Lobola: Is my daughter worth 12 cows? Zulu culture in South Africa

One of my regular customers recently pronounced that my daughter was worth 12 cows. As I have previously blogged, my husband and I own a small shop in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Having been in business for over twenty years my 17 year old daughter has grown up in front of my regular customers. When all my babies were young, I brought them with me to the shop, so those customers naturally have a vested interest in them!

(image: channel24.co.za)

In South Africa we have nine major African tribes and eleven official languages, including the "white" languages of english and afrikaans. These tribes share most cultural customs, but there are variations. I live in the province of KZN, and the Zulu tribe are indigenous to this area. I employ eight staff, and all are Zulu, as are the majority of my customers.

Which brings me back to my daughter, who is fast approaching marriageable age! In Zulu culture lobola is a bride price, traditionally paid in cattle. The average price of a cow in South Africa is R12000 ($832). Negotiations, usually long and complex, between the male members of the families of the prospective couple  determine the exact lobola price. The function of lobola is to demonstrate commitment to the wife and honour the parents of the wife. Cash payments have replaced payments in cattle in many cases, and this has unfortunately led to greed, which hampers future couples marriage prospects. None of my 8 staff members are married. With increased access to education, many couples are questioning this custom, but pressure from extended family members make it very difficult for couples to break with the tradition.

(image: alamy.com)

As a large number of Zulu couples live together without marrying, there are customs that govern the birth of children. When a woman falls pregnant with her first child, the boyfriend is expected to pay "damages" to the girl's family. The cost of these "damages" vary, and have to be negotiated between the members of the respective families. The consensus among my staff members is that two goats need to be paid for a first child, and one goat for each subsequent child. This can also be converted to a cash price, or even for other goods such as a television or a stove. The average price of a goat is R2000 ($138). When you consider that the monthly minimum wage is just under R3000 ($208), it is a significant expense. Often pregnant women will conceal the pregnancy for as long as possible to ensure that their boyfriend can save up. I asked Zodwa, who has worked for me for 16 years, what happened in the case of a miscarriage. She told me that this was another reason pregnancies were concealed as long as possible, as the "damage" fee was due upon discovery of a pregnancy, regardless of whether or not there was a miscarriage.

(image: zuluculture.co.za)

Zulu culture is bound by countless rules, which are followed very strictly by all but the most educated. For example, my daughter and her boyfriend were in the shop, and her boyfriend was chatting to me. He lives with us, so obviously casual conversation is natural. After my daughter and her boyfriend had left the shop, Stanley, Zodwa's long term boyfriend was amazed by the fact that Jonothan had spoken to me. He has been with Zodwa for 14 years. He can't visit the house without wearing a jacket and he is not allowed to speak to Zodwa's mother, except for greeting. If he visits, the mother will leave the lounge and go to the kitchen. He once had to take Zodwa's mother to Durban, a four hour car trip from Newcastle, and they didn't say one word to each other for the entire journey there and back. (Zodwa is 40 years old, and Stanley, a school teacher, is 50 years.)

I chat with my staff, as work colleagues do, and am always fascinated by their culture. As most of my staff have worked with me for extended periods I have been exposed to much of their culture. Unfortunately especially to their funeral customs, due to the high rate of HIV/AIDS in our province, which has been labelled as having one of the highest infection rates in the world. If there is interest, I will cover a few more Zulu customs.

Personally I think my daughter is worth way more than 12 cows, but now I have a problem to solve: how to get Jonothan to pay up!!!

(Jade & Jonothan....where's my bucks?!)

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