The condition of women in African societies has always been object of intense discussion The present research takes its move from an analysis of four main literary works in Zulu, and a number of supporting texts, to monitor, as it were, the development of attitudes towards women during the second half of the 20th century. Literature is considered, in fact, a mirror of society. Traditional Southern African society is strongly patriarchal and conservative. A woman's role is generally viewed as the life-giver and the nurturer of the new generation of her husband's offspring. She is in charge of the gardens, where she grows the family food, while her husband is busy with his wars, cattle raiding ventures and politics. Patriarchy may reach severe forms of women oppression through the systems of ilobolo (bride-wealth) and of polygamy, but is also expressed by the exclusion of women from the economic, artistic and legal fields. Forms of freedom - of movement, or sexual or economic - allotted to men are never considered for women. Each of the four chosen texts emphasises one or more aspect of women oppression by the male dominated society, as reflected in popular life at the time of writing. So Uvalo Lwezinhlonzi, written in 1956, is a manifesto for freedom in the choice of a life partner, which is generally obstructed by the father's greed for ilobolo cattle and his ambition to be recognized among the notables of the district. Inkinsela YaseMgungundlovu (1961) fights for women's equal rights in the financial field. NguMbuthuma-ke Lowo (1982) is a desperate cry in the face of abuses in polygamous families. And Ikhiwane Elihle (1985) fights aspects of the new morality that accepts sexual freedom for women, since men also claim such freedom. The thesis is topical, and, to render it even more so, it often avails itself of ideas of feminist writers and critics, although such theories have not touched the nerve of the Zulu public as yet. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2002.

Zulu belongs to the Nguni group of the Southern Bantu languages, which are spoken throughout Southern Africa. Other groups are the Suthu and the Shona, which are spoken in the interior, whereas the Nguni languages are spoken towards the south-east coast, Xhosa in the eastern part of the Cape Province, Zulu in Natal and Zululand, and Swazi in Swaziland. Swazi represents a distinct variety of Nguni speech known as "tekela", characterized by t in place of Zulu and Xhosa z, ts or tf and dz or dv in place of Zulu and Xhosa t and d, and by other phonetical characteristics, but Zulu and Xhosa are so similar that they are linguistically dialects of the same language. However, they have important separate literatures and are generally regarded as separate languages. For these reasons and for the more real reason that it is in tonal structure that they differ most greatly, this study excludes Xhosa and concentrates on Zulu only. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1966.

This study examines the oral strategies employed by Zulu speaking people in the expression of conflict and criticism in their social discourse. These oral discourses, viz. izibongo and naming practices, are analysed to ascertain the socially acceptable ways in which Zulus articulate their frustrations and discontent in various social settings. These are commonly used in rural communities, but they also echo in urban social settings. Hostility and ill-feelings are thus channelled through the sanctioned form of these various oral expressions either as a means of merely airing one's dissatisfaction or as a means of seeking personal redress. The study also reveals that these particular forms of oral expression with critical content, do not exist for their own intrinsic value simply to artfully describe a particular individual. They are composed primarily to serve a particular social function of conflict articulation and expression in non-conflictual ways. The function of these oral forms is that of a "socio-cultural archive" (Conolly 2001), which is vested in the memory of those who can express in performance, their renditions of personal and group identity. The aesthetic beauty of these forms must be regarded as a secondary function and a direct by-product of the primary function, which is personal identity expressed in a way which ensures that issues which could cause conflict are highlighted so as to diminish their conflictual potential. The reason for this is that in order to fulfill the first function, which is conflict reduction, Jousse (1990) states there has to be a form (rhythm, balance and formula) which makes the expressions memorisable - which literate people equate to 'poetry'. / Thesis (Ph.D)-University of Durban-Westville, 2003.

This research is entitled «A comparative study of Western, Eastern and Southern African surnames as a reflection of African identity" In this study the researcher looked at the historical Origins of surnames in the world, making references of countries including Britain, Scotland, China and India. The researcher then came to the African continent, where she targeted Western, Eastern and Southern Africa as areas of research. The reason for choosing these three parts of Africa is because they fall under the largest language family in the continent i.e. Niger-Kordofanian. The analysis of the findings reveals some similarities between naming practices among Western, Eastern and Southern African Kintu language groups. In the analysis of African surnames, it came out very clear that in these three parts of Africa most surnames are derived from people's names, especially male names; time of the day; animal names; weather condition and from natural phenomenon. Looking at African traditional religion, it came out from the research that in these three parts of Africa there are three categories of religion i.e. Christianity, African religion and Islamic religion. In this particular research religion came through because the findings reveal that religion had an important impact on naming in Western, Eastern and Western Africa and also in other countries in Europe as well. This research gives a proof that Bantu/Kintu languages spoken in Western, Eastern and Southern Africa are related due to common origin from the ancestor language called Proto Bantu. The language relations and the common origin from one ancestor language resulted in similar cultures and similar naming practices among the three parts of Africa. IQOQA Isihloko salolu cwaningo sithi! "Ukuqhathaniswa kwezibongo zaseNtshonalanga-Afrika, eMpumalanga-Afrika, naseMzansi-Afrika njengenkomba yobuzwe obubodwa base-Afrika". Kulolu phando umcwaningi ubheke umlando wokudabuka kwezibongo emhlabeni, ube esegcizelela ukudabuka kwezibongo eBrithani, eScotland, eChina naseNdiya. Umcwaningi ube esebuya eza ezwenikazi i-Afrika lapho eqoke khona ukusebenzisa amazwe aseNtshonalanga-Afrika, eMpumalanga-Afrika naseMzansi-Afrika. Isizathu sokuqoka lezi zizinda ezintathu e-Afrika ngesokuthi amazwe alapha angena ngaphansi komndeni omkhulu e-Afrika obizwa ngokuthi i-Niger-Kordofanian. Uma kuhlaziywa okutholakele ngokocwaningo kuyatholakala ukuthi kukhona ukwefanana ezindleleni ezisetshenziswayo uma kwethiwa amagama nezibongo eNtshonalanga-Afrika, eMpumalanga-Afrika naseMzansi-Afrika. Kutholakale. futhi ukuthi izibongo eziningi zethiwe zisuselwa emagameni abantu, ikakhulukazi emagameni abantu besilisa; esikhathini sosuku, emagameni ezilwane, esimweni seZulu kanye nasezintweni eziyimvelo. Kuthe uma sekubhekwa ngeso lenkolo yase-Afrika kwatholakala ukuthi zintathu izinhlobo zenkolo ezikhona : inkolo yobuKristu, yeSintu neyamaSulumane. Kulolu cwaningo, inkolo ingene ngoba kutholakale ukuthi ineqhaza elikhulu elibambile ekwethiweni kwamagama eNtshonalanga"Afrika, eMpumalanga-Afrika naseMzansi-Afrika kanye nakwamanye amazwe eYurophu. Lolu cwaningo lunikeza isiqiniseko sokuthi izilimi zabantu ezikhulunywa eNtshonalanga-Afrika, eMpumalanga-Afrika naseMzansi-Afrika zihlobene ngenxa yokudabuka kukhokho oyedwa wolimi. Ubuhlobo obudalwe ulimi ngokudabuka ndawonye yilona olungumphumela wamasiko kanye nezindlela zokwetha amagama nezibongo ezifanayo eNtshonalanga-Afriaka eMpumalanga-Afrika, naseMzansi-Afrika. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2001.

Sanga-Nguni cattle have been present in Southern Africa for more than seven hundred years. They are the cattle traditionally owned by the Zulu people and have always been of great cultural and economic significance. They are distinguished by their hardiness and adaptability and are characterised by the great variety of their colours and patterns. This dissertation is a study of Sanga-Nguni cattle with special reference to colour pattern terminology and naming-practice in Zulu. More than three hundred terms in Zulu denote colour-pattern, horn-shape and type of beast. There are also a great number of terms for animals used for ritual purposes, especially those connected with the practice of ukulobola, in which cattle are exchanged during marriage negotiations. Many of these names, particularly those which refer to colour-pattern, are richly metaphorical, using imagery and analogy which connect the cattle with the birds, animals and plants that share their environment. Both archival and field sources have been employed to document as many of these names as possible and to classify them according to cultural significance, type, colour-pattern configuration and metaphorical content. Cattle names cannot be appreciated in isolation and in order to understand the complexity of the Zulu terminology, the significance of cattle in the cultural and economic life of the Zulu people as well as their biology and history has also been described. 'Cattle lore' concerning beliefs about cattle and perceptions of them in the cosmology of the Zulu people are recorded. The role of cattle in the oral tradition and cattle imagery in proverbs, poetry and tales as well as the praises of cattle themselves, have been explored in overview and provide insight into how the Zulu people perceive their herds. The dissertation is divided into four sections: i) Research setting ii) Pastoralism in Zulu society iii) Colour-pattern terminology and related naming-practice iv) perceptions of cattle and the role of cattle in the oral tradition. Although this is a primarily a language study, the subject of which is the documenting and analysis of the vast range of cattle terms found in Zulu, it is also a study of the role of cattle in Zulu society and their significance in the thought patterns of the people who own them and with whom they have lived in such close contact for so many centuries. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1996.

No abstract available. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1994.

This research's aim was to try and bring language awareness to the citizens of this country hence economic matters are exclusive. One broad area of interest that overwhelmed me and formed the basis of this research was the challenge that asks, “What economic benefit do the African languages have for the citizens of this country?”. I have identified Proudly South African companies around Durban such as Unilever Pty (Ltd), Nestle, Telkom SA. as research sites. These companies were chosen precisely because some of their products and services are Proudly South African. Above all, their brands are commonly used by consumers and customers in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), the rest of SA and internationally. This research has also used the citizens of Durban and greater Metropolitan areas such as, Umlazi, Sobantu, EMpangeni, Student residences, hostels. etc as a secondary data. Self completion questionnaires were used in this study. Internet interview survey was employed. Key results of the study proved that almost 76% of the language communication in workplaces is done in English. As well as 72% of the respondents prefer to speak English with their superiors. However, the results also indicate that 95% of the participants do support local companies which is a good sign to local business communities. And above all, more than 80% of participants are pronouncing to be Proudly South Africans. And the Proudly South African concept to most of the participants means; “Home-brew, Original Products from „emzansi‟, Black and proud”. This concludes therefore, the core hypothesis of this study which ask, ”Can isiZulu be the economic resource of this region?” the majority of 95% of the respondents agree that isiZulu can be the economic resource for this region. Although language seems to be a barrier to some extent, this piece of work has proved positive results that can be manipulated. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

Verbal extensions are well-known to play a most substantial role in the derivation and/or inflection of verbs in contemporary Zulu. Less well-known and less well investigated are a group of verbal derivatives which in former times played a significant role in derivation but which can no longer be freely attached to verbal stems: the non-productive verbal extensions (NPEs.) This thesis seeks to present and discuss all aspects of these NPEs from the perspective of their persisting roles in contemporary Zulu. This is undertaken on the basis of an extensive collection of currently-used verbs derived by means of NPEs, which is presented in the Appendix. Chapter 1 locates the study within the context of verbal extensions as a whole, and reviews the literature, which has focussed primarily on those verbal extensions which are still used productively today. Chapter 2 presents the theoretical framework for the investigation, considering issues such as productivity, derivation and inflection, and some relevant aspects of the theory of derivational morphology, currently under development. The following chapters focus in turn on the morphology of the NPEs, their current use in combination with productive extensions, the most salient aspect of their syntax, transitivity, and their meaning. NPEs have become fully integrated into Zulu vocabulary, and are used on a daily basis with no awareness of their earlier roles. Nevertheless, as this thesis demonstrates, a study of NPEs can explain both certain regularities and certain anomalies in word formation , in transitivity, and in the meaning of extended verbs in contemporary Zulu. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2001.

This dissertation looks at how ecotourism can help develop the Etsheni Living Heritage site. There are many ways that can be used to develop a place but this work specifically uses ecotourism as a vehicle for developing this area. Because of the natural resources that are found at Etsheni this research also looks at how these resources can be preserved and sustained in a positive way. The community itself is confronted with many challenges with regard to the development of their place. This study focuses on the theory that can be used in order to ensure that the local community benefits from their living heritage site. / Thesis (M.A.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

The study addresses the reasons why Buthelezi is regarded as a post-apartheid writer. Among other reasons that are discussed in this study is that in his novels, he touches on some of the issues that were not dealt with in the apartheid period. It also looks at the didactic elements that are conveyed in Buthelezi's novels as far as the post-apartheid period is concerned. Advantages and disadvantages of the post-apartheid period to South Africans are also examined, one of the very important disadvantages being the loss of the spirit of ubuntu among the African people while they try to move on with times. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2007.