The Nguni people are an ethnolinguistic group of Bantu ethnic groups native to Southern Africa where they form the single largest ethnolinguistic community.
Predecessors of Nguni people migrated from Central Africa into Southern Africa during the late Iron Age, with offshoots in neighboring colonially-created countries in Southern Africa. Swazi (or Swati) people live in both South Africa and Eswatini, while Ndebele people live in both South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Zulu people (/ˈzuːluː/; Zulu: amaZulu) are a native people of Southern Africa of the Nguni. The Zulu people are the largest ethnic group and nation in South Africa, living mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal.
They originated from Nguni communities who took part in the Bantu migrations over millennia. As the clans integrated, the rulership of Shaka brought success to the Zulu nation due to his improved military tactics and organization.
A Nguni shield is a traditional, pointed oval-shaped, ox or cowhide shield which is used by various ethnic groups among the Nguni people of southern Africa. Currently it is used by diviners or for ceremonial and symbolic purposes, and many are produced for the tourist market. A cow-hide shield is known as isihlangu, ihawu or ingubha in Zulu, and ikhaka or ikhawu in Xhosa.
Strictly speaking, these native names denote shields of different application, and additional types are known by other names. War shields were traditionally stockpiled by a chief or king, to whom they belonged, while a smaller shield was reserved for his subordinates' personal daily use, or as a complement at their dancing ceremonies.
The Swati or Swazi (Swati: Emaswati, singular Liswati) are a Bantu ethnic group native to Southern Africa, inhabiting Eswatini, a sovereign kingdom in Southern Africa, and South Africa's Mpumalanga province. 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. Eswatini was a region first occupied by the San people 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 "the Lion" (the king) and Indlovukati "the She-Elephant" (the queen mother). The dominant Swati language and culture are factors that unify Swatis as a nation.
The Nguni languages are a group of Bantu languages spoken in southern Africa (mainly South Africa, Zimbabwe and Eswatini) by the Nguni people. Nguni languages include Xhosa, Ndebele, Swati, and Zulu. The appellation "Nguni" derives from their ancestor called Mnguni type. Ngoni (see below) is an older, or a shifted, variant. The Nguni languages are the indigenous languages of the subtropics of southern Afica.
It is sometimes argued that the use of Nguni as a generic label suggests a historical monolithic unity of the people in question, where in fact the situation may have been more complex. The linguistic use of the label (referring to a subgrouping of Bantu) is relatively stable.
The Xhosa people (/ˈkɔːsə/ KAW-sə, /ˈkoʊsə/ KOH-sə; Xhosa pronunciation: [kǁʰɔ́ːsa] ) are an ethnic group in South Africa. They are the second largest ethnic group in South Africa and are native speakers of the isiXhosa language.
The Xhosa people are descendants of Nguni clans who settled in the Southeastern part of Southern Africa displacing the original inhabitants, the Khoisan. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Xhosa people have inhabited the area since the 7th century.
African philosophy is the philosophical discourse produced using indigenous African thought systems. African philosophers are found in the various academic fields of present philosophy, such as metaphysics, epistemology, moral philosophy, and political philosophy. It discusses substantive issues from an African perspective.
African philosophy before the 20th century was primarily conducted and transmitted orally as ideas by philosophers whose names have been lost to history. While early African intellectual history primarily focused on folklore, wise sayings, and religious ideas, it also included philosophical concepts, such as the Nguni Bantu concept of Ubuntu in moral philosophy. Ubuntu, often summarized by the phrase "I am because we are," emphasizes the interconnectedness of individuals within a community. It contrasts with Western individualism by prioritizing communal values and the well-being of the group over the individual, and is reminiscent of the wider phenomenon of African communalism found across the continent.