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| Home / Articles / Culture and Heritage / Culture and Heritage in South Africa |
| Culture and Heritage in South Africa |
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In a country where there is greater diversity in cultures than even the number of national languages (at last count, a whopping eleven!), you can’t ever be short on cultural experience and heritage. Added to this are hybrid mixtures of a variety of cultures, making South Africa one of the most culturally diverse countries globally.
With numerous cultural attractions, South Africa is an explosion of History and culture waiting to be explored. Boasting eight World Heritage Sites, one of the most famous being Robben Island Nelson Mandela’s prison during the apartheid era, you could visit South Africa for a whole month and still only scratch the cultural surface.
The Western Cape with probably the most cultural diversity isn’t however the only region abundant with historical treasures. Ancient Zulu culture and tradition is still very alive amongst the descendents of the early Zulu King Shaka Zulu at Shakaland, KwaZulu Natal. To date, tribal song and dance is still passionately performed, and you’re welcome to discover the mystical rituals of the Sangoma (African witchdoctor). Traces of the earliest South Africans, the nomadic San is still vibrant in the Cape regions, and in the Eastern Cape the remains of Saartjie Baartman, a San woman who was treated as a lab/circus specimen under European rule, and later became a symbol of empowerment and liberation of women some 200 years after her death.
Of course visiting various Art Galleries, museums and theatres are also an immediate way of becoming familiar with South African culture. For natural beauty, a must see is the historical World Heritage Drakensberg. You’ll be surrounded by some of the oldest rock art in the land, as well as breath-taking views of giant green mountain ranges.
Music is another sphere of South African culture which exemplifies the range and diversity of this country’s culture. Around New Year, you’ll be treated to Cape Coons (Klopse as they are fondly called in Cape Town) in their outrageously colourful clothes, and Cape “coloured’ folk sounds. Jazz, Black Jazz, Marabi (both stemming from Jazz), hip-hop, kwaito (a hybrid of hip-hop, rap and African music with a distinctive beat) is popular in the townships. These are only a few of the eye-openers to the rich explosion of South African culture and heritage awaiting you when you hit the colourful shores of our rainbow nation! |
| Articles in this Category: |
List of the World Heritage Sites of South Africa
World Heritage Sites in South Africa Overview
District Six Museum
Theatre in South Africa
Ghosts and Hauntings in South Africa
Taal Monument
Light Houses in South Africa
The Owl house
Mosques in South Africa
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