6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page i Culture and Customs of Zimbabwe 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page ii Recent Titles in Culture and Customs of Africa Culture and Customs of Nigeria Toyin Falola Culture and Customs of Somalia Mohamed Diriye Abdullahi Culture and Customs of the Congo Tshilemalema Mukenge Culture and Customs of Ghana Steven J. Salm and Toyin Falola Culture and Customs of Egypt Molefi Kete Asante 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page iii Culture and Customs of Zimbabwe Oyekan Owomoyela Culture and Customs of Africa Toyin Falola, Series Editor GREENWOOD PRESS Westport, Connecticut • London 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page iv Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Owomoyela, Oyekan. Culture and customs of Zimbabwe / Oyekan Owomoyela. p. cm.—(Culture and customs of Africa, ISSN 1530–8367) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0–313–31583–3 (alk. paper) 1. Zimbabwe—Social life and customs. 2. Zimbabwe—Civilization. I. Title. II. Series. DT2908.O86 2002 968.91—dc21 2001055647 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright © 2002 by Oyekan Owomoyela All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2001055647 ISBN: 0–313–31583–3 ISSN: 1530–8367 First published in 2002 Greenwood Press, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881 An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. www.greenwood.com Printed in the United States of America The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984). 10987654321 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page v Contents Series Foreword vii Chronology ix 1 Introduction 1 2 Thought and Religion 27 3 Literature and Media 43 4 Art, Cinema, and Architecture 61 5 Leisure, Dress, and Cuisine 75 6 Gender Roles, Marriage, and Family 89 7 Social Customs and Lifestyle 111 8 Music and Dance 135 Glossary 151 Bibliography 155 Index 159 Photo essay follows page 74. 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page vi 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page vii Series Foreword AFRICA is a vast continent, the second largest, after Asia. It is four times the size of the United States, excluding Alaska. It is the cradle of human civiliza- tion. A diverse continent, Africa has more than fifty countries with a popula- tion of over 700 million people who speak over 1,000 languages. Ecological and cultural differences vary from one region to another. As an old conti- nent, Africa is one of the richest in culture and customs, and its contribu- tions to world civilization are impressive indeed. Africans regard culture as essential to their lives and future development. Culture embodies their philosophy, worldview, behavior patterns, arts, and in- stitutions. The books in this series intend to capture the comprehensiveness of African culture and customs, dwelling on such important aspects as religion, worldview, literature, media, art, housing, architecture, cuisine, traditional dress, gender, marriage, family, lifestyles, social customs, music, and dance. The uses and definitions of “culture” vary, reflecting its prestigious associa- tion with civilization and social status, its restriction to attitude and behavior, its globalization, and the debates surrounding issues of tradition, modernity, and postmodernity. The participating authors have chosen a comprehensive meaning of culture while not ignoring the alternative uses of the term. Each volume in the series focuses on a single country, and the format is uniform. The first chapter presents a historical overview, in addition to in- formation on geography, economy, and politics. Each volume then proceeds to examine the various aspects of culture and customs. The series highlights the mechanisms for the transmission of tradition and culture across genera- tions: the significance of orality, traditions, kinship rites, and family prop- erty distribution; the rise of print culture; and the impact of educational 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page viii viii SERIES FOREWORD institutions. The series also explores the intersections between local, re- gional, national, and global bases for identity and social relations. While the volumes are organized nationally, they pay attention to ethnicity and lan- guage groups and the links between Africa and the wider world. The books in the series capture the elements of continuity and change in culture and customs. Custom is not represented as static or as a museum ar- tifact, but as a dynamic phenomenon. Furthermore, the authors recognize the current challenges to traditional wisdom, which include gender rela- tions; the negotiation of local identities in relation to the state; the signifi- cance of struggles for power at national and local levels and their impact on cultural traditions and community-based forms of authority; and the ten- sions between agrarian and industrial/manufacturing/oil-based economic modes of production. Africa is a continent of great changes, instigated mainly by Africans but also through influences from other continents. The rise of youth culture, the penetration of the global media, and the challenges to generational stability are some of the components of modern changes explored in the series. The ways in which traditional (non-Western and nonimitative) African cultural forms continue to survive and thrive, that is, how they have taken advantage of the market system to enhance their influence and reproductions also re- ceive attention. Through the books in this series, readers can see their own cultures in a dif- ferent perspective, understand the habits of Africans, and educate themselves about the customs and cultures of other countries and people. The hope is that the readers will come to respect the cultures of others and see them not as inferior or superior to theirs, but merely as different. Africa has always been important to Europe and the United States, essentially as a source of labor, raw materials, and markets. Blacks are in Europe and the Americas as part of the African diaspora, a migration that took place primarily due to the slave trade. Recent African migrants increasingly swell their number and visibility. It is important to understand the history of the diaspora and the newer mi- grants, as well as the roots of the culture and customs of the places from where they come. It is equally important to understand others in order to be able to interact successfully in a world that keeps shrinking. The accessible nature of the books in this series will contribute to this understanding and enhance the quality of human interaction in a new millennium. Toyin Falola Frances Higginbothom Nalle Centennial Professor in History The University of Texas at Austin 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page ix Chronology c. 5000 B.C. Suggested dating for rock paintings c. 1100 A.D. Shona ancestors settle at Zimbabwe site c. 1200 Zimbabwe stone construction begun c. 1511 Portuguese explorer Antonio Fernandes arrives at the area of modern Zimbabwe 1820s Ndebele incursions into the area c. 1821 Mzilikazi founds Ndebele kingdom 1829 Robert Moffat visits Mzilikazi 1836 Ndebele and Afrikaners fight for the first time 1839 Mzilikazi’s Nguni arrive in Matabeleland 1854 Robert Moffat visits Mzilikazi a second time 1859 London Missionary Society mission opens at Nyati 1868 Mzilikazi dies 1870 Cecil John Rhodes arrives in South Africa; Lobengula becomes Ndebele king 1871 Bulawayo established 1881 Bulawayo relocated 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page x x CHRONOLOGY 1888 Lobengula tricked into signing Rudd Concession giving Rhodes exclusive mining rights, which he later repudiates 1889 Rhodes’s British South Africa Company (BSAC) formed andreceives Royal Charter 1890 BSAC’s Pioneer Column of soldiers invades the territory and establishes Fort Salisbury; Witchcraft Suppression Act criminalizes purporting to practice witchcraft, accusing persons of practicing witchcraft, hunting witches, and soliciting persons to name witches 1891 Britain declares Bechuanaland, Matabeleland, and Mashonaland as protectorates 1892 Pass Laws enacted in Salisbury, controlling African presence in the city 1893 Ndebele War begins 1894 Death of Lobengula 1895 The territory is renamed Rhodesia 1896 Ndebele and Shona revolt; Ndebele revolt ends 1897 Shona revolt ends 1898 Kaguvi and Nehanda hanged 1901 Mapondera leads revolt; cattle fever begins 1902 Death of C. J. Rhodes 1923 Rhodesian Bantu Voters’ Association formed; Rhodesia becomes crown colony 1925 Department of Native Education established 1929 Great Zimbabwe foundation excavated by the archeologist Gertrude Caton-Thompson; Ruwadzano organization (Methodist women’s fellowship) formed 1930 Land Apportionment Act promulgated 1934 Bantu Congress (later African National Congress) formed by Aaron Jacha 1951 Native Land Husbandry Act promulgated 1953 Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland formed 1955 City Youth League founded (This is the more popular designation. It is also known as Southern Rhodesian African National Youth League.) 6596D FM UG 9/20/02 5:33 PM Page xi CHRONOLOGY xi 1956 Dominion Party (later Rhodesian Front) founded; first bus boycott in Salisbury organized by Youth League 1957 University College of Rhodesia and Nyasaland opens; African National Congress (ANC) formed 1959 State of emergency proclaimed; ANC banned; Unlawful Organisations Act passed 1960 National Democratic Party (NDP) formed; Kariba Dam opened 1961 Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU) founded 1962