in KwaZulu-Natal in the south to Punda Maria in the Limpopo Province in South Africa in ...
. Later on, they moved into a region on the
Pongola River, which was in close proximity to the
Ndwandwe people. Dlamini III's successor was
Ngwane III, who is considered the first King of modern Eswatini. He ruled from around 1745 until 1780 at the
Shiselweni region of Eswatini.
In 1815,
Sobhuza I became the
king of Eswatini and was responsible for the establishment of Swati power in central Eswatini. Here the Swati people continued the process of expansion by conquering numerous small Sotho and Nguni-speaking tribes to build up a large composite state today called Eswatini.
Sobhuza I's rule occurred during the
Mfecane
The Mfecane ( isiZulu, Zulu pronunciation: ̩fɛˈkǀaːne, also known by the Sesotho names Difaqane or Lifaqane (all meaning "crushing, scattering, forced dispersal, forced migration") is a historical period of heightened military conflict ...
. Under Sobhuza's leadership, the Nguni and Sotho peoples as well as remnant San groups were integrated into the Swati nation. It was during his rule that the present boundaries of Eswatini were fully under the rule of the Dlamini kings.
In the late 1830s, initial contact occurred with the
Boer
Boers ( ; af, Boere ()) are the descendants of the Dutch-speaking Free Burghers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. From 1652 to 1795, the Dutch East India Company controlled this are ...
s, who had defeated the Zulus at the
Battle of Blood River
The Battle of Blood River (16 December 1838) was fought on the bank of the Ncome River, in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa between 464 Voortrekkers ("Pioneers"), led by Andries Pretorius, and an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 Zulu. Es ...
, and were settling in the territory that would become the
South African Republic
The South African Republic ( nl, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, abbreviated ZAR; af, Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek), also known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer Republic in Southern Africa which existed from 1852 to 1902, when i ...
. A substantial portion of Swati territory was ceded to the
Transvaal Boers who settled around the
Lydenburg
Lydenburg, officially known as Mashishing, is a town in Thaba Chweu Local Municipality, on the Mpumalanga highveld, South Africa. It is situated on the Sterkspruit/Dorps River tributary of the Lepelle River at the summit of the Long Tom Pass. ...
area in the 1840s. The territory of Eswatini, and their king,
Mswati II, were recognized by both the Transvaal and Britain. It was during the rule of Mswati II that the Swati nation was unified. Thereafter, the label "Swati" eventually was applied to all the peoples who gave allegiance to the
Ingwenyama
iNgwenyama (also ''Ingwenyama'') is the title of the male monarch of Eswatini. In English, the title is sometimes translated as King of Eswatini. The iNgwenyama reigns together with the Ndlovukazi, a spiritual leadership position held by the ...
.
Later under
Mbandzeni
Mbandzeni (also known as Dlamini IV, Umbandine, Umbandeen) (1855–1889) was the King of Swaziland from 1872 until 1889.
Ingwenyama Mbandzeni was the son of Mswati II and Nandzi Nkambule. His mother the wife of King Mswati had died when he was ...
, many commercial, land, and mining concessions were granted to British and Boer settlers. This move led to further loss of land to the South African Republic. The result was that a substantial Swati population ended up residing outside Eswatini in South Africa. The
Pretoria Convention for the Settlement of the Transvaal in 1881 recognized the independence of Eswatini and defined its boundaries. The Ngwenyama was not a signatory, and the Swazi claim that their territory extends in all directions from the present state. Britain claimed authority over Eswatini in 1903, and
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the stat ...
was regained in 1968.
Today, Swati people reside in both Eswatini and South Africa. People of Swati descent in South Africa are typically identifiable by speaking
siSwati, or a dialect of that language. There are also many Swati migrants in South Africa and the United Kingdom. The number of emaSwati in South Africa is slightly larger than that of emaSwati in Eswatini, which is approximately 1.2 million people. In modern-day Eswatini, Swati people include all Eswatini citizens regardless of their ethnicity.
Identity
The Kings of Eswatini date back to some considerable time to when the royal line of
Dlamini lived in the vicinity of
Delagoa Bay. The Swazi people as a nation were originally formed by 16 clans known as bemdzabuko ("true Swazi") who accompanied the Dlamini kings in the early days. The 17 founding clans were Dlamini, Nhlabathi, Hlophe, Kunene, Mabuza, Madvonsela, Mamba, Matsebula, Mdluli, Motsa, Ngwenya, Shongwe, Sukati, Tsabedze, Tfwala, Mbokane and Zwane. Other Swazi clans are the Emakhandzambili clans ("those found ahead", e.g. the Gamedze, Fakudze, Ngcamphalala and Magagula), meaning that they were on the land prior to Dlamini immigration and conquest. The Emafikemuva ("those who came behind") who joined the kingdom later.
Culture
Dancing and singing, including praise-singing, are prominent in Swazi culture. Pottery and carving were minor arts. Swazi traditional marriage is called ''
umtsimba A traditional Swazi wedding ceremony is called umtsimba (), where the bride commits herself to her new family for the rest of her life. wazi national trust commission. Cultural resources: Swazi culture. Available at: http://www.sntc.org.sz/cultural ...
''; it is usually on a weekend in the dry season (June to August). The bride and her relatives go to the groom's homestead on Friday evening. On Saturday morning, the bridal party sit by a nearby river and eat goat or cow meat offered by the groom's family; in the afternoon, they dance in the groom's homestead. On Sunday morning, the bride, with her female relatives, stabs the ground with a spear at the groom's cattle
kraal
Kraal (also spelled ''craal'' or ''kraul'') is an Afrikaans and Dutch word, also used in South African English, for an enclosure for cattle or other livestock, located within a Southern African settlement or village surrounded by a fence of t ...
; later she is smeared with
red ochre
Ochre ( ; , ), or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colours produced ...
. The smearing is the high point of marriage: no woman can be smeared twice. The bride presents gifts to her husband and his relatives.
Umhlanga is one of the most well-known cultural events in Eswatini held in August/September for young unmarried girls to pay homage to the
Ndlovukati.
Incwala is another Swazi cultural event held in December/January, depending on the phases of the moon. This ceremony, also known as the "''First Fruits''" ceremony, marks the King's tasting of the new harvest.
Religion
The traditional Swazi religion recognizes a supreme God/creator in its pure form while the ancestors are recognized. The Swazi religion is based on a creator known as ''Mvelincanti'' (he who was there from the beginning). Most Swazis intertwine this belief with modern day Christianity that was brought by the missionaries. Many continue to practice their traditional spiritual beliefs. Spiritual rituals are performed at the level of family associated with birth, death and marriage.
See also
*
Umtsimba A traditional Swazi wedding ceremony is called umtsimba (), where the bride commits herself to her new family for the rest of her life. wazi national trust commission. Cultural resources: Swazi culture. Available at: http://www.sntc.org.sz/cultural ...
– marriage ceremony
References
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