Red Nguni – “the stones of the Ngoye forest”

Nguni cattle form a vital part of the Zulu heritage. The uniqueness of each cow’s skin has been catalogued and forms part of the Zulu oral poetry and storytelling. The interaction between the tribe’s natural surroundings and the patterns on the Nguni hides led to the formation of over 300 illustrative words in the Zulu language. The names are associated with animals, birds, plants and other natural occurrences. for example a creamy, dun coloured hide is called “sour milk” and “the stones of the Ngoye forest” is the name given to a brown or red Nguni with large spots defined by a faint white edging.

Even the cattle’s horns are named – “what stabs the rain” describes the upright points of a young steer’s horns, and “woman who lost her court case” to explain a cow with horns that grow forward, resembling a woman with her hands in the air!

Like our fingerprints, no hide is the same, but the general pattern of the cattle have been identified and named. I love the literal translations of the visual splotches of colour on the cows hid or the shape of the horns. Its beautiful and poetic and this ancient tradition of naming has made us fall even more in love with the Nguni…