San & Khoi People Flashcards
Who were Lucy Lloyd and Wilhelm Bleek?
they were historians who learnt the San language and wrote down some of their stories, in Cape Town about 150 years ago.
What is an archaeologist?
a person that studies human history by digging and finding old remains (objects from long ago)
What is the Linton Panel?
- A piece of San rock art.
- Found on a farm in the Eastern Cape.
- The painting shows a human figure gaining great power from their main god.
- Part of it was used on the new coat of arms created after South Africa became a democracy in 1994.
Where was the Linton Panel found?
on a farm called Linton in the Eastern Cape
Where is the Linton Panel now?
In the South African museum in Cape Town.
What are the human figures doing in the Coat of Arms and why is it important?
Greeting each other.
Important because it is a sign of unity.
How did hunter-gatherers pass down their history?
They told stories and painted rock art
Who learnt the San language and wrote down some of their stories?
Wilhelm Bleek and Lucy Lloyd
Where does the name San come from and what does it mean?
Comes from the Khoi-khoi word Saan.
It means “people without land” or “people without cattle”.
How do we know that there were a number of San groups living in the Southern Kalahari?
through what archaeologists have found and San oral histor
Who did San people (and us!) descend from? Why is this important?
- Homo Sapiens
- San help us to learn more about Homo Sapiens because they are the closest relation to Homo Sapiens that are still alive today.
What cultural artefacts did hunter gathers make?
- ostrich egg shell beads
- ostrich egg shell ornaments
- bow and arrows
- rock art
What did the European settlers bring with them? why were these dangerous
- advanced weapons: San had no defence against these
- new diseases eg. small pox: San had no immunity against these diseases
What happened to most Khoi and San people once the European settlers came?
- died of diseases (brought accidentally by the settlers)
- forced off their land by the European settlers (using their weapons) and forced to join other tribes to survive.
What is San oral history?
the telling of stories from generation to generation
Why is it important that there is San oral history AND archaeological evidence about the San?
The two forms of evidence corroborating with each other gives more support for the idea/evidence being factual.
How long have the San been living in Southern Africa?
about 11000 years
Who were the hunters and who were the gathers in the San society?
Men hunted
Women gathered
What type of weapons did the Europeans have and what did the San have?
Europeans: guns and bullets
San: bows and arrows and spears
Who painted the San rock art? When did they do it?
the Shaman
did it after the trance dance (where he saw images of the spirit world)
What kind of images does rock art usual show?
- hunting
- animals (especially ones important to them eg. eland, antelopes)
- shamans doing their trance dance
What were San brushes made of? How do we know this?
- Feathers
- Thin reeds
- animal hair
Know this because in some painting, brush stroke are visible
How did San make paint?
Mixing pigment with whatever was available (water, egg, animal blood or saliva)
Often they would use herbs or animal blood to make the magic of the art more powerful
What did the San use for the different colour pigments?
Red: red ochre (which was easy to find; mined)
Yellow: yellow ochre
White: white clay or bird droppings
Black: charcoal or manganese oxide
