Reed Dance
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Umhlanga , or Reed Dance ceremony, is an annual
Swazi Swazi may refer to: * Swazi people, a people of southeastern Africa * Swazi language * Eswatini Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked coun ...
event. In
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 ...
, tens of thousands of unmarried and childless Swazi girls and women travel from the various chiefdoms to the
Ludzidzini Royal Village The Ludzidzini Royal Village is the home to the House of Dlamini The House of Dlamini is the royal house of the Kingdom of Eswatini. Mswati III, as king and Ngwenyama of Eswatini, is the current head of the house of Dlamini. Swazi kings up to the ...
to participate in the eight-day event. The young, unmarried girls were placed in female age-regiments; girls who had fallen pregnant outside wedlock had their families fined a cow.


History

Umhlanga was created in the 1940s Eswatini under the rule of
Sobhuza II Sobhuza II, (; also known as Nkhotfotjeni, Mona; 22 July 1899 – 21 August 1982) was the Paramount Chief and later Ngwenyama of Swaziland for 82 years and 254 days, the longest verifiable reign of any monarch in recorded history. Sobhuza was ...
, and is an adaptation of the much older Umchwasho ceremony. The reed dance continues to be practised today in Eswatini. In South Africa, the reed dance was introduced in 1991 by
Goodwill Zwelithini King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu (27 July 1948 – 12 March 2021) was the reigning King of the Zulu nation from 1968 to his death in 2021. He became King on the death on of his father, King Cyprian Bhekuzulu, in 1968 aged 20 years. Pr ...
, the former King of the Zulus. The dance in South Africa takes place in
Nongoma Nongoma is a town in Zululand, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is the seat of the Nongoma Local Municipality. It is situated 300 km north of Durban and 56 km from Ulundi; it is surrounded by the Ngome Forest. It is a busy market town ...
, a royal ''
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 th ...
'' of the Zulu king.


South Africa

In South Africa, the ceremony is known as Umkhosi woMhlanga, and takes place every year in September at the Enyokeni Royal Palace in Nongoma Enyokeni, KwaZulu-Natal. The girls come from all parts of Zululand, and in recent years there are also smaller groups from
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 ...
, as well as more distant places such as
Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
and
Pondoland Pondoland or Mpondoland (Xhosa: ''EmaMpondweni''), is a natural region on the South African shores of the Indian Ocean. It is located in the coastal belt of the Eastern Cape province. Its territory is the former Mpondo Kingdom of the Mpondo peopl ...
. All girls are required to undergo a
virginity test A virginity test is the practice and process of determining whether a girl or woman is a virgin; i.e., to determine that she has never engaged in, or been subjected to, sexual intercourse. The test typically involves a check for the presence of an ...
before they are allowed to participate in a royal dance. In recent years the testing practice has been met with some opposition. The girls wear traditional attire, including
beadwork Beadwork is the art or craft of attaching beads to one another by stringing them onto a thread or thin wire with a sewing or beading needle or sewing them to cloth. Beads are produced in a diverse range of materials, shapes, and sizes, and vary b ...
, ''izigege, izinculuba'' ''and imintsha'' that show their bottoms. They also wear anklets, bracelets, necklaces, and colourful sashes. Each sash has appendages of a different colour, which denote whether or not the girl is
betrothed An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''fi ...
. As part of the ceremony, the young women dance bare-breasted for their king, and each maiden carries a long
reed Reed or Reeds may refer to: Science, technology, biology, and medicine * Reed bird (disambiguation) * Reed pen, writing implement in use since ancient times * Reed (plant), one of several tall, grass-like wetland plants of the order Poales * ...
, which is then deposited as they approach the king. The girls take care to choose only the longest and strongest reeds, and then carry them towering above their heads in a slow procession up the hill to Enyokeni Palace. The procession is led by the chief Zulu princess, who takes a prominent role throughout the festival. If the reed should break before the girl reaches that point, it is considered a sign that the girl has already been sexually active. The ceremony was reintroduced by King
Goodwill Zwelethini King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu (27 July 1948 – 12 March 2021) was the reigning King of the Zulu nation from 1968 to his death in 2021. He became King on the death on of his father, King Cyprian Bhekuzulu, in 1968 aged 20 years. Pr ...
in 1991, as a means to encourage young Zulu girls to delay sexual activity until marriage, and thus limit the possibility of
HIV transmission Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
. In 2007, about 30,000 girls took part in the event. The organisers of the ceremony have occasionally enforced strict rules on photographers, as some of them have been accused of publishing pictures of the rites on
pornographic websites Internet pornography is any pornography that is accessible over the internet, primarily via websites, FTP servers peer-to-peer file sharing, or Usenet newsgroups. The availability of widespread public access to the World Wide Web in late 1990s ...
. In past years, the event was attended by former
President of South Africa The president of South Africa is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of South Africa. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of South Africa and is the commander-in-chief of the South African Nationa ...
,
Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan name Msholozi, and was a former anti-aparth ...
(himself a Zulu), and former
Premier of KwaZulu-Natal The Premier of KwaZulu-Natal is the head of government of the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. The current Premier of KwaZulu-Natal i''s'' Nomusa Dube-Ncube, a member of the African National Congress. She is the first elected woman to assu ...
,
Zweli Mkhize Zwelini Lawrence Mkhize (born 2 February 1956) is a South African medical doctor and politician who served as the Minister of Health (South Africa), Minister of Health from May 2019 until his resignation on 5 August 2021. He previously served as ...
.


Eswatini

In
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 ...
, girls begin the rite by gathering at the
Queen Mother A queen mother is a former queen, often a queen dowager, who is the mother of the reigning monarch. The term has been used in English since the early 1560s. It arises in hereditary monarchies in Europe and is also used to describe a number of ...
's royal village, which currently is
Ludzidzini Royal Village The Ludzidzini Royal Village is the home to the House of Dlamini The House of Dlamini is the royal house of the Kingdom of Eswatini. Mswati III, as king and Ngwenyama of Eswatini, is the current head of the house of Dlamini. Swazi kings up to the ...
. After arriving at the Queen Mother's
royal residence A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whic ...
, the women disperse the following night to surrounding areas and cut tall reeds. The following night, they bundle the reeds together and bring them back to the Queen Mother to be used in repairing holes in the reed windscreen surrounding the royal village. After a day of rest and washing, the women prepare their traditional costumes consisting of a bead necklace, rattling anklets made from cocoons, a sash, and skirt. Many of them carry the bush knives, which they had earlier used to cut the reeds, as symbols of their
virginity Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...
. The women sing and dance as they parade in front of the royal family as well as a crowd of dignitaries, spectators, and tourists. After the parade, groups from select villages take to the centre of the field and put on a special performance for the crowd. The King's many daughters and royal princesses also participate in the reed dance ceremony and are distinguished by the crown of red feathers they wear in their hair. During the ceremony, the king, with the help of his mother and elder sister, chooses 365 girls. A large part of the 365 girls will live in a palace in the center of Mbabane. Of these 365, the king can choose a new wife, which he does not do every year. He has these girls at his disposal sexually during one year to choose . The present form of the Reed Dance developed in the 1940s from the
Umcwasho Umchwasho () is a traditional chastity rite in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland). While the rite is active, unmarried women are not allowed to have sexual relations and must wear a traditional set of tassels. The tassels are usually made of wool and a ...
custom, where young girls were placed in age regiments to ensure their virginity. Once they had reached marriageable age, they would perform labour for the Queen Mother followed by dancing and a feast. The official purpose of the annual ceremony is to preserve the women's
chastity Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is ''chaste'' refrains either from sexual activity considered immoral or any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for example when mak ...
, provide tribute labour for the Queen Mother, and produce solidarity among the women through working together.


Nudity controversy

The reed dance videos were once classified as age-restricted content by
YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
, which angered the users who had uploaded them. This included Lazi Dlamini, the head of TV Yabantu, an online video production company that aims to produce content that “protects, preserves and restores African values”. Working with more than 200 cultural groupings across the country and in neighbouring Eswatini, Dlamini organised a series of protests against
Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...
to force them to rethink their position. YouTube apologized, and allowed the showing of bonafide African traditional videos. According to a representative for the company, they lifted the restriction, as it is not Google's policy to "restrict nudity in such instances where it is culturally or traditionally appropriate.”''''


References


External links

*
African Marriage (section on Umhlanga)
* {{YouTube, QVFc7lwcIiI, Video of 2009 Reed Dance – John H. Bradley Swazi culture Zulu culture Nudity Ceremonies in South Africa Ceremonies in Eswatini Annual events in South Africa Annual events in Eswatini August events September events Spring (season) events in South Africa Dance in South Africa Spring holidays (Southern Hemisphere)