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Pictured below is another example of Afrikan aesthetic, cultural continuation. One of the major dance of Southern Afrika is the “Indlamu” of the Nguni speaking people groups which are the Zulu, Xhosa, Swazi, Shangaan and Ndebele. It is performed in a single or double line under the control of a leader who determines the start and end of a routine. The Indlamu dance is characterised by stamping actions in perfect unison. The very manner of raising the leg preporatory to stamping the foot on the ground does vary with the different groups, but can be described as a kind of piston action or high kick which gives strength to the blow on the ground. When a great number of dancers perform together, as they do on ceremonial occasions, the ground shakes perceptibly with the impact.
The sound of a long line of several hundred dancers and stamping has been described by the Zulus as resembling “the waves of the sea breaking along the shore.” It is said that the Indlamu dance was originally a military drill exercise which was originally created to teach and instill discipline in the men of the Zulu nation. It also prepared members of a regiment of war. It is believed that King Shaka preferred to have his soldiers trot for miles to harden their feet so that they would be capable of travelling over sixty miles per day in the most difficult terrain and at their weariest. These “hardened” feet are now responsible for the stamping dances that are associated with the nations of Southern Afrika.
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Purpose and beauty!
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The precursor to ‘step shows.’
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