The Ndebele culture is richly expressed through colourful, geometric designs, which not only establish ties with the past generations, but also contain a deep spiritual and symbolic significance. Marriage is a fundamental aspect of life for this tribe, and many customs revolve around preparing young men and women for the union.

A girl usually starts preparing for her marriage after her first period. During this time, she has to undergo certain rites of passage as she ascends from childhood into womanhood. The rituals surrounding the initiation ceremony are very festive, with much dancing and singing taking place. The young woman is then escorted to her place of seclusion, which is usually a small room adjoining her parents` house. Here, she will spend the rest of the month in isolation, while she is instructed on how to become an efficient homemaker, usually by her mother and her grandmother. For the entire month, she is not allowed to see or be seen by any males, and will often perform her duties at night for this very reason. A `coming out` ceremony is held when she emerges - no longer as a girl, but a woman. She is ritually cleansed at a nearby river, after which, spirited festivities follow.

The celebrations are punctuated by frantic dancing, whistling and singing. While the newly initiated girls dance, the men of the tribe observe from a shady spot under some trees. The girls are adorned in exquisite beaded costumes, and their actions are calculated to attract the admiration of the men. Sometimes, one of the men will be so attracted to one of the females, he will make an offer for lobola to the girl`s father. (Lobola is the `bride price` given to the bride`s family to signify a transfer from her father`s house to her husbands. The amount and currency vary from person to person, and may involve as much as R3 000 or even livestock.) Once lobola has been negotiated, a wedding day may be set.

The marriage ceremony is divided into three separate parts. The first ceremony announces the union of the couple to the village people. At this stage, the groom is expected to pay a portion of the agreed lobola upfront. The removing of the bride from her parents` home takes the form of an elaborate procession from her family house to that of her husbands`. Once she reaches her new home, she is greeted by the women of the groom`s family with joyous dancing and ululating, invoking the good spirits. Then she is adorned with an apron (a beautifully beaded traditional garment) that marks the first phase of marriage, and ushered into the house of her husband. The apron (also known as `liphotu`) is traditionally made of goatskin, and is worn by the woman every day after the first ceremony has taken place, until she is ready for the third phase of marriage. This decorative apron has a distinctive style, with two broad flaps on either side, and beaded tassels hanging between. Symbolically, the flaps are said to represent the joining of the two marriage partners, while the tassels signal the expectation of children yet to come. Often, a specially designed veil and a marriage blanket, or `nguba` are worn, but today the nguba usually an ordinary blanket, which the bride often embroiders and beads as time passes.

During the second phase of marriage, the bride lives with the groom, and performs all her wifely duties, maintaining the house and decorating the walls in traditional geometric designs. However, the woman is only `officially` married once she has borne her first child. Should she fail to do so within a certain time period, she may be returned to her family, and the lobola refunded.

Once the bride has given birth to a child, she enters into the third phase of marriage, which is one of great prestige. At this point, the husband is obliged to pay the out-standing lobola amount. During the ceremony, the bride is adorned with a new apron to celebrate her new status as a mother. The apron has five flaps in front, the middle one denoting the mother or matriarch figure, while the four flanking panels represent her children. Honour and thanks are given to the ancestors, and festivities are enjoyed by all who attend.

Article source: LifeWorld