The Northern Frontier

South Africa is a very big country. It is about the same size as England, France. Spain and The Netherlands (Holland) put together. The shaping of South Africa was a complicated process taking different forms in different parts of the country.

By the 18th Century (1700 - 1800), the main groups of people living in South Africa were the San, the Khoikhoi, African farmers and the Dutch. The position of the San was weakened by the arrival of the Khoikhoi. Then the arrival of the Dutch greatly weakened Khoikhoi society.

In the 17th Century, most of the interaction between the Khoikhoi and the Dutch took place in the South-Western Cape. Things changed in the late 17th Century as some groups, for various reasons, began to move Northwards and Eastwards away from the coast and into the interior of the country.

For most of the 18th Century, many parts of the country were not under the control of any one group. This was because groups operating in these areas were more or less equal in strength. When different groups met, they had to work out a way of getting along with one another. They had to decide about who could use the land, what items they were prepared to exchange and what they wanted in return for these items. Often this involved disagreements and fights.

Among the San, the idea of private property did not exist. Resources were scarce and sharing was necessary to ensure the survival of the band There was a custom that if someone in the group admired something someone else had, it was given to them. This was a way of avoiding jealousy and preventing conflict. The custom ensured that, for example, the most beautiful knife might pass around many times.

The Northern Frontier

An area of land that is not controlled by one group is called an open frontier. As soon as one group becomes dominant, the frontier becomes closed.

An interesting example of an open frontier is the area along the Orange river at the end of the 18th Century. You will see from the map below that the groups operating in this area were the Khoisan*, the Tswana, the Dutch and the Oorlams*. As the Dutch, the Khoikhoi and the Oorlams moved further north, they came into contact with the San, the Tswana and other Khoikhoi groups already living along the Orange. This became the Northern Frontier or the area north of the Cape where, as yet, no one group dominated.

click on map for larger version

This area remained an open frontier well into the 19th Century because of the harshness of the environment. It was a semi-desert area, which was not suitable for crops. Having only one farm or grazing area was useless because most communities had to move regularly in search of water and grazing. Although important water sources were controlled, many people didn't register land in their names because they knew they would be moving on when the season changed.

Come to the kgotla

The kgotla was a place in the town centre of a Tswana community where trading took place. It could be compared to a market in many respects. People liked to go to the kgotla at least once a month to exchange what they had for other things that they needed or wanted.