Bushman and Hottentot
The Khoisan Peoples of South Africa. (Bushmen and Hotten- tots.) By I. Schapera, M.A. (Cape Town), and Ph.D. (London). 16 plates, 2 maps. (Routledge. 31s. 6d.) Tuts important book should stimulate interest in the ethnology of South Africa—where much remains to be done—where much is being attempted on modern lines—where science, penetrated by humane sympathy and intelligent insight, can help greatly towards the solution of the social and political problems which are there so urgent and so prominent. A clear account of the country inhabited by these two peoples is followed by their history, distribution and tribal divisions, physical characters, dress, and decoration. Then come separate accounts of the culture of the two, priority being given to that of the Bushmen. In the last section an account is given of the Khoisan languages. Full use has been made of earlier writers and their value as authorities has been carefully estimated. The personal touch is never absent, and it is clear that the author's first-hand knowledge of these peoples has combined most effectively with his natural shrewdness and his excellent training. The Bushmen, nomadic hunters, whose mode of life is typical of that special vulture, are nowadays restricted to the country south of the Zambesi river, though traces are found of their culture in Tanganyika and even more to the north. The Bushmen form many different groups, each with its own distinctive speech and name, with variations in culture and social organization, due in part to different external contacts and in part to differing internal stresses. The main social groups are the family—always the primary element in cultural formation— and the hunting bands. Doubt exists whether any have the clan organization, though there is some linguistic evidence pointing to that end. Of the economic life much is said of great interest both as to common and individual rights and as to the skill and ingenuity with which natural resources are utilized. The notion of private property is basal. As to Religion and Magic, Dr. Schapera tells us that :— • ' In all the Bushman tribes people arc found who deal with the mysterious or supernatural who are regarded as endowed with supernatural powers or who are able to control either for social purposes or for their own ends the spiritual forces on which the social welfare depends. Such persons may be loosely termed magicians."
The label " magic " is too often applied to what is in reality science as seen by the people. Mention must be made of the useful account of Bushman art, and of the knowledge of natural phenomena possessed by these people.
The Hottentots are best known through the Nama, the only group which has survived in spite of the deliberate policy of the German Government to break up these tribes—a fact to be remembered when Germany pleads for a mandate. The patrilineal exogamic clan organization, with the classification of kinship terms and the corresponding scheme of social obligations, is here in full force. The kinship terms distinguish the relative ages of the person speaking and of the person referred to, thus reflecting the extreme regard for age running through the social life of the Hottentots (p. 233). The old order has been broken doWn and contact with civilized races has proved fatal to the morals of the aborigines. In the account of the marriage customs, based on observations front various sources, we note that " whether a widow marries a young man, a widower a young woman, or even a widow a widower, great ritual precautions are necessary." The idea of tutu or danger attaching to a person in transition from one Stage of social life to another is well described. The system of naming leads to all brothers having the same name—that of the mother, with the masculine sex ending, and to all sisters having the name of their father—with the feminine ending. Each is distinguished by special adjectives indicating the order of birth or by nicknames. Puberty rites for girls and boys differ markedly from those of the Bushmen in most respects, an important fact in estimating the relations between the two societies. Private rights are recognized. The Hottentots use their cattle for milk, seldom killing for food except on festive or ceremonial occasions, and are great hunters and food gatherers. Hunting observances are recorded which " maintain mental stability under conditions which would otherwise demoralize him by anxiety, despair or fear " (p. 396). _ The regulation of _public life is well organized and the Vendetta ildurIshes 'among them. Death is attributed in many cases to the evil being, Gaunab, to the ghosts of the dead, to magicians and to the violation of ritual rules where the intervention of supernatural beings or of human agency is not postulated. Natural causes are some- times recognized. Among the Bushmen such as the Auen (p. 168) good deaths are distinguished from bud deaths, and among the Hottentots there are suggestive variations in funerary ritual. The religious beliefs of the Hottentots are well described, and, in an important Appendix, compared with those of the Bushman.
The clear statement of the grammar of the languages spoken both by Bushmen and Hottentots can leave no doubt that " fundamentally they (Hottentot languages) have far more in common with the Bushman than with the Hamitic languages " (419). Hamitic influence has dominated the history of this as of other parts of Africa, but it is not the only influence, and this important work will help the student to realize what is common to the two cultures byre studied, wherein and why they differ. If the succeeding volumes of this series can keep up to the standard here set, they will be a most notable contribution to science and to practical know- ledge.
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