00:00Bright outfits and dancing filled the streets of Ingwavuma in South Africa's southeastern KwaZulu-Natal province on Saturday,
00:08as thousands of young Zulu women gather to take part in the annual re-dance ceremony.
00:16Every September, young women, locally known as maidens, head to the royal palace to present a long reed to the
00:22Zulu king.
00:24For this participant, the event is a way of preserving tradition.
00:29She also said the ceremony teaches the girls how to look after themselves.
00:37We protect ourselves, our bodies and remember our culture and preserve it for the coming generations.
00:45For the participants, the reed is a symbolic gesture implying their commitment to maintaining a tradition cast down through generations.
00:56It's important because this continues to encourage us to look after ourselves.
01:00We love it and most of the time it's in your heart that when you're a maiden you must look
01:04after yourself until it's time to get married.
01:13The event is also attended by members of the royal family, traditional Zulu regiments and instructors who accompany the participants.
01:24Among those who gathered for the ceremony on Saturday is 71-year-old Mamma Lisa, who came with girls from
01:30her region.
01:33My name is Mamma Lisa and I'm responsible for the girls in Ilangeni.
01:41Today, we're accompanying the girls in this celebration of the reeds, whereby the young ones, the so-called pure girls
01:49who have looked after themselves as maidens, come here to the royal house to bring the reeds, showing that they're
01:55still looking after themselves as maidens and remain like that.
01:59Singing and dancing took place throughout the ceremony.
02:03The yearly gathering remains an important expression of Zulu cultural identity, bringing together generations and preserving a tradition that has
02:11been ongoing for centuries.
Comments