Boundaries and Belief
    The Structure of a Sotho W orldview
                         w.o. HAMMOND-TOOKE
 The Sotho-speaking              peoples of southern Africa form an important                 part
 of the indigenous          population       but hitherto little has been written of their
 traditional       religious       and cosmological         systems.     partly due to the
 extensive      missionary        endeavour       which has transformed         their cultures.
 The Sotho of the Lowveld. however, situated'in                   their secluded woodland
 below the Escarpment.                have retained      much of their traditional         belief
 systems. This book attempts to understand.                   and where possible. explain,
 the world view of one of these peoples, the Kgaga, as a cognitive
 patterning      of concepts.         After a brief survey of Kgaga social structure
there follows a detailed account of initiation into adulthood,                     followed by
an examination           of the ancestor cult, witchcraft and the complex system
 of pollution           beliefs.     The nature        of ethnozoological         and colour
 classification       is also discussed.         A concluding      chapter seeks to apply
 current theories of interpretation              to the symbolism in an effort to discern
 logical consistency          in the patterning.
 Human Sciences Research Council Publication                        Series No. 74
 1982. xviii + 168pp., 13 black and white plates. l.imp Cloth. R 12,()()
By the same author
Patrolling the Herms: Social Structure,
Cosmology and Pollution Concepts in Southern Africa
"Without        boundaries        there    is chaos,   not only linguistic      but social.     A
major tenet of my argument will be that rituals, especially those related to
pollution      beliefs. can best be understood              as elements within a general
communication            system, and that one of their essential functions                  is to
make     statements       about     boundaries."
                                                                               -   the author
Raymond         Dart Lecture 18
198 \. vi    + 27pp. Limp Cloth.              R3.00
African Studies
The bi-annual         multidisciplinary        journal of the African      Studies   Institute,
University      of the Witwatersrand,             Johannesburg.
Subscription        RIO (Individuals)          R20 (Institutions)    per annum.
Single copies       R6 and RI2 respectively.
 WITWATERSRAND                                      UNIVERSITY                   PRESS
                                 I Jan Smuts Avenue
                   2001 Johannesburg, South Africa
Order direct from publisher                               Prices do not include postage