ABSTRACT
Researchers who have looked at Zulu cultural forms, and specifically oral forms, have tended to ignore gender as a social variable. In some patriarchal societies male norms prescribe the appropriate forms of communication to be adhered to by women and children; this extends to the power to control even the speech patterns of the women. In recent years, women in some parts of Africa have been up in arms calling for an end to customs such as polygyny that have outlived their purpose. Zwelibomvu consists of seven districts: ePanekeni, ePhangweni, eMkhangoma, eMadwaleni, eZimbokodweni, Magcaba and eMasomini. Participants in the focus groups responded to a set of questions presented to them; the questions were generally the same across all the groups, but were adapted to take account of the specific male/female demographic of each group. The chapter also presents an overview on the key concepts discussed in this book.
