THE SAN
Southern Africa
Location
Southern Africa from Angola, Namibia and Botswana to Lesotho and South Africa.
​
How they live
The San are traditionally a hunter gathering, semi-nomadic people. Living in the heat of the deserts, such as the Kalahari in Botswana, they would move with the seasons in search of water and seasonal foods.
​
In the wet seasons they would settle at a waterhole for longer periods of time in order to gain a constant water supply.
​
Their language is spoken with the addition of clicks which when used change the meaning of certain words. They are written down like this /.
Religion and Culture
They believe in a single high God called /Kaggen and many lesser gods. These lesser gods can be spoken to by Shaman at different rituals by entering a trance.
​
A boy comes of age when he can kill his first Eland (antelope) and a girl's coming of age is signified by the Eland bull dance. The Eland is a very sacred animal to the San.
​
Food and drink
The women predominantly forage for wild fruits and vegetables whilst the men are hunters and will shoot anything from Fish to Zebras using home-made bows and poisoned arrows.
​
In the wet seasons waterholes are the perfect place to gather fresh water. In drier times they can squeeze drinkable liquid from plant roots.
DID YOU KNOW?
The San are thought to be one of the oldest cultures and peoples in the world.
Their ancient rock paintings and carvings can be seen in Botswana dating to over 7,000 years old!
