Isidwaba

The isidwaba, a traditional Zulu leather skirt worn by married woman, is made from the hide of animals that belonged to the woman's father. This article will illustrate how the traditional skirt is made and at which occasions it is worn. It further describes the various designs and patterns of an isidwaba and how they are perceived in society, including the symbolic anthropology associations of the isidwaba.

The isidwaba, which is also known as isikhakha, is a traditional Zulu leather skirt worn by a betrothed and married woman. It is made of cowhide or goatskin, as depicted on the South African Heritage Resource Agency website. The isidwaba has remained virtually unchanged since the 19th century whereas other traditional objects have undergone transformations both in form and material used to make them. The isidwaba is usually given as a gift by the father of the bride from the cow given to the bride-to-be for her Umemulo (Coming of Age) ceremony. She in turn will wear the leather skirt on the day of her wedding. The father of the bride will dress her with the isidwaba in the ancestor's hut. Sometimes the father will direct his eldest son in dressing the bride, this being a way of passing on the tradition. Women attach the importance in defining their marital status to isidwaba although it is also put forward that they place their greatest importance in the exchange of cattle in marriage transactions. Still, isidwaba remains an important and integral part of the married woman’s life to the extent that the women can only be freed from wearing isidwaba when they become menopausal. Importantly, when a woman gets married it is a transition from her father's homestead to that of her husband's. This is where isidwaba plays a critical role that affords her ancestral protection from her new found ancestors (who at this point have not accepted her as a member of the homestead). It is only after her first child has been born that she is accepted as a member of the family. Isidwaba is usually made from a cowhide obtained from the woman's father's cattle. During ukwendisa – where the father of the bride supplies a beast that accompanies his daughter to her new homestead – the hide of the beast is sewn into her skirt for her to wear. Goat skin is also used, in other subcultures of the Zulu nation, to make isidwaba. These subcultures are usually located in the regions of the nation where goats thrive on the vegetation of the area, and are therefore more numerous than cattle. It is therefore not surprising that such areas would supply goat skin for the making of isidwaba.

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