Of Land, Bones, and Money: Toward a South African Ecopoetics by McGiffin Emily;

Author:McGiffin, Emily; [McGiffin, Emily]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: LIT020000 Literary Criticism / Comparative Literature
Publisher: University of Virginia Press

Iimbongi in Contemporary Society: Responses from the Communities

From late 2015 to early 2016 I interviewed fifty isiXhosa-speaking people about their views on iimbongi. Twenty-five participants lived in the rural areas surrounding the town of Willowvale in the Mbashe municipality; another twenty-five lived in the township adjoining the small city of Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown). My research area spanned all three of the pre-1994 constituencies that now form the Eastern Cape, which includes Cape Province and the former Ciskei and Transkei Bantustan areas. Research in these former Bantustans was particularly revealing; although these jurisdictions represent examples of reviled apartheid policies, they were also zones of cultural and political resistance that successfully challenged attempts to erase amaXhosa culture and practices.31 Participants within each subset were chosen purposively to reflect the demographics of their respective communities, and each subset included, insofar as possible, a balanced blend of ages, genders, and professions. Interviews were conducted in either English or isiXhosa according to the participant’s preference; the responses included in this section were transcribed from various interviews conducted in English.

In speaking with practicing iimbongi and members of their audiences and in analyzing transcriptions of performances of izibongo, I found that despite the enormous political and social upheaval that has defined South Africa throughout its modern history, the tradition of the iimbongi and the ritual aspect of izibongo remain alive and well throughout the Eastern Cape. In the interviews conducted in the rural villages around Willowvale, I was immediately struck by the participants’ ubiquitous knowledge of the imbongi tradition and their shared sense of its importance to their communities and cultural identity. Participants felt that iimbongi encourage mutual support among community members, remind people of the beauty of their language and heritage, act as spiritual healers, and serve as upstanding role models for the youth in their communities. Asked whether the role of the imbongi remains an important tradition, participants were unanimous: “Kakhulu!” (very important). Praise of the iimbongi was emphatic: “We love iimbongi,” people said; “Iimbongi make us happy.” At the same time, various research participants conceded that iimbongi were uncommon and opportunities to see them perform were rare. Several participants, while appreciative of the tradition, had only attended performances by iimbongi a few times in their lives.

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