The term San is commonly used to refer to a diverse group of hunter- gatherers living in Southern Africa who share historical and linguistic connections. The San were also referred to as Bushmen, but this term has since been abandoned as it is considered derogatory. There are many different San groups - they have no collective name for themselves, and the terms 'Bushman', 'San', 'Basarwa' (in Botswana) are used. The term, 'bushman', came from the Dutch term, 'bossiesman', which meant 'bandit' or 'outlaw'. This term was given to the San during their long battle against the colonists. The San interpreted this as a proud and respected reference to their brave fight for freedom from domination and colonization. Many now accept the terms Bushmen or San.
South Africa is a large country at the southern tip of the African continent. It is slightly less that twice the size of Texas. The country has large areas of. Like most hunter-gatherers' lifestyle, your daily energy expenditure, which depends on your healthy diet and exercise, is a factor in losing weight. What is the baggage that comes along with the nutrients in your food? Below is an approximation of this video. To see any graphs, charts, graphics. ![]() ![]() ![]() Like the first people to inhabit other countries in the world, the San have an unfortunate history of poverty, social rejection, decline of cultural identity and the discrimination of their rights as a group. Yet, the San have also received the attention of anthropologists and the media with their survival and hunting skills, wealth of indigenous knowledge of the flora and fauna of Southern Africa, and their rich cultural traditions. San people speak numerous dialects of a group of languages known for the characteristic 'clicks' that can be heard in their pronunciation, represented in writing by symbols such as ! Made up of small mobile groups, San communities comprise up to about 2. At certain times of the year groups join for exchange of news and gifts, for marriage arrangements and for social occasions. Historical background: Not related to the Ba. Ntu tribes, the San are descendants of Early Stone Age ancestors. Clans and loosely connected family groups followed seasonal game migrations between mountain range and coastline. They made their homes in caves, under rocky overhangs or in temporary shelters. These migratory peopledo not domesticate animals or cultivate crops, even though their knowledge of both flora and fauna is vast. The San categorized thousands of plants and their uses, from nutritional to medicinal, mystical to recreational and lethal. San men have a formidable reputation as trackers and hunters. San trackers will follow the 'spoor' (tracks) of an animal across virtually any kind of surface or terrain. Their skills even enable them to distinguish between the . These pastoralists, called Khoikhoi or 'Hottentot' resembled the San in many ways and lived by gathering wild plants and domesticating animals. Coincidently in the eastern parts of the country another migration was occurring - the Ba. Ntu speaking peoples were moving southward bringing with them cattle, the concept of planting crops and settled village life. ![]() ![]() Ultimately, the 'Hottentots' met these black- skinned farmers and obtained from them cattle in exchange for animal skins and other items. Thus, when the white settlers arrived in the mid 1. San), the pastoralists (Khoikhoi) and the farmers (Ba. Ntu). At first, the San co- existed peacefully with the Nguni (a sub- language group of the Ba. Ntu) speakers (the Zulu, Xhosa, Swazi and Ndebele) who intermarried with the San and incorporated some of the distinctive and characteristic 'clicks' of the San language into their own languages. Contact with Nguni and Sotho- Tswana farmers is depicted in the San rock art. The artists started including representations of cattle and sheep as well as of people with shields and spears, in their paintings. Unfortunately, hunter- gatherers cannot live permanently alongside a settled community and thus problems arose. When the San fought against the Ba. Ntu, they were at a huge disadvantage not only in numbers but also in lack of weapons. With the Europeans, they were at an even greater disadvantage. The Europeans owned horses and firearms. In this period, the number of San was greatly reduced. ![]() They fought to the death and preferred death to capture where they would be forced into slavery. Colonialism destroyed the San migratory way of life, they were no longer allowed to roam freely and trophy hunters destroyed the vast herds of game that formed their principal supply of food. Both Black and White farmers built up huge herds of cattle that destroyed the foods that had been the San staple diet for centuries. Enslavement and sometimes mass destruction of San communities, by both White and Black farmers, followed. Many became farm labourers and some joined Black farming communities, and intermarried with them, which added to the destruction of the social identity of the San people. Social & Cultural life: The San have no formal authority figure or chief, but govern themselves by group consensus. Disputes are resolved through lengthy discussions where all involved have a chance to make their thoughts heard until some agreement is reached. Certain individuals may assume leadership in specific spheres in which they excel, such as hunting or healing rituals, but they cannot achieve positions of general influence or power. White colonists found this very confusing when they tried to establish treaties with the San. Leadership among the San is kept for those who have lived within that group for a long time, who have achieved a respectable age, and good character. San are largely egalitarian, sharing such things as meat and tobacco. Land is usually owned by a group, and rights to land are usually inherited bilaterally. Kinship bonds provide the basic framework for political models. Membership in a group is determined by residency. As long as a person lives on the land of his group he maintains his membership. It is possible to hunt on land not owned by the group, but permission must be obtained from the owners. The San will eat anything available, both animal and vegetable. ![]() Their selection of food ranges from antelope, Zebra, porcupine, wild hare, Lion, Giraffe, fish, insects, tortoise, flying ants, snakes (venomous and non- venomous), Hyena, eggs and wild honey. The meat is boiled or roasted on a fire. The San are not wasteful and every part of the animal is used. The hides are tanned for blankets and the bones are cracked for the marrow. Water is hard to come by, as the San are constantly on the move. Usually during the dry season, these migrants collect their moisture by scraping and squeezing roots. If they are out hunting or travelling, they would dig holes in the sand to find water. They also carry water in an ostrich eggshell. Hunting Methods: The San are excellent hunters. Although they do a fair amount of trapping, the best method of hunting is with bow and arrow. The San arrow does not kill the animal straight away. It is the deadly poison, which eventually causes the death. ![]() ![]() In the case of small antelope such as Duiker or Steenbok, a couple of hours may elapse before death. For larger antelope, this could be 7 to 1. For large game, such as Giraffe it could take as long as 3 days. Today the San make the poison from the larvae of a small beetle but will also use poison from plants, such as the euphorbia, and snake venom. A caterpillar, reddish yellow in colour and about three- quarters of an inch long, called ka or ngwa is also used. The poison is boiled repeatedly until it looks like red currant jelly. It is then allowed to cool and ready to be smeared on the arrows. The poison is highly toxic and is greatly feared by the San themselves; the arrow points are therefore reversed so that the poison is safely contained within the reed collar. It is also never smeared on the point but just below it - thus preventing fatal accidents. The poison is neuro toxic and does not contaminate the whole animal. The spot where the arrow strikes is cut out and thrown away, but the rest of the meat is fit to eat. The San also dug pitfalls near the larger rivers where the game came to drink. The pitfalls were large and deep, narrowing like a funnel towards the bottom, in the centre of which was planted a sharp stake. These pitfalls were cleverly covered with branches, which resulted in the animals walking over the pit and falling onto the stake. When catching small animals such as hares, guinea fowls, Steenbok or Duiker, traps made of twisted gut or fibre from plants were used. These had a running noose that strangled the animal when it stepped into the snare to collect the food that had been placed inside it. Another way of capturing animals was to wait at Aardvark holes. Aardvark holes are used by small buck as a resting place to escape the midday sun. The hunter waited patiently behind the hole until the animal left. When this happened, it was be firmly pinned and hit on the head with a Kerrie (club). The San are intelligent trackers and know the habits of their prey. On discovering where a herd has gathered, they immediately test the direction and force of the wind by throwing a handful of dust into the air. If the ground is bare and open, he will crawl on his belly, sometimes holding a small bush in front of him. Hunters carry a skin bag slung around one shoulder, containing personal belongings, poison, medicine, flywhisks and additional arrows. They may also carry a club to throw at and stun small game, a long probing stick to extract hares from their burrows or a stick to dig out Aardvark or Warthog. Hunting is a team effort and the man whose arrow killed the animal has the right to distribute the meat to the tribe members and visitors who, after hearing about the kill, would arrive soon afterwards to share in the feast. According to San tradition, they were welcome to share the meal and would, in the future, have to respond in the same way. However, plant foods, gathered by the womenfolk, are not shared but eaten by the woman's immediate family. The San make use of over 1. While the men hunt, the women, who are experts in foraging for edible mushrooms, bulbs, berries and melons, gather food for the family. Children stay at home to be watched over by those remaining in camp, but nursing children are carried on these gathering trips, adding to the load the women must carry. COMANCHE INDIAN FACTSComanche Indian Introduction. The Comanche Indians are a group of Native American Indians who call themselves Numinu, meaning . They originally lived in the Great Plains region and it. Northern Shoshone Indian tribe. After 1. 70. 0, they ended up splitting from the Shoshone. Southern Plains, which included Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas. They ended up forming about twelve separate groups of Comanche during this. The below information explains why these Indians migrated, what their lifestyle was like, how their way of life changed with the introduction of horses, and. These structures were supported by up to eighteen wooden poles and could be taken down and reassembled easily and quickly. There were several factors that influenced the Comanche to move south. A big motivation was that the buffalo were more abundant in the south. The weather was also. Wichita. They were able to barter with them for guns and other goods to trade with the French. The Comanche started off as hunters and gatherers, living off the land and following seasonal prey, until horses were introduced to them in the late seventeenth. This was a turning point for the Comanche Indians and they quickly became known for their horsemanship. Even children became skilled equestrians at an early. Horses greatly improved their ability to hunt and to fight. The tribe was organized in a democratic structure. A head council, comprised of some of the leaders of the tribe, was responsible for all tribal decisions, including when to engage in war and when to hunt. This group of chiefs and leaders took the place of having one main leader. Men were the hunters and fighters while women tended to the daily household chores like cooking and childcare. Comanche Indian Significant Events. The Treaty of Medicine Lodge was an agreement that the Comanches signed in 1. It pushed the Indians onto reservations where the United. States promised the tribes protection from white settlers who were increasingly expanding into their territory. The Comanche Indians took part in the Battle of Adobe Walls, which was a two- part battle against the U. S. Army initially and bison hunters in the second half. It was one of the largest battles to be fought in the Great Plains and the Indians were faced with defeat. The Jerome Agreement paid out the Comanche, Apache, and Kiowa Indians for their land in a sum that was half of their asking price, resulting in very hard feelings on the side of the Indians.
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