Hunter-gatherers and Herders in Southern Africa

The San were the first people to live in southern Africa, many thousands of years ago.

The San were the earliest people in southern Africa. They lived here long before towns, farms or writing. This time is called the Later Stone Age, because people made their tools from stone, wood and bone.

• The San did not build permanent towns - they moved from place to place.
• They lived off the land by hunting animals and gathering wild plants.
• Much later, another group called the Khoikhoi arrived with animals to herd.

The San got everything they needed from the natural world around them.

The San survived by hunting wild animals like gemsbok and other antelope, and by gathering wild plants, roots, berries and honey. Because they followed the animals and the seasons, they moved from place to place. We call this a nomadic way of life.

• The men usually did the hunting.
• The women gathered plants and dug up roots to eat.
• They took only what they needed, so the land could recover.

The San invented a clever way to hunt animals much bigger than themselves.

The San made a small bow and arrows. They put poison on the arrow tips. After shooting an animal, they would quietly follow its tracks - sometimes for days - until the poison made it weak enough to catch. Good tracking skills were very important.

• The poison came from plants, snakes or beetle grubs.
• Hunters had to get very close and shoot only once.
• They read tracks in the sand to follow the animal.

The San made everything they owned from what they found around them.

The San lived in small groups where everyone was equal.

The San lived in small bands of about 15 to 40 people, often a few families together. They had no chiefs and no one was richer or more important than anyone else. They shared their food and helped each other. They believed no one could own the land - it was for everyone to use.

• Women could build a grass shelter in less than an hour.
• Children learned by playing and copying their parents.
• Sharing meant no one went hungry while others had food.

The San painted and carved thousands of pictures on rocks and cave walls.

Rock art means pictures painted or carved onto rock. South Africa has some of the finest rock art in the world, and most of it was made by the San. They painted people and animals like the eland, using paints made from natural colours. Some paintings in the uKhahlamba Drakensberg are about 3 000 years old.

• Paint was made from things like red and yellow rock, charcoal and blood.
• The eland, a large antelope, was painted more than any other animal.
• Rock art helps us learn how the San lived and what they believed.

Rock art was important to San beliefs, not just decoration.

We cannot be completely sure why the San painted, but many experts believe the pictures were part of their beliefs and spiritual life. Special people called healers held dances to help their community, and some paintings may show what they felt and saw. The art also tells us about the animals and life the San knew well.

• Some paintings may be linked to healing dances and dreams.
• Others may have been made to bring good luck for a hunt.
• Today rock art is protected as part of South Africa's heritage.

About 2 000 years ago a new group brought animals to southern Africa.

The Khoikhoi moved into southern Africa from further north around 2 000 years ago. The name Khoikhoi means 'the real people'. They were herders, also called pastoralists, because they kept and looked after animals. This was a brand new way of living that the San had not seen before.

• Herders keep domesticated (tamed) animals instead of only hunting.
• Like the San, the Khoikhoi were nomadic and moved to find grazing.
• They kept sheep, goats and cattle.

The Khoikhoi's whole life was built around their animals.

The Khoikhoi moved with their herds to find fresh grass and water. Their homes, called matjieshuise, were made of reed mats over thin poles so they could be taken down and carried on the animals' backs. Cattle were very precious. The women milked the animals and the men still hunted for meat.

• Homes and pots were made light so they were easy to move.
• They mostly drank the milk rather than killing their cattle.
• Cattle were only eaten at special times, like weddings and funerals.

Owning animals made Khoikhoi society different from San society.

The San and Khoikhoi lived close together, which sometimes caused conflict.

The San and Khoikhoi lived in the same areas. The Khoikhoi's cattle and sheep ate a lot of grass, and this drove away the wild animals the San hunted. When the San grew hungry, they sometimes took the Khoikhoi's animals for food. This led to fighting between the two groups. But there was also trading and friendship, and some San joined Khoikhoi groups.

• Herds ate the grass, so wild animals moved away.
• The two groups both traded with and fought each other.
• Together they are sometimes called the Khoisan.

1. Long ago San hunter-gatherers live across southern Africa
2. ~3 000 years ago San paint rock art in the Drakensberg
3. ~2 000 years ago Khoikhoi herders arrive with animals
4. Over time San and Khoikhoi trade, share land and sometimes fight

The San hunted and gathered and shared everything; the Khoikhoi kept herds, and owning animals changed how people lived.

The San were southern Africa's first people. They lived by hunting and gathering, moved from place to place, shared everything, and left us beautiful rock art. The Khoikhoi were herders who kept animals. Because animals could be owned, some people became richer than others - so herding changed the way society worked.