Marklives!com Traditional star lore of Africa This entry was posted on February 3, 2009, and it was categorized as South Africans [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/?cat=9]. You can follow comments through the RSS 2.0 [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/?feed=rss2&p=347] feed. You can leave a comment [#respond], or trackback [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/wp-trackback.php?p=347]. [http://d1.openx.org/ck.php?n=adf3ef7a&cb=insert_random_number_here] [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/mag.jpg] MarkLives recently stumbled across a website documenting some of the traditional star lore of Africa [http://www.psychohistorian.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=508:traditional-star-lore-of-africa-&catid=8:ethnoastronomy&itemid=20] and thought how wonderful it was to have an essentially oral history collected and made available online to all South Africans. Mark believes it is important for marketers to know local history and mythology and that these can serve as inspiration in the creative process. The sky and the stars A wide-spread African concept is that the sky is a solid dome, perhaps made of blue rock, resting on the Earth, upon which the Sun moves. The traditional Tswana idea is that stars are holes in the rocky vault that is the sky. The Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen saw the sky as the dwelling place of all the divine beings and spirits of the dead. The things of the sky generally do not influence or reflect the affairs of man, the!kung taught, nor do they affect the weather, the growth of vegetation, or other conditions of the earth; they are in a realm of their own. In Xhosa, a star is inkwenkwezi, inkanyezi in Zulu, nyenyedzi in Shona, dinaledi in Sotho, tinyeleti in Tsonga, maledzi in Venda, linaleri in Setswana, and nyota in Swahili. While the /Xam Bushmen believed the stars were formerly people, some!kung Bushmen taught that stars are, in fact, small creatures, and look like tiny porcupines they have little legs, ears, teeth and are covered with tiny spines. Another!Kung account says that stars are actually ant lions, watching from overhead with their bright eyes. When they are hungry and see an ant, they quickly fall to the ground to catch it. Some say that all the stars fall to the ground each morning, and we see them on earth as insects. The Ibibio of Nigeria spoke picturesquely of the stars as Sand of the Moon. The Moon The Moon inyanga to the Xhosa and Zulu, Nwedzi to the Shona and Venda, and Ngwedi to the Sotho and Tswana is probably the most obvious feature in the night sky, because of its size, brightness, and changing appearance (phases). As the Moon orbits the Earth it goes through a sequence of phases, from New Moon (invisible) to crescent, half-moon, Full Moon, half-moon, and back to New Moon. To the Kora KhoiKhoi, the Moon was kham, the Returner ; the Nama KhoiKhoi spoke of khab. The KhoiKhoi also considered the Moon as the Lord of Light and Life, and would sing and dance at times of New and Full Moon. The Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen said that the crescent phases with sharp points was male, while the Full round Moon was female. The Xhosa considered the time of New Moon as a period of inaction. When it reappeared as a crescent in the evening sky, it was cause for celebration. Important events were scheduled to take place around the time of Full Moon. Also at Full Moon the mothers would de-worm their children, believing that at this time the worms collected in one place and could be effectively treated. The Naro Bushmen taught that when the crescent Moon slopes downward, it is said to be looking into a grave and this is a sign that many people will die in that season. A crescent pointing upward was a favourable sign. The round Full Moon is a sign of satisfaction and that people will find plenty of food. In /Xam Bushmen mythology, the Moon is a man who has made the Sun angry. The Sun s sharp light cuts off pieces of the Moon until almost the whole of the Moon is gone, leaving only one small piece. The Moon then pleads for mercy and the Sun lets him go. From this small piece, the Moon gradually grows again until it becomes a Full Moon. The /Xam also have another account of how the Moon came to be. In the old times, it was said, the Moon was one of the leather sandals of the Mantis-god /kaggen. The sandal was placed in water to soften it somewhat, but this angered the water spirit who then froze the water, locking the sandal in ice. When /kaggen saw the frozen sandal he discarded it, throwing it up into the sky, where it became the Moon. Whatever its origin, the /Xam considered the New Moon as being able to influence hunting and the gathering of ants eggs, and when the crescent was sighted, they would ask for its assistance.
The surface of the Moon has dark and bright markings; flat lava plains and rocky highlands, respectively. In many African traditions these markings are said to resemble the figure of a man or woman carrying a bundle of sticks. When the Earth s shadow falls on the Moon, a lunar eclipse occurs. The Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen said that this was caused by the lion, putting his paw over the Moon to darken the night so he could have better hunting Under certain atmospheric conditions, a moon bow can form, appearing as a large ring around the Moon. To the /Gwi Bushman, such a ring was a sign that food will be plentiful. Bright southern stars [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/wpcontent/uploads/south.jpg] The Southern Cross (Crux) and the two bright Pointers (alpha and beta Centuari) are probably the most recognizable of the southern stars, and they feature prominently in African star lore. Visit PsychoHistorian.org for more lore on the Sun, The Milky Way, The stars around Orion, Venus, comets and meteors. In Sotho, Tswana and Venda traditions, these stars are Dithutlwa, The Giraffes. The bright stars of Crux are male giraffes, and the two Pointers are female. The Venda called the fainter stars of the Southern Cross Thudana, The Little Giraffe. They also say that the month Khubvhumedzi begins when the crescent Moon can be seen for the first time and, at the same time, the lower two giraffe stars are just below the horizon and the upper two are just visible. Sotho lore tells that when the giraffe stars are seen close to the south-western horizon just after sunset, they indicate the beginning of cultivating season. The /Xam Bushmen saw the two Pointers as male lions; they were once men, but a magical girl turned them into stars. The three brightest stars of the Southern Cross they saw to be female lions. To the Khoikhoi, the Pointers were known as Mura, The Eyes, of some great celestial beast. The Coal Sack, a large dark nebula near the Southern Cross, is known as the Old Bag of the Night to the Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen. The long axis of the Southern Cross points towards a bright star called Achernar. This star is called Senakane (Sotho, Tswana) and Tshinanga (Venda), meaning The Little Horn. Brighter still than Achernar is Canopus, one of the brightest stars in the night sky. It is widely known in southern Africa as Naka, The Horn Star. In Sotho tradition, a careful watch was kept for Naka about the end of May. Sotho chiefs awarded a cow for Naka s earliest sighting. The day of the sighting the chief would call his medicine-men together. Throwing their bone dice, the doctors would judge whether the new season would be good or bad. The appearance of Naka also heralds coming of winter and browning of the veld. When Naka appeared before sunrise, the Tswana knew it was time to start breeding their sheep. In Venda tradition, the first person to see Nanga in the morning sky (in May, heralding winter) would climb a hill and blow the phalaphala (black sable antelope horn) and he would receive a cow as a prize. The Zulu knew Canopus as isandulela, a messenger appearing at the end of Autumn, the harvest time, and also as inkhwenkwezi, The Brilliant Star. The /Xam Bushmen believed that Canopus could influence the availability of ants eggs, a rich source of nourishment, and they called it The Ant Egg Star.
The beautiful constellation Scorpius with its slender curved row of stars is famous for the bright reddish star Antares. This star was called by the!xu Bushmen The Fire-Finishing Star not only does it have a reddish colour, but (at certain times of the year) it sets very late at night, when the camp fires have died down. (See also Arcturus and Regulus below.) Along the curved body of the scorpion, just before the tail section, lies a close pair of stars (mu-1 and mu-2 Scorpii), which the Khoikhoi called xami di mura, The Eyes of the Lion. Near Scorpius is a conspicuous circlet of stars known as Corona Australis, the Southern Crown. The /Xam Bushmen had a tale about a group of men who sat eating together when a bewitched girl look upon them, turning them into these stars. The bright star Fomalhaut lies in a rather star-poor region and is prominent in the summer sky. It is called Ndemara, The Sweetheart Star, by the Shona, and Ntshuna, The Kiss Me Star, by the Tswana. The visibility of this star was supposed to indicate the time for lovers to part before their parents discovered them. (Compare this with the tale about Venus the Evening Star, below). Another prominent southern star is Peacock (alpha Pavonis); the /Gwi Bushmen call it The Female Steenbok. The Magellanic Clouds [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/mag.jpg] On a moonless night under a dark sky, two interesting clouds can be seen to the south, one cloud much larger and brighter than the other. These are the Magellanic Clouds, or the Cape Clouds, and are actually entire galaxies, thousands of light years away. The Ju/Wasi and!kung Bushmen said that the larger cloud was a part of the sky where soft thornless grass grows, like the kind they used for bedding. One day, they say, God climbed onto the large cloud and went hunting. Several other Bushman groups saw the two clouds as male and female steenbok. The Sotho saw the clouds as the spoor of two celestial animals. The large cloud was Setlhako sa Naka, The Spoor of the Horn Star (Naka, Canopus) and the smaller cloud was Setlhako sa Senakane, The Spoor of the Little Horn Star (Senakane, Achernar). Tswana folklore tells that when the small cloud appeared more clearly than the large cloud, a drought would follow. Visit PsychoHistorian.org [http://www.psychohistorian.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=508:traditional-star-lore-of-africa-&catid=8:ethnoastronomy&itemid=20] for more lore on the Sun, The Milky Way, The stars around Orion, Venus, comets and meteors. Source: http://www.psychohistorian.org/ [http://www.psychohistorian.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=508:traditional-star-lore-of-africa-&catid=8:ethnoastronomy&itemid=20] Similar Posts: The other 2010 mascot! [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/?p=80] KFC gets punked by Steers [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/?p=144] Burp Tennis [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/?p=133] [http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=20] [http://d1.openx.org/ck.php?n=adf3ef7a&cb=insert_random_number_here] Popularity: 15% [? [http://alexking.org/projects/wordpress/popularity-contest] ] 0 tweet This entry was posted by Herman Manson [http://www.marklives.com/wordpress/?author=1]
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p s y c h o h i s t o r i a n. o r g gfedcb google just w Home Atheism Astronomy AD&D Psychology Journal Tagged as: Astronomy, ethnoastronomy. Published: 2009 January 11 Traditional star lore of Africa The sky and the stars A wide-spread African concept is that the sky is a solid dome, perhaps made blue rock, resting on the Earth, upon which the Sun moves. The traditional Tswana idea is that stars are holes in the rocky vault that is t sky. The Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen saw the sky as the dwelling place of all the divine beings and spirits of the dead. The "things of the sky" generally do no influence or reflect the affairs of man, the!kung taught, nor do they affect t weather, the growth of vegetation, or other conditions of the earth; they are a realm of their own. In Xhosa, a star is inkwenkwezi, inkanyezi in Zulu, nyenyedzi in Shona, dina in Sotho, tinyeleti in Tsonga, maledzi in Venda, linaleri in Setswana, and nyo in Swahili. While the /Xam Bushmen believed the stars were formerly people, some!ku Bushmen taught that stars are, in fact, small creatures, and look like tiny porcupines they have little legs, ears, teeth and are covered with tiny spin Another!Kung account says that stars are actually ant lions, watching from overhead with their bright eyes. When they are hungry and see an ant, they quickly fall to the ground to catch it. Some say that all the stars fall to the ground each morning, and we see them on earth as insects. The Ibibio of Nigeria spoke picturesquely of the stars as "Sand of the Moon". The Sun The Sun is ilanga in Xhosa and Zulu, duvha in Venda, zuva in Shona, and letsatsi in Sotho. The Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen think of the Sun as a "death thing" because its searing heat and the association with thirst, hunger, and exhaustion. The /Xam Bushmen would ask the Sun, early in the morning before they set to hunt, to steady the hunter's arm when aiming at game. The Sun was originally a man, the /Xam said, whose head shone brightly. But he was a la fellow and would sleep late, keeping his light to himself. So one day, out of
desperation, the First Bushmen chopped off his head and threw it up into th sky so that his light could be shared with everyone. On rare occasions, the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, resultin a solar eclipse. If the alignment is exact, then the entire Sun is momentarily blacked out. Such a total eclipse was not a welcome sight to the Xhosa, who saw it as an ill omen. In Zulu, Sotho and Tswana traditions this was called " darkening of the Sun", ukufiphala kwelanga and fifalo ya letsatsi respectivel The Venda spoke picturesquely of mutsha-kavhili, "the two dawns". The Moon The Moon inyanga to the Xhosa and Zulu, Nwedzi to the Shona and Vend and Ngwedi to the Sotho and Tswana is probably the most obvious featur the night sky, because of its size, brightness, and changing appearance (phases). As the Moon orbits the Earth it goes through a sequence of phase from New Moon (invisible) to crescent, half-moon, Full Moon, half-moon, an back to New Moon. To the Kora KhoiKhoi, the Moon was kham, "the Returner"; the Nama KhoiK spoke of khab. The KhoiKhoi also considered the Moon as "the Lord of Light Life", and would sing and dance at times of New and Full Moon. The Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen said that the crescent phases with sharp po was male, while the Full round Moon was female. The Xhosa considered the time of New Moon as a period of inaction. When reappeared as a crescent in the evening sky, it was cause for celebration. Important events were scheduled to take place around the time of Full Moon Also at Full Moon the mothers would de-worm their children, believing that this time the worms collected in one place and could be effectively treated. The Naro Bushmen taught that when the crescent Moon slopes downward, said to be looking into a grave and this is a sign that many people will die in that season. A crescent pointing upward was a favourable sign. The round F Moon is a sign of satisfaction and that people will find plenty of food. In /Xam Bushmen mythology, the Moon is a man who has made the Sun an The Sun's sharp light cuts off pieces of the Moon until almost the whole of t Moon is gone, leaving only one small piece. The Moon then pleads for mercy and the Sun lets him go. From this small piece, the Moon gradually grows a until it becomes a Full Moon. The /Xam also have another account of how th Moon came to be. In the old times, it was said, the Moon was one of the lea sandals of the Mantis-god /kaggen. The sandal was placed in water to softe somewhat, but this angered the water spirit who then froze the water, locki the sandal in ice. When /kaggen saw the frozen sandal he discarded it, thro it up into the sky, where it became the Moon. Whatever its origin, the /Xam considered the New Moon as being able to influence hunting and the gather of ants' eggs, and when the crescent was sighted, they would ask for its assistance.
The surface of the Moon has dark and bright markings; flat lava plains and rocky highlands, respectively. In many African traditions these markings are to resemble the figure of a man or woman carrying a bundle of sticks. When the Earth's shadow falls on the Moon, a lunar eclipse occurs. The Nya Nyae!Kung Bushmen said that this was caused by the lion, putting his paw the Moon to darken the night so he could have better hunting Under certain atmospheric conditions, a "moon bow" can form, appearing as large ring around the Moon. To the /Gwi Bushman, such a ring was a sign th food will be plentiful. Bright southern stars The Southern Cross (Crux) and the two bright Pointers (alpha and beta Centuari) are probably the most recognizable of the southern stars, and the feature prominently in African star lore. In Sotho, Tswana and Venda traditions, these stars are Dithutlwa, "The Giraffes". The bright stars of Crux are male giraffes, and the two Pointers ar female. The Venda called the fainter stars of the Southern Cross Thudana, " Little Giraffe". They also say that the month Khubvhumedzi begins when the crescent Moon can be seen for the first time and, at the same time, the low two giraffe stars are just below the horizon and the upper two are just visib Sotho lore tells that when the giraffe stars are seen close to the south-weste horizon just after sunset, they indicate the beginning of cultivating season. The /Xam Bushmen saw the two Pointers as male lions; they were once me but a magical girl turned them into stars. The three brightest stars of the
Southern Cross they saw to be female lions. To the Khoikhoi, the Pointers w known as Mura, "The Eyes", of some great celestial beast. The Coal Sack, a large dark nebula near the Southern Cross, is known as th "Old Bag of the Night" to the Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen. The long axis of the Southern Cross points towards a bright star called Achernar. This star is called Senakane (Sotho, Tswana) and Tshinanga (Ven meaning "The Little Horn". Brighter still than Achernar is Canopus, one of the brightest stars in the nigh sky. It is widely known in southern Africa as Naka, "The Horn Star". In Soth tradition, a careful watch was kept for Naka about the end of May. Sotho ch awarded a cow for Naka's earliest sighting. The day of the sighting the chief would call his medicine-men together. Throwing their bone dice, the doctors would judge whether the new season would be good or bad. The appearanc Naka also heralds coming of winter and browning of the veld. When Naka appeared before sunrise, the Tswana knew it was time to start breeding the sheep. In Venda tradition, the first person to see Nanga in the morning sky May, heralding winter) would climb a hill and blow the phalaphala (black sab antelope horn) and he would receive a cow as a prize. The Zulu knew Canop as isandulela, a messenger appearing at the end of Autumn, the harvest tim and also as inkhwenkwezi, "The Brilliant Star". The /Xam Bushmen believed Canopus could influence the availability of ants' eggs, a rich source of nourishment, and they called it "The Ant Egg Star". The beautiful constellation Scorpius with its slender curved row of stars is famous for the bright reddish star Antares. This star was called by the!xu Bushmen "The Fire-Finishing Star" not only does it have a reddish colour, (at certain times of the year) it sets very late at night, when the camp fires died down. (See also Arcturus and Regulus below.) Along the curved body of the scorpion, just before the tail section, lies a clo pair of stars (mu-1 and mu-2 Scorpii), which the Khoikhoi called xami di mu "The Eyes of the Lion". Near Scorpius is a conspicuous circlet of stars known as Corona Australis, th Southern Crown. The /Xam Bushmen had a tale about a group of men who eating together when a bewitched girl look upon them, turning them into th stars. The bright star Fomalhaut lies in a rather star-poor region and is prominent the summer sky. It is called Ndemara, "The Sweetheart Star", by the Shona and Ntshuna, "The Kiss Me Star", by the Tswana. The visibility of this star w supposed to indicate the time for lovers to part before their parents discove them. (Compare this with the tale about Venus the Evening Star, below). Another prominent southern star is Peacock (alpha Pavonis); the /Gwi Bushm call it "The Female Steenbok".
The Magellanic Clouds On a moonless night under a dark sky, two interesting "clouds" can be seen the south, one cloud much larger and brighter than the other. These are the Magellanic Clouds, or the "Cape Clouds", and are actually entire galaxies, thousands of light years away. The Ju/Wasi and!kung Bushmen said that the larger cloud was a part of th sky where soft thornless grass grows, like the kind they used for bedding. O day, they say, God climbed onto the large cloud and went hunting. Several other Bushman groups saw the two clouds as male and female steenbok. The Sotho saw the clouds as the spoor of two celestial animals. The large cl was Setlhako sa Naka, "The Spoor of the Horn Star" (Naka, Canopus) and th smaller cloud was Setlhako sa Senakane, "The Spoor of the Little Horn Star" (Senakane, Achernar). Tswana folklore tells that when the small cloud appeared more clearly than large cloud, a drought would follow. The Milky Way On a dark night, the Milky Way can be seen, a dim band of light stretching f horizon to horizon.
Various groups (including the Venda, Setswana and Sesotho) described it as supernatural foot path across the sky along which the ancestor spirits walke Many peoples referred to it as "Night's backbone", "Sky's spine" and "God's back", suggesting the idea that the Milky Way held up the sky, or maybe he together. In /Xam Bushmen star lore, the Milky Way was created by a girl of the ancie race who scooped up a handful of ashes from the fire and flung it into the s This made a glowing path along which people could see the route to return home at night. She also threw bits of an edible root into the sky, the old (re pieces creating red stars and the young (white) pieces creating white stars. The stars around Orion On summer nights, the brilliant constellation of Orion, with Taurus the Bull o one side, and bright Sirius on the other, graces the southern night skies. Orion is instantly recognizable by its three bright stars in a short line (Orion' Belt), and the brilliant orange star Betelgeuse. Rigel is the other bright star Orion (opposite Betelgeuse from the Belt Stars). Roughly between Rigel and Belt Stars lies Orion's Sword, which appear as three fuzzy stars. Several cultures identify the Belt Stars as animals. They are seen as three p by the Sotho (Makolobe), Tswana (Dikolobe), and the Karanga of Zimbabwe (Nguruve). The Sotho called Orion's Sword Dintshwa, and the Tswana called dintsa le Dikolobe, meaning "The Three Dogs are chasing the Three Pigs". The /Xam Bushmen said the Belt Stars were "Three Male Tortoises (hung on stick)," and Orion's Sword was "Three Female Tortoises (hung on a stick)". To the Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen, Orion's Belt was "The Three Zebras", a m animal flanked by two females. The Songye of Zaire speak of the Belt Stars as aspibwe na mbwa na nyama Hunter with a Dog and an Animal". Similarly, the!xu Bushmen saw "a Man, Dog, and a Buck". The Zulu referred to Orion's Sword as ondwenjana; the meaning isn't clear because it can either indicate a tall object/man/tree, or a type of long-stemm flower, such as a lily. The Masai charmingly refer to the Belt Stars as "Three Old Men Pursued by Lonesome Widows"! Nearby Orion lies Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. Sirius dominates morning sky in July, and it late winter is rises early. The Sotho knew it as Kgogamashego, "Drawer Up of the Night". To the Tswana it was Kgogamas "Pulls the Night Across". The Venda called it Khohamutsho "Pulling Out the Dawn". The Zulu had various names for it, such as indosa and indonsemasu meaning "straining, or pulling". The /Xam Bushmen called Sirius "The
Grandmother of Canopus", because Sirius rises after Canopus, and the elder usually follow behind the more agile youths. In Xhosa, the star is known as iqhawe, "The Champion", presumably because it is the brightest star in the night sky. Taurus the Bull has its own bright orange star, Aldebaran, and not far off is beautiful star cluster the Pleiades, also called the Seven Sisters. The /Xam Bushmen saw Aldebaran as "The Male Hartebeest", with Betelgeu as its mate. The Pleiades is a prominent cluster of stars, of which usually six or seven br members can be seen. To many pastoralist groups of southern Africa, the fi visibility of the Pleiades in morning twilight (in August or early September) announced the start of the planting season, and usually also marked the beginning of the year. The /Xam Bushmen said the Pleiades are one of "summer's things", and the Khoikhoi used the Pleiades to forecast the start of the rainy season. In Kiswahili (East Africa & Zanzibar) they are Kilimia, "The Ploughing Stars" "The Digging Stars". There is a Swahili proverb that says: "If the Digging St set in sunny weather they rise in rain, if they set in rain they rise in sunny weather." Similarly, they are Kelemera to the Nyabungu of Ruanda, Lemila t the Nyasa of Malawi, Selemela in Sotho, Shirimela in Tsonga, Selemela in Tswana, Tshilimela in Venda, and isilimela in Xhosa and Zulu. The Xhosa would watch for the first appearance of the isilimela in June. It i said that the month of the Digging Stars, Eyesilimela, symbolized new life in man. The coming-out ceremony of the abakwetha circumcision school, when boys would become men, was determined by the appearance of this stellar grouping, and it is the custom for Xhosa men to count their years of manho from this date. The //Gana Bushmen say that the Pleiades are the wives of Canopus and Si and the men's younger brother is Achernar. Aldebaran and the Pleiades are described by the Ibibio of Nigeria as "The Mother Hen and her Chicks". The Sotho and Tswana had a rule for finding direction at night: if you want travel west, keep the Southern Cross on your left hand, and Selemela (the Pleiades) on the right. The Namaqua Khoikhoi spoke of the Pleiades as the "Stars of Spring" and ca them the Khunuseti. They were the daughters of Tsui //Goab, the Dawn or God. A beautiful mythical tale encompasses the remarkably bright stars of th region. One day, the story goes, the Khunuseti told their husband (Aldebara to go out and hunt the three zebras (Orion's Belt). Dutifully, the husband we out, but took only one arrow with him. He aimed and shot at the zebras, bu
missed. His arrow (Orion's Sword) fell beyond them, and still lies there toda Although he wanted to retrieve the arrow, he couldn't: there was a fierce lio (Betelgeuse) nearby who was also watching the zebras. So the poor man sa there, shivering from the cold and suffering from thirst and hunger, unable return to his wives (who would be angry) or to collect his arrow. (The Ju/Wa Bushmen have a similar tale.) Near Orion and Sirius is the bright star Procyon. The /Xam Bushmen conside it "The Male Eland", who has two wives (Castor and Pollux, see below). Rigel and Betelgeuse, with Sirius and Procyon, were known as Magakgala or Mahakala to the Basuto, Lobedu, Northern Sotho and Tswana. When these were visible in the early evening, they knew it was time to harvest the corn. Bright northern stars A prominent northern star is Arcturus, which various Bushmen groups called "The Fire-Finishers' Child", because it appeared in the early morning hours, when the camp fires had died down. In Swazi tradition, the star is Lweti, an visible in the morning sky before sunrise in November, at the time when wo begin their day's work. Capella is a very bright star that never rises very high above the northern horizon as seen from southern Africa. The Zulu call it intshola, "The Cattle Thief". The Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen called it "Green Leaf Horn" and knew that when it was visible, the first flowers would bloom with the coming of th season of rains. Altair is another bright star that lies toward the north. It is known as "The Female Steenbok" to the /Gwi Bushmen. Located lower than Altair is the bri star Vega, which they call "The Male Steenbok". Castor and Pollux, the two bright stars of Gemini, were considered by the /X Bushmen to be "The Female Elands", the wife of Procyon. The small but striking northern constellation Delphinus the Dolphin is known Setswana as gakgala, "The Mopane Worm". Spica is a lone bright star in the modern constellation Virgo. The //Gana Bushmen knew it as "The Pig Star". In Zulu custom, it is known as inqonqol "The Wildebeest Star", and its seasonal visibility coincides with the calving season of the wildebeest. Regulus, the brightest star of Leo, was known to the /Gwi Bushmen as /edz "The Fire-Finisher" which only sets when the firewood has been exhausted. Venus: the Evening and Morning Star The Evening Star, usually Venus, is visible from time to time in the west afte sunset. When this bright star appears in the evening sky, the Xhosa called it
cel'izapolo, "One Who Asks for Milk from a Teat", because this would be the time when boys playing in the fields would rush home to milk the cows. The Evening Star was also known as Madingeni, "The Dating Star". In the olden days, boys and girls were not allowed to date each other in public, so they would arrange a secret get-together when Madingeni became visible. Many peoples linked the evening appearance of Venus with supper time. The Nde called it Lykwela mkobe, and the Zulu spoke of icelankobe, meaning "Asking Mealies". The Sotho knew it as Kopa-dilallo, the Tswana as Kopadilelo, and Venda as Khumbela tshilalelo, meaning "Asking for Supper". When Venus is visible in the morning sky just before sunrise, it is the Mornin Star. The Herero called it okanumaihi, "Little Drinker of Sweet Milk", on acco of its appearance at milking time. The Nyae Nyae!Kung Bushmen called it " Star" and said that it guided the Sun across the sky. In Xhosa tradition, the Morning Star is ikhwezi Iokusa and is associated with diligence. Travellers, w sleep out in the open, would see it and know it was time to resume their journey. Young women and girls also wake up during this time to start doing their daily chores. Girls are often named after Venus and called nomakhwez with the hope that they, too, will be diligent when they grow up. Venus is, in fact, so bright that it can at times be seen in broad daylight. Xh boys, out in the veld herding, would try to spot it as part of the challenge to becoming a true shepherd. Comets and meteors In most cultures of the world, meteors (sometimes called shooting stars) are regarded as signs of important earthly events. Sometimes, these are good events. The San Bushmen of northern Namibia and the Masai of Kenya and Tanzania considered meteors to be favourable omens, foretelling good rains In Tswana mythology a very bright meteor is an indication of a good season ahead. Sometimes, meteors are seen as a bad omen. To the!xu Bushmen a meteo was an evil spirit racing across the sky to cause mischief among the people. The /Xam Bushmen, however, said that the stars knew when a Bushman die and a falling star announces the death of one of them. Other interpretations of meteors are neither good nor bad. The Zulu, for example, say that meteors resulted from celestial cattle hastening to new grazing in another part of the sky. When the cattle drag their hooves they b through the floor of the sky and create streaks which soon fill in with mud. T Karanga of Zimbabwe would shout "Li-i-I Thobela!" when they saw a meteo thinking that a god or ancient chief was shooting across the sky. Comets were also seen as important signs of earthly events. The Masai considered comets to be the embodiment of important gods. In Xhosa tradit a comet, Uzatshoba, is associated with bad luck, calamity, wars and death.
There was also a strong belief that comets predicted the death of a chief. To the Sotho, comets were naledi tsha mesela, and to the Zulu, inkanyezi enom meaning "stars with tails". References 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Bleek, W.H.I. (1875) Second Report Concerning Bushman Researches with a Account of Bushman Folk-lore. Saul Solomon: Cape Town. Fairall, A.P. & Matomela, T. (2003) Xhosa astronomical knowledge. Presente IAU 25 General Assembly, Syndey, Australia. [unpublished manuscript] Hammond-Tooke, W. (1893) The star lore of the South African natives. Tran Philos. Soc, 5(2), 304-312. Hewitt, R. L. (1986) Structure, meaning and ritual in the narratives of the So San. Quellen zur Khoisan-Forschung, 2. Hollmann, J. C. (2000) Customs and Beliefs of the /Xam Bushmen. Wits Uni Press/Ringing Rocks Press. Lloyd, L. C. (1889) Short Account of further Bushman Material collected. Da Nutt: London. Marshall, L. (1986) Some Bushman star lore. In: Vossen, R. & Keuthmann, K Contemporary studies on Khoisan. Quellen zur Khoisan-Forschung, 5, 169-2 Snedegar, K. V. (1995) Stars and seasons in southern Africa. Vistas in Astro 39, 529-539. Snedegar, K. V. (1995) Astronomical traditions of Southern Africa. Unpublish manuscript, deposited at SAAO. Warner, B. (1996) Traditional astronomical knowledge in Africa. In: Walker, Astronomy Before the Telescope. British Museum Press: London. p 304-317 Reader's comments Posted by anonymous on 2009 September 24 @10:11. Great for teaching of indigenous knowledge. Reply from Auke Slotegraaf on Monday, 2009 September 29 @09:25. Look out for more resources soon. Meanwhile, you could also check out some stories recorded by the Afrikaans autho von Wielligh: /Xam sidereal narratives and Gideon Retief von Wielligh's 'Boesman Stories' What do you think? Your comment: ( ITS YOUR WORDS. BE NICE. )
Your name: ( OPTIONAL ) Your e-mail address: ( OPTIONAL ) SpamBlok : Name The Mythical Figure! ( IGNORE NUMBERS! ) post it All comments are moderated and are published at my discretion. Anonymous comme is OK, but not really encouraged. Feel free to blaspheme, though. Ads by Google African Watching Sky South African Foods Night Sky African People Art
Sun, 13 Dec 09 search Science and technology Home Terms & conditions Contact us About South Africa Animals and plants Arts and culture Democracy Education Geography and climate Government Health care History and heritage Media People Science and technology Social development Sustainable development Sport Doing business with SA Travelling to South Africa Services for South Africans South Africans abroad News and events 2010 Fifa World Cup Africa gateway Nelson Mandela Photo galleries SA Community Get SA-active! Find new ways of tackling our challenges! MediaClubSouthAfrica Helping journalists cover the South African story. South Africa map Find your way on our interactive South Africa map. Rediscovering African starlore 17 November 2003 Africa's traditions, legends and stories about the sky are set to reach a world audience with the release of Cosmic Africa, a feature-length documentary on African-based skylore, astronomy and cosmology from pre-historical times to the space age. Cosmic Africa covers 10 African countries - Egypt, South Africa, Swaziland, Mozambique, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ghana and Mali - recording the astonishing personal odyssey of Thebe Medupe as he journeys into Africa's astronomical past, unveiling the deep connection humans have with the cosmos. Medupe, of the South African Astronomical Observatory and the University of North West, worked with filmmakers Craig and Damon Foster - known for the award-winning The Great Dance - project originator Anne Rogers and co-worker Carina Rubin of Aland Pictures to produce a panorama of Africa's mythic and practical interaction with the cosmos. Cosmic Africa had its world premiere in Cape Town on 30 October, and opened on South Africa's Cinema Nouveau circuit on November 14. An African's journey Medupe grew up in a poor village outside Mmabatho in North West province without electricity, lights or television, where he sat near the fire under the African sky, listening to the elders telling traditional Setswana stories. But his family sacrificed to send him to a modern high school in Mmabatho, where Western science and mathematics captured his imagination. Halley's Comet inspired Medupe to build a crude telescope with a cardboard tube and lenses donated by a school laboratory technician. On an unforgettable chilly, windy night, he pointed his telescope at the moon and found himself looking at mountains, plains and craters on another world. What disturbed Medupe in his last year of high school and afterward was that so many of his friends believed that the African way of life was inferior, that learning Western ideas meant that Africa had little to offer. Later, after winning the regional Science Olympiad, studying at the University of Cape Town and in Denmark, and becoming a researcher at the SA Astronomical Observatory, Medupe's interest in Africa's heritage led him to join the Cosmic Africa project in exploring the ways that the lives of Africans intersect with the heavens. African skies, African people Anyone who has been stunned by a star-filled Karoo night will have no trouble seeing why Africans paid attention to the sky, and made it part of their story. People who lived close to the earth and the changing seasons, Africans naturally used the stars, the sun and the moon to keep track of time and times: the time to plant, the time to hunt, the time for ritual to renew the ties between people and nature. Africans told stories about the sky, and saw giraffes, lions and zebras among the stars as naturally as people elsewhere saw bears and horses. It was also in Africa that the pyramids and the far more ancient Nabta stones in the Sahara Desert were painstakingly aligned with the heavens, tying the cosmos and man together. To sample the richness of African traditions and achievements, Medupe and the filmmakers travelled around South Africa and to Mali, Egypt and Namibia, learning from local people and sharing modern perspectives. Backing and prospects Initial seed money for a promotional video came from the South African departments of arts, culture, science and technology. Backing from American-based Cosmos Studios - best known for Carl Sagan's documentary series Cosmos - made it possible for Anne Rogers and Carina Rubin to begin a research journey stretching from Namibia through the deserts and crocodile-infested lakes of northern Kenya, the cliff dwellings of the Dogon of Mali, and the steamy coast and jungles of Ghana, to people's earliest astronomical monuments in the Egyptian Sahara. Thebe Medupe, African sta (Photo: SA Astronomical Obs Related links SA Astronomical Observa SA Film National Film & Video Fo Related articles Turning junk into cinema DV8: putting SA films on Kwaito's looking sharp! Mapping new views of Af SA film honoured at disa
Solid interest from possible distributors suggests that Cosmic Africa will soon be introducing audiences worldwide to Africa's ancient perspectives on the cosmos. Source: South African Astronomical Observatory Want to use this article in your publication or on your website? See: Using SAinfo material Published for Brand South Africa by Big
p s y c h o h i s t o r i a n. o r g gfedcb google just w Home Atheism Astronomy AD&D Psychology Journal Tagged as: Astronomy, Southern Sky News. Published: 2009 November 22 Southern Sky News for 2009 December Planet overview for December With summer upon us, the Sun spends more time in the sky than a few mon ago, cutting down our star gazing time. From Cape Town, it begins to get d around 20:38 in the evening, and by 04:07 the sky begins to brighten. The corresponding times for Johannesburg are 19:50 and 03:45. This gives 7½ hours of darkness in Cape Town, and almost 8 hours in Johannesburg. Compare this with winter values of 11½ hours for Cape Tow and 11¼ hours for Johannesburg. The start of summer is marked on December 21 when the Sun reaches the December solstice; after this date the Sun slowly begins to move northwar December boasts two Full Moons: the first on December 2, and the second December 31 (a so-called "Blue Moon"). On this very last day of the International Year of Astronomy, the Blue Moon also be eclipsed! This lunar eclipse will be very subtle, with only the tip of Moon turning a gentle reddish colour as the Moon just skims through the Ea shadow. The best time to watch will be for 20 minutes or so starting at 21:0 on December 31. In the evening sky after sunset this month, Jupiter shines prominently in th west and is visible for the first half of the night. Jupiter is the brightest 'star' the evening sky at the moment so it does duty at Evening Star this month. Mercury is low in the west at sunset this month, and is best seen around midmonth. It lies amongst the stars of Sagittarius, setting low in the west at nightfall. On the 9th and 10th, look for Mercury shining as a jewel set on the of the Teapot asterism. Before sunrise, Mars and Saturn can be seen in the sky. Mars already rises at night and sits high in the sky in the morning, while Saturn rises several hours after the Red Planet and is an early-morning object low in the east. Venus won't be visible this month as it lies too near the Sun to be seen.
Prominent constellations in December As soon as night falls, the beautiful starry region of Orion and Taurus, and t brilliant stars Sirius and Canopus, decorate the eastern horizon. Binoculars w reveal many beautiful star clusters in this area, of which the Pleiades (Seven Sisters) is the most brilliant. Few things are more sublime than scanning the starry heavens on a lovely summer's evening. Star gazers diary for December Date dow Things to look out for 01 Tue Look out for the Moon on the horizon around sunset. After nightfall, not Pleiades just above the Moon, and the Hyades and Aldebaran (in Tauru right. 02 Wed Look out for the Full Moon on the horizon around sunset. 05 Sat In the morning sky, the Moon lies above Castor and Pollux in Gemini. 06 Sun Mars is to the bottom-right of the Moon, visible after midnight. 07 Mon Mars is near the Moon, with Regulus (in Leo) to the right. 08 Tue Regulus (in Leo) near the Moon; Mars further left. 09 Wed After midnight, look for the Last Quarter Moon between Saturn (right) a Regulus (left). 10 Thu The Moon lies above Saturn. 11 Fri Spica (in Virgo) is near the crescent Moon; Saturn to the left. 16 Wed New Moon. 18 Fri Mercury is best seen tonight shortly after sunset. The crescent Moon lie low in the west-southwest at sunset and will be a challenge to see. "Sta Midnight" with Jurg and Rita Wagener at Sutherland. 19 Sat Crescent Moon lies low in the west-southwest at sunset; Mercury shines bottom-left, and Jupiter top-right. "Stars to Midnight" with Jurg and Rita Wagener at Sutherland. 20 Sun The crescent Moon is visible in the west at sunset; Jupiter above, Mercu down to the bottom-left. 21 Mon The crescent Moon is visible in the west at sunset, with Jupiter to the le 21 Mon Summer solstice. 22 Tue At sunset, look for the crescent Moon in the west with Jupiter to its left. 24 Thu First Quarter Moon. 25 Fri Christmas Eve; the bright Moon lies above Pegasus, midway between Ju and Aldebaran (the Bull's Eye). 31 Thu Second Full Moon this month ( Blue Moon ). Tonight's partial lunar eclip not be very prominent; it begins at around 20:55 and ends at 23:25, wi maximum eclipse at 21:22. Happy star gazing!
What's your opinion? Your comment: ( ITS YOUR WORDS. BE NICE. ) Your name: ( OPTIONAL ) Your e-mail address: ( OPTIONAL ) SpamBlok : Name The Mythical Figure! ( IGNORE NUMBERS! ) post it All comments are moderated and are published at my discretion. Anonymous comme is OK, but not really encouraged. Feel free to blaspheme, though. Ads by Google Used Telescope Moon Phase Calendar Venus Moon Main astronomy categories show all Deep sky SSN Astrophotos Ethnoastronomy Astronomers Outreach Musings News History Stars Everything on psychohistorian.org is 2004-2009 by Auke Slotegraaf, unless stated otherwise or if you can prove you have divine permission t published here, please consult the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.5 License.
Home About SALT Facilities Observing Science Public Info Resources s Public Info > Sun, Moon & Stars African Starlore A poster was produced as part of the "Friends with the Universe" project which formed part of South Africa's firs year of Science and Technology, YEAST, in 1998. The Starlore poster was the first in a series of ten which were distributed nationally. The aim of Friends was to use astronomy as a vehicle to promote science amongst the diverse communities in South Africa. The motif of the poster (280kB) which is reproduced above comprises various scenes depicting legends of south Africa that relate to the heavens. It was created by Braam Botha, and the copyright rests with SAAO. A small collection of legends assembled from many sources by Dr Dave Laney of SAAO is included below. Scenes from t poster image are juxtaposed with the relevant legend. Click on a part of the image to go straight to the legend.
Legends of the Khoikhoi and the San A girl child of the old people had magical powers so strong that when she looked at a group of fierce lions, they were immediately turned to stars. The largest are now in Orion's belt. A strong-willed girl became so angry when her mother would not give her any of delicious roasted root that she grabbed the roasting roots from the fire and threw the roots and ashes into the sky, where the red and white roots now glow as red white stars, and the ashes are the Milky Way. Dornan. The Bushmen (1925). And there the road is to this day. Some people call it the Milky Way; some call it t Stars' Road, but no matter what you call it, it is the path made by a young girl many, many years ago, who threw the bright sparks of her fire high up into the s to make a road in the darkness. Leslau, Charlotte and Wolf. African Folk Tales (1963). When the Pleiades appear in the east, little ones are lifted by their mothers and presented to the stars.. The Pleiades are considered friendly and the children are taught to stretch their hands toward them. The Pleiades, named Khuseti or Khunuseh by the Khoikhoi, are called the rainstars. Their appearance indicates the rainy season is near and thus the beginning of a new year. Hahn. The Khoikhoi, or Bushmen (1881).... when rain is accompanied by lightning, girls who are out in the open become killed by the lightning an are converted into stars. Therefore young unmarried women and girls must hide themselves from the rain Schapera (1930). According to the Namaquas, the Pleiades were the daughters of the sky god. When their husband (Aldeberan) shot his arrow (Orion's sword) at thre zebras (Orion's belt), it fell short. He dared not ret home because he had killed no game, and he dare not retrieve his arrow because of the fierce lion (Betelgueuse) which sat watching the zebras. The he sits still, shivering in the cold night and sufferin thirst and hunger. Initiated men among the Namaqua could not partake of hare's flesh. Long ago the moon sent a message t men that as it died and was renewed, so should men be. The hare told men instead they would die and pe like the hare, but said nothing of renewal. Tooke. The Hottentots (1888). The Sun was once a man who made it day when he raised his arms, for a powerful light shone from his armpits. But as he grew old and slept too long, the people grew cold. Children crept up on him, and threw into the sky, where he became round and has stayed warm and bright ever since. The Sotho calendar
Canopus was called Naka(the horn), or E a dishwa (it is carefully watched). Sotho men would camp in the mountains, where they made fires and watched the early morning sk in the South. It was believed that the first person to see the star would be very prospero that year, with a rich harvest and good luck to the end of his life. In olden times the chie would give the lucky man a heifer. The day after Naka was sighted was the time for the men with divining bones to examine their bones in still water, to predict the tribe's luck the coming year. Among the Venda, the first person to see Nanga (Canopus) in the morning sky announced his discovery by climbing a hill and blowing a sable antelope ho (phalaphala). Among the Mapeli, the first person to see the star would begin ululating loudly enough to be heard in the next village, which would then join the noisemaking to warn other villages, each in turn until all knew Canopus had been seen. When selomela (the Pleiades) rose in the east, frost was at hand and the leaves fell from the trees in the r beds. If the senakane (the little horn) (Achernar) when rising in the East is very bright and giving off little lightnings, and the bullrushes are still in flower, men fear an early frost. If Canopus is seen in May with a intense light, the frost would be very hard. The shield of the little horn is the Small Magellanic Cloud, known as mo'hora le tlala, `plenty and famine'. dry dusty air made it appear dim, famine was to be expected. The bright stars of the pointers and the southern cross were often seen as giraf though different tribes had different ideas about which were male and which we female. Among the Venda the giraffes were known as Thutlwa, `rising above th trees', and in October the giraffes would indeed skim above the trees on the evening horizon, reminding people to finish planting. Tswana The sky is stone, and the earth is flat. Water is beneath the earth and above the sky. The waning moon spills diseases. Its markings are a woman carrying a child, who was caught gathering wood when she should have been a sacred festival. For the Tswana, the stars of Orion's sword were `dintsa le Dikolobe', three dogs chasing the three pigs of Orion's belt. Warthogs have their litters while Orion is prominent in the sky --- frequently litters of three. Some believed that after sunset the s traveled back to the east over the top the sky, and that the stars are small holes which let the light through. Oth said that the sun is eaten each night b a crocodile, and that it emerges from
crocodile each morning. Ntshune was a star (possibly Fomalhaut) visible on winter mornings. This `kiss me' star showed the time lovers to part before parents found them. The small constellation of Delphinus may have been seen by the Tswana as a mopane worm. Sotho, Swazi, Nguni The sun's `summer house' and `winter house' (the solstices) were important to the traditional calendar as many other parts of the world. To the Xhosa these were `injikolanga', `the turning back of the sun'. As la as 1921, governors of royal Swazi villages trusted traditional observations more than printed calendars. Venus: icelankobe (Zulu) = `asking for mealies'. As with the Sotho Se-falabogogo (`crust scrapings'), the idea is that someone who arrives for supper by the light of the evening star will do rather badly. The Tswa believed that if Venus were in the evening sky at hoeing season, there would be a good harvest. According to Credo Mutwa, the Southern Cross is the Tree of Life, `our holiest constellation'. isilimela or the Pleiades were the `digging stars', whose appearance in southern Africa warned of the coming need to begin hoeing the ground. All over Africa, these stars were used as a marker of the growing season. `And we say isilimela is renewed, and the yea renewed, and so we begin to dig'. (Callaway 1970). Xhosa men counted their years of manhood from the time in June when isilimela first became visible. To Xhosas, the Milky Way seemed like the raised bristles on the back of an angry dog. Sotho and Tswana it as Molalatladi, the place where lightning rests. It also kept the sky from collapsing, and showed the movement of time. Some said it turned the Sun to the east. For Swazi and Zulu skywatchers, inqonqoli or Ingongoni was a star associated with wildebeest, whose calv were born in the season when Spica rose before the sun and the morning star. Canopus was known to some tribes as the `ants' egg star' because of its prominence during the season w the eggs were abundant. Assorted Among the Baronga each moon is regarded as a new birth after the death of the old one. At the appearan of the new moon, recently born children (third month) are `shown their moon'. The mother flings a burnin stick toward the moon as the grandmother tosses the child in the air, crying `This is your moon'.the baby then made to roll over in the ashes. Children lacking this rite would grow up stupid, and dull children are t