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Thaba-Bosiu, the birthplace of the Basotho nation: a historical archaeological study

This research explores the daily life of past communities that settled atop the mountain known as Thaba-Bosiu through historical and archaeological evidence, in order to understand how they maintained their day-to-day lives during a nation-building period. This study combines archival and desktop st...

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Main Author: Mokoena, Nthabiseng
Other Authors: Chirikure, Shadreck
Format: Thesis
Language:Eng
Published: Department of Archaeology 2024
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access_status_str Open Access
author Mokoena, Nthabiseng
author2 Chirikure, Shadreck
author_browse Chirikure, Shadreck
Mokoena, Nthabiseng
author_facet Chirikure, Shadreck
Mokoena, Nthabiseng
author_sort Mokoena, Nthabiseng
collection Thesis
description This research explores the daily life of past communities that settled atop the mountain known as Thaba-Bosiu through historical and archaeological evidence, in order to understand how they maintained their day-to-day lives during a nation-building period. This study combines archival and desktop studies with oral traditions and excavations to understand the lifeways of people who lived in this revered place. A variety of material culture, primarily beads, local and foreign ceramics, faunal remains and other foreign material were uncovered and analysed. The conclusions made from material analysis reveal the daily practices, economic activities, and interactions of local, regional, and international scale. Crop and livestock production were major socio-political and economic pursuits. Foreign materials uncovered from the site reflect interactions with African, European, and other cultures. The study mobilises these conclusions to provide an alternative narrative to the idea of Thaba-Bosiu as a mere place of conflict. Rather, insights from various sources converge around the view that Thaba-Bosiu was fundamentally a home where different groups mingled, interacted, co-existed, and adjusted to a new world and a new identity.
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institution University of Cape Town (South Africa)
language Eng
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:34:27.383Z
license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2024
publishDateRange 2024
publishDateSort 2024
publisher Department of Archaeology
publisherStr Department of Archaeology
record_format dspace
source_str UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/40389 Thaba-Bosiu, the birthplace of the Basotho nation: a historical archaeological study Mokoena, Nthabiseng Chirikure, Shadreck Hall Simon Archaeology This research explores the daily life of past communities that settled atop the mountain known as Thaba-Bosiu through historical and archaeological evidence, in order to understand how they maintained their day-to-day lives during a nation-building period. This study combines archival and desktop studies with oral traditions and excavations to understand the lifeways of people who lived in this revered place. A variety of material culture, primarily beads, local and foreign ceramics, faunal remains and other foreign material were uncovered and analysed. The conclusions made from material analysis reveal the daily practices, economic activities, and interactions of local, regional, and international scale. Crop and livestock production were major socio-political and economic pursuits. Foreign materials uncovered from the site reflect interactions with African, European, and other cultures. The study mobilises these conclusions to provide an alternative narrative to the idea of Thaba-Bosiu as a mere place of conflict. Rather, insights from various sources converge around the view that Thaba-Bosiu was fundamentally a home where different groups mingled, interacted, co-existed, and adjusted to a new world and a new identity. 2024-07-05T13:01:40Z 2024-07-05T13:01:40Z 2024 2024-07-05T11:03:58Z Thesis / Dissertation Doctoral PhD http://hdl.handle.net/11427/40389 Eng application/pdf Department of Archaeology Faculty of Science
spellingShingle Archaeology
Mokoena, Nthabiseng
Thaba-Bosiu, the birthplace of the Basotho nation: a historical archaeological study
thesis_degree_str Doctoral
title Thaba-Bosiu, the birthplace of the Basotho nation: a historical archaeological study
title_full Thaba-Bosiu, the birthplace of the Basotho nation: a historical archaeological study
title_fullStr Thaba-Bosiu, the birthplace of the Basotho nation: a historical archaeological study
title_full_unstemmed Thaba-Bosiu, the birthplace of the Basotho nation: a historical archaeological study
title_short Thaba-Bosiu, the birthplace of the Basotho nation: a historical archaeological study
title_sort thaba bosiu the birthplace of the basotho nation a historical archaeological study
topic Archaeology
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/40389
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