Who Are the Xhosa?
The Xhosa (amaXhosa) are a Bantu-speaking people of South Africa, numbering approximately 8-9 million, concentrated primarily in the Eastern Cape and Western Cape provinces. They speak isiXhosa, a Bantu language famous for its extensive click consonants—eighteen clicks borrowed through long contact with Khoisan-speaking peoples. IsiXhosa is South Africa's second most spoken home language. The Xhosa were the first Bantu-speaking people to encounter European settlers, beginning a century of frontier wars (1779-1879) that foreshadowed apartheid's systematic dispossession. Nelson Mandela and numerous other anti-apartheid leaders were Xhosa, making Xhosa resistance central to South Africa's liberation narrative.
Frontier History
The Xhosa were organized into numerous chiefdoms, with the paramount chiefs of the Gcaleka, Rharhabe, and other lineages leading major political units. Contact with Dutch and then British colonists began in the late 18th century, leading to nine "Frontier Wars" over a century. The Xhosa fought tenaciously to defend their lands and cattle, producing leaders like Ngqika, Maqoma, and Sandile whose resistance became legendary. The Cattle-Killing of 1856-57 was a devastating episode—a young prophetess Nongqawuse's vision led the Xhosa to kill their cattle and destroy their crops, expecting resurrection and European expulsion. The famine that followed killed tens of thousands and broke Xhosa military power. British victory led to land seizure and labor coercion that foreshadowed apartheid.
Culture and Traditions
Xhosa culture shares features with other Nguni peoples (Zulu, Swazi, Ndebele) while maintaining distinctive elements. Initiation (ulwaluko) marks the transition to manhood—initiates spend weeks in the bush, undergo circumcision, and learn cultural knowledge. This practice remains widespread and culturally important, though health concerns exist. Women's initiation (intonjane) marks coming of age. Ancestor veneration is central; rituals (imbeleko, umbuyiso) maintain relationships with ancestors. Diviners (amagqirha, also called sangomas) communicate with spirits. The distinctive white face paint seen at ceremonies marks transitional states. Xhosa beadwork communicates messages through color and pattern. Oral tradition features praise poetry (izibongo) performed by imbongi (praise poets). Music influenced South African genres including mbaqanga and kwaito.
Contemporary Xhosa
Modern Xhosa experience the complex legacies of apartheid and liberation. Many Xhosa leaders shaped post-apartheid South Africa—Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Oliver Tambo, Thabo Mbeki were all Xhosa. Yet the Eastern Cape remains one of South Africa's poorest provinces, affected by unemployment, inadequate services, and post-apartheid rural-urban migration. Urban Xhosa in Cape Town and elsewhere maintain cultural connections while navigating metropolitan life. Traditional leadership continues, though chieftaincy politics can be contentious. IsiXhosa thrives as a spoken language and in media, though English dominates education and economy. Initiation remains widespread despite periodic deaths from complications. The Xhosa demonstrate both the costs of colonial dispossession and the survival of cultural identity through oppression into democratic transition.
References
- Peires, J. B. (1989). The Dead Will Arise: Nongqawuse and the Great Xhosa Cattle-Killing Movement
- Mostert, N. (1992). Frontiers: The Epic of South Africa's Creation and the Tragedy of the Xhosa People
- Hunter, M. (1961). Reaction to Conquest: Effects of Contact with Europeans on the Pondo of South Africa