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THE SAN
One of the first groups of people who called South Africa their home were the San. As you already know, groups of hunter-gatherers have been living in Southern Africa for more than 20 million years. The first group settled here 10 000 years ago. They moved around in small family groups, seeking food and water in order to survive. The men usually hunted animals while the women collected veld foods (seeds, fruit, bulbs, berries and roots). Some of them fished as well.
The San is just another name for the Bushmen. Europeans called them Bushmen (people who live in the bush).
As in previous modules, you will have many opportunities to reconstruct the past of the San and the Khoina.
The women went out in the morning to dig for veld food. They used tools made from hard wood. These are called digging sticks. Sometimes a deer’s horn was fastened to the stick to make it easier to break the hard soil.
They carried the veld food in bags made from animal skin. When food was plentiful, for instance when the nuts were ripe, these expeditions could last up to six days. They also gathered honey and insects.
Stone instruments were used to cut the meat.
When enough food and water had been gathered for the day, the men danced in a circle at night, while the women sang and accompanied them on musical instruments. Sometimes they also made tools and artefacts, smoked, told stories and played games at these times.
The men went out hunting with their bows and arrows.
Appearance
They were small, yellowish-brown people. They were about ________ (1) tall.
Most of their (2) was stored in the hind part of the body.
They wore very little clothing; only a (3).
Customs
They worshipped the ________, (4), the stars, the sun and the praying mantis.
When someone died, he/she was buried in an ___________
(5) position, with his/her possessions.
Tools
Tools were made from various materials:
b _ _ e, t _ _ t _ _ _ _, s _ _ _ l, w _ _ d
l _ _ f, st _ _ e (6)
how did they manage to hollow out the stones so well?
Dwellings
They had no fixed dwellings. The reason?
The San children’s school was totally different from yours. During the day they had their schooling in the veld, and in the evenings they were taught many things around the fire. They knew the animals’ way of life so well that they could even imitate them perfectly.
The men were hunters. Their most important weapon was the __________
(1) and ______________ (2). Arrowheads were made from _________ (3)
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