A collection of studies by key academics on ethnic identity in Africa. The great virtue of this book is that it is the first major study to focus exclusively on the historical evolution of ethnic identity over a broad region from Zaire ... to South Africa.' - John McCracken, University of Stirling US & Canada & the Philippines: University of California Press

Despite a quarter century of "nation building," most African states are still driven by ethnic particularism--commonly known as "tribalism." The stubborn persistence of tribal ideologies despite the profound changes associated with modernization has puzzled scholars and African leaders alike. The bloody hostilities between the tribally-oriented Zulu Inkhata movement and supporters of the African National Congress are but the most recent example of tribalism's tenacity. The studies in this volume offer a new historical model for the growth and endurance of such ideologies in southern Africa.

Highly regarded for their interdisciplinary approach to the history of central and southern Africa, Leroy Vail and Landeg White now provide us with a thorough study of the political role of the poet in the oral societies of southern Africa.