A Batswana ke Basotho?

An article in a leading South African magazine recently made the shocking revelation that some experts refer to Batswana as Sotho, or West Sotho, to be precise. Like any morafe, Batswana have their own pride and being called Sotho might not go down well with some of them.

Afterall, Botswana is a country made up of people who proudly call themselves Batswana and to call them Sotho might be offensive even though it is generally accepted that the Sothos and the Pedis are their ethnic cousins. History will record that even in those apartheid days of segregation in South Africa, the Sothos, Pedis and Tswana were encouraged to stay together, while the Ngunis stayed together in their settlements.

According to a South African author, Rikus van Rooy, the Sotho-Tswana settled in South Africa in the 15th Century. The South Sotho (generally called Basotho) live mainly in Lesotho and its surrounds, while the Tswana live in Botswana and the north-western parts of South Africa and the Pedi mostly populate the area now known as Limpopo. It is the similarities in their language, culture and traditions that point to the fact that they are related.

Editor's Comment
Human rights are sacred

It highlights the need to protect rights such as access to clean water, education, healthcare and freedom of expression.President Duma Boko, rightly honours past interventions from securing a dignified burial for Gaoberekwe Pitseng in the CKGR to promoting linguistic inclusion. Yet, they also expose a critical truth, that a nation cannot sustainably protect its people through ad hoc acts of compassion alone.It is time for both government and the...

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