Indigenous games explained
Rich variety from sticks to stones
Kgati / ugqaphu / ntimo
China Rope – rope-jumping game
Two girls skip and sing while a third jumps to the rhythm. There are variations of skipping with two ropes.
Morabaraba / mlabalaba / umlabalaba/ draughts – board game
This game is similar to 12 men’s morris, a variation on the Roman board game nine men’s morris.
The board can be drawn in sand, and coins or stones can be used as the pieces to move around.
The rules are placing the cows (stones), moving and flying them.
A line of three means you capture the other player’s tokens.
Diketo / upuca / magava / jacks / ukugenda/gaatjieklip – co-ordination game
This game is proven by various studies to enhance abstract mathematical skills.
Each player tries to grab the most stones out of a drawn circle on the ground by throwing one stone in the air and simultaneously catching and/or moving the rest from the circle in one hand. Ten small stones and one bigger stone are needed to play. Only two players can play at a time.
Iintonga / melamu / izinkuku / umgangela – stick-fighting game
Popular among the Nguni people of KwaZulu-Natal, it is also popular in the Eastern Cape. Some trace it as far back as King Shaka Zulu, claiming it was used to resolve disputes without having to kill anyone.
Back in 2010, the ancient art also practised by herders across cultures became a sport for many Xhosa boys as an alternative to joining gangs in the Cape’s townships, with contestants winning up to R1 000.
Jukskei
Is said to be more than 200 years old. Traditionally associated with Afrikaners, an annual tournament of the game is held in Kroonstad in the Free State. It is made up of a team of four players, of whom one is the captain, but it can also be played in pairs or singles. The object of the game is to knock over a peg that is planted in a sandpit over a distance of 11m -16m.
Dibeke / diwiki / snuka / skululu / umabhorisha/ Kiribeke – running ball game
This game is similar to netball. It involves playing the ball with your hands and throwing it at a player, but only to hit an opposing team member to send them off. While in netball the target is the net, in Dibeke the target is an opposing team player.