San Elders Speak: Ancestral knowledge of the Kalahari San

Abstract

San material culture has been asubject of study for many researchers and archaeologists but rarely has thedocumented material been seen through the eyes of the people themselves. SanElders Speak: Ancestral Knowledge of the Kalahari San is the first attempt todocument indigenous knowledge through the voices of four San elders from theKalahari. Over a period of seven days, the authors presented the four Sanelders, leaders in their community and custodians of ancient knowledge, with ofthe largest collection of KhoiSan ethnographica collected by Dr Louis Fourie atthe beginning of the 19th century. The San elders rediscovered objects lastseen in their childhood and shared stories inspired by their handling of theobjects. They provide the correct traditional names and explain how items weremade, from what material, who used them, why and when. In a number of instancesthe elders changed the identification given by Louis Fourie. The knowledge theyshared over those several days at Museum Africa in Johannesburg provide anenriching account that links the past and present in San life in illuminatingways. The text is accompanied by a rich visual record of the artefacts and howthe San elders portray their use.