Trivia Tom’s diversity quiz
How well do you know your fellow South Africans?
This April we celebrate Easter, Passover, multiple Hindu new years and commemorate Ramadan too. The first part of the quiz investigates these religious traditions. In the second part of the quiz we explore SA’s heritage through our many cultures.
EASTER
1. On what day of the week was Jesus crucified?
2. According to the Bible, who was the first to see Jesus after the resurrection? A) Mary Magdalene, B) Simon Peter, C) Mary, Mother of Jesus, C) Thomas.
3. Which apostle betrayed Jesus and then hanged himself? 4. Who was the prisoner who was released instead of Jesus Christ?
5. What was the name of the hill where Jesus was crucified (another name for Calgary)?
6. A simnel cake is an Easter cake with 11 balls of marzipan on top. What do the 11 balls represent?
RAMADAN
7. Which of these Five Pillars of Islam represents fasting during Ramadan? A) Shahadah, B) Salah, C) Zakat, D) Sawm, E) Hajj. 8. How long is Ramadan? A) Three days, B) One week,
C) Three weeks, D) One month.
9. Which festival occurs at the end of Ramadan?
10. According to tradition, what was revealed during the month of Ramadan? A) Hadith, B) Torah, C) Koran, D) Talmud.
11. Ramadan traditionally starts at the sighting of what?
12. What is Iftar? A) The meal eaten when breaking fast, B) The place where Mohammed was resurrected, C) The five prayers, D) The aligning of your body to Mecca during prayer.
HINDI NEW YEAR
13. If Brahma is the creator of the universe, who is the destroyer of the universe according to Hinduism?
14. What word determines one’s condition in this life, according to the Hindu religion?
15. What is the collective name for the primary literary works of Hinduism?
16. What is the most common language of Hindu scriptures?
17. What is the name of the Hindu god with the head of an elephant?
PASSOVER
18. Passover celebrates the Jews’ exodus from which country? 19. What is another name for Passover? A) Hannukah, B) Pesach, C) Sukkoth, D) Purim.
20. According to tradition at Passover dinner, an empty chair and a glass of wine is left for which prophet? A) Moses, B) Abraham, C) Isaac, D) Elijah.
21. In which rather unexpected location does the largest Passover dinner (Seder) take place annually? A) Orlando, US, B) Kathmandu, Nepal, C) Johannesburg, SA, D) Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
22. What is the name of the flat crackers representing unleavened bread eaten during Passover?
23. What is traditionally said at the end of Passover dinner? A) Thank you, Moses, B) L’chaim, C) Next time in Jerusalem, D) To those who came before us, we remember.
OTHER RELIGIONS
24. What condition (it starts with N) is the ultimate goal in Buddhism?
25. In which major world religion are followers forbidden to cut their hair and carry with them a small wooden comb?
26. The headquarters of the Mormon religion are in which US city? A) Salt Lake City, B) St Louis, C) Boulder, D) San Antonio. 27. Name the emperor of Ethiopia from 1930-1974 who plays a central role in Rastafarianism.
28. Also known as kami-no-michi, what is Japan’s indigenous religion?
29. What religion based in Haifa, Israel, has its origins in Iran and across the Middle East and has approximately 5-million followers?
30. What is the present-day name of the country in which Confucius, the founder of Confucianism, lived?
SA CULTURAL GROUPS
31. Athlete Caster Semenya, musician Master KG (Jerusalema), ANC politician Dr Pakishe Aaron Motsoaledi are all part of which ethnic group? A) Swati, B) Zulu, C) Venda, D) Pedi.
32. Dlamini is the royal clan name of which group of people? A) Swati, B) Ndebele, C) Pedi, D) Tswana.
33. In SA, what would you do with umqombothi? A) Eat it, B) Drink it, C) Sleep on it, D) Plaster your house with it.
34. In which language does the group Ladysmith Black Mambazo predominately sing? A) Tswana, B) Sotho, C) Xhosa, D) Zulu.
35. It’s lobolo in Zulu and Xhosa, and mahadi in Sotho. What is it in English?
36. Musician Sho Majozi, EFF deputy president Floyd Shivambu, and Bafana goalkeeper Brian “Spiderman” Baloyi are all part of which ethnic group? A) Tswana, B) Tsonga, C) Ndebele, D) Venda.
37. Name the ancient city in the north of SA that was the original royal capital of King Shiriyadenga and the Venda people. It’s also known as the Hill of the Jackal.
38. Name the breakaway Zulu general under Shaka who eventually set up the Matabele nation.
39. Name the girl whose vision (potentially influenced by Cape Colony governor Sir George Grey) led to the Gcaleka and other Xhosa clans slaughtering 300,000-400,000 cattle between
1856 and 1857.
40. She is an advocate, former public protector and is arguably SA’s most famous Swati. She helped draft the constitution and in 2014 was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world. Who is she?
41. The word “tilapia” comes from the Tswana “tlhapi”. What is a tilapia?
42. Which Sotho word starting with L is used in English to refer to an open structure consisting of a thatched roof on wooden supports? It is typically used as an entertainment area.
43. What M is a traditional warm South African pudding made of flour, sugar, milk and apricot jam? Its name originates from the Afrikaans for marshmallow.
44. What S was the leader of the Bapedi from 1861-1882? He fought a successful war against the Transvaal Republic and an unsuccessful war against the British. He was assassinated by his half-brother Mampuru.
45. What is the English name for the bird known in Afrikaans as the mossie?
46. What mode of transport is stimela in Zulu (as heard in the song Shosholoza)?
47. Which town was the capital of the old homeland of Venda (its name means “head of the elephant”)?
48. Which South African group of people is known for painting colourful geometric shapes on their buildings? A) Swazi, B) Tsonga, C) Ndebele, D) Sotho.
49. Which SA province is named after the Sotho word for gold? 50. While there are an estimated 3.3-million Tsonga people in SA, another country has more. Which country is that?