The natives decorate the wooden doors of their huts, also the interior walls—check pattern being general for this purpose. The best decoration of doors is to be found in Gutu’s and Chibi’s districts.
The native name for Victoria is Duruben, or Durubeni, sometimes Vitori. Duruben is derived from the Dutch word dorp, and Vitori is an attempt to pronounce Victoria. Campeni is the name of the old township of Victoria, which used to be known as The Camp. Several isolated settlements of white people towards the south are called by the natives of those districts Durubeni, the termination being that of the locative case. The hillock in Victoria, near the gaol, used to be called “Gòna Zhon” (“They failed to capture the elephant”). The open veld about Victoria was called “Bani ro moteio” (“The plain without trees”).
The salutation Moro! or Morra! employed by the natives is simply a corruption of the Dutch word Morgen! i.e. Good Morning! In Cape Dutch Morrè! is used, and from this the word Morro! was evidently derived. The natives agree in stating that it is a Dutch word brought into the country by Dutch hunters and Cape Boys long before the British arrived. They ridicule all idea of its being of native origin, and state that in some districts it is not used. The practice of handshaking on meeting is one which the natives state has been copied from the white men.
The salute on meeting is by clapping hands. On greeting a man they will clap the palms with the hands slightly crossed, the forefinger of the right hand crossing the base of the forefinger of the other; but on saluting a woman the forefinger is placed to forefinger with wrists together. The length of time of clapping depends on the position of the person saluted. On joining a group to talk, eat, or drink the new-comer claps hands before sitting down and again when the food or drink is offered him.
Among the Jewish customs of the Makalanga the following may be noticed. (1) Monotheism and no worship of idols; (2) worship of, and sacrifices to, ancestors—a practice condemned by the Prophets; (3) rite of circumcision; (4) despising the uncircumcised: the taunt of non-circumcision is commonly employed between disputants; (5) purification and shaving of the head; (6) transferring impurity or infection from individuals to some animal, which in some instances is slain and in others purposely lost on the veld; (7) reception by women of parties returning from hunting or war, as in the case of Jephthah; (8) feasts of new moons and invocations to new moons; (9) feasts of full moons; (10) offerings of first fruits; (11) defilement by touching the dead; (12) defilement of eating flesh containing blood; (13) abhorrence of swine as unclean; (14) sprinkling the worshippers with blood; (15) places of refuge for criminals or people believed but not found guilty of offending tribal custom;[30] (16) observance of Sabbath, either every five or seven days; (17) marriage only among themselves, but cannot marry into the same tribe; (18) casting of lots; (19) sacrifices of oxen in times of trouble, such as drought; (20) practice of espousal before marriage; (21) brother succeeds to brother in office and property; (22) brother takes to wife the wives of his deceased elder brother, and raising offspring, they rank in office as if they were the children of the deceased; (23) a daughter does not inherit property or position except on the death of all her brothers; (24) rigid morality with regard to all fleshly sins, adultery and fornication being punished with death and outlawry.
Additional parallelisms with Jewish customs could be stated, and all these peculiar practices, together with the lighter skin and the Jewish appearance of the Makalanga, distinctly point to the ancient impress of the Idumean Jews, which can also be traced on the present peoples of Madagascar and of the coasts of Mozambique and Sofala.[31]
Many of these customs are now falling into desuetude on the advance of white civilisation. The Molembo tribe of Makalanga is noted for the preservation and observance of the majority of these Jewish practices, which are in character distinctly pre-Koranic in origin.