Monday, 26 August 2013

Who are we?


He predicted that the media would be the extensions of men; it would extend sight, hearing and touch. Most interestingly back in the 1960’sMarshall McLuhan went on to stating that changes in communication technology inevitably produce profound changes in both culture and social order.

Well where are we today? Who are we really, or rather what have we become? Where do I even begin to let you in on our latest evolution…? We are movie stars, Hip Hop artists, and Hollywood citizens. We are what the media says we should be.

women on Heritage Day
 Indeed McLuhan was spot on! Yes we have been vacuumed into a Global village, which is controlled by technology and contains its own traditions and cultures. Sadly it is clear that our own traditions and cultures are slowly but surely fading away. We walk around speaking in the American accent, pants practically down on our knees, long silky weaves that run down our backs and all that you can think of. Don’t even begin to get it twisted, because there is nothing wrong with a bit of change now and then, new experiment here and there. But why have all these things robed us of our true identities? When did we even get to this point?

 I don’t know how badly you view this, but I for one refuse to see this as the point of no return. In a country that offers so much diversity, 11 official languages, different cultures and so much more. So sinceHaritage Day is just around the corner, Start thinking about how you will spend the day, take time to ask your elders where you originally come from and embrace who you really are. Just like the saying goes “in order to know where you going, you need to know where you come from”   

As for me personally, I am (clan names)
Mina ndzi gwana wa Njenjane,
Ngwana wa Ridlwane,

Ngwana wa Xichuhe,
ndzi Garixe
Nkuna Mavutane mavuta hiritwile
Vasiya matluka andleleni vuka vanakulorhi va tasala vutlula

And you are??? If you do not know, call your mother, father, an aunt or uncle. Proclaim who you are to the world and let us pride ourselves in being who we really are. To my brothers and sisters who do not have clan names, go ahead and express yourselves in any way you can. For the love of our true identities

19 comments:

  1. True, we have lost our identity somewhere in the west because we all want to adapt to western cultures. nonetheless ntse ke le "Motshweneng wa go kalama sefate aje moruko, di tau ga de molome di mo phuphua hela, oo boikanyo aa menwe". #ululates#

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  2. It is very true, technology is really the driver of intergration. Ntokozo I hope you didn't google that clan name.

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    1. hahaha Lethabo what little faith you have in me. i doubt my clan name would appear on google, its too special

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  3. What kills me the most is:

    Me: Hi, whats your name?
    Kabelo: KAYBELO

    Me: Your surname
    Ms. Dlamini: Dalaminay

    Geez....we have even lost out pronunciation. I always take my hat off for people who speak fluent english and profoundly speak their vernacular language. If we forget everything else about our culture....let us for heaven's sake not forget how to vernacularly pronounce our names and surnames, tuuuu.

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    1. so many are guilty of this Simphiwe. could it also be because parents speak and teach english to their children from a very young age?they then grow up being more fluent in english than any vernacular language

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  4. Ke nna ramaite, mmerwa wa mahlo a matala. Ke ke letlapa le lebotse la marble hall. Ke paletse maburu ka maoto, ka kgona ke maisimane ka michini.
    Ke ngwanatsomane wa ga bauba, morwa sw tlogolo sa moshiane mashiya dinoka

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  5. its so sad that we as a South African nation really do not knpow our true identities

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  6. shame bandla, people have been tooo westernised!!!

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  8. We can blame it to technology but the biggest failures are the parents. They speak with their children in
    English at home, further more they do English 1st language at school (nothing wrong with that), they speak English am sure more than 95% in a day. Back home tv is a parent and guider. it's sad that the children can't even communicate with their grandparents who stays in rural places who can't
    speak English. The point is I can't know and be proud of my culture if I don't know my language, it will impossible to even understand where I am coming from. lastly they can't even read their mother tongue (ndi muvenda but it's funny that I can't even write or read tshivenda)

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    1. like i said to Simphiwe, toddlers speak english more fluently than some of us. ask them their name in vernacular and they stare at you... ask them "whats your name" and they they answer perfectly well

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  9. Wow ikhale vaku Machangane itihosi, ivalungu. If you you know your clan names you know where your coming from. Its a pity you cannot interpret it for the others to understand. Those who do not understand (hivona vanakulorhi lava vanga tasala vatlula matluka) LOL!

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  10. we will indeed Start to think rationally about how you will spend the day,also to take our time to ask our elders where we originally come from and embrace who we really are. impressive BLOG i should conclude MABUZA mem..swa hi tsakisa ku va u lemukisa vanhu hi laha va humaka kona..

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  11. Himina Hlulani, N'wana wa Colbert, Colbert wa Gezani, Gezani wa Jutas, Jutas wa Ncangameli, Ncangameli wa Xirhimbi Xikulu...Ndzi Khalanga waka Ncila ava ololi loko u olola wo tshoveka, Makhandziya hi nsinya xichika hi rhavi.

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  12. mmmmh nice one, you just made me miss home now...originally from durban_newlands west and ladysmith is where my roots are at, so ja that just explain much about me, which is my name is not dude but rather sfiso dlamini, sbalukhulu, malandela so i guess thats just says alot about mwa.

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    1. lol i like how u explain that your name isn't dude. we all seem to go about that name lately.

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