The first farmers were Bantu-speakers

They moved into Southern Africa between about 2 000 and 1 700 years ago.

The first farmers spoke Bantu languages. These are the family of languages that isiZulu, isiXhosa, Setswana and Sesotho grew from. The farmers slowly moved south into this land and made it their home.

• They lived in communities led by a chief - we should not call them 'tribes'.
• Their communities could grow, change and move over time.
• They were clever farmers, builders and metalworkers.

Why we call it the Iron Age

It is the time when people made their tools and weapons from iron.

Historians call this the Iron Age because people learned to make things from iron. But the farmers did much more than work metal - they grew crops, kept animals and built villages. So we also call them farmers or agriculturists.

• We learn about them from archaeologists who dig up old villages.
• They find pieces of pots, iron tools, beads and the marks of huts.
• These clues tell us how people lived long ago, even without books.

Settling on the land

Farmers had to stay in one place long enough to plant and harvest.

To make fields, farmers chopped down trees and tall grass and burned them. The ash made the soil rich for planting. This is called slash and burn. They stayed for years, but sometimes moved when the land became overgrazed - when too many animals had eaten the grass away.

• They cleared land to plant crops and build homes.
• They built huts and walls to keep their cattle safe.
• When soil or grazing ran out, they looked for fresh land.

Meeting the Khoikhoi and the San

The first farmers did not arrive to an empty land - hunter-gatherers and herders were already here.

The farmers shared the land with the San hunter-gatherers and the Khoikhoi herders. They helped each other and bartered - swapping goods without money. In hard times of drought, this sharing kept everyone going.

• Farmers brought iron tools and new ways of growing food.
• The Khoikhoi and San shared knowledge of plants and medicine.
• The click sounds in Nguni languages today came from Khoisan languages.

Living in settled homesteads

Farmers built permanent homes and lived together in family homesteads.

Many hands were needed in the fields, so families lived close together in a homestead. Their houses were usually round, made of mud brick with grass roofs, or dome huts woven from grass. Inside the walls were huts, food stores and a safe place for the cattle.

• A group of homesteads could form a chiefdom led by a chief.
• The chief looked after trade and shared out goods fairly.
• The whole community worked together at harvest time.

The work of men, women and children

In a farming community everyone had a job to do.

The crops they grew

The first farmers grew grain and kept animals for food.

Their two main crops were sorghum and millet. These grains were ground into flour to make porridge or beer. They were subsistence farmers - they grew just enough for their families. If a harvest was very good, they bartered the extra with other groups.

• Grain was stored in baskets or in pits dug in the ground.
• They also kept chickens, sheep and goats for eggs, milk and meat.
• Later, after the 1500s, maize and wheat were added to their fields.

Why cattle mattered so much

Cattle were a sign of wealth and were used in the most important customs.

Cattle gave meat, milk and leather, but they meant far more than food. Owning many cattle showed that a person was wealthy and important. Cattle were given at weddings and funerals and used in two special customs.

• Mafisa: a rich person lent out cattle, which built respect and friendship.
• Lobola (bride-wealth): cattle were given to the bride's family to honour a marriage.
• Lobola is still a respected custom in South Africa today.

Making tools from iron

The first farmers dug iron from rock and shaped it into useful tools.

Iron ore is found in rocks. The farmers mined it, then heated it in a hot furnace until it turned to liquid metal. This is called smelting. Skilled men shaped the metal into spear tips, hoes, axes and hammers, and made jewellery from iron and copper.

• Iron hoes and axes made it much easier to clear land and farm.
• They also shaped beautiful clay pots - like the famous Lydenburg Heads.
• The seven Lydenburg Heads were made around 500 CE, over 1 500 years ago.

Trading near and far

The first farmers traded across Africa and even with far-off lands.

Farmers traded along trading networks - routes people travelled to swap goods. Traders reached the east coast of Africa by sea. Africans gave gold, ivory and iron and received glass beads, shells and, later, new foods like bananas and coconuts.

• They did not use coins - beads, iron, gold, copper wire and salt were used as money.
• Archaeologists found sea shells and beads far inland, proving trade was wide.
• Trade helped some settlements, like Mapungubwe, grow rich and powerful.

A timeline of the first farmers

1. ~2 000-1 700 years ago Bantu-speaking farmers settle in Southern Africa
2. ~500 CE The Lydenburg Heads are made
3. From ~1000 CE Mapungubwe grows rich through trade
4. 1500s Europeans arrive; maize and wheat are added to farms

What we learned - and your turn

The first farmers grew crops, prized their cattle and made iron tools, all while sharing the land with earlier peoples.

The first farmers were Bantu-speaking people who settled the land about 1 700 to 2 000 years ago. They grew sorghum and millet, kept cattle as a sign of wealth, worked with iron, and traded across Africa. They lived in settled chiefdoms and shared the land with the San and Khoikhoi.