‘Tradition’ is a more specific term used to describe an event or ritual that is often practiced by individuals, or it could be human behaviour on a certain occasion. Tribal warfare was common, life spans were short and strangers were rarely encountered. While that lifestyle might seem to belong to the distant past, it is also the life that our bodies and our brains are adapted to, and it’s a life that some people around, still live.

Traditional societies are small, a few dozen up to a few hundred people. They don’t have a strong political leader. Their membership is based particularly on relationships. They don’t deal with strangers, everybody knows everybody else.

Ancient traditions have a place in our modern society as black people. The reason for this is that there are some beliefs and customs or the way of doing things that are still followed by people. However, there is a difference, compared to ancient times, because black people seem to follow the culture of other races. This leads to the disappearance of what is meant to be done or followed as our own culture.

Nowadays a man still pays lobola or a bride price to the family of the bride to show respect to the family. By tradition, a man pays cows as lobola but nowadays in modern society, people rather pay cash instead, after negotiations.

House work has been traditionally regarded as women work. Most of us do believe in this and it’s followed by many individuals. It is also still our custom to greet before you start a conversation with someone, we also knock before we enter a certain house. We also follow the culture of virginity examination which is Umkhosi Womhlanga. A man who impregnates a girl must pay damages by a cow as a fine. This means he disrespected that family.

People seem to like traditional weddings although others do other types of weddings. Other people still call upon the ancestors to lighten their ways and they would slaughter the cow or goats to ask the ancestors. They also slaughter to connect with the ancestors.

People need to always remember their tradition and culture they were taught in their families. I’m proud of my culture, I am a traditional man, that’s the special thing I possess. I will always admire being a proud Zulu man and follow Zulu customs as our own culture.