Traditions in Botswana

Inherited traditions in Botswana are passed on mainly within families and communities and through traditional leadership. Batswana refers to the people of Botswana, while the shared language and cultural frame of reference (Setswana) shapes cultural transmission; morafe refers to a community, while Bogosi refers to traditional leadership and a traditional leader (kgosi) or dikgosi refers to its heads. A kgotla is a communal meeting and consultation place. Citizens can request a Kgotla meeting for consultation or decision-making, but access to individual meetings depends on the kgosi’s permission and local rules. In family life, traditional marriage negotiations (patlo) or go batla mosadi form part of the arrangements before a marriage. Extended families and communities discuss the union; the traditional marriage payment agreed by the families (bogadi) or lobola is traditionally agreed in cattle and sometimes also in money or gifts. Weddings may take place at both families’ homesteads and may include songs, dancing, ululation and a shared meal. A traditional marriage and a civil marriage are separate routes. The civil marriage is handled through the District Commissioner; the state Marriage Act service indicates a registration procedure with a 21-day notice. Bojale among the Bakgatla ba Kgafela, Bogwera in community-specific forms and Seperu at life milestones such as initiation, marriage or coronation are among other inherited practices. Initiation knowledge is not generally accessible and must not be disclosed indiscriminately. Music and dance differ considerably by region and community. Dikopelo of the Bakgatla ba Kgafela in Kgatleng combines vocal choral singing with dance and is performed without instruments; older members advise the groups informally and pass on the knowledge. A regional dance tradition (Seperu) of the Veekuhane or Basubiya in the Chobe area combines a female semicircle or horseshoe dance with a principal male dancer, fans and the multilayered mushishi garment. A UNESCO record names 194 active practitioners and 12 master practitioners, most of them over 70. Other documented forms include Phathisi, Borankana, Setapa, Tsutsube, Hosana, Diware, Sebirwa, Dikhwaere, Setinkane, Segaba and Katara. Migration, the decline of agriculture and popular music make transmission more difficult. A Bakalanga rain ritual (Wosana) is practised in the northeast and parts of the Central District, as well as in some border villages with Zimbabwe. It combines prayer, celebration, singing, dancing and traditional leadership; the practice is threatened by Christianisation and declining participation. Wosana practitioners are obliged to maintain secrecy. UNESCO has listed Wosana since 2024 on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding. Religious teachings in general are outside the scope of this subject. Clothing and handicrafts are also shaped by region and ethnicity. Leteise and showels are documented in the patlo context, while mushishi is a functional part of Seperu clothing. There is no single national traditional dress. The pottery of the Bakgatla ba Kgafela in Kgatleng is built mainly by women from clay, stone, iron oxide, cattle dung, water and wood and fired in pits. The vessels serve, among other purposes, to store water, ferment sorghum, make beer and support certain ancestral and healing rituals. Knowledge is often passed from mother to daughter and granddaughter; the few master potters, low prices, industrially manufactured vessels and construction on raw-material sites threaten the practice. Baskets from Ngamiland and the Okavango are woven from the mokolwane palm, with lemao and nature- or animal-related patterns. BotswanaCraft and exhibitions of the Botswana National Museum support visibility and sales, including for export. Oodi Weavers work with Karakul wool; other crafts include wood carving, beadwork, leather, textiles, jewellery and San-related art. The mokoro of the Bayei is a traditional dugout watercraft (mokoro) that is now partly made from fibreglass to protect trees. Regional classification helps with orientation: Kgatleng is particularly associated with Dikopelo, pottery and Moropa wa Bojale; Chobe with Seperu; the northeast and Central District with Wosana; Ngamiland and the Okavango with baskets and mokoro; and Ghanzi with San-related crafts. Botswana Day on 30 September, Heritage Month, local cultural festivals and the President’s Day Competitions provide public occasions, but they do not replace a single nationwide traditional calendar. Under the researched rules for the President’s Day Competitions, registration takes place from 1 to 28 February, the competitions last approximately four months and the final takes place in July. Citizens may participate; pupils from Primary and Secondary Schools are excluded, and proof of identity, origin or residence also applies. Protection and documentation involve the Ministry of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture, the Department of Arts and Culture, the National ICH Committee, four District ICH Committees, the Botswana National Museum and Monuments, the UNESCO National Commission, Dikgosi and Tribal Authorities, communities and the Botswana Tourism Organisation. The system is decentralised, and access varies depending on the practice. According to the UNESCO report, museum material on intangible cultural heritage may be requested in writing. Sacred knowledge, songs, dances and objects must not be documented, published or used outside their context without consent. Modernisation, urbanisation, migration, school curricula, Christianisation and market changes cause losses, while museums, community festivals, competitions, inventories, UNESCO projects and the craft market support transmission.