UNIDAD EDUCATIVA "RIOBAMBA"

Name: Cristian Cadena

Course: 2nd BGU "A"

The Bushmen

As its name suggests, bushman derives from the African word "boschejsman" which means: man of the forest. This ethnic group is not reduced to a single tribal group, but rather refers to various peoples that inhabit different parts of the continent and that are traditionally hunters and gatherers of fruits. A significant feature of their language, which encompasses some Khoisian languages, is that it incorporates clicking or clicking sounds, with which they communicate in a peculiar way.

It is estimated that there are about 100,000 Bushmen distributed among Botswana - the largest number - Namibia, Angola, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Their history dates back to time immemorial, as it shows that genetically they are similar to the first humans who left Africa to spread to the rest of the world.

In the 1990s, the Botswana government began to expel the Bushmen from their homeland, in the Central Kalahari, but after an arduous legal fight, in 2006 the Supreme Court declared the government's actions unconstitutional to restore the Bushmen's right to live. on their lands. Despite this, the struggle continues and the government denies them water and the construction of new wells without the justice on this occasion having supported them.

Currently, the term Bushman has fallen into disuse because it is considered pejorative from the Western point of view, as is the term "Hottentots" also related to this ethnic group, so there is no official name that identifies them collectively. But they prefer that rather than terms like 'san' which qualifies them as primitive, they continue to call themselves Bushmen. Some consider that the correct name would be Abathwa because that is how their ancestors called themselves.

A curious ritual that is maintained in these tribal groups, especially for folkloric reasons, is weddings by capture, although it is required that the participants, since they are aware of their marriage, assume at all times a conduct of utmost respect. On the wedding day, a simulation is carried out in which the woman is captured and forcibly taken from her parents' house to another authorized for the occasion. The bodies of the bride and groom are smeared with special oils and aromatic powders. In this way, the marriage is achieved in a tempestuous way as a guarantee of a good later relationship.